# Independent

... the most effective use of the funds was to throw away the hope of making this really big thing in a small way and trust that if I captured the tone, world, and characters, that would be enough.

It's been all kinds of responses, but that's why I had that little pebble in my shoe—we don't talk about mental health as much as we can, or normalize it.

It’s scary, it’s dramatic, and it puts a lot of pressure on a campaign, but it also incentivizes people in a different way because they know you’ll lose everything.

"... we went this far, let's not leave anything unturned."

"Over time, I realized, you have to read between the lines."

From documentaries to commercials to feature films, Javier Solórzano Casarin takes us on a step-by-step retelling of how his love for filmmaking grew into a lifetime passion.

Someone, eventually, is going to take a risk on a show they don’t have to invest heavily into. Maybe one that’s already made?

I remember the intense emotionality of that day—there wasn't a dry eye in the room.

If you’re a filmmaker, you’re either creating content or over in the corner crying.

Just because a film is short doesn’t mean that it’s easy or cheap to produce. Like any film, it’s a complex, potentially stressful, and complicated undertaking.

Friends and people who believe in you are worth 10x more than funding—and they'll make the journey a lot more fun.

In a world where female directors are scarce, this sisterhood and creative collective provides more momentum for all of them to make it to the mountain top. And to do it together.

My answer is a frustrating one, but it is an answer. You must give yourself agency over your work and your career. You must reach out to what’s in your means and take action: make things.

I didn't want to say it. As I scrambled through my phone looking for photos of Canoe #1 on the roof of the Kia—Did we really not take a photo?

As “working screenwriters” who’d already at that point grown terminally ill of the bureaucracy surrounding film productions and the industry in general, we vowed to make this maverick film completely outside of the traditional channels and system.