SCREAMING SILENCE, 17min., UK
Directed by Kalyn Elizabeth Wood, Hal Waghorn
In the hauntingly enigmatic and dialogue-free short film, ‘Screaming Silence’, Elizabeth, a young woman in the aftermath of a traumatic event, navigates her world through a haunting soundscape of everyday noises, which ‘peoples’ her world and forces her to face her reality of circumstances and her fear of reaching out for help. As the audience intimately experiences her journey, Elizabeth’s silence becomes a bittersweet force, echoing the profound emotional depth that empowers her to move forward in an altruistic twist of an ending.

https://www.screamingsilencefilm.com/

Get to know filmmaker Kalyn Elizabeth Wood:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

This film first started out as my dissertation project for my masters program in London. I was the only one in my class who was doing a digital piece. I knew when beginning to write my piece that I wanted to examine women’s relationships, mainly womens relationship to trauma, sexual assault, loss, isolation and also to dive a little into the mother-daughter relationship dynamic. The film’s first iteration was completely different from its final iteration that it is today and to be quite honest I am glad I went the route that the film is now rather than what it was ‘supposed’ to be. It challenged me and pushed me to places I had never been before as a performer intrinsically, technically, and emotionally. What started out as a quest to fulfill or rather rewrite my story as a gift to my mom and it then became something in singularity. From women, to women. A singular and multifaceted relationship with trauma, the aftermath, loss, isolation and more importantly silence. I investigated the notion of: the power of female silence in films through the lens of trauma. I want anyone who watches this film to feel as though they are allowed in Elizabeth’s world to experience and observe her life in that present moment. I want people to be inspired by the lack of Elizabeth’s voice to find their own voice. To open up and out and maybe even scream.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

From start to finish the film took about 2 months. Because of circumstances out of our control we had to shoot the entire film in two days. The editing took about 3 days.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Powerful. Liberating.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

I think the biggest obstacle we had was the time constraint we were on when it came to filming. Due to our schedules and circumstances out of our control we only have a two day time frame to film everything.

When it came to editing we were able to take our time, which was nice because we were able to really focus on what we wanted to do with the film in terms of editing and the effect it would have on the film overall.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

I mean you never know what people are going to think about a film that is so close to your heart, and you have to remind yourself that most people don’t know you or understand your heart behind the project. So in watching and hearing the feedback my heart was overwhelmed with joy and gratitude. Each individual had their own way of connecting with the film and understanding where they fit in, in their own understanding and circumstances within the film. It was a joy to see male individuals feel that the film also speaks to them and their own understandings and dealings with mental health. The feedback was everything and more than I could imagine and I am so thankful.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

Well don’t think I ever had a realization that I wanted to make films. I always knew I wanted to be in them. The way this project started was simply for my dissertation for my Masters degree. I knew the story that I wanted to tell and I well I had to do the project in order to graduate, but I knew how films worked and how to act so I took a deep dive, head first and plunged myself into the unknown… and I am so thankful that I did. During this entire process I have fallen deeper in love with my craft of acting and filmmaking.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

I think the film I have seen the most in my life is ‘Titanic’ probably because I had a massive obsession and crush on Leonardo Di Caprio.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

One of my favorite things about this festival is the feedback element. It allows for me as the filmmaker and my producer the ability to get different perspectives and reinforce our confidence in the film we have made. Fostering artists and allowing up and coming actors to have a place to shine and also connect with other industry professionals is paramount in someone’s young career. Fostering new relationships and mentorships is something that I think should be implemented more in the festival circuit because when one of us wins, we all win!

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?

Fantastic!

10. What is your favorite meal?

Ohh that’s a tough one. Being originally from New Orleans, I’m a girl who loves her food. I have a top three.
-Jambalaya
-Steak from Musso & Franks in Hollywood
-In n Out Burger

11. What is next for you? A new film?

I have a film coming out this year called ‘Molar’ directed by Jonatahn Rose at Foam Soda Productions. We will continue to show ‘Screaming Silence’ at festivals across the US, UK and Europe