Today we’d like to introduce you to Sara Seligman
Sara, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’m Sara Seligman; I was born and raised in Mexico. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a ballet dancer. I studied at Mexico’s professional ballet school and then got a scholarship at the John Neumeier Ballet School in Germany. Unfortunately, I had a career-ending knee injury when I was 15. It was devastating, and I didn’t know what to do. I moved back to Mexico, and my mother signed me up for acting classes. One day, a director attended the school I was going to, and I was cast in a show, and that is how I started working as an actress. While working as an actress in Mexico, I always felt drawn in by the different jobs behind the camera, but for some reason, it didn’t feel attainable. I moved to NYC to attend an acting course, and one day while I was hanging out in Union Square between classes, I decided to check out the New York Film Academy filmmaking program and enrolled on the spot. I’m glad this unattainable world finally seemed approachable as I quickly realized this was my true passion. After completing my first year, I delved into internships in film and TV production. After working on set and understanding each position better, I returned for the 2nd year of filmmaking, knowing I wanted to direct. After graduating I moved to Los Angeles, where I still live, and have worked in advertising, film, and television for over a decade.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has definitely not been a smooth road, and things have taken a lot longer than I hoped. Patience and perseverance are two very challenging but important elements to “making it in Hollywood.” I don’t always believe in the saying, “We get the things we need, not the things we want,” but I do think that when it comes to directing, this saying applies to me.
It took me 6 years to get my first feature (COYOTE LAKE) made and then another 4 to book my first episodic (HOTEL COCAINE) directing gig. I was itching to shout “action” from the director’s chair, but those extra years weren’t just wasted time — they were a course I didn’t know I needed in self-discovery and leadership. Because let’s face it, film school teaches you how to talk to actors, frame a shot, and dissect Lumet’s genius, but leadership? That’s learned on the fly or not at all. This “wait” allowed me to have clarity on the type of director I want to be, and I’m not talking creatively; I’m talking about leadership style.
I learned the importance of leadership style on the job by observing how others led and how it affected the team. I then had the opportunity to be a Production Supervisor on a show, which allowed me to put into practice and hone in on the leadership styles I had read about and observed. So, while the wait to direct my first feature film, COYOTE LAKE took a lot longer than I hoped, I can now say I wouldn’t have been as prepared as I was as a leader had it happened sooner.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m a Film and TV director. I love telling stories that are very specific and grounded and have universal themes. I think emotions and the basic human condition connect us all in a way. I love characters that are grounded and complex, that walk in the moral grays and have to make tough decisions. It’s very satisfying to me to collaborate with talented artists, from writers and actors to the crew and the post-production team. Watching everyone’s grain of sand come together and build something new. Creativity is my driving force, and collaboration is a fire that pushes it forward.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
That I’m able to tell the sex of fruit flies under a microscope. When I was a teen, I thought I wanted to study genetics and I did a summer internship at the Biology Department at the University in Cuernavaca, Mexico. For that summer, my job was to separate fruit flies by sex.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: saraseligman
- Other: https://vimeo.com/saraseligman
