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 Writer / Director / Producer
Leona Whitney Beatty is a 27 year-old MFA graduate from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. “Last Chair” is her third short film. In 2000, after winning the prestigious Creative Arts Scholarship from Michigan State University, Leona received a B.A. degree in Theater (performance) with a minor in Broadcast Journalism. She was very active in productions at MSU and was the co-director/producer of an East Lansing, Michigan, soap opera entitled “Six’s Wild”, which won the MSU Telecasters Award for best show. She also directed and produced the critically acclaimed play “A Story in Harlem Slang,” by Zora Neale Hurston. Whitney recently received her MFA in film production from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where she maintained a 3.91 GPA and was the recipient of the LMU Bill Cosby Award for Academic Excellence and the Tressie Sounders Intercultural Film Award, as well as three Kodak Film Grants and three departmental grants. Her first film “Currency” was honored to be a selection of four film festivals: LMU Black Student Film Festival, Film Junkie Film Fest in San Francisco, CA, Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival and Lecture Series in Long Island, NY and the Cine Noir Film Festival in Wilmington, North Carolina. Her second film, “The Actual Importance of Being Somewhat Earnest,” has been screened at the Big Bear International Film Festival in Big Bear, CA and the Pan African Film festival in Los Angeles. Her current film “Last Chair” was named the winner of the highly prestigious DGA Student Film Award for the west coast. The film has also screened at the Pan African Film Festival, and was shown at the Emerging Filmmakers Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2004. 07/15/04 - "Last Chair" Interview“Your role in the film? (i.e. cinematographer, director, writer, etc.): Director / Producer / Editor / Writer Names of Director, Producer(s), Editor, DP, scriptwriter, sound/music, etc.?DP – Luke FisherMusic – Richard BowlingSound Design – Andy Olsen 1) Where were you born and raised? I was born in Detroit, Michigan, and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan.2) Where do/did you go to school (name and location)? What are/did you study? When
do/did you graduate? I got a bachelor of arts from Michigan State
University in Theater (performance) in May 2000. I also received a
Master of Fine Arts in 2003 from Loyola Marymount University in Los
Angeles, CA. 3) What motivated you to get into
filmmaking (did you grow up with a camera in your hands; still
photography, etc.)? Were you influenced by anyone to pursue filmmaking?
Have you worked with anyone who has inspired you? My interest in
filmmaking has stemmed from my interest in acting. A theatergoer all
my life, I have been acting in theater since age 10, and I received a
full ride scholarship to Michigan State University for acting. Through
my experiences at MSU, I began working on a show entitled “Six’s Wild”,
as an actor. Eventually, I realized that to have the amount of
creative input and control that I wanted, I needed to be on the other
side of the camera. I took over as the shows Executive Producer, and
subsequently produced 300% more shows then the had been produced in the
past, and won the MSU Telecasters Award for best show. I was hooked.
The experience encouraged my to apply to film school in Los Angeles.4)
Have you done any interns or work outside of film school on
professional projects? If so, what was it (kind of project, type of
work, name of project, etc.)? Intern – "People’s Court" Cast Handler – "The Bachelor" PA – "Swordfish" ( Film)Office PA – "Lackawanna Blues" (Feature Film)Director – "Horizon Series" (Corporate Video Series)William Morris AgencyBase Camp Films5) How was your movie at Cannes produced? i.e. film (what format and which stocks), or video, and Why?I shot on 16mm film, mostly 320T, because I loved the look of the stock for the film.6) Has your film won any other awards (list specific categories, years, etc.)? 2003 - Directors Guild Student Film Award2003 – LMU Film Outside the Frame Award2003 – Tressie Sounders Intercultural Arts Award7) What are you doing now (projects, jobs, etc)? What are your long-term goals? Currently,
I have a great scripts that I feel strongly about directing and I want
work towards getting produced. I also have a few reality projets I
have developed and feel are marketable. On the longer term, I want to
continue to direct and grow as a filmmaker. As a young Black female
director, I would like to provide a different viewpoint with my films,
which stretch my viewer’s perceptions of themselves and others. I want
to work on projects I feel strongly about, and continue to stretch as
an artist. I would also like to find job in the industry that would
help assist me in my goals.
Links
Last Chair on IMDB
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0435117/combined
Whitney on IMDB
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1779810/
DGA Announcement
http://www.dga.org/news/v28_5/images/dgaevnts_jan04/dgastufilm-f.html
LMU Award Winners
http://www.lmu.edu/Page15834.aspx
Nokomis Foundation
http://www.nokomisfoundation.org/voices.htm
Wikipedia Listing
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Michigan_State_University_people
Big Bear Lake film Fest
http://www.bigbearlakefilmfestival.com/2002acceptedfilms.htm
Cannes Article
http://www.2-pop.com/articles/printer_8212.shtml
Filmjunkie Film Fest
http://www.filmjunkie.com/2002/festival/films/currency.html
Film Outside the Frame
http://www.digitalproducer.com/2004/01_jan/news/01_12/lmu0114.html
Kodak Filmmaker Article
http://wwwse.kodak.com/US/en/motion/students/onCampus/aug2004/au_04_cannes.jhtml?id=0.1.4.9.4&lc=en
Pan African Film Festival
http://ndolofilms.com/denis/panafricanla/schedule.html |
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Contact Leona Whitney Beatty
whitney@misswhitproductions.com
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