A Cure

Director Statement

The making of this film is in two parts: before and after the COVID-19 epidemic. We shot in January of 2020, under the direction of Ellen Donnelly. Then the world stopped. When (at long last) we came back, I stepped in as director in post-production, with a new goal: take this footage and make it my own, frame it with context and vision as true to me as Ellen’s had been to her, while honoring the work that had already been done. No big. As we crafted Paloma’s outer life, it took shape. Society tells women we can have it all…. within narrow confines, in prescribed ways, and seen through the proper filter. And we internalize, perpetuate, post, share, and like our way to the next “Cure.” What story do we tell, and who is watching?

Producer’s Statement:
Burn it Down is a filmmaking collective that initially set out to create a community where emerging filmmakers could learn by shooting microshorts in a scrappy, supportive, and collaborative environment. As producers, we also wanted to practice holistic leadership in the filmmaking process.

After three years, 18 films, and 58 participants, we decided to expand our goals: could we curate a team to create two polished short films with this same ethos? Could we raise our creative bar, while still maintaining the space for learning? Could we address issues and conflicts while moving a film forward through the stressors that indie filmmaking with a tight budget always presents?

And so, five years and two films later, we are proud to have made it to the final phase of this experiment. A Cure is a product of collaboration and exploration-of-process, created through pandemics, strikes, and life-changing events. We are proud of this film both for the art we’ve created and for the process we went through to create it. We hope you enjoy this labor of love as much as we do!