First Hand Woman

i’m checking this TED video out while working on a film script about romantic love.  it’s by brené brown (no relation) and is about the power of vulnerability.

powerful indeed.

touching + thought-provoking.     :-)

sbtfly:

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If you haven’t seen it yet, check out how I brought my First Hand Woman vibe to a music video I directed last year for Canadian hip hop artist Shad.  To me, the “Keep Shining” video is an ode to the strong and often under-appreciated spirits of women.  This video was designed as a candid and thought/emotion-provoking concept.  As the director of this video, my goals were to create a candid and uplifting experience that featured a wide diversity of women and girls and to also unearth what I felt lay beneath the lyrics:  A call to claim one’s voice.  Early on, I realized a key to this concept:  Shad barely appears in the video.  The ladies would own the lyrics.  For me, it‘s as if Shad is saying “take it, own it, your voice belongs to you.” It was my intention to show strength, vulnerability, joy, catharsis and reclamation of the spirit of all those who appeared in these 3 minutes and 45 seconds.

The process of being the director of this video was a grand adventure!  The women and girls that we cast each brought a unique quality to the project.  I wanted to create a space where they knew that they had the permission to be themselves with all their hopes, fears and dreams.  And I am thrilled with the level of openness, playfulness, vulnerability and bravery that each of them showed when faced with my call of “Action”.  Michie Mee, Canada’s original queen of hip hop also makes a cameo in this video, and I am so excited that she is a part of this collective voice.

One thing that I’d like to say is that it was a great experience working with Shad.  When I sent my half dozen original ideas his way, I thought, no way he’ll go for one that states:  “Shad will barely be seen”.  It is to his tribute that this is the concept he connected to the strongest.  He really wanted women to strut their stuff.  And indeed they did.

I am beyond thrilled to have been able to bring my director’s vision, my way of working and my own personal missions to this project.  My hope is that it will speak to women, girls, men and boys and everything in between.  Let’s all “Keep Shining”.