Reviews of "BIG DREAMS IN LITTLE HOPE" (AKA "MOM")

Metro Weekly Rating: (5 out of 5) CRITIC'S PICK! by Randy Shulman "THIS IS WHY we go to film festivals -- to unearth a rare gem like Mom." - Randy Shulman Directed by Erin Greenwell, winner of the 2003 Reel Affirmations Plant A Seed grant, this is a terrific little film that's relayed on an intimate, human scale and laced with wonderful grace notes that combine to pay off in an ending that leaves you grinning ear-to-ear. Emily Burton plays Kelly, a market researcher with aspirations of being a TV news field reporter. She's shipped off to Little Hope to gather data for her marketing firm, accompanied by Linda (Julie Goldman), a butch, talkative cameraperson who has aspirations of her own (she wants to be a tattoo artist). Their adventure together has its ups and downs -- when the local hotel runs out of rooms, they're required to stay at a Youth Hostel, presided over by a snarling manager (pitch-perfect Mary C. Matthews) -- but when all is said and done, they learn a few things about themselves and each other that helps them gain a greater perspective about life ''What's your best day ever?'' asks the ceaselessly inquisitive Linda of Kelly. ''I've never had a best day,'' comes the reply, ''because I always wanted to be someplace better.'' Great films don't just happen -- they are often created out of passion, talent and vision. Greenwell has so much passion, talent and vision to spare, she should bottle it and sell it off the shelf to her colleagues. She has a solid crew working with her, including director of photography George Su, who, using digital video, creates a bright, sunny, lush look for Mom. Though still a little rough in spots, Mom's overall pacing is spot on, its script witty, natural and intelligent, and the performances Greenwell coaxes from her mostly female cast are exceptional. Goldman is a revelation -- warm, funny, poignant. And Burton makes the insufferably high-strung Kelly a sympathetic character. This film is a first step for Greenwell -- but it's one hell of a confident step. With any luck it will lead to a long and fruitful road of films that, like Mom, entertain and delight while gently touching our hearts. original link here By RONNIE SCHEIB In Erin Greenwell's female buddy movie, "Mom," a mismatched odd couple of market researchers, one uptight and straight and the other hang-loose and butch, is stranded in the town of New Hope during the annual Chili Cook-Off. Practiced sketch thesps Emily Burton and Julie Goldman keep the character comedy light, affable and neatly-timed as they ask overly specific questions in customer preference surveys, hole up in a local hostel and grapple with old girlfriends or new job opportunities. Minor but likable pic could transition from gay fest circuit to cable. Ambitious Kelly (Burton) sees her stint at a market research firm as a stepping stone to a coveted job as a field reporter. Her laid-back cameraperson Linda (Goldman) sees the assignment as a means of earning enough money to buy a tattoo parlor. Traveling house to house and asking questions whose relevance strains credulity, the duo is hardly simpatico. One of the interview subjects turns out to be an old g.f. of Linda's, now respectably settled and married, and they briefly rekindle the flame. Meanwhile, career-minded Kelly aggressively pursues a possible position at a radio station. Ultimately, however, the local Chili Cook-Off allows the womento bond in a relatively meaningful, if comically doomed joint endeavor. Greenwell, in her sophomore outing, relies on little comic touches and bits of business instead of big laughs or elaborate payoffs. Every encounter adds a touch of sociological satire or oddball color to the comfortable canvas, which is never mean-spirited or judgmental. Burton and Goldman amble along nicely in soft-shoe counterpoint, their routine nonchalantly synchronized to improv rhythms. George Su's DV lensing stresses the intimacy and smalltown feel of the location shooting without feeling claustrophobic. Terry Dame's bouncy score is in line with the pic's gentle irony. original link here Reel Affirmations makes the grade Local gay film festival celebrates 15 years with screen gems and a few clunkers Friday, October 14, 2005 “...Get ready for some new favorites, like lesbian buddy movie Mom” - Washington Blade Type -A market researcher Kelly (Emily Burton) teams up with lesbian cameraperson and aspiring tattoo artist Linda (lesbian comedian Julie Goldman) in this classic buddy movie with a lesbian twist from director Erin Greenwell. As the two women travel cross-country together, Linda irritates Kelly with her endless stream of offbeat questions and commentary. Linda doesn’t win any points for screwing up a hotel reservation, which results in the two women staying in a small-town youth hostel ... As with most buddy movies, this is funny and engaging and, despite rehashing old ground, feels fresh and lively due to the excellent comedic training of its leads. (KV) Grade: A- excerpts from: Coming to a Theater Soon...Hopefully by Amy Silverman Curve Magazine Feb 2006 Volume 16 #1 WHILE MORE INDIE FILMS ARE BEING MADE BY large studios, queer filmmakers continue to struggle to make movies that reflect their experiences. Some lesbian filmmakers have decided to use grass-roots fundraising strategies rather than waiting around for their big break. "Every time a lesbian movies comes out, go see it, " says writer-director Erin Greenwell. "It says, 'My vote has been cast -- I want to see a film that features gay characters." Greenwell can't emphasize enough the importance of perserverance. "People who get projects made don't give up. ... If you keep showing up, something will happen." Citing growing outlets for gay programming and distribution...Greenwell says she thinks the market is ripe for all kinds of stories to be told. She brings it back to her horse race anologies; "The horse doesn't care who's betting on it. it always runs just as fast. I need to put blinders on and just run".

Excerpts from Cowboy down The Gay & Lesbian Film/Video Festival in the shadow of Brokeback By: PETER KEOUGH Erin Greenwell’s Mom (2006; May 12, 7 pm, with star Julie Goldman and director Erin Greenwell present) might match Dunn’s film in threadbare budget, funky detail, and first-rate acting, but she strays far from Dogme in her embrace of generic conventions — in this case the buddy movie. Straight and humorless, Kelly (Emily Burton) works for a PR firm, dropping in on random households and asking questions like “How would you like your house to smell?” and “If there was more orange juice available, would you drink it?” Her dream is to become a TV reporter. Linda (a hilarious Julie Goldman), her butch and easygoing cameraperson, has ambitions also. She wants to open a tattoo parlor someday; in the meantime, she practices on oranges. They make a strained working unit that’s tested when they’re sent to the redneck town of Little Hope on assignment. The annual chili cook-off has filled all the town’s hotel rooms, and they have to stay at a youth hostel. The comic options get unwieldy, but Greenwell and Goldman keep it light and quirky. And in this successful accommodation of a queer sensibility to mainstream demands, the characters attempt to do the same, with mixed if entertaining results. original link here

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Reviews of "21"


Curve Article
curve magazine march 2003 issue
Afternoon Delights
Erin Greenwell Q&A
by Diane Anderson-Minshall

AFTER BIG-BUDGET FILMS WITH mere glimpses of lesbians - Salma Hayek's Frida and Nicole Kidman's The Hours - it's refreshing to see quirkier dyke fare is out there, from after-school specials to African musicals to ass-kicking anime.

Erin Greenwell spent years seeking funding for her featuring film about the 1950s working-class butch-femme bar scene. When Hollywood didn't call, she put the feature on the back burner and created 21. An hour-long sleeper hit about a highschool dyke, 21 made 30 year old Greenwell popular with lesbians everywhere.

Erin Greenwell's delightfully sentimental 21 (www.smithyproductions.com) follows a week in the life of Leigh, one of those dorky, butchy, band-geek teens to whom working- class lesbians can relate. Her divorced mom can't pay the bills and her self-absorbed jock brother spends far too much of his time tormenting her. Thank God for Jen, the bandmate whom Leigh spends endless hours fantasizing about. In the great tradition of after-school specials, there's a happy ending and, before you can say "Kristy McNichol" Leigh gets to kiss the girl. Though the teens are actors (lead Rachel Style was in Killing Time), they look like Greenwell just plucked them out of highschool.

da-The film has an after-school special feel. Was that intentional?
eg- Yes and no. I love traditional story lines because they are accessible to everyone. So I did write a very nostalgic, coming-of-age, first-love story, but it starred a lesbian instead of a teenage straight boy. But honestly, I didn't mean to mix the two to make a statement. I had a screening of 21 where a straight teenage Muslim came up to me and told me he completely identified with Rachel Style's character. ... That thrilled me, because it opens up the floodgates to who can tell what type of story and what type of story is interesting.

da- Rachel did a great job. How did you attract her to the project?
eg-[She] was a miracle. I ... called in about 40 actresses and just prayed. As soon as Rachel started to read for the audition, I was pretty much mapping out the shooting schedule. ... It was like the same exact feeling [you get] when you find a great apartment.

da-How much and how long did the project take?
eg- 21 cost $3,000. The entire project ... took six months. We had 13 shoot days total, but they were stretched out over the course of three months, because everybody had nine-to-five jobs.

da- What's next?
eg-Beat Down - it's about a lesbian boxer in El Barrio, New York City. ... I think everyone secretly loves boxing stories because boxing is such a visually direct way to pull about conflicts - a woman against herself, a woman against society. But the movie really is much more about her relationships and community.



indieWIRE/ 06.19.02)
FEATURE: Cathartic, If Repetitive:
This Summer's Gay Fest Highlights
by Brandon Judell

Erin Greenwell's spirited "21" perfectly captures the anxieties of dysfunctional sibling behavior among teens and those first pangs of same-sex passion. Throngs of women with bad posture will identify with Ms. Rachel Style, a fresh young actress who blesses her gangliness with charm. Steve Porcelli as the bastard bro is eye-candy for the gay boys who show up with their lesbian roommates. And, yes, we do get to see him wrestle in one of those tight little Spandex suits.

[ original link here]

Metro Weekly
Published on 10/17/2002
"21"

Erin Greenwell’s delightful romp through adolescence evokes some potentially troubled times in a marvelously lighthearted manner.

Fifteen-year old Leigh (Rachel Style) plays third chair trumpet in her school band and second child in a broken, dysfunctional family. Two things brighten her days: calypso music and a crush on her bandmate, Jen (Naomi Peters).

Leigh has a lot going on in her life: her mother (Marina Lutz) can’t seem to hold down a job or keep the utilities paid up; her super-jock brother, John (played to the hilt by Steve Porcelli) lives to torment Leigh; and her father (the delightfully vague Bill Graber) comes back to town to try and bond with his kids (but who knows how long he’s staying for). In this mix, having a queer first crush on your best friend from band is just one more straw to add to the camel’s back.

And break that back does, as the drama in each of these relationships comes to a head, forcing everyone to come to a new level together.

In Greenwell’s skilled hands, and against a background of delightful music (Harry Belafonte, Astrud Gilberto, and even some happy Billie Holiday), Leigh, along with the rest of her fumbling family, maneuver their way through their dramas and traumas with humor and a lovely lack of elegance.

The joy of Leigh’s first kiss is matched by the hilarity of Leigh’s final rebellion against her brother’s torments and the emergence of her new identity as one of the more sane people in her circle of family and friends. -- NL

[original link here]

CP Arts
Queer Notions
Reel Affirmations Festival
21

Leigh, the 15-year-old protagonist of 21, has enough problems in her life without factoring in her attraction to her best friend, Jen. Her mother's broke, her father enters and exits her life without warning, and her older brother's an ass (though a funny one).

Leigh's only salvation is her diary, in which she describes the curve of Jen's lips, fantasizes about a kiss, and analyzes each day's interaction for a clue about that kiss's probability.

As played by Rachel Style, Leigh is hardly a poor-me girl who just needs to take off her glasses to reveal the beauty that no one's yet noticed. She's a typical teen, kind of gangly and awkward, and writer- director Erin Greenwell adds details such as Leigh's love of big-band music to give her a beyond-her-years quality that makes her easy to cheer for.

At 50 minutes, 21 is a slight slice of life, but one that skillfully combines humor and pathos to make it more satisfying than many of its full-length, big-budget counterparts.

—Tricia Olszewski

[ original link here]


Lesbianation.com

Turning “21”
08.01.02
By Cheryl B.

Erin Greenwell is a filmmaker based in Brooklyn. Her feature “21” recently premiered to sold-out crowds at The New Festival in New York City and in San Francisco’s Castro theater as part of the Frameline film festival. ..."21" was also chosen to be presented in a special screening at the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Bamcinematek in September.

“21” is a sweet lesbian coming-of-age story that also explores the intricacies of working-class family life in a way that is both unflinching and lighthearted. I recently caught up with Ms. Greenwell to talk about “21”, filmmaking, groupies and life as a lesbian artist.

cb- Can you tell us a little about “21“? How was it conceived?
eg- “21” was originally going to be a short called “How I knew I was a lesbian.” It started with the idea of two girls sitting next to each other and one innocently jokes, “our knees are kissing" and the other girl’s internal love crushed reaction is the punch line. Then I expanded that idea to the two girls sitting together in band class, then it sort of grew into a larger screenplay. Then all of the family stuff spilled out around the girls and suddenly in a day and a half, I had written a sixty-page screenplay!

cb- There’s a lot about family and class in “21“, are these topics that are very important to you?
eg- Yeah. I would say. I always root for the underdog in stories so the dysfunction of families and the trials of not being able to have enough money are always to immediate interest to me. It’s also an interesting conflict to put characters in. It’s particularly strong in “21” because I did grow up with limited funds and the strength of our family is what got us through. I don’t consciously write about either of these topics, but they find their way in.

cb- How long have you been making films?
eg- I graduated from NYU’s Dramatic Writing program in 1994 and started producing videos, mostly shorts and documentaries. I got a lot of my production experience in public access. I love video. I don’t consider myself a filmmaker because I really don’t know film. I consider myself a videomaker! Video is great because it’s cheap and you’re not limited creatively as much by lack of funds as you are in film.

cb- How long did it take to make “21” and how did you finance it?
eg- On and off, it took about six months. There were only fifteen shoot days total, but everyone in the cast and crew worked 9-5 jobs, so we could only do it on weekends. My motto with them was “Don’t lose any work or money!” The cast was incredibly dedicated and sweet. I financed the production with my own money from a freelance editing job. I only spent about $3000.

cb- The love scenes between the two girls are so sweet and very genuine. Are they based on a real-life adolescent experience?
eg- Yes and no. I consolidated a lot of experiences into one. The masturbation scene was right on the money. My “first time,” with a girl, involved a lot of peach coolers and my first kiss wasn’t as sweet as the one in the film. I wanted to make their first time extremely awkward. The actresses, Rachel Style and Naomi Peters were incredibly intuitive in those scenes. I was very impressed with them. Their chemistry was so good.

cb- Can you tell us a little about your workshops at Dyke-TV? Do you teach anywhere else?
eg- I teach Final Cut Pro classes which is what I used to cut “21.” I did it right on my computer at home. The workshop is a 2-day class. I started working with them when I made a couple of shorts for their show which is magazine format.

cb- Has touring with your film brought you any groupies? You seemed pretty swamped by cute girls at The New Festival screening!
eg- It's hard because I'm naturally so shy and self-effacing that it would make me uncomfortable if someone was a groupie towards me. Plus working in video is very fun and rewarding but there's also a lot of self-doubt and hard work and anxiety that I'm sort-of like, “Save the wonder and awe for yourself because you're doing the same thing I'm doing!” Production is hard at any level so I feel like we're (women/independent artists) all role models to each other just by hanging in.

cb- Have you faced any discrimination as a woman/queer filmmaker?
eg- Yes. But it’s a compromise I accept in the sense that it’s not tremendously marketable to write about lesbians, class or non-traditionally attractive women. I could choose to write marketable things but I don’t. So, that’s a discrimination I face, but I’m okay with that. The daily affront that comes with that is that I’m not making a lot of money. But, it’s also the reward in a way because I get to do what I want to do. I think story telling is important, but there are a lot harder jobs people do for a lot less pay.

cb- What are you working on now?
eg- Paul Barrera, the cinematographer on “21” is planning on doing his coming-of-age story and I would like to help him because he helped me so much. I’ve also written a screenplay about a lesbian boxer and her girlfriend. I’m going to try to attract some funding through grants and investors. If I don’t raise the money in eight months, I’m probably going to do it anyway, like I did with “21.” “21” was such a collaborative process, at the very least I plan on turning around and crewing on the projects headed by people who crewed on mine. I just want to work a lot.

“21” will be shown at BAMcinematek on September 7-8.

You can find out more information about Erin Greenwell and her films at and her films at www.smithyproductions.com.
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"Commitment Ceremony"
(Music Video Co-directed and Produced with Julie Goldman)

Best Comedy Shorts
Commitment Ceremony (Smithy Productions)

Commitment Ceremony is a delight-ful comedy based on Julie Goldman’s titular (no pun intended) rock anthem spoofing the absurdity and unfairness of same-sex couples not having equal access to marriage. The film intercuts hysterical scenes of Goldman proposing to her “very special,significant,really good friend” during a romantic dinner, attempting to carry her over the threshold (huffing and puffing up three flights of stairs while singing that she would fix her car—“because I’m butch!”) and getting “commitment ceremonied” among kvelling friends and relatives in Prospect Park with music-video-style scenes on a Manhattan rooftop, where Goldman rocks out and goofs around with her guitar player.

“My hope is to entertain and show how silly it is to make gay people use
different verbiage than their straight counterparts.It was also during the time I was planning my own wedding and was so sick of both sides arguing about gay marriage,”says Goldman.“No one gets a vote on my life.If I want to be married to a woman and use the word‘marriage,’as is my right as a tax-paying citizen of this country, then it’s my right. If you don’t want to have a marriage, then don’t have one.To me,it’s a matter of choice and human and civil rights.I will not accept anything but the samerights and privileges as every other citizen. I am over it. I don’t want to wait for my rights anymore.”

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General yacking away




AfterEllen.com
Interview with Filmmaker Erin Greenwell
November 9, 2005
by Dasha Snyder

Erin Greenwell is the founder of the filmmaking collective Smithy Productions, and the writer/director/producer of Mom, a new comedy featuring lesbian comedienne Julie Goldman.Mom is a buddy road movie with a lesbian twist, and a message to buck up any despairing soul. Fellow filmmaker Dasha Snyder sat down with Erin to chat about Mom, her inspirations and aspirations, and the state of queer filmmaking.

AfterEllen.com: What made you want to go into film?
Erin Greenwell: I like the magic trick of: this is completely constructed, it’s gone through 55 levels of construction but when the person sits in the audience and just laughs or cries - that’s the magic trick. And I love that everyone can be in on the magic trick: the audience, myself, the actors, the writer, the crew. To me, it’s one of the strongest ways of collective storytelling. That’s the reason I like to tell stories.

AE: Is that one of the reasons you formed a filmmaking collective?
EG: Yeah. Smithy Productions, which is a rotating collective. Basically if you want to be a part of Smithy Productions, you just volunteer and we work together. (laughs)

AE: Easy right?
EG: Easy, right. I think one of the more daunting things in film is, if you have one idea and everyone thinks you can’t do it, it becomes exhausting and you end up not doing it. It’s terrifying to hear that you can’t do it. But if you have a lot of people, who care about what they do 100%, say “Yeah, we can do it!”

I went to a panel discussion and was asked “What advice can you give filmmakers?” Get your priorities straight and get your nerve up. And just know that you’re going to be doubting yourself a hundred times a day. You’ve probably had this experience, too: I went to a panel discussion at Reel Affirmations on Women in Film and I was soaring for 2 days after. Where someone said “Hat’s off to YOU, Erin Greenwell!” And I was like “Oh, this is so GOOD!” And then I get home and the phone message is “Ms. Greenwell, this is Chase Manhattan Bank and you owe...” And it drives you crazy.

You can achieve creatively so much, and then the reality is like: What am I doing? This is so self-indulgent. I’m running out of money. I have to work 3 jobs. I can’t do it. I can’t do it. I can’t do it. Then you get a call: “Hey, I’m off Saturday and I have a mic you can borrow.” And all of a sudden the energy is: I can. I can. I can. So, that’s the long-winded version of the biggest person to say that I can’t do this is me, and the biggest person to say I can are the people around me.

AE: Thus, the collective.
EG: I’m good at gathering people and getting them to respond positively, but if they only knew the darkest corners of my mind... If you push and you push and you push what you know in your heart of hearts is fantastic, all it takes is 2 other people to say “you know, that’s fantastic” and you know you can get it done. The big trick in moviemaking is that people make it sound like the moviemaking is hard. Getting money, getting the resources...

AE: But that IS hard.
EG: It is. But, to me it’s kind of the delight. If you’re passionate and creative, that’s not the hard part. For me, it’s the pitching yourself, reinforcing yourself, convincing other people you can do it. That’s a lot of mental work that people usually don’t open up about. No one likes the loser who’s going to admit that part. (laughs)

AE: Do you find it’s all tied up in ego? I found that I had to lose my ego to get my film made. To be willing to talk to anyone and ask anything of anybody to get it done. Has that been your experience, too?
EG: Yeah. I actually don’t feel bad about asking people for favors, as long as I can make it worth their while. I never have trouble asking for help. I have trouble when I’m editing --the “oh my god, I hate myself” part when the weight of everyone that believed in it is crushing. But I love the set-up. ‘Cause I direct a lot, and I don’t feel like a director. I just feel like the one point everyone knows.
AE: Which is what a director, is, does.
EG: True, but I think there’s a misperception that directors have these massive egos and that’s how they pull it off. Not necessarily; sometimes the director has to let go completely to allow all these people to work independently.

I studied screenwriting at Tisch School of the Arts (NYU), I fell into editing documentaries when I got out of school. Then I floated into narrative because I started running footage, and learning coverage through watching produced video. And more and more I started understanding a lot of different parts on set. I think that’s very important. I like that I know that much. It A) helps you trust that everyone is going to do their job and it B) helps you be autonomous. At least I can gain the trust of the light guy or at least be able to finish the shoot if something goes wrong.

Sometimes it’s a hindrance. Rose Troché wrote a really good thing in her Go Fish book. She said that a lot of new filmmakers take on everything and, as you get better, you have to learn to let everything go. So, I love that I know a lot, but I also love that I can get to a place where I can start spreadin’ the work out. When I was 22 I remember going to a shoot: literally, I was the boom person and the cameraperson and the director and my boom was on a mop. Like, I unscrewed the head of a mop--

AE: --and put a microphone in?
EG: Yeah.

AE: Clever.
EG: Yeah, it’s inspiring, (laughs) but after a while it’s unnecessary. It’s good foundation building for understanding how to work, but after a while you’re going to burn yourself out if you keep being the martyr director. You know? I’m not a fan of being a martyr director anymore. As long as trucks of people are going to do their jobs, then let people have fun and do the best they do.

AE: How do you feel about digital filmmaking?
EG: Unfortunately, you’ll find no bigger advocate of digital filmmaking than I.

AE: Why’s that unfortunate?
EG: I mean I love it, I love it, I love it. ‘Cause I respect the tradition of film. There’s a kind of a sanctity around film. I think there’s a lot of distrust of digital filmmakers because they assume it’s all about the quick and easy path to making a movie. But to me, it’s good that it’s a quick and easy path to making the movie, ‘cause it’s so hard to get the money. And so, as long as you have training in storytelling, training in production, training in editing, why not be able to hack through the huge wall of finances, and get where you have to go - which is tell a story? Since the aesthetic is becoming accepted, it’s ready to go.

AE: How do you think it’s enabled LGBT cinema? Do you think it’s allowed what’s already essentially an Indie aesthetic to grow? Or do you think it’s hindered us because the market’s been flooded?
EG: A little bit of both. I remember when Go Fish and Clerks came out. It was such an exciting year. I and soon after The English Patient, which was an independent, won the Oscar. And then Frances McDormand won for Fargo. I kept thinking “This is IT. This is IT.” And a year later it was “So, you made a movie, AND?” Before it used to be impressive that you could finish a movie.

AE: It IS impressive to finish a movie.
EG: But then it became impressive that you could finish a movie and do it on the cheap and win something. Now it’s bottomed-out and circled-in on itself. Where it’s like: “Who’s your star?” So, in a way, the playing field got leveled, but then it got completely gobbled-up to the point now, that you have to work twice as hard because it’s that much more competitive. But I also think: “Fine.” It’s always going to be competitive. I teach at NYU and I tell my students: The good thing is, the playing field is leveled. The bad news is that twice as many people are involved and the good news, again, is that half those people are going to drop out when they realize it’s not glamorous and fun. It always bottoms out, and you have to fight to find a new way to be independent, to become new, beyond the medium that presents these financial obstacles.

AE: What do you think of all the new outlets for gay media? Logo, Here! TV, etc... There’s not just gay film festivals anymore. What about marketing your indie film to outlets?
EG: I think it’s fantastic that the way you can distribute your work and exhibit your work isn’t just sitting in the dark with a bunch of people staring at a 40-foot screen. Although, that’s my main goal, and that’s the most romantic, wonderful way I want to see my stuff shown.
But it’s so wonderful, because so many people get to see your work. I had someone e-mail me from Texas about my first feature, “21.” She said “OK, I’ve seen the trailer 20 times, can you please send me a VHS copy?” And I thought: Oh my God. Some lesbian in Texas is watching a 2-minute trailer over and over and over again because there’s not that proliferation of queer stuff in mainstream media. Someone’s sittin’ in front of their computer watching a trailer.

AE: God bless the Internet. And the growing gay market.
EG: Amen. That’s a wonderful thing. I hate to say “isn’t that great - it’s becoming marketable.” You know what--it is great that it’s becoming marketable, because the wider the acceptance is, the more we can get away with producing what we really want to produce. I don’t want to disrespect The L Word, but when people rag on The L Word and say “It’s crap, it’s crap, it’s crap.” I’m like: ”And you know what? Good. Who cares? ‘Cause at least now people are used to seeing lesbians the way they want to see them. Now we’re going to make sure we show them the way we want to see them.” The door’s a little bit more open. It’s not open the way we want it to be--some people say “That’s not me, that’s not me, that’s not me.” True, it’s not us, but guess what? We’re going to sneak in, now.

AE: We already snuck in.
EG: It’s like I want to get in some club, and some shady person is like (looking both ways) “Shh. I’ll get you in.”

AE: A shady person with a lot of money and connections.
EG: Yeah, but the more, the better. If I see a bad action film, I’m not going to say “Hey, that’s not the way straight white men are.” But we have so little. I understand why I get panicked when I see something I don’t agree with that’s queer; Because I’m waiting and so desperate to see something that’s true. It is frustrating, but the more there is, the more we can have diversity. We can have tacky characters, we can have victims, we can have heroes, we can have losers. We can have whatever we want. We just gotta’ keep pumpin’ it out, though. ‘Cause then it won’t be such a big deal when you see “Monster” that this is going to look bad for us. You’ll just say: that’s a character I identify with or don’t. It was poorly written or it wasn’t. And you don’t have to worry about the impact it’s going to have on your community.

AE: But you worry about impacting the community a lot.
EG: I care a lot about my community. BUT, I also think that all of us filmmakers, if you want to produce fluff, go for it. But if you want to produce what you think is the ultimate truth, you’ve got to go for that, too. We all have a right to just get it out, get it out, get it out.

AE: Well, you’re getting Mom the movie out. Want to tell us a little about that?
EG: I’m producing a comedy that features Julie Goldman, the well-loved comic Julie Goldman. Who you can also see in The D Word on the festival circuit. Julie’s the first and only openly lesbian character on The Sopranos, she’s a great stand-up comedienne, has a one-woman show...

AE: Comic goddess.
EG: Yes! And also featuring Emily Burton, also of The D Word and from Lesbian Pulp-O-Rama. And she is hilarious. It crosses over being a lesbian movie, but also with anOdd Couple twist to it. It’s about a market researcher and her fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants cameraperson stuck on the road doing market research for a company called OPENCAN. It’s a situational comedy where they get stuck in a podunk town and have to stay at a youth hostel. The story’s kind of a morality comedy, where the morality is: Wherever you go, there you are.

AE: Very Buckaroo Bonzai.
EG: (laughs) Yeah. It features a lesbian protagonist. It’s a slice of life comedy, but it offers a more sparse dimension to what we’re being presented. Once again, that’s a problem I have with a lot of the lesbian representation out there; it’s either sanitized or victimized, and there’s no kind of range in between. So, the kind of movies or screenplays I produce are simple stories, but ones that resonate as being universal. And not in the way everyone says “Oh, art is so universal.” Then how come we don’t see any lesbians, if it’s so universal?

I like to write very classic stories, classic comedies, but then fuck it up (excuse my language) by tossing in a lesbian character. So someone doesn’t have to go and dissect this buddy movie with 2 men and imagine if they were one of the guys. There’s going to be a lesbian right here, and it’s Julie Goldman, and have fun!
The most exciting thing about that is, like when I did 21, people identified with that character (Leigh, a gangly baby dyke played by Rachel Style) because it rang true. I had so many men identify with that character because she was awkward. She’s an awkward teenager--that’s all you need to know. It also wasn’t one of those sanitized things, like she’s an awkward character and she’s also a lesbian. It’s not a tag “and she happens to be gay.” No. She’s 100% gay, she has desires, she has dreams, but she’s also--ALSO--all these things. It’s not an accident. I like to create things like: here’s a lesbian and, in case you didn’t know, she happens to have crushes, happens to have dreams, you know? So, the same thing with Mom.

AE: So, where did the story for Mom come from? What was your inspiration?
EG: The story came from two places. I was a transcriptionist for a company that did market research, as one of my 100 shit jobs. So, I would get all these weird tapes, where people would be like “If I had a four-door, I’d like it to have screens.” There are people who go out and shoot about whatever product they’re trying to sell. They also tape the house and ask personal questions, so when they make commercials, they can gear the products towards that personal part of the market. And I noticed as I started watching the footage, the camera work got sloppier and sloppier, and the person doing the interview started getting more and more disheveled--to the point where the interviewer in a suit walked up to the camera on a Dutch angle and ripped duct tape off of half the lens.

And I’m cracking up, ‘cause I’ve been doing this transcription for 18 hours. I’m ripping through tapes, getting paid $100 bucks a tape and I’m like: “Wow. I wonder if those guys are gettin’ on each other’s nerves...?” Her hair is gettin’ more and more messed-up. Her hair started out perfect, and by the end she’s like a total wreck; Everything. I thought: that would be a really fun thing, to get an uptight person and pair them with someone who’s just doing’ it for the money, and make them uncomfortable. It’s the obvious thing to do - get 2 opposites and stick them in a room together.

AE: My playwriting teacher used to say: Stick them on a train and start peeling the onions.
EG: Yeah, if you know the characters you’re working with, you can get ‘em in trouble forever.

AE: Layer by layer.
EG: As long as you’ve got the emotional center of how to mess them up, it’s great.

AE: Especially for the audience.
EG: The secondary thing of where to strand them came from when I was stuck at a youth hostel years ago. And there was this code: if the bunks are rockin’, don’t come a knockin’. All the women we had to share the room with, like halfway through the night you’d hear “Squeak, squeak, squeak” and you’d look around and all the top bunks were filled and all the bottom bunks were empty. And I was like: Oh my God, I just want to sleep and there’s all these baby dykes gettin’ it on! So I thought, I’ll stick those characters there, and then I’ll just let them explode.

Sometimes people say: For God sakes! Can’t you write something that doesn’t have a lesbian in it? Sure, if it comes to me. But how can I help but toss a lesbian character in, when it’s a part of me? And I grew up wishing I could see that part of me. And I love film. So, for me, this is the best way I can contribute. Keep writing lesbian comedy and producing.

AE: Do you have any plans beyond Mom? What do you want to do next?
EG: This is gonna’ sound unglamorous. You want to see the trajectory of my life? I would love to keep producing lesbian comedies. Keep being able to set up a collective and connect people to each other. If I could have my master, master goal... When I’m older, I would love to run a business arts school for women. I really do love teaching. I would be in heaven if I could make movies half the year and teach the other half. Keep making movies, keep helping people make movies, keep being involved with people’s dreams and just teach my heart out.

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