The Spotlight: Jennifer Levinson
The writer, actor, and producer of ‘Trust’ talks to us about greed, grief, and filming during COVID-19.
By Daisy Gonzalez
The Spotlight is an interview series in which we follow under-the-radar contenders as they break ground in the festival and awards space.
What do you do when your production woes involve a global pandemic, fundraising for a first-time feature, and a rogue Homeowners’ Association? FREE THE WORK creator Jennifer Levinson took on the world and then some to get her feature writing debut, ‘Trust’ to audiences.
Writer, actor, producer, and dare we say influencer, Jennifer Levinson is no stranger to the scene. Levinson got her early start as a social media maven starring and writing on several Buzzfeed and Snapchat projects. She was selected as a 2020 TRIBECA NOW Participant at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Live from Cinequest 2022, we popped in for a chat to talk about the experience of having a first-time feature premiere at a film festival.
The road to getting ‘Trust’ made could very well be its own movie. Can you share a little bit about getting this film off the ground?
‘Trust’ began as a proof of concept, and it was part of my portfolio as a 2020 Tribeca NOW Creator’s Market Participant. I had lofty goals of utilizing my Tribeca laurel, proof of concept, and in-development screenplay to obtain funding for the feature. I quickly realized that everyone in entertainment is trying to get their own funding for their features and that almost no one wants to invest in a first-time filmmaker. When COVID-19 shut the world down, it kicked me into high gear: I began pitching this passion project to anyone who even remotely looked my way. I found success securing investments through people outside of the industry, via those who believed in my film and had an unexplored interest in filmmaking. With investments secured, we were greenlit by the end of 2020.
The biggest obstacles to bringing ‘Trust’ to fruition were filming in Los Angeles and COVID-19. The financial implications of shooting during the pandemic were significant. Friends and professionals implored me to wait to film in a post-COVID world. Still, I felt the pros of shooting sooner outweighed the cons, and we budgeted for COVID accordingly.
What was filming in Los Angeles like?
Filming in Los Angeles was a beast. We submitted for permitting far in advance, but the permit organization we worked with prioritizes permitting based on a production’s shoot dates. The obstacle course began right before moving into principal photography when we were told about a slew of unexpected requirements for our ultra-low budget feature i.e: daily monitors, security on set, firemen, stunt coordinators (our film has no stunts), etc. Soon, we found ourselves at the mercy of an organization working hand-in-hand with a possibly fictitious Homeowners’ Association whose governance kept my team (and our pockets) on its toes.
It’s no wonder indie filmmaking is moving outside of Los Angeles, as arbitrary requirements and rogue organizations are neither efficient allies nor financially feasible for true indie productions. Nonetheless, we persevered and made a beautiful film. I’m proud of what my cast and crew were able to accomplish despite the circumstances.
“If I’m passionate about an idea, someone else will be too.”
What are some ways in which your lived experience has shaped your way of seeing the world? How does that show up in ‘Trust’?
Many of the characters and events in Trust are inspired by real people and events. I attended my grandfather’s funeral when I was a kid, and it can best be described as a circus. There was a talent show in the middle of the funeral, and I was shocked that my “grandfather was in a vase.” By the end of the funeral, after a shouting match between two supposed relatives who felt they “deserved some credit,” I apologized to the rabbi on behalf of my family. Years later, this inspired a scene in ‘Trust.’
My observations of people post-loss are prevalent in ‘Trust’: grief vs greed. I wanted to show the various layers of that in a stressful familial setting, while also putting a spotlight on mental health. In my own life, there’s been a theme of “trying to make things work” in relationships, especially with family… “You only have one family. And severing ties with a person is not only mean, but inconvenient to everyone else.” I’ve come to learn that, whether I’ve chosen or inherited specific relationships, sometimes self-preservation needs to take priority. That’s not to say that relationships don’t require compromise and give-and-take, but when it comes to abuse and manipulation, it should be okay to sever that relationship. And I wanted that theme to be at the forefront of my film. You’ll see it play out in the family dynamics, amongst characters you’ll love to hate or hate to love.
You wrote this film, with collaborative assistance on the story from director Almog Avidan Antonir (fellow FTW creator). How was the process of collaborating with a longtime friend and Chapman schoolmate?
Working with Almog was an absolute dream! We both attended Chapman University, but we became close friends post-college. I always admired Almog’s work, but we’d only ever worked together in a smaller capacity: he directed me in a few shorts. Then years ago, after completing the Trust proof of concept, Almog jokingly threw his hat in the ring to direct the feature. Little did he know, I clung to that joke, and a few months later, I sent him my work-in-progress script. Almog helped me fine-tune and develop my script while I simultaneously worked to secure funding. We spent hours upon hours delving into every detail of the script, shifting scenes, finessing characters, and discussing goals.
Pre-production was a truly collaborative process: we both comfortably threw ideas on the table, challenged one another, and dipped our toes in everything from costuming to casting. By the time we moved into principal photography, Almog and I had already talked at length about the vision of the film so I never felt the need to play backseat director. I knew my film was in great hands. Principal photography felt like a whirlwind, a true collaboration amongst everyone involved.
My biggest takeaway for a successful collaboration would be: to figure out what you are married to in your story and what you’re willing to negotiate. For me, I had two narrative elements that I would not compromise. Otherwise, I was willing to kill my darlings if doing so meant telling a better story.
This is your first feature film. Congratulations! What have been some of the more unexpected challenges of navigating the festival circuit?
Festivals can mean so much and so little at the same time. I truly believe that festivals are what you make of them, so if I’m rejected from a festival, I do my best not to take it personally. If I get into a festival, amazing! If not, it doesn’t mean my film is any less great!
For me, festivals are about community building and market research. They give me the ability to present my film to a new audience that might not otherwise have seen it and use that information in my sales approach. Festivals also allow me to network with other filmmakers that could be future collaborations. In the future, however, I might want to go through a sales agent or distributor versus self-submitting to festivals. Festival fees add up, and it sometimes feels like throwing a dart into thin air.
What’s one key piece of advice you would give to other writers/directors who are getting their start in today’s industry?
Rejection is the name of the game in this industry, and I’m able to use it as fuel. This hasn’t always been the case. I wish I could tell my younger self to take things with a grain of salt and to trust that if I’m passionate about an idea, someone else will be too. There have been too many times that I’ve given up on concepts because of rejection and later discovered that there could’ve been a home for them. So keep writing if you want to write, pick up your phone and shoot something if you want to direct, and just start creating.
Every time you dip a toe into this industry, people will try and push you out. My advice: Give yourself time. Don’t give up before you truly try. Keep going, put the work in, improve upon your work, and if you truly love what you’re doing and can’t picture doing anything else, you’ll find a place for yourself in this industry.
This interview was edited and condensed for clarity.
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