Today we’d like to introduce you to Micah Williams Kelly.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I moved to Los Angeles in 2010 at the age of 23, shortly after graduating. The country was in an economic depression. Renting a room in Pasadena, I spent my days studying filmmaking at Art Center College of Design and my nights working at Starbucks.
Fast forward to 2020: I was 33 years old. COVID had taken over the world, and time felt like it had stopped. I had been in Los Angeles for a decade.
I reflected on the life I had lived in those 10 years. I remembered my routine between Art Center and Starbucks—going from literally creating a film in the afternoon to serving coffee and mopping floors later that night. The memories felt like a dream-like existential routine, or dance, that conceptually goes on forever. I thought about the different endeavors I had spent my energy on in the last decade, considering how much of it was creative and how much was devoted to survival.
This reflection sparked an idea for a film.
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?
I had a few things working against me. First, I was trying to independently produce a film during COVID. Second, I hadn’t made a film in over 5 years. And third, I was getting married in a month.
Nervously, I started the process of reaching out to collaborators to work on the project. I was turned down by several people and locations, which was completely understandable given what was going on in the world.
The first ‘yes’ I received was from one of my old classmates. I hadn’t seen him in several years, and we hadn’t worked together in even longer. I was happily shocked when he agreed to be my director of photography.
The next person I reached out to was an actor I had met when I first moved here. He took a few days with the script before responding. I understood he was taking a risk as an actor. I’d learned that being on camera, you have to be careful whom you trust your image with. Ultimately, I believe he saw how I was envisioning his character as a symbol for life’s creative energy.
However, I also needed to cast the opposite role, a character that symbolized life’s mundane limitations. Circumstances determined that I would have to cast this person online without meeting them in real life first. I narrowed it down to two gentlemen and chose the one with the friendlier demeanor.
A lovely co-worker from a past job agreed to do makeup and wardrobe. My brother drove down from Sacramento to be an indispensable extra pair of hands-on set. I explained the purpose of a production designer to my soon-to-be husband, and he agreed to take it on.
It was an eclectic group of people from different parts of my life who came together to make the film possible. People who owed me nothing were kind enough to help me and trust me with their time. It’s rightfully humbling.
In what now feels like a flash, the shoot was over. Days of planning and coordinating had finally been executed. The morning after we wrapped, I remember returning the grip truck, Venmo-ing the final person, and then sinking into the couch with my fiancée to binge-watch Survivor for the rest of the day. After a five-year hiatus, I had a new film in the can.
My film premiered in Downtown LA, just a few blocks from the neighborhood that my newly wedded husband and I would end up moving into later that year.
Sometime later, I was sitting with my mentor in Joshua Tree. I remember him asking me, ‘So you made a film, and nobody cared, right?’ It was an interesting question. The release of my film, Cross, had since led to a screening at the TCL Chinese Theater and the opportunity to e-meet a handful of executives from the big studios. As of this writing, my film was recently selected to play at the Pasadena International Film Festival this April. It represents a full-circle moment in certain ways. Pasadena was where I began my filmmaking journey, and now it will be the venue of my film’s final LA screening. It brings me back to that 23-year-old me, creating by day and working at night, the eternal dance that inspired my film’s characters.
Does anyone care? I still don’t know the answer, and I suspect that might be the wrong question. Objectively, I can say that my film has successfully found its audience, and from a creator’s perspective, that was the point.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
As a filmmaker, I specialize in crafting captivating visual content for brands, with a dual focus on storytelling and audience growth.
My work in commercial directing has garnered three American Advertising Awards, and my latest film has been screened as an official selection at New Filmmakers Los Angeles, the Hollywood Shorts Festival, the Climax Critics’ Awards, the Beverly Hills Film Festival, and the upcoming Pasadena International Film Festival.
What distinguishes me as a video director is my ability to create 3D animations, a skill set that is relatively unique among live-action filmmakers. My proudest achievement is meeting and marrying my husband.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
My favorite iPhone apps are Headspace and Lumosity for meditation and mental exercises.
My favorite podcasts are ‘The Business’ and ‘Scriptnotes’ for industry news and things interesting to screenwriters.
Lastly, a favorite book that was helpful to me for story inspiration is ‘The Hero with A Thousand Faces’ by Joseph Campbell.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://micahwilliamskelly.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/micahwkelly/
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/micah-williams-kelly-53929276
Image Credits
Onika Cole
Samantha Lopez
