The Directing Breakdown is actually a spiritual playground for self-evolution cloaked as a film workshop.
Throughout my life, I’ve always heard the term “safe space.” This term is quite broad and can mean different things depending on your social environment and context. I was challenged to define what the term “safe space” meant for me during Kashif’s Directing Breakdown Lab, and was surprised by the many ways the workshop nurtured spiritual growth through learning valuable lessons about life.
During the first day of the workshop, Nedra Marie, our Directing Actors coach, tasked us with writing a manifesto to be read aloud to the production team before we started to film. The purpose of this manifesto was to set the stage for the type of experience we wanted our cast and crew to have on our set.
As everyone circled in the middle of the room, I prepared to read.
FLASHBACK—
Twenty minutes before reading my manifesto, I, the social butterfly, was eating lunch during my production alone. During rehearsal, I was confronted with one of the hardest interpersonal challenges I’ve ever experienced on a film set. How do I reconcile a person feeling unsafe minutes before the start of filming? I had to define a safe space through actively paving that safe space, rather than just speaking the words.
There goes that idea again. Holding space – Safe space. Sometimes so casually thrown around it has become a buzzword. Everyone’s boundaries and sensitivities are personal and it is impossible to define since everyone's life experiences are vast with different journeys. Unbeknownst to me, the workshop became the conduit for one of the most valuable lessons of life in my thirties. Surrender.
—“Purrrrrrrrrrrr...,” I read aloud to the cast and crew.
“I AM HERE. I AM PRESENT.
This production is where play and work is symbiotic and there is no separation.
The clock doesn’t exist, for this is a safe space for love and connection.
Conflict is an opportunity to show a new way to love and understand one another.
Wrongs are just another opportunity to make a right.
Accountability is a way to show respect and to show growth that is happening all the time.
Hold space for me and I will hold space for you.
We are light and love.
We are divine beings having a human experience.”
The manifesto became the key to paving the safe space for the production day but I soon realized a safe space became an action word during the whole film day. Due to the vulnerability that my characters required, I checked in with the actors throughout the film day to reassure them that they are delivering the lines correctly. In addition, my script had a lot of action scenes and my mentor and I became responsible for choreographing the action scenes. I knew this was vital in continuing to pave the way for a safe space for the actors. Ensuring the actors felt secured helped establish trust and ultimately led to performances that blew me away as a director. My vision as a storyteller came to life due to the due diligence of making sure all the actors were taken care of.
One of the most honorable things you can do as a person is to surrender. I learned that surrendering doesn’t mean giving up but a smart strategy you can utilize during your creative process. I can say with my whole heart that this workshop has helped me evolve as a person and my capacity to give and receive love has grown.
