Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Adrianna Wang. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Adrianna , thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with what makes profitability in your industry a challenge – what would you say is the biggest challenge?
The biggest challenge to profitability in the independent film industry, particularly for a start-up like Spike & Crown Studios, is securing adequate financing for film projects. As Asian American filmmakers, we face additional barriers in a market where 80% of films financed and released in the United States lose money. Investors tend to favor established celebrity names and ‘safe bet’ projects, making it difficult for first-time founders without a track record or industry connections to obtain funding.
Additionally, the process of applying for grants and securing fiscal sponsorships can be costly and highly competitive. Most grant programs favor visual arts and music over film, and when they do fund films, they typically prefer documentaries over animation. This creates a significant hurdle for animation projects like ours, despite the global animation market being projected to reach $400 billion by the end of this year and animated films having a 30% higher profit margin than non-animated ones.
To overcome these challenges, Spike & Crown Studios plans to seek support from a broader spectrum of funding sources, including crowdfunding, selling shares to executive production companies, and securing venture investments. Building an engaged fundraising Board of Directors, including Emmy and Grammy award winners, will also be pivotal. Attending prominent film festivals such as Sundance, SXSW, and Cannes to acquire distribution and streaming contracts, and, if necessary, self-publishing on streaming aggregators like FilmHub, will be part of our strategy. Additionally, we will market our projects via a community and grassroots strategy on social media, collaborative partnerships, crowdfunding, ad trafficking, and press releases.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Adrianna Wang. My journey into the marketing and media industry began with my service in the U.S. Army, where I worked in Combat Support and Psychological Operations capacities in Afghanistan and Korea, focusing on print and video operations. My passion for filmmaking drove me to produce several indie short films, which were featured by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), EcoFreaks Music Festival, the Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA), Rind Literary Magazine, Fun Ziu Hot Sauce, and Hot Chicks with Big Brains.
In the Spring of 2021, I co-founded Spike & Crown Studios with Director and Professor Frans Kusuma and Editor and Academy Award Nominee Edward Alva. Kim Estes also joined us as an executive producer. As the Chief Executive Officer at Spike & Crown Studios and co-writer of our first project, *House of La Mancha* (HOLM). (HOLM), is a 3D animated short that recreates the fragmented world of a girl, Lucinda, who suffers from trauma-induced dissociative identity disorder (DID). Unlike Marvel characters with similar profiles, she is neither insane nor a sociopath, and unlike those Disney has created, she is not a helpless, hopeless victim. This project stands apart from those the major studios have produced primarily because it gives voice to the one in four adults in the U.S. who experience mental illness. The storyline is both identifiable and encouraging. With PTSD, most of which begins in childhood, being the cause of 80% of mental illnesses and with twice as many women than men being diagnosed with PTSD and nine times more than men with DID, Lucinda’s story, her struggle, is more common than we perhaps care to admit.
Due to the nature of DID, the world of La Mancha is one of two perspectives–reality and delusion. Animation grants the visual storyteller absolute freedom of expression, particularly in molding stories to the perspective of the characters. Employing leitmotif enables visual artists to use a recurring theme or patterns, such as a particular phrase, sound, or image, to represent a character, emotion, or idea. Utilizing warped or exaggerated proportions by skewing the converging lines from the vanishing point of linear perspective, or by using color, sound, or images to associate with a character, mood, or idea, the artistic animated rendering can speak volumes emotionally in a way live-action film cannot. Using techniques like those used in *Klaus* (2019), HOLM attempts to recreate for the audience the sensation of what it is like to experience DID, to live with a twisted, fractured reality.
Although the industry has never shied away from addressing mental illness, the representation of the disease and those afflicted by it has not necessarily served to increase the public’s understanding. For this reason, SCS strives to offer a more honest and realistic interpretation of mental illness. Having worked in the film industry for decades, I agree changes are needed in the way such stories are told and the way in which such characters are developed. Film has the power to influence and change. SCS aims to join ranks with other independent filmmakers who are taking a new and bold approach to depicting mental illness by lending voice to those struggling with mental illness, often isolated in the dark and terrorized by real or imagined shadows. I am excited to be part of this trendsetting team.
Our artistic team brings unique experiences to the table, allowing us to present a more accurate portrayal of mental illness.
Two of our producers and two of our scriptwriters, including military veterans and a survivor of the May 1998 raciyal riots in Indonesia, have personally experienced trauma and PTSD. Understanding that one in four adults in the U.S. experiences mental illness, and recognizing that PTSD causes 80% of mental illnesses, we at Spike & Crown Studios are driven to address trauma in ways few others have. Women are diagnosed with PTSD twice as often as men and with trauma-induced DID nine times more than men. Because mental illness is generally misrepresented in film, portraying those afflicted as either villains or victims, we are committed to depicting the heroic struggles of those with mental illness through our scripts and films.
Through storytelling, we aim to uplift diverse talent with innovative technology and community building. We believe in voices from all walks of life and highlighting stories yet untold. By breaking the conventions of framing a script, animation grants infinite potential in film by giving artists the power to tell stories in ways that traditional movies cannot. We are dedicated to utilizing such media to adopt unique perspectives in spotlighting important social issues.
What sets us apart is our commitment to accurate and empathetic storytelling about mental illness. We aim to influence social perspectives through the power of film, showcasing the resilience and strength of individuals facing mental health challenges.
I am most proud of our dedication to creating impactful, inclusive narratives that resonate with diverse audiences and honor underrepresented communities. We want potential clients, followers, and fans to know that at Spike & Crown Studios, we are not just filmmakers; we are storytellers who strive to make a meaningful difference in how mental illness is perceived and represented in the media.
SCS aims to be part of the solution by launching a social dialogue that serves to shift industry standards, and in turn, change insurance coverage practices, thereby ensuring those struggling with mental illness, particularly our youth, receive the care they need to live happy, productive lives despite their diagnosis.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
I don’t necessarily categorize people as either creative or non-creative. If we understand creativity as the process of using our imaginations to transcend traditional ways of thinking and interacting with the world, it’s important to avoid binary classifications that limit expression. Such classifications risk perpetuating social systems that marginalize people based on race, class, gender, and other factors.
In fact, I think something that people struggle to understand about my journey in the film industry is that non-white, non-men folks are forced to navigate an entirely different landscape and set of obstacles that requires a consistent creative approach to not just survive, but to thrive.
A central paradox within the film Industry is that while creativity is arguably a key component in filmmaking, the overwhelming lack of diversity
Upholds and maintains traditional paradigms that stifle Creativity and results in major studios manufacturing authenticity.
According to a recently published report analyzing studio data, 91% of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officers of 11 major and mid-major studios were white and 82% were male.
Only 5.6% of directors and 4.5% of writers in top studios are of Asian descent. And counter to the social perspectives at the ground level, only 7.5% of all animators are Asian, and 28% are women
Spike & Crown Studios is 50% led by women and is made up of 90% people of color. You can’t get more authentic than that and it is clear we are just what the industry needs to help shift the dynamics towards inclusive and equitable opportunity.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My experiences, and therefore my creativity, have been shaped by my status as a first-generation Filipina American immigrant veteran and a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. These experiences have informed my understanding of the importance of creating and sharing inclusive stories. Our mission at Spike & Crown Studios is simple: we want to tell diverse stories that are daringly emotional, authentic, and honor minorities who deserve to have a voice in Hollywood.
Spike & Crown is committed to establishing equal representation of Asian American film executives and studios.
Spike & Crown Studios was formed, in part, to help facilitate parity in the film industry and has adopted a comprehensive Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Policy.
SCS aims to create a slate of broadly identifiable films which speak to trauma based mental illness. In so doing, we hope to facilitate an industry shift in standards and to launch a social dialogue that serves to dismantle stereotypes. For mainstream America, Asian characters are depicted as sidekicks and foils with underdeveloped complexity and no underlying fear or vulnerability.As Asian American and immigrant founders, we also hope to influence the necessary changes that will result in equal representation of Asian Americans in the film industry.
SCS certainly aims to be among this group who pushes the conversation forward, but we want to do more than de-stigmatize. We aim to hold space, validate, and support those living with mental health conditions across all ages and cultures. Through our stories, we want to communicate that the journey towards mental health is not always linear, and that we honor the many other facets of a person outside their diagnosis.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://spikeandcrown.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spikeandcrown/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SpikeAndCrownStudios
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/spike-and-crown-studios
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/spikeandcrown
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@spikecrownstudios4909
Image Credits
Spike and Crown Studios