We were lucky to catch up with Meredith Guerra – Rutledge recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Meredith thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.
You know, what sets me apart is that I don’t believe in sticking to just one way of doing things. I’m all about genuine authenticity, not the kind where you put on a show pretending to be someone you’re not. I mean being true to yourself without any ego getting in the way. I’m all about telling stories that resonate with me personally, ones that I’ve either experienced myself or really want to see come to life.
I believe that the essence of our existence is to connect with others and to truly feel alive. So, when I produce stories of any kind, my goal is to evoke genuine emotions in my audience without dictating how they should feel.
Awards and status don’t mean much to me. What I care about is crafting compelling stories. Take my show “Jessi Who?” for example; I’ve handled every aspect of production except for the acting part. We’re onto season 2 now, and we even had a billboard up in West Hollywood and to be honest, I never cared about run times, if it looked cinematic, getting the perfect VFX or lighting for it, I just said – ok let’s try this! Then I cut it together and BOOM! Out came an imperfect masterpiece that brought unity amongst many.
The truth is, everything’s self-funded. I just want to create an experience where people can unwind and have a great time, free from any stress or tension. You know, I’ve been in the trailer editing game for quite a while now. That’s why I made a deliberate choice to focus on YouTube. Everything my company creates will be on Youtube on purpose. I didn’t want to be confined by all those rigid “network standards.” YouTube gives me the freedom to strike a balance between having a blast and keeping my audience entertained. It’s a win-win situation, so honestly, I can let my creativity flow and still connect with my audience on a platform that’s more relaxed and accessible and I’m totally game for that.
You know, for me, life isn’t just about being stuck in a cycle of work and bills. I’m not interested in just adding years to my life, I’m genuinely all about adding life to my years.
Meredith , 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?
When I first came to LA, I was broke as a joke as we all have been but everyone pretends not to be. I knew in my heart of hearts, since 4th grade, that I wanted to be a story teller. I started by working my butt off for free and sometimes for nothing at all, to prove that I AM talented, eventually I became a movie trailer editor when someone told me I wouldn’t be that for at least 10 years…. 6 months later, it was paying my bills. But I wanted to tell my own stories, I have been through a lot, like many of us, we aren’t here for long and knowing that, I decided to risk it to get the biscuit, so, there’s this thing I did, I started a little venture called isLove Films. Why? Well, imagine me, fed up with the conventional “do this, do that” approach to life. I mean, who made up those rules anyway? Certainly not me. I wanted to create stories that set my soul on fire, stories that resonated with me on a deeper level, regardless of genre, even if that means laughing at something so incredibly stupid, no matter what critics believe is “best”.
I’ve honestly always resonated and understood the term “rebel without a cause” – I like to think I’m the creator of my own little universe. The “right way”? Pfft, never been my style, because to be honest – in my opinion, who needs someone else’s roadmap to success when you can craft your own adventure?
That doesn’t mean be reckless, just be balanced you know? For your own health, those around you that you’ve committed your days to and with, but want to know how I have always viewed it? the best stories are often told by those who can’t quite find the words, so that’s what I do. I create and what I write is never final because on set, I get more ideas as I’m filming and then when I edit, I see NEW and BETTER ways to execute what I thought was a great idea to begin with.
It’s a never ending cycle of “WHOA! Let’s try this instead!” and I really could care less how it looks if the story speaks for itself and the actors just dive right on in.
I freaking LOVE it.
My motto is. let’s wing it because life is life is life and that’s how it always is-
As for what sets me apart? I don’t know man, I guess that I like connecting with people, no matter who they are and I don’t care too much for a big ol’ ego all up in my business.
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
My business partner is my husband, we have been together for 13 years. How did we meet? He was once my barista, the coffee wasn’t great but he sure was. He’s someone that has always been my front row supporter, not to mention – we went through the hardest of the hard together. From “zero to hero” I’d like to say ;)
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Honestly, I could say a lot about this specific question but there’s one I’m still dealing with, even as I write this. I lost my bestest friend of 22 years on Jan 13th 2023, Kourtnie Hertlein. When I got the news, It rocked my world so bad, it stopped me at my tracks. I forgot how to breathe, my soul was ripped out of me, my nervous system manifested into physical, chronic problems that a pill will never solve.
She was the greatest supporter to my journey since we were itty bitty brats, when it comes to literally everything and when she passed, she passed a week before a surprise episode I had made for her was to drop on our series youtube channel.
It really sucked. It still sucks and it will always suck.
I went through my stages of grief and continue to do so, and because of her, I’m pushing isLove Films to higher heights because *SPOILER ALERT* none of is will make it out of here alive. So if I can do one thing, that’s to leave the feeling and essence of who we are behind so that the ripple effect does not fade but instead continues to get bigger.
Contact Info:
- Website: islovefilms.com
- Instagram: @islovefilms and for our bread and butter – @jessiwhoseries
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessiwhoseries
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithguerra/
- Youtube: youtube.com/jessiwho
- Other: our isLove Films still has some growing to do but here is the youtube – https://www.youtube.com/@islovefilms
Image Credits
Poster Graphic Artist for “Jessi Who?”, “Nimesh” and “Double Shot” – Vicky Vargas Christmas Set Photographer and CYC wall photos: Tanner Sanzi