Conversations with Izzi Rojas & Piper De Palma

Today we’d like to introduce you to Izzi Rojas & Piper De Palma.

Hi Izzi & Piper, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Two years after Piper had graduated from Bard College and shortly after moving back to Los Angeles in 2021, Piper and I met at a Highland park staple, The Offbeat, on karaoke night. We became fast friends although our career paths were in different places. Piper was about to start her two year directing program at AFI while I was working commercially as an actor, writing and producing my own independent films.

Four years later, sitting in Canter’s Deli on Fairfax, Piper came to me with an idea. “I want to make a low budget horror film that confronts its audience”. Piper knew I had made several features with little to no funds, and she wanted my help. This was the genesis of “JANE’S BACHELORETTE WEEKEND.”

“There’s an epidemic of missing persons and an infinite amount of content that exploits them. Who gets to decide what stories get told, and why are we obsessed with watching it?” She wanted to use the found footage genre to fully immerse ourselves in the victims’ story. Getting an intimate look into who they were and their lives before flipping the switch. I was to be the face of that story. Piper and I agreed Isabel would be a 2008 version of myself: someone who didn’t feel comfortable in their assigned gender but didn’t have the language or confidence to be who they truly felt they were. Isabel turns to filming to gain the sense of control they don’t have in their own lives: directing those around them, creating their own narrative and discovering their voice.

Piper went on to say that “the true crime genre keeps the audience at a safe distance. I want to bring us right in, really attach the audience to these characters, and then turn the whole thing around”. The switch to documentary interviews halfway through the film would provide a different perspective into our main characters, give us more context into their lives and where they came from, the homophobia that persists within their families, and then enable us to completely uncover the truth of that fateful weekend. Piper then gave me a list of true crime shows to watch and sent me on my way.

America has an insatiable appetite for women in peril. Sometimes our lives feel so horrific that we need to watch the worst day in someone else’s. The stories are frightening, yes, but it’s comforting to know that it could be worse. We watch to measure our own pain against another’s, to feel control inside a chaotic world, and to numb out.

The disproportionate attention to white women’s stories cannot be ignored. Cases involving Black, Brown, and Indigenous women, trans women, sex workers, and women living in poverty are undercovered, underfunded, and largely unsolved. This disparity shapes whose lives are amplified, whose families receive help, and which stories we see on Netflix.

Our film intends to expose that pattern.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Good things don’t come easy.

We want to exploit America’s craving for real-life horror, transforming characters onscreen into harrowing confrontations. Through centering one victim and her conservative family in the documentary, we are bringing the audience into the rampant rewriting of history. We want them to feel culpable in suggesting that one person’s tragedy is more valuable than another.

But in order to achieve this, we need our film to land with our audience without completely alienating them. This is an incredibly hard line to toe. JANE’S BACHELORETTE WEEKEND will give the viewer exactly what they think they want, five hotties in the desert fighting for their lives. But we wish to offer them something else: A moment of reflection.

To feel the horrors these women endured, the sadness their families carry, and the cost of our own curiosity.

Throughout development Piper and I have seen how indie filmmaking is as much a creative process as it is a business. We have the story, the drive and the talent but we’re working with little to no money. We ran a successful crowd-funding campaign that secured us just enough funds to get through production, but that doesn’t account for post, festivals, marketing, and distribution. In order to tell this story as effectively as possible, we’ll need to continue finding financial backers throughout the film’s lifespan.

We’re confident in JANE’S BACHELORETTE WEEKEND and its intent and are still looking for others to support our vision. Our team is a close-knit group whose trust is built on shared vision and passion. If you’re reading this and feel at all inspired, and connected to our goal- we’d love to hear from you.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
As a team, Piper and I want to start conversations through our films. We’re proponents of subversive content not for the sake of upsetting viewers but to investigate whatever uncomfortable emotions may arise. Piper’s films pair psychological intensity with intimate character studies. While Izzi seeks to embody clear intentions across all characters no matter the story. Together, we both seek the truth; the reality of circumstances, relationships and biases. Journeying to the darkest parts of people and society we emerge with more understanding. Piper and I aim to create dialogue, not division. As artists, it is our responsibility to handle peoples vulnerabilities with love on and offscreen. It is a gift to be able to make movies in this way, and we both hope to be doing it for the rest of our lives.

Any big plans?
We are in the midst of casting JANE’S BACHELORETTE WEEKEND and still securing locations. After we complete principal photography this Spring, Piper will direct my debut script, CHANGES, in which I will be the star of this New Jersey based, fast paced, dark-comedy love story. We are so excited to have found another movie to work on together, and hope that these opportunities will only beget more.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://seedandspark.com/fund/janes-bachelorette-weekend and https://izzirojas.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/piper_de_palma/, https://www.instagram.com/iizziirojas/ and https://www.instagram.com/iizziirojas/