If We All Stay Silent: a short film

This is a film I created as part of my MFA in Creative Nonfiction at the Vermont College of Fine Arts. During the Fall semester in 2022 I took a film concentration and worked under the brilliant filmmaker Nina Davenport. As part of that concentration, I made the film you’re about to see.

My original plan was to hire a cinematographer, since as Story Producer for 15+ films for the I Am A Creator docuseries, I've always worked with the brilliant and skilled cinematographer Henry Thong. Typically my role in the filmmaking process is to find the subject, research and craft interview questions, ask interview questions behind the camera, build the foundational pre-production b-roll plan, and then do the first skeleton edit of the raw interview footage. I’ve only worked with brilliant directors and cinematographers like Henry and Jaclyn Rey who do basically everything else that makes a film beautiful. I am not (nor frankly do I want to be) a cinematographer or a film editor. (I adore those art forms, but I do not have the interest nor the patience.)

However, Nina challenged me to film this with my iPhone and direct it myself.

I was hesitant because, frankly, I didn’t want the first film I ever made “by myself” to be the “worst” looking one. And yet I knew it would be…because I am not a cinematographer nor do I have a high-quality camera or mic.

But I chose to go back to grad school for a reason…because I wanted to keep growing as an artist. This wasn’t about producing the best-looking work of my life. It was about learning the most I could and deepening my artistic understanding and practice. So I decided to film it myself, and planned to never show it to anyone but my advisor.

But then…enter Natalie Henry, the subject of the film and founder of Pretty Peacock Paperie.

When I did the skeleton edit for this film and relived everything that Natalie said I knew I needed to share it. Who cared if it wasn’t professionally shot? Who cared if I wasn’t a professional cinematographer? I don’t think you’ll be thinking about that because, if you’re like me, you’ll be completely enthralled with everything Natalie has to say and the beautiful work she has put out into the world.

In this film, she shares what inspired her to create art after birth trauma, as well as after the trauma of the summer of 2020.

Most of all, it’s a love letter (pun intended) to what it means to create from the depths of who you are, from both your pain and your joy.

So now, without further ado, I present to you my directorial debut film and the incredible Natalie Henry.