QUESTION#1: Can you describe your film in one sentence?

A young girl floats through the whimsy of childhood until a sudden traumatic event catapults her into an unknown world, where giants roam and all that was once quiet, has become deafening.

QUESTION#2: What would you like the BSFF audience to know about your film that they wouldn't consider from it's title?

I would like them to know that it’s based on a poem I wrote that is a glimpse from a child’s perspective into the often bittersweet journey from childhood to adulthood, and the loss of innocence that accompanies it. The film uses the metaphor of “giants” that live in, and eventually intrude on, this insulated, wonderful world called The Quiet Loud. It’s a temporary place, and no child can stay forever, but the giants decide when a child will leave The Quiet Loud. Whether it’s physical or mental-emotional, the giants create the events that drive you out. The giants are adults, and the adult-world problems they create, like abuse, divorce, etc. The event that shatters the main character’s world leaves her processing her difficult situation and attempting to heal. She tries to balance the universal struggles of adolescence with her own personal-emotional struggles from a significant trauma. Before she knows it, she’s teetering, driven to the edge of the unknown, and realizing the only way to move is forward.

QUESTION#3: Can you tell us about yourself and your filmmaking career?

My passion for storytelling began as a child when I would often ‘borrow’ the family camcorder in order to film elaborate stories and adventures acted out by my starring ensemble cast of stuffed animals and dolls. My journey as a filmmaker took off in high school when I was accepted to the Governor’s School for the Arts in Norfolk, Virginia. The very first film I made there, an award-winning short titled The Spark, truly “sparked” my love for film. I graduated with a BA in New Media Studies from Alma College in 2019, and I'm currently based in Los Angeles, CA. I recently premiered "The Quiet Loud" at the Dances with Films Festival at the TCL Chinese Theatres and at Amarcort International Film Festival in Rimini, Italy. En route to LA in 2021 I was hired by the band Greta Van Fleet’s digital marketing team to create a TikTok video for one of their trending songs. Since settling into LA, I've been working as a writer’s assistant and as a video editor for First Media.

QUESTION#4: What have you learned in the process of making your film?

Shooting was very different from my last experience directing a short. Though an extremely rewarding experience, there were many challenges to overcome. W.C Fields once said “Never work with animals or children.” And while I might disagree, I certainly understand where he was coming from. I loved every minute of the shooting process, but I’d be lying if I said having a lead actress who just turned three was a normal, run-of-the-mill experience. Working with young actors forces you to get creative with your direction. Telling and showing them what you need requires an immense amount of patience, gentle persuasion, and encouragement. If you have children, or have been around them for a good period of time, you know that some days are effortless and other days you have to readily accept defeat, deciding to try again the next day. The filming process for this story was exactly that! Even with the hurdles, working with such young children led to many unique and memorable moments on set. Children have this unbridled sense of whimsy that can add so much to the art of filmmaking as long as you set your ego aside and learn from them as much as they learn from you. As adults we often don't see the confines of our own mind that prevent us from taking a leap of faith when it comes to creating, so to watch children who hadn't been in the world long enough to put up those walls was incredibly inspiring to me as a filmmaker.

QUESTION#5: What's does the future hold for this film you?

The Quiet Loud has had a lovely festival run, and I hope to find the right distribution for it when the festivals conclude. The idea of not knowing you’re leaving childhood until you’re already out of it is a universal experience that people from many different backgrounds can relate to. It also felt very timely coming out of a worldwide pandemic – in a way we were all stepping into an unknown world at the time, only to figure out what that meant afterwards. I'd love to find the right platform to get the film out to more audiences it will resonate with. As for me, I've got a few projects in the works that I'm looking forward to, most in the writing stage, varying in terms of genres and lengths. So keep an eye out! :)

@emilybrubaker @thequietloudfilm