RP DVD Extras 📀 February Edition

Hey everyone,

Edition one coming at ya,

In the last newsletter we mentioned a switch up in our inbox comms, hence two newsletters now the Rpeapod and RP DVD Extras.

Well there's a reason behind being in your inbox twice a month. Everything at Rianne Pictures has always thrived on the community spirit we embody, rooted in the passion and dedication of our incredible volunteers - (some of whom have been with us for over 8 years now!!). It's never been just about me or any single individual, since 2013 it has always been about creating a space where less spotlighted voices in film can flourish in a safe space without barriers or judgement or bias, which has evolved from majority female based production teams, to podcasts, to development programmes and workshops to a BIFA accredited international film festival.

So what does this have to do with another newsletter? Many of you have expressed a desire to know more about the behind the scenes of festival including the team and the leadership. For me, I find it a hard balance sometimes and maybe even daunting? Balancing the volunteer-led nature of Women X with the expectations set by larger, privately funded events can be… well really challenging at times. 

Challenges and Reality

I often find myself in awe of the seemingly endless and costly resources of some other festivals, and the online presence of those behind them.

My personal life can often feel worlds apart from the vibrant festival life we’ve crafted at Women X. The reality is - I can’t make it to every networking event, I can’t attend every premiere, Online meetings work better around my schedule and being a mother to two young children means my plate is often full. So our behind the scenes is often not that ‘insta worthy’ it can be hours of zooms, and 3am spreadsheet amendments, and responding to emails on the treadmill at the gym at 10pm, and having to dip out of an event early so I can make it home in time.

Despite this, I want you all to know that my journey is deeply intertwined with our mission, which has always been to spotlight and uplift the incredible talents of women in this industry despite the challenges we face, and this newsletter approach is a way of showing that behind the scenes even if I can’t post glossy photos of the behind the scenes or attend all the events the other festival directors/producers are.

International Women’s Day Reflections

Next month hosts international womens day and each year I find myself asking my team “what should we do?” and most of the time - well we do nothing, while everyone else in the industry puts on events, screenings, parties, brunches, giveaways, lists. The guilt and pressure erodes at me, and I can imagine people asking “Well what are they doing for it???” and potentially judgement at the silence. 

But then I take a moment to remember that every single day (not just March 8th) me and the team are watching hundreds and hundreds of shorts by women and then carefully and lovingly curating them into a festival, which we also have to work hard year round on. We’re also always exploring ways we can expand our exhibition of that work as the festival can only host 60-80 films each year when we deep down wish we could showcase soooo many more of the submissions, oh and alongside the ongoing year round script and production development we do for writers (and soon to be early stage producers!!!!)

I guess this is another reason behind why I made Women X, I wanted to kind of redefine what it means to host a film event/community that was more accessible than the traditional festival setting. Thinking about the accommodations for those who may need a little more support than others when it comes to attending or even understanding how it all works. 

Moving away from mid week late night screenings in London basements with no step free access or networking events that charge you £50 to attend despite your work being screened. Each year listening in and exploring what more we can do for a more equitable experience for all women without making them feel like they’re any less committed to being in the industry because they don’t fall into the outdated norms of film festival culture or the online allure of unachievable productivity. 

So in short, no we’re not doing an event for international women’s day, but we are working year round to make things a little bit better for those in the industry and will continue to do so until Elon’s robots replace us or something equally as awful.

Highs & Lows

I hope you enjoyed this first edition of RP DVD Extras, as promised here’s some highs and lows of the month

Highs ☀️

• Booked our festival venues, and it feels SO great to be returning to both the Hippodrome and Library, they are our little homes only we don’t pay the energy bills so it’s better.

• Onboarded 19 new previewers to the team who have all done amazing and eager to learn more on their programming journeys.

• Sold out our first ever RP Evolve workshop day (and it went great!…more on that in the rpeapod newsletter)

Lows 👎🏻

• Had a TWO hour long meeting with a potential additional venue who have ghosted us since.

• Had a collaboration become more work than we intended and didn’t get what we wanted from it…or even a thank you….

So stay tuned as next month I’ll be back in your inbox discussing how the misinformation online of what festivals are looking for in your short films is eerily spreading and why the commercialisation of community is giving me a big fat ICK (Why are you charging £40 to attend a book club) 

Do you have thoughts on those? I’d love to hear them so hit reply and I’ll explore in the next edition.

RPeaPod our original newsletter will be back next week with your regular industry news and opps, 

Now enough of me yapping, 

Yours, 

Caris