Today we’d like to introduce you to Tish
Hi Tish, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I always thought I was meant to be an actor and because I had to fight so hard to get into the doors, I made little space for other possibilities. For years I was getting signs that there might be more in store, but I fought it. I once was plucked out of an auditorium of a thousand people to speak to the world-renowned psychic and she told me I would write. I ignored even that. It wasn’t until 2019 when I was tasked to write something for a black box theatre event that I even attempted to work on a script, but it felt forced and hard. Then I encountered some non-Black folks using the N-word on an Instagram story and the rage that came over me took the form of a Sci-Fi story and out popped the script for my first film, The Burden. Even then I thought I was a one hit wonder, but the pandemic hit and the stories started flooding in. I wrote a TV pilot, a feature and another short in a short window and I finally admitted that it wouldn’t JUST be acting from then on out.
And yet, I still didn’t see directing in my future. My writer’s group would razz me often about my script writing style. I’d always write like a director, meaning I’d add too much direction; leaving little room for a director to come in and fill in the spaces themselves. I went into pre-production on The Burden fully intending to hire a director who I could shadow and then our first director wasn’t getting the vision or really feeling the budget restraints so we hired another director who stepped away right before our crowdfunding campaign. At that point there wasn’t enough time to find someone new so my producer told me I had to either meet with my production heads and ask them if they were okay with me directing or push the project out. I met with my team and everyone was surprisingly enthusiastic about me stepping in. They mentioned how clear my script was and said I had it. They empowered me to direct and assured me they’d be there to help me through the more technical parts and that’s exactly what happened. My team and I created this amazing piece of work and in the process I learned directing is what lights me up.
I feel all my years on sets as an actor prepared me. I could use my time and my experience as an actor to create a a working set that crews enjoy being a part of. Now I’m in pre-production for my next short and looking for fellowships, grants, etc. for my latest feature I finished in 2024. I contain multitudes.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Nothing about Hollywood has ever been smooth. (The understatement read round the world!) Acting, for instance, requires you to get three SAG vouchers in order to join the Union, BUT (and that’s a big but) you have to be in the union to work the Union jobs that give you the vouchers. I’m learning directing has similar fun obstacles, but if I did it once, I can do it again.
I also struggled with the misconception that I have to wait and get permission to direct when we all know that’s fake news. I have a daughter who loves to make films. When I speak about pre-production this and that she’ll sometimes roll her eyes and say, “What’s the big deal. I make 3 or 4 films a day.” I carry her energy with me when I start to spiral over funding and other practicalities that attempt to rob some of the joy associated with making movies.
I struggle with imposter syndrome, but that’s more rare. I’m quick to remind the intrusive thoughts swirling in my brain that every director has a special je ne sais quoi…a creative stamp and it’s that uniqueness that makes us more than qualified to tell the story that’s chosen us.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My work currently consists of touring the world to share my Afrofuturistic short film, The Burden. Whenever the film is accepted into a film festival I’m asked to share my bio and I usually write, “Tish Arana is a filmmaker, writer, and actor based in Los Angeles. Drawing inspiration from the literary luminary Octavia Butler, Tish’s passion lies in crafting narratives that center Black characters in Science Fiction and Fantasy spaces.” I have to really stress the centering Black characters in Sci-Fi and Fantasy spaces because those are the stories that love to pop into my brain. There’s always an element of magic, joy, some societal commentary sprinkled in for good measure.
The Burden checks all of those beloved boxes for me. I love to tell people a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. I alchemized one of my painful experiences, added some comedy and shared what we not gonna do concerning the N-word from now on. I’ve had people come up to me after screenings to say they were guilty of cultural appropriation in the past, but I never made them feel ashamed. I cherish Maya Angelou for giving us the phrase, “When you know better do better”. That was the goal.
I don’t know if what I do sets me a part from other storytellers. I assume many are also alchemizing something or another. My unique factor is packaged in the actual details of my stories. There’s always some personal truths baked into the stories. Everything from The Burden was a personal experience or a friend’s experience. The short I’m working on now is a snippet of my childhood. The feature I’m trying to find a home for has so much of my life, my fears and worries and my beliefs built into it; it’s hard to know where it begins and I end.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I can always use financial support. I love to joke at Q&As that if you know of a rich patron who is itching to self fund, send them my way. If I could time travel I’d go back and grab Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston and ask them how they snagged Charlotte Osgood Mason.
My plan is to shoot my next short this year. This film is so tiny and precious. It will cost considerably less to make than The Burden, but I’ll still need help: financial help, crew help, grant knowledge, etc. I welcome the financially smart and savvy to swing my way.
Funny enough, The Temptations “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” is playing in the background right now. (They ain’t lying.)
Pricing:
- $10,000
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @theburdenfilm @luvandkiwi
- Other: Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/tisharana/theburdentrailer
Image Credits
(attribute under Urbanworld photo) Photo by John Nacion/Getty Images
(all other photos) Photos by Stefania Rosini
