We caught up with the brilliant and insightful April Maxey a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
April, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
I went to an art school that focused more on experimental arthouse films instead of a film school that focused on a more commercial filmmaking approach, so we had to be scrappy. Each of us had to learn how to do every role on set. I did casting, sound, camera, gaffing, production design, and editing. This was all with no money and everyone helping each other on all our different projects. After Pratt, I continued to work on various sets, starting as a 2nd Camera Assistant, and working my way up to being a Director of Photography, while always directing and editing indie short films and music videos on the side. Having this hands-on experience in so many roles is essential to my understanding of how a set works as a director, and it informs my appreciation of each person’s role on set. I also learn by studying other films, reading scripts of movies I love, and helping friends out on their indie projects as well.
One obstacle for directors is that there is limited opportunity to actually “practice” directing. I was selected to participate in a TV training program last year, where each director worked with actors and a cinematographer in a studio setting to block, rehearse, and do two “takes” of a scene, all while on a timer, the goal being to train us to work efficiently for the episodic space. That was a rare time where I felt like I was practicing directing. Another way I practice is by helping my actor friends with their auditions. I see it as an opportunity to understand how my direction impacts their performance, while also being able to practice directing material that someone else wrote. It’s also hard to practice employing larger scale tools when you don’t have access to sets that allow for them. Only in the last couple of years have I been able to direct on projects that have budget for things like a steadicam or a Fisher dolly.
The skills that I believe are most essential to a director are the ability to remain level-headed in a fast-moving, high-pressure environment, and the ability to communicate effectively by understanding the emotions and needs of others. This is important because there can be 100+ people on set, many of whom you’ve just met for the first time, and now you have to come in and inspire them to do their best work to reach a common goal.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I’m an independent filmmaker and freelance director. I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, and I have always been creative. I started out in painting and drawing, and initially thought I wanted to pursue a career in graphic design. Later, I realized that I could use my creativity (and personal experiences) to contribute to queer narrative cinema. I stayed in New York for 12 years and started a small queer production company with my friend Maximus Skaff. We shot, produced, directed and edited different projects from documentaries, to branded content, to music videos, while I was always writing and directing my own low-budget indie short films on the side. I began to notice that the “passion” projects that I did for creative fulfillment were always the ones that got me noticed and hired for more lucrative jobs. There is something powerful about showing your authentic, bold, risk-taking creative voice that stands out to people. That’s why I know I will always prioritize having a practice of creating things that excite me on an independent level. On that note, the project I am most proud of in my career so far is my narrative short film, Work, which follows a queer Chicana who returns to a past gig in sex work while struggling through a breakup. Work played at Sundance, Tribeca and won the Jury Prize at Outfest, and is currently being developed into my first feature film. As a director for hire, I am most proud of the commercial I did for Chispa, the Latinx dating app owned by Match.com. The client and agency really allowed me to lean into my own creative voice and tone to create an intimate sense of romantic desire, similar to a style I employ in my short films. It was fun to use “my style” on a set that wasn’t limited to an independent short film budget!
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative is working on set with people you creatively admire and respect, thinking up new ideas together, and then watching those ideas be implemented in real-time and being better than what you could have imagined. Another rewarding part for me comes after all the intense labor of post-production is over. When I get to sit in the theater and hear the audience having audible reactions to my film- whether it be laughing, clapping, or hearing verbal reactions that are the sign of someone being entertained and surprised at the same time! Also when people come up to me after the screening and tell me how much they related to the story. That part is rewarding because I put so much of myself on the screen, which feels incredibly vulnerable to share in such a public way. So when others say- I’ve felt that too, or it was so relatable, it reminds me of how valid the work I am doing is, and that others feel seen in it too. It’s all part of a greater purpose to cultivate more empathy and interconnectedness by centering stories and characters that deserve the spotlight, but have typically not been given it by mainstream Hollywood.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
Firstly, I believe everyone has the ability to be creative, it’s just whether or not people decide they want to tap into that part of themselves. For those who have maybe taken a more traditional route of working a full time job that doesn’t require what we think of as a “creative” practice, but who are interested in developing that for themselves, I always recommend the book The Artist’s Way as a place to start. I know many of us think of being creative as doing more visual, artsy things, but the way a budget or schedule is built for an independent film is a creative task, too! Asking how you can make something work, how you can make it be the best it can be, knowing you have very limited resources is a constant problem in my world that needs to be solved in a creative way.
Some might not understand how time is spent as a person with a more non-traditional creative career path. One might think because I am not working a traditional “full time job” that maybe I spend my days hanging out and having fun watching movies! But the reality is I spend substantial time developing ideas, writing, applying to programs, editing decks and pitches, taking meetings, attending industry events, doing research and education, etc, all in preparation for the relatively few days a year I actually spend directing on set! Then, on top of that, I’m doing paid freelance gig, which are typically unrelated to my creative passion projects. Being self-employed is a challenging and grueling undertaking, but I am a high-risk, high-reward type of person! I enjoy managing my own time, and over the last decade I have grown comfortable with the idea of not knowing exactly what I will be working on in 4 months from now. Of course it is important to plan and goal-set, but as freelance creatives and independent artists, our schedules tend to become a creative jigsaw puzzle over time. However, all of the work is extraordinarily rewarding and fulfilling when the passion projects finally come together!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.aprilmaxey.com
- Instagram: @amaxey422
Image Credits
Brian To, Lisa Paradise, Em Olmos, Andrea Dosouto, Jaclyn Rivas, Melinda James