We were lucky to catch up with Polina Eisenberg recently and have shared our conversation below.

Polina, appreciate you joining us today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

I was raised in Russia by my Mom, my grandparents, and great-grandmother. My father has been out of the picture since I was little. My mom had me very young so I feel like we are more sisters than mother and daughter. She did a lot of things right as a parent. The most important thing is that I feel like I grew up around love. I was raised with love and I was surrounded by it at every turn. I was a depressive kid: I had a hard time playing with other kids because of social anxiety and I isolated a lot. I was always sad about something; if there was nothing to be sad about then I’d make it up. My mom pushed me outside my comfort zone when I was younger because she saw that me isolating wasn’t going to do me any good. She took me to all sorts of extra curricular activities and made me spend time with other kids. When I was older and we were in the US at this point, I got involved with substances and a bad crowd. Probably because I was still looking for reasons to be sad. She did all she could to help me but ultimately what helped the most was an ultimatum. She threatened to kick me out of the house unless I got sober. After two years of trying, I finally did. And I think until this day that was the kindest thing she’s ever done for me.

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?

I am a nurse by trade and a creative at heart. I became a nurse in 2017 and currently work at Bryn Mawr Hospital in Bryn Mawr, PA on an orthopedic floor. I love my job but that’s not my whole life. I started West Chester Filmmaking Group on meetup about a year ago because I felt like my creative side was slowly atrophying. I have always been interested in filmmaking but had no idea how to expand on that interest or where to find people who are like minded. I was also self-conscious because I have no previous filmmaking experience, so who was I to start a filmmaking group? I decided to put the self-criticism aside and just go for it.

The first meeting we had about 25 people show up and it was awkward and uncomfortable as I didn’t expect that many people to show up. I didn’t even have an agenda. I just wanted to start. So here I was with 25 people and no plan. But I winged it and the group has taken off with a few core members of about 10 people ever since.

It is a beginner friendly group where our primary purpose is to learn and grow together. Our workflow usually looks like one person writing a script they are passionate about, then we meet as a group to discuss it and go over logistics. Then we decide on a date and location and shoot the thing! It’s fun, it’s messy, it’s collaborative. I love watching our projects come to life. I love watching us work together. I love all of it.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My main goal with this group is to allow everyone a place to learn and grow. Instead of a bunch of professional filmmakers, the group has regular people who are missing their creative spark. Most folks in the group are engineers. I strive to make the group a welcoming environment for all. I think a lot of people nowadays are falling away from their creativity and it eats at them. Without some sort of creative outlet, that nagging feeling will eat away at a creative’s soul. The way I see it is if you happen to be an artist at heart (even if you don’t think you are one) then you need to create. If you don’t create then that creative energy will rot inside of you until you release it. At least that’s what I have seen for myself personally. I wasn’t able to find any local groups in the West Chester area so I started one. I couldn’t wait any longer.

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

Not really sure if this is a lesson or more of an idea, but I had to unlearn the notion that “I am not good enough.” I had insecurities starting the filmmaking group because I am not a filmmaker and have no background in film. I am not a movie snob nor do I have any technical knowledge. I just love making things and being involved with people who are also making things. I love watching others’ projects come to life. But when I was starting out I felt self-conscious about my lack of knowledge and expertise – a phenomenon very old and familiar to me. I have always struggled with believing I am not good enough. Whether that be at my nursing job, in my relationship, or creatively. This idea has to be smashed if I want to do…well, anything. I would rather do what I set out to do regardless of how “good enough” I feel. Because realistically, I will probably never feel good enough and that’s fine. It doesn’t mean it can be an excuse to sit back and feel sorry for myself. It is just an idea that I can choose to believe or not believe. It does not need to dictate my actions.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.meetup.com/west-chester-movie-making-meetup-group/?eventOrigin=home_groups_you_organize