We were lucky to catch up with Leslie Zemeckis recently and have shared our conversation below.
Leslie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
To me the most meaningful project that has come out of writing best-selling books and award-winning documentaries is starting a free mentoring group of professional female authors mentoring the next generation of younger female storytellers. I do two sessions a year, with different groups of young girls (usually in college or just out) introducing them to other authors, to take the mystery away from writing. Everyone has a different process and we work on stories that are ultimately published in ENTITY Magazine. So the girls, if they work hard, end the session as published authors. I never had a mentor, I just started writing and making films and doing the best I can, so it is fulfilling to give back.
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?
As an actor I am curious about everything. I have worked with some of the best, Tom Hanks, Steve Carell, Richard Lawson, Colin Firth, Jim Carey, and Mickey Rourke. I began writing books because I wanted to know more about a certain type of woman who had been marginalized and stigmatized, either because of her work (circus, stripper, courtesan), or social and economic status. They became the subject of my books; Behind the Burly Q (the history of burlesque and an Amazon Editor’s Pick in the top 100 for history), Feuding Fan Dancers (about Sally Rand) and Goddess of Love Incarnate (about Lili St. Cyr, whom Marilyn Monroe emulated.) My films have all won awards and been shown on Showtime and Netflix and the Sundance Channel. “Behind the Burly Q” and “Bound by Flesh” about Daisy and Violet Hilton (conjoined twins who were literally sold at birth) and “Mabel, Mabel TIger Trainer” about the world’s fist female tiger trainer, Mabel Stark. My lates “Grandes Horizontales” begins streaming April 12th on all the usual platforms (iTunes, Amazon, Google, Roku, Vudo). I like stripping away the labels of our pop culture icons and revealing the person underneath.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
When I decided to chronicle the history of burlesque I made a plan to interview everyone I could find all across the country that was still alive that had been in burlesque (roughly from the 1920s – late 1950s). I spent 2 years flying across America with my friend and fellow producer, Sheri Hellard interviewing dozens of women and men in their late 70s – 90s. And thank God I did, they are almost all gone now. Before starting to film and during filming I would periodically pitch the documentary (for funds) to studios and producers. No one was interested, though they told me “that’s interesting” a lot. As soon as it was editing Showtime snapped it up and it played to great amazing reviews! Not a bad review and reviewed in all the major papers. My next film “Bound by Flesh” then debuted on Netflix at number 5, and Variety called it a “masterpiece.” I believe one has to believe in themselves. I don’t hear “no”. I hear I ‘know” what I’m doing and I’m right about it.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Yes. To tell the untold stories. That all stories, all people matter. Don’t follow trends in publishing and filmmaking. Make your art the way you want to, about what you want to make it about. Passion is everything and will get you through tough times. Learn how to do everything, have a great team around you and do not stop. Don’t wait for permission to stop. Go create your art, your dream, your product, your LIFE.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.lesliezemeckis.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lesliezemeckis/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leslie.zemeckis.5/
- Linkedin: leslie Zemeckis
- Twitter: @lesliezemeckis
- Youtube: leslie zemeckis
Image Credits
first shot Robert Kazandjian