Creative Forces: Woman’s Panel

Reviewed by Ashley Gatimu at the International Santa Barbara Film Festival, 2016. At the Lobero Theater.

Creative Forces: Woman in the Business (Woman’s Panel)

The woman’s Panel is a discussion held at the Lobero Theater where woman from all areas of the industry get to talk to the audience about a variety of topics. The 2016 Santa Barbara International Film Festival welcomed the following woman this year: Susan Cartsonis (Storefront Pictures), Svetlana Cvekto (The Architect-CINEMATOGRAPHER), Alison Eastwood (Battlecreek-DIRECTOR), Liz Garbus (What Happened, Ms. Simone?-DIRECTOR), Shannon McIntosh (Hateful Eight – PRODUCER), Rosa Tran (Anomalisa-PRODUCER).

Susan Cartsonis had a lot to say about her history in show business. While in New York she managed to nail the position as executive producer for Scott Rubin, pretty early in her career yet. After doing that for sometime she eventually become an independent producer before the company she was working at shut down. She’s on numerous boards including the Brook’s Institute and is a firm believer in education. She is a mentor to people as well.

Svetlana Cvekto was the cinematographer for The Architect. She says when confronting men on the job she make’s sure to put in extra effort, more so than woman. She is a big fan of social media and uses Skype often for her work.

Alison Eastwood (yes, that’s Clint Eastwood’s daughter) is a director. Safe to say she grew up around the showbiz industry and hasn’t left yet. She said as a child she would day-dream about scripts and would often visualize herself in the scenes. Her work on Battle creek fell apart tremendously and had to pick the pieces up and start again (four years in the making). She says passion is what keeps her going.

Liz Garbus, director, allows moments to just stop and appreciate herself. Her film, “What Happened, Miss Simone?” premiered at Sundance Film Festival last year. Her father is a famous civil rights attorney, she claims he was a big inspiration on her life. Her greatest advice for someone trying to be a documentarian is to be a good listener, visualize, and understand the story.

Shannon McIntosh raised over $406,000 on Kickstarter for her film “The Hateful Eight”. She says who you pick to work with is a crucial point in determining how much you love your job. Her new project is called “Meet the Blacks” which is based off the movie “the Purge.”

Rosa Tran started her young career as a reality show assistant. The feature used in her movie “Anomalisa” is new. She claims to have intern appreciation day where she takes her interns out for lunch and addresses any questions they have. She says it’s a great way to let them know they are appreciated. Learning physics, math, and fabric design is her best advice for anyone wanting to go down the movie animation path.

I thought this year’s woman panel was full of intriguing topics and vibrant discussions. Working in show business as a woman isn’t nearly as easy as it is for a man and these woman were very open about it. They gave us some sound advice about what being a woman in this field means.