We were lucky to catch up with Sarah Sharp Abbey Benefield recently and have shared our conversation below.

Sarah Sharp, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

Honestly, the biggest risk we’ve taken as business partners is starting the business itself. We joke about this all the time with people, but when you really think about it, starting AOS Productions LLC was very impulsive on our part. We met each other back in early 2022, but we never really became friends until August after shortly reconnecting after summer break and our college classes were back in session. We just happened to be talking one day after class about our futures, because we’re both future-thinking people, and somehow one conversation led to another and Art of Society Productions LLC was born. After two weeks of properly being friends, we now had this business to run together. It was scary and daunting at first but now, here we are making a profit and doing what we love. We’re glad to have each other because we balance each other out very well. The company couldn’t exist with out either of us.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

We started this company under the premise of telling diverse stories in the media that don’t get told. Both of us are privileged people, but we realize the prejudices that many face in the entertainment industry. Our main goal as a video production company is to uplift diverse, underrepresented, and artistically unique stories in the independent film market. Of course, this is our long term goal. As of right now, we are taking a unique approach to raise money for these films.

When we are not producing others’ films, we are doing digital marketing for local businesses. As of right now, we are working with a few bars in our downtown to create marketing videos to promote their businesses. We plan on using the money we earn from these videos to support independent filmmakers with stories to tell.

Beyond this, we also really value the hustle small filmmakers face in order to get their films made. As small filmmakers ourselves, we know that making films isn’t cheap. We want to help provide an outlet so that filmmaking becomes accessible to everyone and not just people with money. Right now, we’re building our arsenal of equipment so that we can start renting it out at a reasonable price to independent filmmakers. We want to help uplift other filmmakers with creative voices. We both have experience with directing films and we’re super excited to help others bring their visions to life.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For us, the most rewarding aspect of being a creative is just seeing the joy on other peoples’ faces when they see their stories on screen. We say to people that we can’t write stories about an American immigrant, because we aren’t American immigrants, but people are aching to tell these stories; their stories just aren’t being green lit in the industry. No child should grow up thinking they’re unworthy because they’re not represented on the screen.

We also love seeing a film come to life. We’ve both been on many sets, and each set is completely different. We work with so many people and see so many creatives around us who are aching to tell their stories. Seeing a final film after working on it for months on end is a bittersweet moment. We’re grateful and excited it’s finished but we know it’s time to jump ship to the next project and start all over again. It’s rewarding— we’re popping out our heart and soul hoping others appreciate it. It can be discouraging at times, getting negative reviews or comments, but at the end of the day you can’t help but smile because you undid that. You made something from scratch that took months to make. It’s something to be proud of.

Going off that point, it’s also super rewarding to see people become more confident in their area of interest whether that be sound, lights, camera, editing, etc… You can see a spark behind their eyes knowing that it’s something they want to continue. There’s so much that goes into filmmaking and not everyone has to be the next Spielberg or Hitchcock. If you’re content in what you’re doing, enjoy it! Don’t let others bring you down because your ambitions are not the same as theirs.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

We can’t speak for all creatives, but we can speak for filmmakers. A lot of people don’t understand the amount of work that actually goes into making a film. A lot of people think that we just show up with a camera say “action!” and have the movie ready by the next week. In reality, there are so many things that go into making a film that exceeds way beyond actual filming. A production wouldn’t be possible without the caterers, gardeners, artists, actors, accountants, builders, etc… There are so many people to account for in the production a movie, and lots of people just forget about them.

Making a movie takes commitment, dedication, hard work, and a good amount of brain power. Sometimes we’re looked down upon because we’re “young kids way over our heads” but we truthfully believe in this industry and the good it can do.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/artofsocietyproductionsllc?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ=
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/art-of-society-productions-llc/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@artofsocietyproductionsllc9427
• Other: Our website is under construction :’)