Community Highlights: Meet Aegis Creative Media

Today we’d like to introduce you to Aegis Creative Media.

Can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Meredith Riley Stewart (Actor/Producer), Jennifer Sorenson (Actor/Writer/Producer), and Alethea Root (Director/Producer) first came together as a filmmaking team in 2015 with their viral parody, “Orphan is the New Orange”, which was named one of the Top Ten Short Films of the Decade by ItsaShort.com. The three of them had great synergy and decided to create another project together called “See Me,” a virtual reality experience which toured the country on the festival circuit.

In 2022, they launched their production company, Aegis Creative Media, and released their first feature film together, “For When You Get Lost”, a dark comedy about family, dysfunction, and craft beer. The film has won five awards across five festivals, including the Audience Award for Best Comedy at the Austin Film Festival, where it had its world premiere. It also had a successful theatrical run on the West Coast. It now available on Apple, Amazon, and Tubi.

Among the team, they have produced six feature films to date. Stewart just wrapped as the producer on the genre feature, “dATE”, and produced and starred in “The Greatest Inheritance”, alongside Mena Suvari and Jaleel White, which Vertical Entertainment distributed. Root produced, directed, and co-wrote “Part Time Fabulous” and “Good Side of Bad”, which earned her 3 Best Director awards, along with 14 more for both films. Jennifer Sorenson produced “Suffer”, a fantasy/western starring Naomi McDougall Jones, released in late 2025.

Currently, Aegis Creative Media, has optioned the off-Broadway play “Church & State”, which the team is currently packaging as a feature film. It’s a heart-felt and humorous film that focuses on the personal, human side of politics that is often lost in the noise of partisanship. It speaks to the core of what it means to be American and highlights the issues which surround tragedies like school shootings.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The creation of ACM has mostly been a smooth road – we proved ourselves on our first short and decided to move forward with longer form projects. Of course we have met with our fair share of road blocks, but we keep knocking them down, so we can keep moving forward. That’s one of the best parts of this three-way partnership. If one of us feels deflated when things don’t pan out as we’d hoped, the other two likely have a different perspective that can bolster us as a team to keep chugging along.

A spirit of collaboration is one that we all value. We nurture a culture where questions can be asked, opinions can be contrary, and agreements are respected. It’s through sorting out all the options that we find the best way forward, tapping into our collective power, rather than one person trying to fly solo.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Aegis Creative Media?
AEGIS CREATIVE MEDIA IS COMMITTED TO AMPLIFYING WOMEN-LED CONTENT THAT EMBODIES AGENCY AND REFLECTS PARITY. THROUGH OUR IMPACT-DRIVEN STORYTELLING, WE PROVIDE ACTIONABLE STRATEGIES TO EMPOWER AUDIENCES.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
Well it seems so obvious now, but the biggest thing we learned making our first feature film is that you just have to do it – raise the money you can, and make the best film you possibly can with that money. Surround yourself with people you really want to work with. Think of making a film like getting married! You really have to want to be with those people for the long haul; otherwise the whole process will be too brutal to withstand.

Some of the things we’ve learned along the way were passed down as lessons from filmmakers who’ve been there before us. Michael Moore said “Pick up a camera and start making your movie. Don’t wait for permission.” So we started small, with a short film, and grew from there. Ava Duvernay said “Do the work.” If anything’s going to happen for your film, it’s because of you and your team and the sweat equity you put in. Mark Duplass reminded us that “the Cavalry isn’t coming.” There’s no film fairy godmother who will waive her wand and get your film made. It really is up to you. Take it one step at a time and be conscious that it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Contact Info:

• Website: aegiscreativemedia.com
• Instagram: @aegiscreativemedia
• Facebook: Facebook.com/aegiscreativemedia
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/aegis-creative-media
• Youtube: @aegiscreativemedia
• Other: www.forwhenyougetlost.com