We recently connected with Deonna Weatherly and have shared our conversation below.

Deonna, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

Weatherhouse Company was created in 2021, while the world was still in survival mode. Personally, having just graduated with a masters degree in 2020, I was without a consistent job and to be honest, was running low on faith. I knew I wanted to ultimately be a business owner but I had few resources and an even smaller network of people (specifically women) I knew who ran their own video or film companies. Working a few gigs here and there with different production companies, I realized how I was constantly the only black female on set. Being in such an uncertain time of my career and working in places that made me feel uncomfortable, I decided to take a chance and create my own production company. I had no blueprint on how to do it but I knew there needed to be a place where being a woman of color on set was not sparse but almost essential. I wanted to create a space that felt safe and comfortable for everyone to be themselves. A place to learn, create, and collaborate with likeminded individuals in the film and video industry.

Weatherhouse Company was created out of a hole in Indianapolis that needed to be filled. It was created to provide opportunities for women and people of color that may seem few in the existing entertainment industry. In a nutshell, as a resource collective, Weatherhouse is committed to the amplification of independent work from underrepresented creatives!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Ever since I can remember, I’ve always had an interest in visual arts. Initially starting out as a photographer, I would constantly see the world as something that needed to be captured, documented, and viewed in multiple ways. While honing my photography skills, I began writing mystery novels, short stories, and plays as a way to escape from reality growing up. It was always more fun to create a world made specifically for me to explore. Once I got to college I started out in Telecommunications, creating video art. Towards the end of my undergrad career, a professor of mine asked if I wanted to create films after realizing how seriously I took storytelling in my simple video projects. He convinced me to attend grad school where I had the ability to create non stop with some of the most incredible faculty supporting from behind. I was truly able to play, learn, and practically use my skills to continue doing my favorite thing, creating worlds.

After graduating in 2020, I decided to create my own production company out of a want to see more people of color, and specifically women, on set. Weatherhouse Company provides commercial and film services to businesses and individuals all around the U.S. but mostly in the Midwest! Realizing how long the filmmaking process takes including gathering a crew, cast, financials, ect., we’re not able to release many films in a single year. Because of this, I tend to include my love for story telling in the commercial industry. I believe, as a trained cinematographer and director, I bring a different element of visual storytelling when helping my clients tell their company story, promote a brand, or create mini documentary styled videos.

I’m most proud of the impact and expansion Weatherhouse has already created in my home town of Indianapolis. Shortly after starting the company, I created Weatherhouse Institute which brings in high school students and young adults, providing them with hands on learning experience in the industry. Professionals from around the city come in to speak to the cohort about their individual specialties and at the end, the students create their own short film. Although we put on small premieres for their films in the past, I still didn’t think that was enough. The young filmmakers here in Indiana needed a space of their own to screen their films, network, and have fun. With that in mind, the Indiana Youth Film Festival was created with 2024 being the first official year of the festival. Being proud of my own company is a good feeling, but creating spaces for the rising youth is part of my purpose.

Any advice for managing a team?

The very first film produced by Weatherhouse Company was called Angela’s Tale! We filmed it at the end of 2021 and premiered it in March 2022 as the company’s first major project. Coming out of grad school, Angela’s Tale was the biggest film I’d ever created as far as story, locations, crew size, and caliber of actors. I was used to asking my classmates to do audio, lights, or even act in my college short films so this project was a pivotal moment for me as a director. Although it was challenging, working with my friends or classmates, it turned out to be a lot of fun so I decided to take a similar approach with this film. I contacted all of my friends both in and out of the industry to help create this world I only saw in my head. With only a 5k budget, I managed to get almost every crew position filled with some of the most incredible people and creatives in the city.

As far as advice for managing a team or specifically a crew, my #1 advice would be to feed people! Haha it seems so simple but it’s true. Making sure everyone eats on set is essential to not only the well being and overall vibe on set but ultimately the outcome of the entire film. Another piece of advice I’d give is to work with likeminded individuals. On Angela’s Tale, I was fortunate to experience a different level of enjoyment and comfortability because of the awesome people I chose to work with. On set, there will almost always be something that goes wrong or something happens that will unfortunately shift the schedule. But when you’re with people who love what they do, can problem solve quickly, and who are just good human beings, problems are so much easier to fix or pivot from. The last piece of personal advice is to stay honest. Being straight forward, saying what you mean, while also being kind is essential. Being a black women, there’s typically a time where I’ll be misunderstood, miscommunicated to, or people may automatically make assumptions. Being honest about your expectations, saying what you need, ect. will help you in the long run! Especially when it comes to something you can’t redo a second time.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson that I’m unlearn this very second is to ask for help more often. Running a production company, an institute, and now a film festival is a ton of work. Finding a tribe of folks who I can hire to crew a project or help with social media can shift my personal health and well being more than I occasionally realize. Being a creative who’s also a CEO is a dangerous combination because we can be so quick to do everything ourselves since we know how we want it to be done. But letting go, delegating, and trusting people enough to help execute your vision will go such a long way!

Contact Info:

• Website: weatherhousepro.com
• Instagram: @d.weath @weatherhousepro @indianayouthfilm
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weatherhousepro/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deonnaweatherly/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM0np0-Rg6GxYlXJiuzKsgw

Image Credits
Kenny Hardaway