We were lucky to catch up with Hannah Rice recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hannah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
The most meaningful project I’ve worked on thus far is the short film, The Chop, that I wrote and starred in last Summer. The film follows Taka, a New Zealand park ranger who is working in a California National Park. For Taka, trees are people and when a tree is being cut down to make space for a parking lot, she must find the courage to stop the chop. For me, this film embodies how disconnected we’ve become from nature, how it’s become a utility to be capitalized on. Coming from a country like Aotearoa, New Zealand, my connection to nature has always been strong and it’s heartbreaking to see how humanity has become so arrogant as to assume that they deserve to have nature at their disposal. I won’t pretend to be innocent in all of this and am certainly guilty of my far share of misuse of the environment. Films about the environment can often feel heady or immediately alienate an audience. With The Chop, I wanted to keep the story small and to tell the tale using humor while also leaving the audience with a sense of hope.
Hannah, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am a writer and actor originally from Aotearoa, New Zealand (the great land down under down under). After studying Economics and Cognitive Science at Northwestern University, I pivoted to a more creative path. I worked as a theater actor and writer for a number of years in Aotearoa, New Zealand, where my one act play Blood Business was shortlisted for Playmarket, NZ’s Playwrights B424 competition in 2021. Following this, I attended the American Film Institute Conservatory where I earned my Master of Fine Arts in Screenwriting and was able to hone my craft as a writer.
My work is predominantly comedic, occasionally traversing sub-genres such as mockumentary, dramedy or romantic comedy. I have penned a number of professionally produced short films and have also worked as a comedy writer for hire. In these circumstances, directors have come to me with ideas or an outline and have sought my help in bringing this vision to fruition. Most recently, I was a co-writer on the narrative short film Shangri-La which has played at LA Shorts International Film Festival, Catalina Film Festival, Boston Film Festival, AFI Fest and Ridgeway Film Festival. Other collaborative work includes the short comedy films Finessin and The Invite, which both premiered at the Indie Nights Film Festival in Los Angeles. Being able to creatively collaborate is one of my favorite aspects of working as a writer and I always approach the work with a sense of play and fun.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I was working as an actor in Aotearoa, New Zealand, oscillating between getting work in the theater and going out for commercials. I would consistently get put up for “Waitress No. 3” or “Blonde Girl in Coca-Cola Commercial”, roles that left little to the imagination and even less to fulfilling my creative desires. While I adored character work and getting to inhabit a role and bring that person to life, the mundane and often times degrading roles that came my way left me feeling detached from my creativity. The silver-lining of this experience was that it lead me to writing. Starting as a playwright and then moving into screenwriting, I was able to craft, interesting and dynamic female characters that I myself would want to play. This was the impetus for my pursuit of writing, along with finding that it was the joy of storytelling that had originally drawn me to the theater in the first place.
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?
I think people have a misconception that if you work in a creative field you’re either Greta Gerwig or Viola Davis, operating at the extreme of success, or you’re a lazy “artist” who doesn’t do anything all day. The reality of this industry is that it is extremely competitive and that a majority of people are grinding day-to-day, working extremely hard, to get their work seen. This can look like anything; from putting on a performance piece with a Fringe Festival, to working on independent film sets as a member of crew. All of these are just as valuable and necessary contributions to the world of creativity as the work of Oscar Winning directors and actors is.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.hannahzrice.com
- Instagram: @hannahzrice