Cinema Café Hosts Episodic Storytellers
by Karen Pecota

Sundance Film Festival panel moderator, Ash Hoyle, introduces the panelists chosen to showcase their pilot projects in the episodic category. These filmmakers screen at the festival the first one or two episodes of their mini-series project.

The panelists are Mel Eslyn director of Penelope, Nzingha Stewart director of Me,We, Mark Duplass with Penelope, and Keyonna Taylor co-screenwriter for Me,We.

To begin the conversation, Hoyle asks, “Why tell a story in episodic form?” All the panelists shared their desire for a narrative with more depth. The episodic form allows one to have the time necessary to go deeper in developing their story.

Mel and Mark, longtime collaborators in the industry, wrote the initial episodes of Penelope during COVID-19. Mark was writing about their main character while wondering if his daughter would relate to the concept and character that, at the time, was roughly the same age. Mel said, “The storyline and the young character especially spoke to me. Adding, “The storyteller knows the story; but, I am also thinking about the audience. Will they like it?”…questioning if what they are filming is a relatable premise.

On the other hand, Nzingha notes a different take. She doesn’t think about the audience, “If I don’t love it, then I’m not going to fight to keep in scenes, for example.”

Keyonna’s script comes from her own experience with music, dance, and growing up in the Black community within a similar family structure that is portrayed in Me,We. Keyonna’s script resonated with Nzingha in that she understood Keyonna’s vision and goal, which made the perfect combination for an ideal collaboration.

These panelists shared a treasure trove of important information if one wants to pursue episodic filmmaking. It’s a different beast from making shorts, documentaries, or feature narratives in the industry.

Today, the film audience is looking for good storytelling in this genre. Likewise, the film studios are willing to put their support behind episodic projects that have merit, quality, and integrity. But, to begin with, the filmmakers have to sell their vision to everyone involved from the crew to the financier. Put fear aside and be willing to improvise, collaborate with the right people then, learn by doing. A precursor to any type of filmmaking is to be willing to take on jobs for free to learn and listen to those who have gone before them in the process.