DIVA, 13min., France, Dramedy
Directed by Christopher Mack
What would you do to be a star? On a film with no budget? Audrey, a working actor, is determined to follow her dreams to shine, but finds herself up against growing challenges. Diva is a timely, comedic, and sharp commentary on working in the film industry as a female actor. It explores victimization and complicity in film making.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21054686/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_5
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085008320591

Director Statement
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

What would you do to be a star? On a film with no budget? Audrey, a working actor, is determined to follow her dreams to shine, but finds herself up against growing challenges. Diva is a timely, comedic, and sharp commentary on working in the film industry as a female actor. It explores victimization and complicity in film making.

I wanted to poke fun at the stereotypical image of the actor as a diva, by showing that this notion of the difficult actor is often far from reality. Most actors are not stars; they are struggling artists, hard workers, motivated to shine in a field where they have little control. Diva explores the systemic abuse that actors can face. I have been working professionally as an acting coach for more than 25 years. In this market that is saturated with many talented actors, not a year goes by without me hearing horror stories from actors about how they are treated by producers, directors, agents, and more.

The central conflict is between Audrey and her director with his film crew. Every step of the way, from the casting office to the final shoot, Audrey faces new challenges to her dignity. She wants to succeed, but at what cost? There is a sort of forced complicity that obliges her to go on. She is ambitious, but there is an unhealthy price.

I want the audience to understand, through humor, that true actors are not divas, but instead are generous. They offer everything they can, and on film shoots there can often be a sort of manipulation by consent that goes on, whereby actors end up in unsafe situations. And of course, objectification and the male gaze can make this even more difficult for female actors. But for both men and women, for the actor who wants to succeed, what choice do they have?

And how can we take more care to protect everyone in the process?

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?
I make my living, in part, as an acting coach in Paris, France. I also run workshops coaching directors on how to work with actors. Pretty much all the stories in the film are based on true accounts I have heard from actors about experiences in the industry over the years. And it got me thinking about passion which can sometimes lead to systemic abuse in filmmaking.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?
I wrote the first draft of the script in November of 2021. I went into pre-prod in late April/early May 2022. We shot over 3 days in early June. Work on the edit began in July, but didn’t finish until early October (along with sound mix, color grading, etc.)

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?
Absurdly true? (that’s a tough one to answer…)

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
Budget constraints. In a way this is metacinema- a no-budget film about a no-budget film… Sometimes during the process it made me laugh at myself.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?
It is delightful to see/hear the responses of people I have never met to this work we have created.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?
About twenty years ago. I was already directing theatre and writing. I was a bad actor in anindependent film at the time, I’d just finished directing a play, and I decided to make a movie with some of the actors. I was hooked.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
Several. Blue Velvet. Brazil. Rules of the Game. The Sweet Hereafter. I love watching and re-watching films.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?
Good question. Find me an agent? :) Your information is so detailed.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?
I like the site’s accessibility and ease of use. Sometimes I feel barraged by all the offers from festivals, and it feels like a money-making venture. It’s hard to tell which festivals are legit. But it’s great for exposure.

10. What is your favorite meal?
Morel mushrooms with wild rice.

11. What is next for you? A new film?
I am going to do a one day shoot of another short comedy I wrote in December, called Salvation about loneliness. And then I am collaborating with an actress/writer/director here on an ambitious project that involves 5 main female characters and about 50 male extras…yikes, hoping we will find the budget! It will be exciting for me to work on this project because the script is not my own, and it involves the female gaze.