The @disabilityfilmchallenge is one of my favorite times of the year!
Hundreds of disabled & deaf artists come together to create original, underrepresented short films. The talent is UNMATCHED.
There are so many untold stories within this community and these stories deserve to be seen on the big screen and on network TV. Why? Because 25% of Americaās population identifies as disabled. THE PEOPLE NEED REPRESENTATION!!!
This year, I directed & produced @enough.mov a short film about generational deafness that showcases family dynamics. My co-star @imrebeccahayes and I wanted to highlight the many unique ways that deaf, hard-of-hearing people exist.
Congratulations to all my friends that won awards. YāALL ARE AMAZING & Iām endlessly proud to be in this community š¤š¼
#filmmaker #femaledirector #hearingaids #hearingloss
Another set-up vs the final shot. Fun fact: since I wear hearing aids, I was able to play the song in my Bluetooth hearing aids while we shot this to help me stay on beat with the music!
You can watch āenoughā through the link in our bio!
Director: @elisa.richards
DP: @kaitywilliams
Editor: @george_thomson
Colorist: @__ryan_young__
#filmmaker #behindthescenes #indiefilm #cinematography #femaledirector
Video description: Elisa, a pregnant woman wearing a flowy purple dress, talks through how sheās going to walk through the frame. We see her dance with no music & then we cut to the final shot thatās been color graded with the real music added in. The text on the screen reads āthe setup vs the shot.ā
Wrapping a project always makes me want to hoot n holler and cry at the same time š„¹
@tankmanisalive extra luv to you for keeping us on schedule!!!!
WE DID IT!! We finished @enough.mov in 5 days for the @disabilityfilmchallenge š«¶š¼
CREW:
Writer / Director: @Elisa.Richards
Director of Photographer: @kaitywilliams
Assistant Director: @eduardo.a.mendoza
Gaffer: @jonpham
1st AC: @_miss.behaving_
2nd AC: @emily_on_the_go
Grip: @jamieggomez
Set dresser: @marisasarto
Set dresser: @Queen_Mimi_
Sound Mixer: @tyson_g48
BTS Photographer: @Robert.mileti
Script Supervisor: Joe Burns
Editor: @george_thomson
Colorist: @__ryan_young__
Re-Recording Mixer: @michellelugomusic
VFX Compositor: Soojin Park
DIT / Producer: Noah MacLean
Script Doctor: F.F. Mormanni
CAST:
Loretta: @imrebeccahayes
Video description: the crew has just wrapped production for a short film. There is a lot of cheering & clapping. Elisa then walks around & high fives or hugs people as they thanks them for their hard work. There are 14 people in this video. There are open captions & the text on the screen reads, āthe best part of filmmaking is wrapping a project with loads of new friends.ā
The setup vs the shot for this underwater clip is very different!!!
One of my favorite parts of filmmaking is creating solutions for how you want to bring your shots to life.
Shout-out to my fabulous DP @kaitywilliams who lit this shot SO WELL!!! Sheās my fav š¤
And of course special thanks to @jonpham & @_miss.behaving_ !!!!
#filmmakers #filmmaking #behindthescenes #cinematography
I love the pre-production process so much!! Shopping for props & set Dec on a nonexistent budget isnāt easy, but I love a good challenge!
Major shout-out to @marisasarto who helps me dress all of my sets. She is a design WIZARD!!! Marisa has so many unique items in her possession that I consider her a prop master as well! I share with her the general vibes & visionboard and she intuitively works her magic & makes everything better!!! Hire her, ppl!!!
@queen_mimi_ is my āYESā woman!!! She is also an actress \ storyteller & she is an incredible team player. She said yes to helping as a set dresser for this film & her energy is just CONTAGIOUS!!! Obsessed with her!
#setdesigner #preproduction #filmmaking #femaledirector
Video description: Elisa, a woman with long dirty brown curly hair, wears a green tank top & talks directly to the camera while sitting in her car. The text on the screen reads, āpre-production: set Dec & props.ā She then takes us inside dollar tree to show various metal yard decor.
Our 2nd AC @emily_on_the_go is a rockstar šøš¤š¼
BTS Video by @robert.mileti
#filmmaking #filmmakers #BTS #femalecrew
Video description: Emily, a 2nd AC holds the flapper board up to slate a take. The camera cuts to Elisa & Becki rocking out on-set, not paying attention. The camera then cuts back to Emily and she says, ārollingā again. The girls are still rocking out to their own music so Emily shakes her head.
I wrote & directed a short film about generational deafness for the @disabilityfilmchallenge š¤š¼
I havenāt seen a lot of hard-of-hearing stories on TV or film so I wanted to visually display various ways that DHH people live. Whether thatās through the strobe light doorbell or using cards / games to connect with people when you need a hearing break.
Deafies, please support this film by watching our short @enough.mov on YouTube & sharing with your friends! Link is in bio.
Hearing loss, hearing aids, cochlear implant, female filmmaker
All images have ALT text.
Location scouting for our short film @enough.mov
A dramedy about generational deafness made for the @disabilityfilmchallenge š¦»š¼
Shout out to @giggster_official for having an abundance of spaces in LA for filming purposes. The process of finding, scouting & planning for your location is made simple when you can type in specific keywords to search for the vibe youāre going for.
#hearingloss #hearingaids #filmmakers #femaledirector
Video description: Elisa, a petite woman with curly hair, wears a hat through this video. She shares two different filming locations in this video. Both locations are eccentric with lots of color going on. There are open captions & the text on screen reads, ācome location scouting with me.ā
My new short film āenoughā is now available to watch on YouTube! This is a story about generational deafness & Iām honored to have made this with @imrebeccahayes š¤š¼
You can find the link in my bio to watch! @enough.mov
Fearing her granddaughter will inherit a life of struggle, a loving but stubborn Southern deaf grandmother pushes her whimsical pregnant daughter to enroll her unborn child in experimental gene therapy that will erase deafness, forcing them to confront their opposing beliefs about whether deafness is something to be cured or cherished.
There are 8 visual Easter eggs that are a nod to the hard-of-hearing experience in the film! Can you spot them all???
Mega shout-out to @innocaptionapp for helping us bring this story to life!!! InnoCaptionās phone captioned phone calls have been a game changer for me as a deafie.
#hearingaids #cochlearimplant #edfc2026 #laactress #filmmaker
A few stills from our short film about generational deafness! I havenāt ever quite seen cochlear implants / hearing aids on film like this before so Iām so excited for the deaf, hard-of-hearing community to check it out!
Link in bio to watch this 5-minute short!
#edfc2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #hearingloss #deaffilmmaker
