Award-winning, Boston-bred filmmaker Kayshawn Akime Wallace got into storytelling at Syracuse University while acquiring a degree in U.S History and Cultural Anthropology. Channeling his passion for history into filmmaking, his first official short film Out of Time won Best Horror Film at the Hollywood Gold Short Film Festival and Best First-Time Filmmaker at the San Francisco Indie Short Film Festival. His latest project is the 39 minute short film Shadows In The Mirror, which delves into the tense, boundary-crossing, secret laden breakdown of an open relationship between James (Kameron Basseri) and Veronica (Anna Maria Mojo).

Through his production company Mural Productions, Wallace creates and directs independent films and collaborates with fellow filmmakers’ story development. Attributing his drive and creative spirit to his immigrant, Caribbean parents Ingride Francouer (Haitian) and Tasfa Wallace (Jamaican), Wallace’s work gravitates towards intersecting themes of...

Filmmaking (like raising a child) takes a village and the team behind our Make Your Feature Competition winning film Under The Influencer, is birthing their film with exactly that in mind. By creating what they term Intern University, the production team (comprised of all queer women) is  supporting their budgetary, workflow, and (wo)manpower requirements while elevating a fresh crop of queer, female filmmakers. By employing 12  film school interns in various positions on their crew after putting them through a training program prior to the shoot, the team has provided an exceptional opportunity for those who may not otherwise be afforded a chance to gain experience which would in turn connect and qualify them for future assignments in Hollywood. “With a diverse cast and crew, our priority is that everyone feels safe and welcome, and by setting and articulating those expectations before filming begins, we hope to see our goals of positive and respectful...

A film score has the power to elevate a scene, drive the story forward, and heighten a film's impact beyond the visual medium. The sonic landscape provided by a score helps create a mood, convey the psychological state of the characters, color the scenery, and deliver a collective emotional tone. It is no wonder that the winner of our Make Your Feature Competition, Mars Roberge sought out English composer and musician Michael Cashmore to design the score for his feature film Stars. Cashmore has been a longtime staple of the underground progressive folk and industrial new wave scenes, well known for creating music under the moniker Nature and Organisation (since the 80's), his own namesake (since 2006), as well as as his extensive contributions composing for Current 93 (for over 20 years).

Currently living in Berlin, Cashmore is respected as one of Britain's most influential and inspiring composers. His...

Behind every successful film is usually a lengthy list of producers and associate partners. A savvy filmmaker understands what it means to discover, foster, and cement these lucrative and instrumental relationships. Securing a resourceful, competent, and benevolent cheerleader can oftentimes spell the difference between simply finishing a project, and enjoying the process of making a piece of art. For filmmaker Mars Roberge, winner of our We Make Movies Make Your Feature Competition, his trusted partner in crime on several projects (five in total) has been New York based Kenneth Shaw. The two have collaborated alongside associate producer Debra Haden (also Roberge's wife) on Roberge's past two feature films, and for Stars, added WMM and executive producer (and investor) Sam Mestman to the mix. 

Aside from supporting Roberge on his cinematic endeavors, Shaw runs Four Shaw Entertainment, a full...

Princeton University and AFI alumnus, writer / director Matt Marder gives WMM the scoop behind his sci-fi western feature Gold Mine, about an up and coming pop singer who decides to enter a virtual reality program to try and recharge her dad's memories and bring him back to life from a coma. Marder reconvened with producer Sydney K., co-director Adam Chase Cohen, and actress Alanna Fox (Black-ish, Curb Your Enthusiasm, I'm Dying Up Here), who previously all collaborated on Marder's series Shifter.

The visual aesthetic of Gold Mine is a mix of Wong Kar-Wai, Alex Garland, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Denis Villeneuve. The creative team tirelessly worked to create the looks (KC Mussman), visuals (Nocturnal Designz), set decoration (Bailey Gerdy), and costumes (Roberto Andrade) for this film, heavily inspired by the works of Christopher Nolan, Stanley Kubrick, David Lynch, Kathryn Bigelow, and Edgar Wright.

WMM: What compelled...

American activist and reproductive rights crusader Gloria Steinem's words ring true through director Mark Hensley, who helmed Uncut, a short film inspired by the recent Texas abortion law. The film opens with a speech by the newly elected president of the New Republic Patriot Party, talking about the new law that requires all males over 35 to be sterilized to keep the gene pool strong. The main character, about to turn 35, doesn't want to submit to the forced sterilization. He learns about an underground railroad that helps men like him to escape the country, and he goes on the run.

Conjuring up imagery and conceptually in line with yet another feminist icon's work, novelist  Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid's Tale), the film boasts an all-star cast of Sam Meader (Pam and Tommy, Into The Arms of Danger, Bosch), Max E....

We Make Movies has provided venues and platforms for independent filmmakers of all ilks to share their work in a safe, constructive, positive environment. All of the labs in our lab pipeline provide opportunities for artists to bring in their work (at whatever stage they are in)  with the hopes that our audience of creatives will share feedback for how to improve and optimize the project. Our Writers Lab allows writers to bring in fresh pages (from portions of their scripts) for actors to stage read so the writers can hear their ideas, dialogue, and craftsmanship come to life, but this means that there is a room full of others who are also privy to these new ideas, dialogue, and craftsmanship as well. So how can writers protect their intellectual property and safeguard their originality? What constitutes a script or screenplay? What is copyright and why do writers need it? We explain it all below!

A script is a written blueprint of a play, show, or movie. A screenplay...

Allen Cordell's narrative debut The Lizard Laughed enjoys its world premiere at the Oscar-qualifying Florida Film Festival this week (April 8-17). Hailed as "a breathtaking love letter to New Mexico’s backcountry," the 21 minute film tells the tale of an awkward, confrontational reunion when Harvey gets an unexpected visit from Nathan, his son he hasn’t seen since abandoning him years ago. A comedy about feeling disconnected from the people who should be most important to us in life, the film is based on Noah Van Sciver's acclaimed indie comic of the same name.

The film stars cult comedy gem Sky Elobar (Greasy Strangler, Tropical Cop Tales, Under the Silverlake, Don Verdean and Lady Dynamite) as Harvey, and longtime WMM member and award winning actor Jared Boghosian (The Channel, The Witch Files, Jane the Virgin, SWAT) as Nathan. Cordell's previous projects includes music...