The SCAD Savannah Film Festival hosted a panel titled “Women of Sci-Fi and Horror” on Thursday morning, led by a collection of women from the industry. On the stage sat moderator Sandy Leviton, writer and producer for Under the Stairs Entertainment; Olivia Mascheroni, an acquisitions specialist with Longhouse; Karen Lam, a writer director and producer for TV shows including “Ghost Wars” and “Van Helsing;” Suzanne Keilly, a comedian and writer for “Ash vs. Evil Dead;” and Kristin M. Burke, costume designer for multiple movies including “The Conjuring” and “Insidious,” as well as a director.
Moderated by Sandy Leviton, the panel discussed what it was to be a woman in the industry, as well as how to operate and behave in a culture and profession dominated by men. Below are some of their responses to the questions brought up during the event.
What introduced you to your field?
Olivia: You always see the positive side of life explored in movies and I was always interested in the opposite, the negative. Every individual human has the capability to be as great and wonderful as they want or as terrible and monstrous as they want.
Karen: Growing up and watching movies, I was always more interested in watching people make bad decisions. I was never interested in rom-coms.
Suzanne: I’ve always been drawn to science fiction and horror; I wasn’t ever into anything else really, either. I find comfort in the black and white of a monster and hero.
What have you done to be sure to be taken seriously?
Suzanne: I’ve never really worried about not being taken seriously. They’ve read my work, that’s why I’m here, I know I’ll be taken seriously.
Kristin: You’re often the only woman in the room, so be sure that you’re prepared. Always do your research, be serious, be organized and be ready to move.
How should women dress in the industry and how does that affect how they’re treated?
Olivia: Dress to be comfortable, and always speak up and defend yourself.
Karen: Wear baggy pants; they feed you. There’s so much food.
Suzanne: Always bring a sweater! It’s cold in the writer’s room.
Kristin: As a costume designer, it was fun to dress to work. I could wear fun shirts and skirts, because that’s who I am, but when I started working more on the business side, I had to be taken more seriously. More hard angles, straight lines; less fun, more structured.
How should women safeguard themselves from bad situations, what should they do?
Olivia: Don’t ever do something awful to keep your job. Just lose your job! There’s nothing wrong with leaving a job or a company because you didn’t want to do something you didn’t agree with. Don’t compromise your ambition – your will to work hard, your passion – for a bad job. It’s not worth it.
Karen: Trust your instincts. Your gut feeling, your intuition, that’s what’s most often right. Kristin: What no one tells you is that you’ll probably face harassment or discrimination. You’ll probably get fired. But that’s just part of the business, and you have to find your center and stay grounded to make it through.
What sort of female characters can we be writing that can encourage women to go to a movie and make them feel empowered?
Olivia: Take any paradigm you’ve seen in films or books and flip it. Make interesting female characters, both good and bad.
Karen: Look into your psyche. Find the characters that you want to see yourself in and that you can relate to.
How do you know a good idea?
Karen: Everything is not always fleshed or baked out, so just write them down and keep them. Add on to them as you go.
Olivia: People are drawn to stories of journeys and human emotion, so as long as you feel like you’re with a character and there’s going to be something learned and felt, then it’s gold.
Written by Seth Wilkins.
A student writer at SCAD District.
