UNA-USA Brooklyn Young Professionals President Caroline Rakus-Wojciechowski moderates an interactive discussion between young professionals and Ashley Maria. Hear about her film, Pioneers in Skirts, and the mission of achieving gender equality in the U.S. and beyond.
Listen up for ways YOU can take action for Gender Equity today!
Originally appearing in the Voyage LA on August 6, 2020
Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Maria.
Ashley, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
As a filmmaker in Los Angeles, I have worn many hats on this journey to filmmaking, but it all began when I was very little – 5 years old – when I kept stealing my mom’s video camera.
I always knew I loved storytelling and being behind a camera, but I didn’t realize it could really be a career until I met my teacher and mentor, Joan Darling, one of the first women to ever direct a television show. Joan influenced my trajectory, and I applied for and was accepted into the Master’s program at the University of Southern California. While there, I grew my technical, creative and business knowledge of filmmaking.
While at USC, I met very talented people who have turned into lifelong best friends and colleagues in the industry. The USC Mafia is real ya’ll.
As a filmmaker who stood out in film school, I won the Directors Guild of America award for my student film “Friday Night Fright.” But, people consistently referred to me as a “woman-director” in this industry. Their tone made me feel like they were positioning me somewhere in their mind. Like, I hadn’t yet earned the right to be called a director.
I saw my male colleagues being put up for opportunities – and getting the jobs. I wasn’t. I did get a lot of pat on the heads and “keep trying” shoulder hits. Was it me? Was I not good enough yet? So, I worked harder.
After a year out of school, I watched as my male colleagues soared past me as I, and my female colleagues, were going nowhere. We were making our own films with whatever money & gear we could muster. We’d work on bigger sets – but at little pay or for free. We wore many, many hats.
After a couple of years of doing that, I knew something was wrong. I was checking all the boxes and working really, really hard, yet I was never seen as a director. At first, I was discouraged.
After a heart to heart with my friends experiencing the same discouragement, and my Mom who experienced similar discrimination as she started her career in tech, I set out to make my first feature film – Pioneers in Skirts. I was compelled to fix the issue even though I really didn’t know what the solutions were yet. This documentary film follows my own journey to understand the gender bias and sexism women confront in their careers – across all industries – and then finds out what we ALL must do to combat this.
I needed solutions if I was going to survive. And, I wanted other women to use them and survive this, too.
I’m excited to say that, just this year, 2020, Pioneers in Skirts has launched and is sparking the conversations and realizations I had hoped it would. The movie has a goal of instigating dialogue and action that results in change, and it’s working. Audiences are sharing that they realize how they, too, have played a role in perpetuating stereotypes of women. In post-screening dialogue, audiences want to discuss their feelings after seeing the film. People want to course-correct.
I’m really loving the response and am hopeful for the future!
Even though I’m working the everyday social impact efforts of the film, I’m also focused on my next film! I learned a lot about me and the world around me when I made Pioneers in Skirts. I’m now empowered to have the career I’ve always wanted in this industry – which means… I’m back to making narrative horror and comedy films.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I made Pioneers in Skirts in partnership with my Mom which was a really nice experience. But, when we started making Pioneers in Skirts, I had other documentary filmmakers tell me “If you knew how hard this will be, then you’d never do it.” So, I guess the hope (and maybe some naivety) of finding solutions for my personal career dilemma gave us fuel to keep moving forward despite the difficulty. We persevered through technical mishaps – equipment breaking on set, cards and drives getting corrupted – you name it! And each time was met with a deep inhale of breath, a centering, and then finding a work-around.
We were constantly fundraising and doing things to save on the costs we were incurring. My Mom and I even were the only people on set often!
In the beginning, we were met with a lot of confrontation for the topic of gender bias – we were told “you are rocking the boat,” “this issue is in the past,” “Ashley’s just being a millennial,” and…my favorite… “you are going to hurt your career by calling out the film industry.”
That hostility was countered with hope. I had access to honest conversations with people I never thought I would have the chance to meet let alone have long discussions with. I learned about their lives and what they experienced. I learned about other industries and what advocate groups are doing to resolve this issue. I made true friends and worked with very talented collaborators who I plan to bring with me on future projects. And, I now have champions in the film industry and supporters who will reach out to help whenever I ask. This is invaluable.
The challenges in my career transformed my career. By making Pioneers in Skirts, I have been allowed to find my purpose and shape who I want to be as a leader. It led me to my first feature that was so much more than a passion project – it became a movement. I’m honored to be its director.
The struggles have influenced how I run my business. I am working to create a more inclusive and equitable work culture for me and the crew that I hire.
And now, after making a movie about it, I’ve added “advocate for women and all marginalized groups” to my career path.
Ashley Maria Productions – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Ashley Maria Productions is all-encompassing for the work I do in the film industry. It covers the work I do as a director as well as the work I do as a freelance production sound recordist. In fact, these two roles have allowed me to create and teach a “Production Sound for Directors” class at UCLA! Learning to capture good sound is extremely helpful for ALL directors.
I’m proud that I’ve formed my own company and have embraced the business side. Creatives are often scared of this aspect, but we must understand contracts so that we aren’t taken advantage of, and we must understand finance so that we can make our careers sustainable. I’m proud of how far I’ve come.
And, as a director and writer, I will continue to pursue daring projects in many genres – narrative and non-fiction. In the early weeks of quarantine, I directed a music video – Lights in the Forest V. I feel that leaning into the challenges of quarantine has elevated me even more as a director and a creative who can think outside the box.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success is whatever you want it to be. It’s not comparative and it’s not definitive. We’re always evolving and re-evaluating what’s important. Being mindful of who we are and our values – then living by them every day – is success. Lifting up others. Listening. Believing in what you are capable of is success. Being proud of what you’ve done with what you have and then striving for more. Being ambitious is success. So, I guess this means, I define success as a journey – not a destination.
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to speak to your alma mater and pretend like you’re really cool? I do. It was all an act, but I did it!
In July, I was asked to speak with UNC Student Television recent grads about life after school. What is our career like? What was our path? There were a few of us on there that represented various angles of the film industry – talent representation, commercials, news, documentary, and film. And, we were all from different years of graduation, too – so some of us have been in the industry 2 years, 10, or 30! The coolest part for me was ‘meeting’ Adam Reist who was the creator of General College, a show I also produced while at STV. General College would get a revamp every few years with new storylines and characters, but always stayed ‘General College.’ I really hope it keeps going – it’s kind of a staple for UNC, especially since Billy Crudup was one of the original actors. And, here’s one of my General College episodes. (You may also see a familiar face… before I committed to “Ashley Maria” as my professional name)
I hope you enjoy this interview – we answer questions about our careers, film school, advocating for your career, and yes I talk about Pioneers in Skirts. Enjoy!
Originally appearing in The JW VIBE on May 25, 2020 by Jonathan Widran.
Perhaps the most natural and human thing to do during a once in a century global pandemic is to let fear take over. These past few months have been a strange, scary time for millions of people around the world, and it’s all too easy to let constant flow of horrific news and worst-case scenario projections about COVID-19 paralyze us, crush our spirits and make us feel hopeless.
Yet the one thing that the coronavirus cannot stop is human creativity. From Facebook livestream concerts and stay-at-home fundraising TV specials featuring our favorite pop stars to incredibly creative Zoom-rendered videos by TV, film and Broadway stars, this era of social distancing has unleashed some incredible works that testify to the indomitable power of art, music, dance and other forms of self-expression.
One of the most dynamic, soul stirring and emotionally impactful of these recent works is not by media celebrities or rock stars but the powerful tandem of veteran film/TV composer David Raiklen and indie film director, writer and producer Ashley Maria. Their epic four-minute film “Lights in the Forest” is a quick moving visual and musical journey assembled from footage created on three continents by a diverse team of actors, dancers, musicians, cinematographers and regular folks sending in their “made in quarantine” video clips from around the world.
Directed by Ashley with an international team of female filmmakers, the clip features dazzling array of talent coming together in a collective effort to raise spirits, offer hope, bring a smile and show the magic that can happen by building community through art.
“I came to the project with a vision of using this music to pull out the extreme emotion we’re all experiencing during this pandemic,” says Ashley, a DGA Award winner best known for her breakthrough 2020 documentary “Pioneers in Skirts.” “It truly was an experiment in what can be possible under extreme limitations. We called on the creative community to ‘show us what you got’ and the response was beyond what we could have imagined. I’m so proud of this piece, and what we were all able to accomplish together!”
With its fusion of influences ranging from classical music to symphonic rock, the video’s soundtrack music is filled with the trademark fast paced storytelling of creator/co-producer David Raiklen’s signature cinematic sounds. Well-known for his score for the Emmy winning 2014 PBS film “Mia: A Dancer’s Journey,” he co-produced and composed music for the film series “Space Command” and for the Center Theatre Group’s 50th Anniversary celebration, among hundreds of other credits.
“Our orchestration is all acoustic and recorded live,” he says. “Lights in the Forest” is an eight-part augmented reality musical journey through a fantasy world that ranges from tranquil and traditional to experimental and high energy. This amazing video for Part V is subtitled ‘WILD RIDE’ and I strive to give a sense of flying quickly to faraway places with friends.”
Not simply because of the pandemic, but an interesting aspect of the project is that David and Ashley have still yet to meet in person. He originally found her work through the Alliance of Women Directors. He appreciated what she was able to do with music in the various pieces her saw in her reel, and liked the way she captured the levity of certain moments – something “Lights in the Forest” strives to do. David was looking for a director with positive energy and a quick moving modern style.
“I was impressed by her ability to handle tough genres, too,” he says. “We hit it off from our first conversation and I felt shew as someone I could trust, a can-do person. The momentum built from there. I’m looking forward to meeting in person, but in the 21st Century it’s common for filmmakers to have teams that never meet yet work in harmony.”
Each has a unique perspective on their original vision and how they executed it. According to Ashley, the initial idea was to travel around Los Angeles to capture musicians and our conductor, David, in their individual worlds – whether that be their front lawn, their balcony, a church, or the Griffith Observatory looking out over a beautiful L.A. Their footage, shot by cinematographer Autumn Palin, would exist as a “through-line” as the viewer travels through space and time with the music.
“We really weren’t sure what to expect,” she says. “Was this actually going to work? Then, as the footage came in, it was a clear YES. The footage we received was beyond what we could have even imagined – which made it even better. It felt like a true celebration of what we are all experiencing right now. Our editor, Crystal Lentz, then took the footage and built out an entire world with it!”
David adds that the original idea for the music goes a little further back, to an eight-part concept album, also called “Lights In The Forest.” The idea was to imagine a band of musicians on the edge of a mysterious forest. They attract a crowd and as they play, they catch light and begin to fly, transporting themselves, and the audience, on a series of fantasy adventures in faraway places.
“The fifth part, or movement, is especially high energy and fun and is subtitled Wild Ride,” he says. “That was what I brought to Ashley. I knew I wanted the visuals and story to be a journey to far off, wonderful places. Ashley had the brilliant idea of reaching out to other creatives to film themselves all over the country. Eventually we received footage from three continents – more than I could have dreamed of! Actors, musicians, dancers, families…so many good people. Getting Crystal to work with us was another stroke of good fortune. She has incredible skill at flowing material from different sources into a unified whole. Crystal built our world under Ashley’s direction.” “Ashley also brought on cinematographer Autumn Palen, whom I got to work with in person, at safe social distance,” David adds. “We traveled to locations in Southern California and photographed artists in their worlds. I took behind the scenes photos that show us wearing masks and the camera 10+ feet away from the performer. Autumn’s skill and modern cameras can make that into a clear closeup. Many locations were almost deserted, and the air was so clean you can see for miles. When we did encounter joggers and others, everyone kept a safe distance. The view from Malibu was glorious.”
Another important aspect of creating “Lights in the Forest” was the multi-faceted editing process. David cut his original track down from six to 3 ½ minutes to ensure that the fast-paced concept worked better. Footage-wise, because they had to keep the energy moving forward, the cuts had to be very fast and intentional. It had to be shot in such a way where it quickly tells the eye what to look at – whether that be through lighting or movement. Ashley says, “In a three-minute video someone sent us, there may have been only three shots we could use. This meant that after we did our first cut, we had to go out and get even more footage. I even got my mom to film some shots around her town. Watch out for the rainbow shot!”
“That rainbow is maybe my favorite shot, from 3,000 miles away,” David adds. “The process began with the core team putting out a call for performers among our friends. Many responded quickly. We sent them the track and basic direction. Ashley would review what they had done and give notes. There were hours of material and Ashley was great at directing and finding the most magical shots. Crystal would create a rough build, and as more material came in, selects were made and worked into the timeline. It got better every day. I’m in awe of their talent and dedication.”
As word about “Lights in the Forest” spreads, both Ashley and David are gratified by the overwhelming response. “It’s really exciting hearing people’s interpretations of the various emotions that come across in this short piece – a feeling of loneliness, of longing, of togetherness and survival. Some feel like it’s an ‘Ode to Quarantine’ – and to all of them I say ‘Yes, you are right. It was important to us that this piece be about the human spirit. Sure, quarantine is happening in our world, but we are still living and dancing!” David adds that people often comment that the film makes them feel happy and energized. The two have heard words like “Wow!” “Fabulous” “Glorious” and that it’s unique.
“For me personally,” Ashley says, “it was exciting to make a music video entirely remotely. While my colleagues and I had big discussions about the direction of our industry after this pandemic, I could step away and throw myself into a music video.
We had a flexible team that understood our limitations and leaned into them. We would discuss the edit through a share screen video conference, or I would give copiously detailed notes, so there wouldn’t be a ton of back and forth in the editing process.
Ideally, I would sit next to my cinematographer or editor – but I couldn’t this time. I had to know what I wanted and voice it clearly. I’m very proud of what we were able to do!”
David adds, “It’s been gratifying to bring joy and beauty to people, and it was great fun doing the work. The greatest experience is working with this stellar team. Crystal Lentz, Autumn Palin, and Ashley Maria are magical talents and I hope to work with them again. I’m proud of what we accomplished together. Onward!”
For more information about David Raiklen: www.davidraiklen.com
For more information about Ashley Maria: www.ashley-maria.com
For more information about Autumn Palen: www.autumn.palen.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE!
Lights in the Forest – A Musical Journey
A fast moving musical journey made on 3 continents by a diverse team of actors, dancers, musicians, cinematographers, and regular folks sending their made in quarantine videos from around the world.
“I came to the project with a vision of using this music to pull out the extreme emotion we’re all experiencing during this pandemic. It truly was an experiment in what can be possible under extreme limitations. We called on the creative community to ‘show us what you got’ and the response was beyond what we could have imagined. I’m so proud of this piece, and what we were all able to accomplish together!” – Ashley Maria, Director
The music is dazzling modern acoustic filled with the high energy storytelling of creator/co-producer David Raiklen’s signature cinematic sounds.
“Our orchestration is all acoustic and recorded live. Lights is an 8 part augmented reality musical journey though a fantasy world that ranges from tranquil and traditional to experimental and high energy. The amazing video for part V is subtitled WILD RIDE and I strive to give us a sense of flying quickly to far away places with friends”– David Raiklen, Creator-Composer
Interviews with cast and crew available, contact: david@spacecommandstudios.com.
11 min read Story was originally posted here in the Authority Magazine by Yitzi Weiner Sep 9, 2019.
Over the past 4 years of filming Pioneers in Skirts across the U.S., I was able to meet people who had the kind of influence I’ve come to hope my films will have on an audience. I want my movies to have meaning and impact. Starting with Pioneers in Skirts — I want it to influence minds to want to achieve gender parity in our world. I want people to feel open to talk about these issues and to understand what they can do right now to change them. I want all of this because I see what the world would look like if we didn’t, and I try to show this in the documentary. If we don’t do something now, then these cultural issues that affect women and girls will perpetuate generation after generation. We ALL can and must do something now.
As a part of my series about pop culture’s rising stars, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Ashley Maria. Ashley is a filmmaker based in Los Angeles, CA. Winner of the coveted Directors Guild of America (DGA) award, she was also featured by the DGA Women’s Steering Committee as a director who represents The Future of Women in Film. When she’s not running her own production, she is a directing instructor at UCLA. Very recently, Ashley was selected as a North American delegate to attend the United Nation’s Commission on the Status of Women — the principal global policy-making body dedicated exclusively to gender equality and the advancement of women. Her first feature documentary, Pioneers in Skirts, is in post-production, set to be released in the Fall of 2019. The film follows her own journey to understand the bias and sexism women confront in their careers and what we ALL can do as a culture to evolve past it. If you can’t find Ashley on a film set or behind a computer screen, you can find her on the court playing competitive dodgeball! To learn more about Ashley, please visit www.ashley-maria.com.
Thank you so much for doing this with us Ashley! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I was born to a single mom who raised me on her own until, when I was about 10, she married a man who became the Dad I love.
Some of my favorite memories as a young child were reading Goosebumps books in the back of a clothing store while my Mom worked her evening job just so she could afford to pay for childcare during her day job. It never felt like sacrifice. She made it feel normal. I learned that we must work hard for what we want. This was a great example for me at a time when — as a young ambitious girl — I was starting to think of what I wanted to be when I grew up. I was picturing myself in a business suit in the tallest corporate building.
Now I craft stories of those kinds of women from the comfort of my own home in jeans and a T-shirt.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
I have proof that I was grabbing my Mom’s camera at the age of 4! (this footage is in my documentary film “Pioneers in Skirts!). She was always filming our lives — and I was always borrowing her camera to film everything else.
I never really understood that filmmaking could actually be a career until I was in college. I stayed the course and, after obtaining my undergraduate degree in Communications from UNC-Chapel Hill, I decided to apply to one of the top film schools in the country — USC School of Cinematic Arts.
It was such an exciting day when I was notified of my acceptance! And, even though USC believed in me, I have to say that I truly wasn’t sure if I was a good storyteller because not everyone seemed to get my weird sense of humor. I cautiously stayed with my ‘weird’ and wrote and directed my first student film as a comedy-horror. “Friday Night Fright” went on to win the prestigious Directors Guild of America award, and from there, I had no doubts I could tell good stories and, in turn, jumped full force into directing.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
I’ve had a lot of “Little Ashley would be freaking out right now” moments just being in Hollywood. Meeting Tom Hanks and working for him was one of the best! I was an intern during the filming of his movie Larry Crowne and got to be in the production office as they finalized details for the shoot.
Tom was both directing and starring in this movie, so he had to make all kinds of decisions, including the kind of camera used for a scene. One day, the crew brought in a body camera to be used on Tom for a scene where his character breaks down emotionally. So, I watched as he got into character and all I could think was “I’m watching Tom Hanks act right now!” Then he walked around the room, stumbling, and stumbled into a chair. I was then motioned to become the person to “dolly” him around the small production office (pushing him back and forth). I played it cool, but was totally screaming on the inside. I was part of a (pretend) scene with Tom Hanks!! Definitely one of my coolest film moments!
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
During the early months of making Pioneers in Skirts, I was often finding myself a one-woman show. When the U.S. IEEE engineering organization gave me last minute permission to interview its members at an event, I grabbed the equipment I owned at the time and set up multiple interviews around the conference. Everything was going well, until my rather cheap tripod decided to unlock one of its legs, taking my expensive camera to the ground with it. The camera went down lens first, shattering the filter into a million pieces. I just stood there in awe. It all happened so fast, and I felt so hopeless! But, surrounding me, the engineers went into MacGyver-mode! As I was picking up my camera, engineers were looking at my tripod to figure out what went wrong and what needed to be done to fix it. I mean, the top inventors of our time were fixing my low-budget production equipment. The $20 filter was a lost cause but, wow — I felt so well-taken care of.
So, the lesson here is — unless you’ll have a bunch of engineers around you all the time, buy the expensive and more-reliable tripod!
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
I will soon be premiering my first feature documentary I directed, Pioneers in Skirts. Its story follows my own journey to understand the real and unique challenges women confront in their careers today. In the film, we discuss sexism, gender bias, stereotypes and so much more while also providing solutions we ALL can implement now to change things in our culture and the workplace. I’m very excited for this movie to premiere because I know it will help to advance the conversation about these issues. It has already proven to reach across aisles to move us along. After test screenings, men tell us they are relieved to not be portrayed as the perpetrator, and they have actually lined up to ask what they could do to help our film make an impact in the workplace, schools, and the community around them. I’m so excited to bring this movie out into the world!
We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?
I’m a huge proponent of diversity in the content that the entertainment industry creates. I have seen first hand how our culture itself is influenced by what we see on television or in movies. I’ve been affected myself and have even seen my own storytelling evolve as I’ve learned to analyze my own biases ingrained in my thinking. I believe that diverse stories lead to more empathy toward others. Media has the power to influence positive change by showing us how other people experience the world around them. We can be much more similar than we realize. It’s important to normalize diversity as well and this can only happen when there are more and more stories told by diverse people about diverse people.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
I would suggest understanding what burn out looks like for you. I don’t really think there’s a way to avoid burn out honestly. We’re all here because we have passion and are obsessed. None of us have normal schedules. None of us can create some normal routine that is consistent week after week. No way. It’s about listening to your body when it’s telling you something is wrong. Can you afford to get away for a week? Can you shut everything off for just a day? Or can you look at your to-do list one at a time instead of the dreaded multi-tasking? I think thriving is listening to what your body and mind needs every day. Oh, and drink lots of water.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Over the past 4 years of filming Pioneers in Skirts across the U.S., I was able to meet people who had the kind of influence I’ve come to hope my films will have on an audience. I want my movies to have meaning and impact. Starting with Pioneers in Skirts — I want it to influence minds to want to achieve gender parity in our world. I want people to feel open to talk about these issues and to understand what they can do right now to change them. I want all of this because I see what the world would look like if we didn’t, and I try to show this in the documentary. If we don’t do something now, then these cultural issues that affect women and girls will perpetuate generation after generation. We ALL can and must do something now.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
My mother Lea-Ann! She is the producer on Pioneers in Skirts and a constant champion for me in my career. She put her career on hold to jump in to make Pioneers in Skirts because she saw the need for this film to be made (and she saw how I could not possibly make it on my own). She and I have been a team for years now in pre-production, production and now post-production on this documentary. When we started, I was the one who had the education and the experience. But today, my Mom has advanced from getting on-the-job training in filmmaking to being a full-on producer and driving the ship as we reach distribution!
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
Wes Craven, a mentor of mine before he passed away, told me that “Nothing is ever normal, and it’s always a fight” in reference to getting a movie made. Never will we be in a perfect situation. There will always be challenges, so we need to stop playing the victim and join the fight!
Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
Steve Martin! Ironically, The Jerk was the first DVD I ever owned, so I watched that on repeat. “Someone hates these cans!” My dad, Dave, introduced it to me. This is another reason I love movies. Our love for a certain movie may really have nothing to do with the movie itself, but have everything to do with the person who introduced it to us. So, that’s a double whammy for why I’d love to meet Steve Martin!
How can our readers follow you on social media?
This was very meaningful, thank you so much!
Authority Magazine
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A “Positive” Influencer, Founder & Editor of Authority Magazine, CEO of Thought Leader Incubator
Leadership Lessons from Authorities in Business, Film, Sports and Tech. Authority Mag is devoted primarily to sharing interesting feature interviews of people who are authorities in their industry. We use interviews to draw out stories that are both empowering and actionable.
