Swim to Steven is starting its festival journey with The San Diego International Film Festival this weekend, and Hollyshorts next month. I'm excited to share this film, which was a joy to make, beginning to end.  

Me and You and Miranda July and the Criterion Collection

Many years ago, I had three small scenes in Miranda July’s first film, Me and You and Everyone We Know. A film which was just added to the Criterion Collection! So major! 

It’s a truly special movie which I've always felt proud to have appeared in, and I was delighted to find my face included on this new poster full of faces.

With this compassionate, startling comedy that could have come from no other artistic sensibility, the brilliant Miranda July reveals a world both familiar and strange—an original vision of creativity, sexuality, childhood, and loneliness through a series of braided vignettes around a pair of pote...

The High Life

Currently on the film festival circuit is The High Life, and indie pilot I directed for writer/star Stephanie Sanditz, based on the true story of hiking her dead Aunt's ashes naked up a mountain with her family. Had a great time on this little half hour dramedy, produced by Shannon E Riggs, Kimberly McCullough, and Mary Rohlich.

The Skimm

I spent a week in July with the powerhouse women from The Skimm, and directed these Facebook Watch shows for them.

First, an unscripted competition show where up and coming female entrepreneurs pitch their ideas in an elevator to win a year of mentorship.

Then Chelsea Handler, Brooklyn Decker, Minka Kelly and Shiri Appleby got into bathtubs, to break down some complicated global issues in less than three minutes.

Enjoy!

New Directing Reel

As mentioned, new directing reel.

Ooooh, Hyperlinked!

The Hyperlinked theme song is really catchy. If you listen to it more than twice, you end up going around the rest of the day singing, "Ooooh, Hyperlinked!" In fact all of the songs are infectious, as are the five girls in L2M, a tween pop group who also star in the show.

It was a joy to direct five of the 10 half-hour episodes in the first season of Hyperlinked, including the season finale. From Youtube Red and Disney, I like to think of the show as The Monkees for girls in the digital age. I was inspired by my years watching Facts of Life, too. Another show with a killer theme song.

Since Hyperlinked aired this past June, it has been awarded the Common Sense Media Seal, and has inspired girls to become interested in careers in computer science. The pilot, directed by Kimmy Gatewood, has been viewed 2.5 million times.

Here is a trailer!

How To Not Wash Dishes Like An Asshole

So El Niño didn't quite deliver.  The drought is still real and we are barreling toward a very dry dystopian future.  Yes, California will go full Mad Max in a generation or two, and Charlize Theron won't be around to save us.  Here is a short I directed (written by and starring Diana Gitelman) to remind us that the little things help.

(Photo cred: Not me.  George Miller and his Academy Award sweeping team of genius designers.)

Reely? Part 2

Here is my new directing reel.

Reely? Part 1

Here is my new theatrical acting reel.  Here is my new commercial acting reel.

My 1st Emmy Nom

With the Emmys coming up this weekend, it suddenly occurred to me that I forgot to mention I was nominated!!!

Okay, thats a little misleading.  It was for a local, Los Angeles Area Emmy, for best Public Service Announcement.  (You may remember the PSA for the Santa Monica Museum of Art that I directed from earlier this year.) Anyway, we didn't win, but as they say, it was an honor just to be nominated.

Here are some photos from the award ceremony last July.

Take A (Closer) Look!

A lot of people don't know that there's a free museum in Santa Monica!  So I was happy to bring attention to it, by directing this PSA for The Santa Monica Museum of Art.  SMMoA is located in Bergamot Station, right next to the new Metro stop, and open to the public six days a week.  I was also pretty psyched that this rainbow-pixel-scape by Robert Swain was the exhibition we were able to craft the whole spot around. Take a look!

Tide Pods and Time Capsules

Every once in a while, a commercial I'm in will play on TV all year long, and it's really nice when that happens.  But then sometimes, the other actress in the commercial is someone I've been making theater with for the past 15 years, and you know what?  That is even nicer than all those steady residual checks.

Well, okay.  It's also nice.  In a different way.

Check out the hilarious Alex Hoover (and I) in this commercial, and see all those years on the stage filtered down into one 30 second joke to sell detergent.

MILFs (Mothers I'd Like to Film)

I made some comedy web series for Nick Mom. (I hinted at this earlier in the year, but since they're up, subtlety is no longer needed.)  Here is the first episode of Your Childless Friend, an advice show for parents, by a woman who is not a mom and probably shouldn't ever pursue it.  And here is the first episode of Healthy Parents Healthy Kids, a DIY home-cooking show by the most awkward couple in America.  I loved working with all these actors, and teaming up again with Cami Delavigne, writer extraordinaire.  Enjoy!  There are at least two more episodes of each show coming soon...

Making Theater @ Boston Court

I am buzzing with excitement as we head into tech week for my latest adventure on the stage:  the world premiere of Everything You Touch by one of my favorite playwrights, Sheila Callaghan.  A hilarious and challenging work, it tackles body image, artistic identity, and forgiveness with all the ferocious abandon of a supermodel charging down the runway.  You'll love it.  We start previews on April 3rd and open April 12th.  Get your tickets here!

Atop Green Mountain

I started off the year making some fun stuff for NickMom. More hilarious redheads coming soon.

Climate Change

Yesterday, I was lucky to be one of a small gathering of producers and directors who were invited to participate in the first annual Women Filmmaker's Initiative Forum, co-hosted by Women In Film and the Sundance Institute.  You may remember that earlier this year, there was a lot of hoopla when they released the sobering results of their extensive research into the real statistics about female filmmakers.  But they're not just studying it, they're actually set on doing something to change it, starting with the basic issue of how women filmmakers lack the access to capital that their male counterparts enjoy.  Hence, yesterday's financing forum.  And I have to say, after a full twelve hours where we talked about everything from foreign sales to raising girls with confidence, I think that the climate can change. Everyone there felt it, but we all agreed it will only work if women continue to help other women.

#whatsyourhealthy #yeshealthyisanoun #dealwithit

As I sit here doing prep on my one of my last Aetna shoots of the year, I thought maybe I'd share a little bit about the job!  Since May, I have been directing and co-writing all the videos for their, "What's Your Healthy?" YouTube show.  This has meant lots of traveling and working with the really cool people at My Damn Channel.  It has also meant trying my hand at unscripted, man-on-the-street type stuff.  The show is hosted by Angie Greenup, who is a delight.  My favorite episodes so far are this garden, this de-cluttering, and this one at the Dance Theater of Harlem.  With at least twenty more on their way, there's definitely something for everyone.  Also, Slate printed an article poking fun at the campaign, which was pretty amusing. 

Laides In Waiting

Kerry Carney and I created this web show called Ladies In Waiting.  In it, we play Kimmie and Ari, best friends and lovable lushes who are aging out of the only job they've ever been able to keep, dressing as Disney-style princesses at parties for the over privileged children of Los Angeles.  Lucky for them, they are too drunk to notice.

We have filmed three episodes.  Please watch and enjoy the adventures of what will soon become your favorite new comedy duo.  That sounds like I'm tooting my own horn, but really, I think of it as tooting Kerry's horn, because that's what co-dependency is all about, dammit.  Also, if you are a fancy producer or show runner who secretly follows my career news blog, a) why haven't I heard from you before now? and b) here's your big chance.  We have expanded the web series into a treatment and first season outline for a half hour single camera comedy.  I look forward to your call.

KCET and Me

Exciting news!  Hold For Laughs will screen on KCET this Thursday, January 31st at 9pm as part of their Fine Cut series.  Why?  Because---get this---we were selected as one of the sixteen best student films to come out of the many prestigious So Cal film schools in the last two years.  Woah!  Not only that, but ours was the first ever to be chosen from AFI's Directing Workshop for Women program.

Last night I went to a party celebrating the filmmakers, held at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.  Here is me after that party, with the giant Emmy of my dreams. 

Blog on Blog Action 6

The sound of my own voice makes me want to crawl under a large object and die alone.  However, David Newhoff has a great voice, and on his blog, The Illusion of More, he addresses with real insight all the stuff that comes up for those of us who participate in the digital culture.  Which is, you know, all of us.  He interviewed me about my perspective on these things, and you can listen to our chat here.