This past summer I got the call to action to direct my first TV Movie – a Rom-Com!
It was a joy to work with the cast and crew in Kelowna, BC for 12 days on a 20 million dollar estate. We managed to only have one day of forest fires in the vicinity, however one started across the water right before we filmed the most important scene – THE KISS! So this gorgeous romantic sunset kiss you get a glimpse of? Happened while the actors blocked out a very loud helicopter doing laps to put the fire out. Perhaps Francesca Bianchi and Matt Hamilton have so much chemistry that they lit the fire? Hot.
Big thank you to the pilots and firefighters for keeping everyone safe! I give you, “Two Chefs and a Wedding Cake“!
TBD on when and where it will be aired! Follow me on Instagram for more up-to-date info @bnordstewart
I’m behind on the updates. I keep thinking there are no updates but I think the headline proves otherwise.
The Jun 11th-13th weekend I rounded up some of the finest crew members in Vancouver – who hands down are some of the best crew worldwide – brought them to a luxury hotel in downtown Vancouver and made a new short, SHIT SPONGE. And you know what? It’s really good.
Like, really.
LOGLINE: A budding hotel manager must evict one of the world’s most notoriously volatile party girls.
“Shit Sponge” co-starring Arghavan Jenati
My first three asks were a MUST. I needed them
I asked Riley Madincea to come back and write again after my last short BOT PROX was such a success. He said yes. Then there was getting a location – thank you co-producer James Hutchison for introducing us to Nephi at The Douglas Hotel for elevating our location from small cramped/cold/wet parking garage (on BOT PROX) to MULTIPLE LUXURY PENTHOUSE SUITES in a CUSTOM LUXURY HOTEL that just happened to be closed – I guess there are pandemic silver linings for indie filmmakers?) I really feel like I don’t know how to make anything without Hutch because he takes care of all the organizing and logistics and all I have to do is buy the thank you beers and well…direct. BUT THAT’S THE FUN PART!
I NEEDED David Trevail. Editor I keep courting who GETS me. That’s a hard find. Someone who truly understands story, pacing, comedy. But also MY kind of story, pacing, and MY KIND OF COMEDY. But actually. He is a storyteller himself. He was also an instrumental part of our writing in the first hours of the competition. Also just a damn JOY. Thank you for leaving England and moving here.
Then there was getting phenom director of photography and camera operator Ryan Purcell on board. Any Nancy Drew or To All the Boys fans out there? I did that by taking a job as a cinematographer’s assistant for 6 months which turned into 12 months because pandemic, and being the person who turned bland necessary emails about gear list and blocking changes into amusing dalliances of a need for some creativity. Ryan liked the emails. I asked and he said yes.
Is this all seeming too easy to you?
It was.
“Shit Sponge” co-starring Caitlin McCarthy
I cast Caitlin McCarthy because she texted me and said “am I on your project or should I find another team?” and well she’s amazing (she’s KILLS in BOT PROX) so that was an easy, YES.
Arggy Jenati I’ve been hunting for years and she was finally available!!
We got out some returning collaborators and some new ones I am so glad I connected with and honestly it was the best weekend I’ve had in a really long time.
I REALLY LOVE DIRECTING.
But really.
Really.
Can I please just being doing it EVERY DAY?
BUT ACTUALLY.
So a month after the filmmaking weekend we got to meet IN PERSON at a REAL LIVE MOVIE THEATRE and watch the top 20 films jury selected out of the ONE HUNDRED FILMS made for this year’s RUN ‘N GUN Filmmaking Competition.
And we freaking WON. And there was some AMAZING films.
We won BEST FILM, BEST DIRECTION (by me!), and BEST PERFORMANCE (by Arghavan Jenati). Hot Damn.
I can also brag about the SIX other nominations we had. 9 category recognitions overall.
2021 Run ‘N Gun 48 Hr Filmmaking Competition Awards:
Winner, BEST FILM Winner, BEST DIRECTION by Brianne Nord-Stewart Winner, BEST PERFORMANCE by Arghavan Jenati
Nomination, BEST WRITING by Riley Madincea Nomination, BEST PERFORMANCE by Caitlin McCarthy Nomination, BEST ENSEMBLE by Arghavan Jenati & Caitlin McCarthy Nomination, BEST EDITING by David Trevail Nomination, BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY by Ryan Purcell Nomination, BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN by Neil Colango
So this pandemic has been challenging. That goes without saying but I’m saying it. But there is light. And I hope there is A LOT more to come.
HUGE THANK YOU to our sponsors without whom this film would not have been possible:
The DOUGLAS HOTEL / PARQ Vancouver, William F. White International, Copy That Walkies, Means of Production, and SIM complete.
This film looks amazing and that’s only possible because of yours support, so from all of us, thank you very very very much!
It has been a long minute. It seems like just yesterday I shared the PEN15 pitch video and I was looking forward to them hiring me for the second season. (Spoiler alert: the second season is out and I didn’t direct any of the episodes… BUT THERE’S ALWAYS SEASON 3!)
“Bot Prox” (2020)
Since then, I directed a short horror-comedy BOT PROX during a 48 hour blood and guts themes competition, got a gig on a Netflix limited series, stayed home for five months like I was told – –
BECAUSE COVID-19 IS REAL SO WEAR YOUR DANG MASK & WASH YOUR HANDS LIKE YOU’VE BEEN CUTTING JALAPENOS AND ARE ABOUT TO TAKE OUT YOUR CONTACT LENSES
– – and have since started back on said Netflix show, played New Filmmakers Film Festival (virtually) with BOT PROX, and also finally finished the film! (It may have been a work in progress at the fest…)
And this week is the opening of the 27th Austin Film Festival and guess what? BOT PROX is an official selection! Woot woot! Who knew that a little 48 hour horror-comedy film would get into one of the most esteemed film festivals in the world?
Well it feels pretty freaking great.
Having been officially selected at Austin in 2017 with my digital series YOUNG & RECKLESS, I can say from experience that getting into Austin Film Festival is a huge honour and attending is a privilege any filmmaker should fucking make happen.
BOT PROX is programmed for its World Premiere in Shorts Program 5: Over My Dead Shorts. I love it when they get punny with the program names. This is sure to be a horrorific treat.
The program includes:
The Internet Kills directed & written by Eren Celeboglu & Ari Costa (United States) The Last Starship directed & written by Eric Haywood (United States) The Recordist directed & written by Indianna Bell & Josiah Allen (Australia) Hey, It’s Me directed & written by Courtney & Mark Sposato Oh Deer directed & written by Richard C. Jones (United States) Bot Prox directed by Brianne Nord-Stewart, written by Riley Madincea (Canada) Carmentis directed & written by by Antony Webb (Australia) Yandere directed & written by William Laboury (France)
All the films in this program are eligible for audience awards so be sure to watch and tell @austinfilmfest how you feel about it. While your at it, tell me @bnordstewart how you feel about it.
The program will be available to watch online starting October 23, 2020 through till October 29th. Just the program is $12, but you can entertain to your hearts content with their Film Pass for $30 or all of the amazing panels and conferences with WORKING & ACTUALLY SUCCESSFUL film industry folks with their Virtual Badge for $200
To check out what else the 2020 Austin Film Festival has to offer head to: watch.eventive.org/austinfilmfestival2020 and tell me about how amazing it was as I’m on set 16 hours a day and sleeping all the rest.
A couple years ago I met a lovely English fellow at a film festival where I was showing my short BEAT AROUND THE BUSH. Said fellow had missed my screening but really, really, (REALLY), wanted to see it. So he said “I will bribe you by giving you this super secret pilot presentation link to a Hulu show called PEN15 that isn’t out yet”.
Well, that 17 minute pilot presentation was my freaking jam. I probably watched it 47 times (or more, let’s be honest).
This past February the entire first season was released complete with an episode about the main characters Maya & Anna – played by the 31-year-old co-creators – coming into possession of a thong. And oh bejeezus, it made me want to find the photo of one Jaime North in grade seven with me at the La Senza holding up one 100% cotton red thong. You bet your booty I bought it and wore that baby with so much ‘tude. 🍑
Instead of just finding the photo album, I digitized the Hi8 1999-2000 video archives of my youth. Here is my love letter/pitch video to the PEN15 team.
Watch my pitch!
If you haven’t watched season one yet, get on it! It’s been nominated for the Emmy’s. In Canada you can watch on CBC Gem. In the US it’s on Hulu. In other countries – I DON’T FREAKING KNOW. Ask Google.
Watch the PEN15 season 1 trailer ↑
I have a summer teen movie I’m supposed to be writing.
It’s very cool that some of my work is getting new life on new platforms! BEAT AROUND THE BUSH and my webseries YOUNG & RECKLESS are now available for free to members/users of the gamified streaming platform. www.filmocracy.com
Young & Reckless, directed by Brianne Nord-Stewart
I honestly know nothing about the platform (or gaming in for that matter ), and at quick glance it talked about leader board and ratings and creating an avatar and that’s just another wormhole of procrastination I’m not getting into. But if you live for that stuff, AWESOME!
This license was facilitated in a partnership with FilmHub and the Cleveland International Film Festival where BEAT AROUND THE BUSH was officially selected in 2016. So that’s pretty dope, right?
My short film BEAT AROUND THE BUSH and my first webseries YOUNG & RECKLESS are having a resurgence and finally getting some much deserved online distribution! Both the short and the series have been selected by the online and mobile streaming platform Fearless.
Fearless is an online streaming service that showcases features, series, and shorts from independent creators across the world. With apps for iPhone and Android, and the ability to send movies and shows to your TV with ChromeCast & Apple AirPlay, we like to call ourselves a “film festival in your pocket”.
Fearless favours content that promotes one or more of the following focus areas: – LGBTQ stories & filmmakers – Female stories & filmmakers – Diversity, representation and inclusion in film – Freedom of speech, controversial topics, and challenging conversations. – Content with strong messaging that drives our world forward (can be scripted, unscripted, or documentary).
With a mission and a focus like this I’m very proud to have BEAT AROUND THE BUSH and YOUNG & RECKLESS on Fearless. I hope you’ll find even more worthy titles to consume! An app is available for your handheld devices.
This license was facilitated in a partnership with FilmHub and the Cleveland International Film Festival where BEAT AROUND THE BUSH was officially selected in 2016, and with the Austin Film Festival where YOUNG & RECKLESS was selected in 2017.
“Streampix is a library of movies and TV shows that you can watch commercial-free and unlimited on any screen, such as your TV, laptop, tablet or smartphone.”
This license was facilitated in a partnership with FilmHub and the Cleveland International Film Festival where BEAT AROUND THE BUSH was officially selected in 2016.
Doron Bell (Left) and Devon Ferguson (right) having a good laugh in between tackles on YOUNG & RECKLESS
I’m about 8 months overdue in sharing this interview I did with Her Film Project! “The Ask” on Her Film Project is a series that aims to raise the profile of female media creators, artists, and decision-makers with the goal of facilitating open dialogue and proposing concrete action (“the ask”) towards achieving equality and inclusion in the media industries – and society at large.
I first met the author Stephanie Law as part of my first job after university which was sponsored by the Canadian Media Producer’s Association (CMPA) and I’m so happy we’ve kept in touch. Thanks for including me, Stephanie!
Staring down the competition on Opening Trailer Night at Seriesland. 😛
This is Emily the intern here with some very exciting news from Spain; THE DANGERS OF ONLINE DATING will be an official selection in the 4th Annual Bilbao Seriesland! I’m super stoked and hope you are too!
If you want more info about the festival you can check out their website and Facebook page.
Don’t forget to follow along and show some love to DOOD on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook (@DOODtheseries)!
Brianne Nord-Stewart 