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In a tumultuous world, Noelia is a whip-smart community organizer and single mother of two, constantly has to make hard choices between her kids and her career. When she’s offered the chance to interview for a position that could change everything, she begins receiving mysterious messages from her ancestors. Noelia senses that something bigger is at play as she works through a series of obstacles to get to the interview and follow her dreams.
By Whitney Larkins
See the feature film Mother of Color on February 22 @8:30PM at Cinema Village (22 East 12th Street) as part of New York City’s 11th Annual Winter Film Awards International Film Festival. Tickets now on sale!
Winter Film Awards’ Whitney Larkins recently sat down with Mother of Color director Dawn Jones Redstone to discuss her work on the film.
Welcome back to the Winter Film Awards! I see your film Sista In the Brotherhood won “Best Short Film” and you were nominated for “Outstanding Woman Director” at WFA2017. What can the audience expect from you as a director/writer/producer this time around?
When I made my first short, I had so much to learn about set etiquette, collaborating with crew and narrative storytelling in general. But since that time, I’ve had the chance to make many more shorts and grow my skills as a director, a leader and a storyteller.
In making a feature, the locations, the number of actors, the crew size, everything was bigger. We had a production office. We filmed during Covid. There was payroll. Prep time lasted for a few weeks. It was a big machine, but it was intense and fun going through that experience. One thing that stayed the same, we hired mostly women of color to make the film. That inclusion on my sets is very important to me.
Dawn Jones Redstone (Director), Ana del Rocio (Actress), Lynn Loo (Script Supervisor)
Mother of Color shares a bit of magical realism with my first short that screened at Winter Film Awards, but it’s a much bigger story, simply because it’s a feature film. It’s about a single mother of two played by newcomer Ana del Rocío, a real-life single mom who works in the political realm, who begins receiving messages from her ancestors as she sets out to make it a life changing job interview with a local commissioner. It’s about a woman trying to reconcile what she knows she deserves with the way the world actually operates for someone like her. And taking place in the context of the political protests against the murder of George Floyd that were happening nightly in Portland, it’s about how she/we can continue to work toward justice over time despite our wounds.
Looking at Mother of Color, it’s clear to see the intersectionality of race, class, and gender. What approach do you take to tackle those issues without being too “on the nose”?
In the context of lived experience, what is “on the nose”? I try not to be preachy, but rather, just to watch the character react to what’s happening to her.
This film is connected to the real world and yes, it is political simply because we are talking about a woman of color who wants to work in public office, but the goal is always good storytelling over any forced messaging.
Incidentally, Ana del Rocio is featured in the NY Times for being the former director of a non-profit organization and who is now running for county commissioner (!) It’s one of the best examples I can think of life imitating art. Or is it the other way around?
There’s also a special appearance in the film by then county commissioner Jo Ann A. Hardesty. Tell us a little bit about how this collaboration came to be.
Luz Elena Mendoza as “Che” and Ana del Rocio as “Noelia”
Initially the role of the Commissioner was going to be played by another actor, but then a scheduling issue came up. Commissioner Hardesty and I have crossed paths a few times in my work as a filmmaker, so we had met, but it was Ana who encouraged me to discuss the possibility with her. Ana and Commissioner Hardesty know each other so she connected us. I wrote her all about the project and what we were trying to do and without any hesitation, she signed on to play the role! With her background as a community organizer, former state representative, and the first Black woman elected to Portland City Council, there was so much she could bring to the role. One of the themes of the film is how change takes time. She knows that better than anybody.
You have Julian Hernandez and Kasey Tinoco, two children, as principal actors in this film. Did you have a discussion with them regarding the film’s theme? If so, how did you explain these themes to them, or did they already come with their own understanding?
I really didn’t get into the bigger themes with the kids. I talked to the parents of the actors and gave them the script. For the kids, it was really about the scene. We had an acting coach on set and had them running lines with them. She was extremely helpful in helping interpret a scene. We would break it down into something as simple as what is it they want in the scene: your mother’s attention, to play, to understand, etc. And the result is two amazing performances by these young actors.
Why is affordable childcare so out of reach for so many Americans? Do you think this situation will change in the future? What inspired you to have this as central to the story of the main character?
During the pandemic, my wife and I struggled to watch our young daughter while also working and we were not alone. The lack of social supports for caregivers became very apparent, yet we fail to acknowledge the critical role that childcare plays in making our country go. Childcare is as essential as any basic infrastructure. There are glimmers of hope. Here in Oregon, we did pass universal pre-kindergarten and that program will continue to expand and I hope to see something like this on a national level. It just makes sense.
Another theme in Mother of Color is the relationship between the supernatural and the material. Did you channel any supernatural inspiration during the making of the film?
I’ve certainly had my own experiences with having a sense of connectedness to my ancestors, but for the film, I wanted to make it bigger, thrilling. There are symbols that appear throughout the film. Mt. Hood looks over the city of Portland and is a recurring reference to the passage of time and the quest for a kind of spirituality that helps us heal and move forward as a society.
Whitney Larkins
Whitney Larkins currently works for a media company and has a degree in Radio/TV/Film as well. She wrote her Master’s thesis on film representations of immigration in 20th Century American film.
About Winter Film Awards
New York City’s 11th Annual Winter Film Awards International Film Festival runs February 16-25 2023. Check out a jam-packed lineup of 73 fantastic films in all genres from 21 countries, including shorts, features, Animation, Drama, Comedy, Thriller, Horror, Documentary and Music Video. Hollywood might ignore women and people of color, but Winter Film Awards celebrates everyone!
Winter Film Awards is an all-volunteer, minority and women-owned registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded in 2011 in New York City by a group of filmmakers and enthusiasts. Our mission is to promote diversity, bridge the opportunity divide and provide a platform for under-represented artists and a variety of genres, viewpoints and approaches. We believe that only by seeing others’ stories can we understand each other and only via an open door can the underrepresented artist enter the room.
Winter Film Awards programs are supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Promotional support provided by the NYC Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment.
For more information about the Festival, please visit winterfilmawards.com
