SUNDAY | BLOCK M | 7:00 |
A New Beginning (13 min) dir : Laura Franco Garcia
 

#1: Can you describe your movie and why somebody should see it in less than 280 characters?

The hardest part of overcoming a traumatic event or living with a disability is the prejudice and stigma received by our society. If you have ever felt judged and stigmatized, you will understand how difficult it is to get start again and get a new beginning.

#2: What do you want the Borrego Springs Film Festival audience to know about your film that isn’t obvious from its title?

Acid attacks are one of the most common methods of gender abuse in the world. Usually aimed towards women, men are also vulnerable to it. The perpetrator’s intention is to maim the victim, not kill, which can be mentally impairing for most. During 2014 it became a trend in my home country, Colombia, bringing attention to this time of crime as it had previously not had been mentioned, or at least I personally had never heard of such a thing. It caught my eye how important it was for us as a society to be aware of this problem and do something to help prevent it, if not stop it from happening, as well as understand the hardships the survivors go through after “recovering” from the initial shock of the attack.

#3: What is your movie making background? Tell us about yourself.

I was born and raised in Colombia, but I studied visual communications in Argentina, where I had the chance of meeting international filmmakers and collaborate with them. After coming here to Los Angeles to Pursue a Masters Degree, I have had the chance of producing short films and being the production coordinator for the Netflix show, The Hollywood Masters. Here I was able to meet and listen to filmmakers in the industry talk about their experiences and advice for up and coming filmmakers and it allowed me to understand that believing in ourselves as directors/writers/producers is the most important thing to make it in this industry.
I currently work as a production coordinator for Big Review TV, and Australian multi-media production company creating video content for local businesses.

#4: What was the biggest lesson learned in getting your film made?
Somehow things always work out. The biggest issue in pre-production for A New Beginning was the funding. At one point, I had no clue where I was going to get the funds to produce this film but I kept searching for grants, crowdfunded and the most important people in my life came to my rescue and supported this project, which I am very grateful for and cannot thank enough.

#5: What does the future hold for your film and you?

Hopefully we will get selected at more film festivals around the world and we will be able to bring more awareness to this cause, and keep the discussion going about gender abuse and its consequences. Personally, I hope to be able to gain credibility as a director/producer and keep working on projects that impact us as human beings, that helps us become a better person and an overall more tolerant and empathetic society.