Ashley Nicole for The Meadow
interviewer: Sara Sharif (@sarangelic)
interviewee: Ashley Nicole (@ashlcynicole)
"I am an indie film director from Texas, I started doing short films during my first year of college back in 2019. My recent project 'To dream land we go' is actually a sequel to a previous short film I did last month titled 'A happy Place.'
In the short film 'to dream land we go', it focuses on the after effects and traumatic effects that child abuse has on a child now that they’re in their adult years."
Ashley shares a fear...
well one of my fears would Insects specifically roaches, they just creep me out! especially when you find one in your room at night,and you can't see them because its dark. that and im also afraid of losing something that is close to me.
* in relevance to our issue #2 FEAR
t h e i n t e r v i e w
1.Please start with a little introduction about yourself!
well to start it off, I'm an indie film director based in Texas. I started making short films when I was in my first year of college. Ever since I could remember, I always enjoyed watching movies and writing short stories. Originally I was going to be a YouTuber but when this sort of took off, I decided to stick with it and pursue it. I always thought that this is something that I was meant to do!
2.What genre would you say most of your work belongs to?
Honestly, I don't even know what genre. To be honest, the films I do are unique in their own way that I don't even think that there is a genre that fits them.
3.How has your journey been so far?
So far it has been terrific! As bad as this whole year has been I'm grateful that I have gotten this far and I never really thought I would, but I'm happy where I'm at currently.
4.I love “A Happy Place” and am really excited for the sequel, “To dream land we go”! Tell us more about it!
so to dream land we go, is actually a sequel to a happy place. In the sequel, the little girl in the previous film is all grown up and is battling a cocaine addiction which is triggered by the memories of her parents' abusive behaviour. Basically, this film covers the traumatizing effects that abuse has on the victim in their adult years.
5.Do share more about what “To dream land we go” is about.
the main plot of the film is about a little girl who is in her early twenties, and she's battling this horrible drug addiction to cocaine and has to be haunted by the memories of her bad childhood.
6.What is your creative process and behind the scenes of your movies?
my creative process is music, music helps me produce ideas for new projects! for example, the song that inspired me to write this short film was "Fireworks" By First Aid kit and of course a unicorn light that I bought at Walmart. so it's really music that helps during my creative process.
7.Who is your inspiration?
Michael Jackson, he was just such a genius at what he did with music. his work had meaning to it, and that's what I try to do with my films. I want it to have meaning and I want it to have an impact on people.
8.Any tips from your experience for our filmmakers out here?
my only tip is to do something that you love, if what you're doing currently isn't making you happy then don't be afraid to change it up!
9.What camera/equipment do you swear by?
I use a Canon Powershot SX530 to film my projects.
10.What applications do you use for post-production or editing?
recently I just learned how to use Adobe Premiere so that I could edit this new film.
11.Is there anything you would like to say about the current stresses all around the world?
as much as it is scary, don't let everything that's happening scare you, even though things don't look so good at the moment there is light at the end of this gloomy tunnel. if you are scared of the future, don't be because none of us know what it's going to look like, just focus on now and focus on yourself.
12.So, when should we expect “To dream land we go”?
well currently I'm still filming a couple of scenes, but the film comes out sometime in December of next month.
13.How do we gain access to the rest of your movies?
You can visit my YouTube channel! and FilmFreeway and on Sofy Tv, but mainly YouTube is where I upload my projects because I want people to see them and not have to pay for them on streaming platforms.
14.Any message for Pastel Serenity’s creative community?
my message is don't let anybody crush your dreams, like will smith said in the Pursuit of happiness "You got a dream, you gotta protect it. people can't do something themselves and they want to tell you, you can't do it. if you want something, go get it, period."