We were lucky to catch up with Julianne Vallera recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Julianne thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you walk us through some of the key steps that allowed you move beyond an idea and actually launch?

In 2019 I published an article arguing that casting white, cis, able-bodied people as minorities and those from marginalized groups needs to be treated as an unemployment problem instead of solely a social justice issue. After the article was discovered I got to work at San Diego Film Week and other local film festivals. In 2020 I also started doing the 48 hour film challenge and continue to participate in that about twice per year. I eventually got my friends and former classmates who have film experience to participate with me and since 2022 we have created a short film series centered around Bigfoot haunting the police force and adventurers.

Julianne, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I grew up as an undiagnosed autistic and was one of those types of people who was eager yet not as high achieving as my non-autistic peers. About the time I wrote the article about inauthentic casting, I was having difficulties finding a career path that would work for me. I then decided to enter a Regional Center program called Options for All: Film and Media Studio after seeing their showcase at an art show that I participated in. After that, I think the thing that set me apart is that I didn’t expect other people to network for me and I’m still working at film festivals instead of giving up after my short films didn’t get any film festival selections or awards.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Only go after prestigious degrees and prestigious jobs. While nurses, doctors, social workers, etc are important to society; I’ve learned that not everyone can get an A in math with the best tutor and that working at a school can feel like being a parental figure to 30+ kids.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I learned all the loopholes that filmmakers use when they are working on projects that have a shoestring budget. When directors are on a shoestring budget they post jobs and casting calls on local websites instead of the career page of Netflix’s website or Backstage. I have found work through these groups. For those who are not in San Diego or California, there are websites titled “Rhode Island Film & Television Office” and “Film In Florida” that people can go to for example.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jmvallera.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliannevallera/
• Linkedin: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11171679/?ref_=nmbio_ov_bk
• Twitter: https://x.com/JulianneVallera

Image Credits

I did the artwork