June 24, 2026 • 49 mins
Today, we're delighted to welcome Jessica Wrabel, a versatile and respected actress and producer with more than two decades of experience in television, film, and theater. Today we'll discuss Jessica's journey as a producer, how she financed her film, the unique opportunities, and challenges of faith-based filmmaking, and what she's learned about bringing an independent film from concept to audience.
Join our new educational platform From the Heart THRIVE and get free classes on film funding: https://fromtheheartproductions.thrivecart.com/from-the-heart-thrive/
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Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_01 (01:12):
I'm so glad you could join us on the Art of Film
Funding podcast, the show wherewe explore the creative,
financial, and entrepreneurialside of filmmaking.
We bring you conversations withfilmmakers, producers,
investors, and industryprofessionals who are finding
innovative ways to get theirfilms made and seen.
(01:36):
Today we're delighted to welcomeJessica Lee Rabel, a versatile
and respected actress, aproducer with more than two
decades of experience intelevision, film, and theater.
Originally from Los Angeles,Jessica has appeared in
acclaimed television seriesincluding Mad Men, Desperate
(02:00):
Housewives, and The Young andRestless.
She holds dual degrees inneuroscience and musical theater
from the University of SouthernCalifornia.
Known throughout theentertainment industry for her
collaborative spirit and strongprofessional relationships,
(02:20):
Jessica has built a reputationas both a talented performer and
an accomplished producer.
She's the creator and producerof an upcoming feature film and
a short film, projects rooted intransformation of faith,
emotional truth, and the powerof God's presence in our lives.
(02:46):
Today we'll discuss Jessica'sjourney as a producer, how she
financed her film, the uniqueopportunities and challenges of
faith-based filmmaking, and whatshe's learned about bringing an
independent film from concept toaudience.
Joining Jessica for today'sconversation is Carol Dean,
(03:10):
founder and president of Fromthe Heart Productions, one of
the leading physical sponsorshiporganizations supporting
independent filmmakers.
Carol has spent decades helpingfilmmakers raise funding, build
audiences, and bring importantstories to life.
And Carol, I'm going to turnthis over to you now.
SPEAKER_03 (03:33):
Thank you, Claire.
Well, Jessica, we're reallyhappy to have you.
So let's jump in and start withwhat inspired you to create your
film and why did this story feelimportant for you to tell at
this point in your life and yourcareer?
SPEAKER_00 (03:50):
Absolutely.
Well, thank you so much for thatbeautiful introduction.
And I'm so excited to share withyou guys what's on my heart.
And hopefully we'll be on bigscreen soon.
So I have been in the Hollywoodfilm industry for a while.
And first as an actress, I wouldtry to find projects that I
(04:14):
thought were worthwhile telling.
And it wasn't easy, I'll becompletely honest.
Being in LA, we we told a lot ofsilly stories.
And I woke up one day, maybe 10years ago, and I said, you know
what?
There needs to be more qualitywork that is meaningful and
(04:36):
meaningful that can reach topeople's hearts to encourage
them, to show them that they'renot alone, to really be the
human on the screen.
Um, not just uh fun, sillystories are always fun.
I'm not poo-pooing on that, butI wanted to tell more meaningful
things.
My one of my love languages isquality time, and quality time
(04:58):
is soul connecting.
And so as a filmmaker, I want toconnect to people's um hearts
and their the depth of the humanexistence.
And so I'm I have already um Imade a documentary about mental
health and addiction, and wehave three individuals telling
(05:18):
their journeys through seriouspain, through addiction, through
homelessness, through abuse onhow God has saved them, saved
them uh literally their theirsouls, but also saved them from
the tragedy of addiction andabuse.
Um and now I'm telling mypersonal journey through
postpartum depression andtalking to some close friends
(05:42):
who went through it as well intheir own version of the story.
Um, and so I'm hoping thatbringing this topic to the big
screen will help peopleunderstand loved ones a little
bit better who are and have gonethrough it, and also give um a
visual and a and um a way forpeople to who have gone through
(06:05):
it and who are struggling tosay, hey, that's me.
Um and I and that's a hopefulmessage, and I hope that my
story you know ends with lightas well.
So that was a long-windedanswer.
SPEAKER_03 (06:19):
That's wonderful.
Well, your background isfascinating.
You studied both neuroscienceand musical theater.
So, how have these twodisciplines influenced your
approach to storytelling andproducing?
SPEAKER_00 (06:36):
Yes, I actually think it is that if I tell
people that that is what Istudied at USC, first they're
shocked.
But if they know me well,they're like, wow, that makes
perfect sense because I'm allabout understanding the brain
and the human body and what itmeans and how to heal it
physically and mentally, and allof those things.
And that's exactly what I'mdoing on screen.
(06:58):
Um, and then musical theater, Imean, it's just performing and
loving the performances and thelights and the cameras and
bringing the joy to thestorytelling.
I think that's the musicaltheater side of me.
And um, I did for a hot secondthought I needed to become a
(07:19):
type of neurosurgeon.
And my advisor, who's aworld-renowned neuroscientist,
encouraged me to be an actor.
And that was that was reallynice of him.
Um, I also wanted to say itwasn't that I was a bad student,
I was actually a very goodstudent.
So, but just for him to un toknow me as a person and to say,
(07:40):
hey, I actually think you needto go into the entertainment
industry, not become ascientist, um, was was
encouraging.
I did start working as fordoctors and research and that
type of thing, but I this iswhere I ended up, and this is
the perfect plan, I think, formy career.
A couple decades later, don'tage me.
SPEAKER_03 (08:01):
Yes, I think storytellers are born still.
Yeah.
Well, as both the creator andthe producer of the film, what
was your original vision for theaudience experience?
And what transformation did youhope viewers would experience?
SPEAKER_00 (08:21):
Absolutely.
So I'm gonna talk about a pastproject and then this current
project.
Um, the documentary has andstill is reaching people to this
level that most you know moviesand movie theaters don't
necessarily do.
So these I if I have ascreening, um, well just say at
(08:41):
the River Oaks Theater inHouston, we had a screening and
it's a beautiful theater.
I don't know how many people,hundreds of seats.
Um, it's newly renovated.
And after that was the firstscreening we've ever had.
And after that screening, I hadpeople come up to me hugging me,
crying to me.
I didn't know them at all.
And they said, Thank you somuch.
(09:02):
This is my story, or thank youso much, this is my father's
story.
Um I it was completely speakingto me.
It encouraged me.
Or my um, one person said, Mybrother is stuck in this place,
and I want him to see thisdocumentary.
How can he see it?
Because he needs to know thatthere is still hope out there.
And so that response is exactlynot just what I want, but what
(09:27):
God is doing through theseprojects.
God told me to make thedocumentary, and he's telling me
to make the next coupleprojects.
Um, and so this very next one isabout postpartum depression.
And I have uh God, me, whatever,um, God's telling me to make it.
(09:47):
Um, and my heart behind it is toum help people be seen, heard,
and affirmed in their struggle.
And I believe that not only thepeople relating to postpartum
depression, but any type ofmental health um struggle, I
(10:08):
feel like people will respondand see themselves in this story
because really I don't thinkanyone's perfect.
Um, even if they think they are,everyone needs love and needs a
hug and just needs God.
Not trying to be preachy, but Ido um I have found solace in my
(10:32):
relationship with him, and Iknow other people have as well.
And so this project, the nextone about post-partner
depression, is faith-based, butit's for everybody.
Um, men included, and menespecially, I would say, because
they don't experience thespecific mental health issue,
um, but they can learn from itand they can see their wives and
(10:54):
sisters and daughters in the inthe film.
Um, so I am hoping to reachpeople's hearts, but also
educate just a little bit umwith my personal journey with my
testimony.
SPEAKER_03 (11:08):
This is most important because the guys have
no idea what's going on.
No, not the wall they married,they just know that things are
different, and the baby, ithappened with the baby, so uh
the whole thing blows theirmind, and many divorces happen
at this time.
This is uh an important issue.
(11:30):
So thank you for making thisfilm.
SPEAKER_00 (11:33):
Oh, of course, it is a really hard time.
It's a really hard time, and myjourney was five years, it was
not five months, and um also Isay my poor husband, because he
went through a lot, you know,because I went through a lot.
Um, and you know, and we'rewe're not just coming out on the
other end.
(11:53):
My kids are 11 and 9 now, so Ifeel like we've came out a while
ago from that um darkness, butyou're right, and it's what I'm
trying to be respectful at thesame time.
Um my father, my husband, andothers have said, well, what
(12:14):
does it feel like?
What do you mean somethinghurts?
What do you mean you can't getup or have a conversation or you
can't like are you just tired?
I'm like, no, it's it's morethan just tired.
When people's hormones aremessed up, it really does mess
you up.
It doesn't make you feel like aperson.
I always say I felt like a deadperson walking.
(12:36):
I felt like a zombie.
Um I don't remember a lot of mytime in in that five years.
I, I don't know, blacked it out,I guess.
Um there were I can get into allthe details, but it is it's a
really hard place to be whenit's not who you were.
(12:56):
You know, I was always energeticand full of life and got
everything done in type A, andthen and then it all just hit,
and you're taking care of thistiny little baby, and you're
figuring it out, and you wantthe best for your baby, and you
forget to take care of yourself,and then it just falls apart.
So yes, um, I don't thinkthere's a word or words to even
(13:20):
describe it.
So that's why I'm putting it onthe screen because a picture is
a thousand words and a video iseven more.
SPEAKER_03 (13:26):
Exactly.
Well, every film begins with adream, but eventually it
requires financing to approachfunding and the development and
production of this film.
SPEAKER_00 (13:40):
Sure.
So um with the documentary andwith our next one, we are
partnered with From the HeartProductions as our fiscal
sponsor.
And so we ended up winning alocal Houston grant.
It was quite small for thedocumentary, and we needed to
raise more funds around it tomake it something special, to
(14:05):
make it as quality as I wantedit to be.
And so, you know, we reached outto our network of people, of
friends, of family, of churches,and and asked them specifically,
hey, this is a tax-deductibledonation.
It goes through from the HeartProductions.
Um, would you feel comfortablegiving towards that?
(14:27):
Um, so that the documentary wasa lower budget uh project, which
was helpful so we can get itdone without having to raise$2
million.
And for this next one, I'mcurrently writing a script with
um Adrian Adrian Grabe from theMadam Secretary Writers Room.
(14:48):
And we are going to submit itfor the same but a larger local
Houston grant to get us started.
But we do need twice as much ormore of that grant.
So I'm going to also reach outto people.
I wanted to, I guess it's ashout out.
My home church in San Diego,Marinatha Chapel, Daniel Bentley
(15:12):
offered his time to be thepastor to wrap up the message in
the documentary.
So I wanted to say thank you tohim and their, you know, film
crew and everything.
Um, they made it happen so thatwe can make finish the
documentary with a bang, I wouldsay.
Um, so you can, you know, wepartnered with my church I grew
(15:35):
up in.
Um I'm hoping to partner withthem again in the next project.
I did talk with the head pastor,and he said, Great, tell me
more.
So that's exciting.
Um also getting the right peopleinvolved is is good.
So having the right pitch deck,um, I'm I I spoke with John
Wickham, who's Phil Wickham'sfather, and I I've known him a
(16:00):
little bit.
He's at our home church in SanDiego.
He leads worship there.
And so I'm hoping I'm I'mcrossing my fingers and praying,
and I think it might work out toget Phil Wickham on the
soundtrack for this nextproject, um for him to write a
song for us and then sing it andput it in the movie.
And I think it would be fewbeautiful and fabulous.
(16:22):
So the more name and the morethe right people that God's
bringing to the project alsohelp, you know, building the
team to bring it to someone tosay, hey, look, this is what
we're doing.
Here's the script, here's thecast, here's the crew.
You know, this is gonna be ameaningful project.
(16:43):
Um, yeah, so we're we're we'reworking with From the Heart
Productions for for the majorityof it.
So thank you, Carol.
SPEAKER_03 (16:54):
That's great to work with you.
Yes, because you your heart's init, you're you're in it with
both feet, you're determined,and that's really what it takes.
Uh, tenacity is the bestfilmmaker.
So good for you.
SPEAKER_00 (17:10):
Tenacity is my favorite word.
Can I tell you a quick storyabout it?
Yes.
Okay, so I was at USC, it wasParents' Weekend, my mother was
sitting next to me.
We were in Beauvard Auditorium,which is very big and beautiful,
and uh Henry Winkler was onstage talking because he was
there because his son Max was inthe film school.
(17:32):
So he had a talk, and afterwardswe walked up to him, and my mom
embarrassed me.
And she said, Hey, Henry, mydaughter wants to be an actress.
How does she become an actress?
I was like, Mom, I didn't wantyou to say that.
But he took the magazine, um,the USC magazine, and he wrote
(17:53):
tenacity.
He said, You need tenacity, andhe signed it, Henry Winkler.
Oh, and and so that was thetenacity story.
And then there's an end, there'sa second section.
So I was filming on Children'sHospital, and Henry Winkler is
one of the leads.
And so I went up to him, I said,Henry, I wanted to tell you
thank you for writing tenacityon my USC magazine.
(18:16):
And he remembered having theconversation with me and my
mother after his talk inBeauvard Auditorium at USC.
He remembered me.
And I, and that was probablyfour years later, and I was
blown away, blown away by all ofit.
So he said, See, I told youtenacity is it, and now we're
here filming together on a show.
So I wanted to say thank you tohim.
SPEAKER_03 (18:37):
That is incredible all the way around from right to
the end, and and there you go.
Yes, that's what it is thebackbone of the filmmaker
tenacity.
SPEAKER_00 (18:49):
It's beautiful.
SPEAKER_03 (18:50):
What were the biggest challenges you
encountered while raising money?
And how did you maintainmomentum when you when you had
obstacles?
SPEAKER_00 (19:01):
Yes.
So what I've run into so farwith typical investors is that
they want to see a project.
And it's a catch 22 situationbecause you need money to make
the project, but they want tosee the project before they give
the money.
And it's it's it's reallydifficult.
And so there are a couple thatwe were able to say, hey, here
(19:25):
is for the documentary, wefilmed dailies, uh, we filmed
first before we didpost-production, which was more
expensive for the documentary,usually always.
And um we were able to showthose dailies, and then they
said, Okay, I can see exactlywhere this is going.
Um, and for the next one, I haveI'm gonna have a script, I'm
gonna have a pitch deck, and I'mgonna say, This is what we got.
(19:50):
This is how much we need.
Please be a part of it.
This is our vision, too.
This is this is our ministry,this is our um desire to just
reach people in a deep way.
Um, so I'm hoping, I keep sayinghoping, but we're intending to,
you know, real uh convincepeople that this is the right
(20:13):
thing to really care about.
Um the catch 22 is definitelydifficult, especially for a
feature.
So we were working on this, thefeature, which is mental health
and addiction.
We'll we'll bring it down to aparticular I have a story
written, but anyway.
It's a little it's taking mypersonal story and making it uh
(20:34):
beautiful fictional drama.
And um to write a feature scriptis it's expensive, you know.
And I so I've put a lot of moneyof my own into the beginning
stages of these projects becauseI believe in them fully 100%.
Um, but once we get a little bitfor people to bite, it's a
(20:56):
little easier.
So, and then grants, you have toapply to them and you hope and
pray and cross your fingers thatyou win.
So that's another um I mean, I'mplanning on having a grant, but
you never know until you get itor you don't.
SPEAKER_03 (21:14):
That's right.
You have to keep after them, youhave to go back.
SPEAKER_00 (21:20):
Find more, find specific ones to the topics that
you're doing or the places thatyou're filming.
SPEAKER_03 (21:27):
Exactly.
But um, I've seen where peoplewho applied for my grant by the
third or fourth time is whenthey win because one, they
usually start applying forgrants too early, right?
Yeah, they haven't reallydeveloped the film to the to
(21:47):
show its true potential.
It's not right.
So once they do apply, and yousee, we see the potential, but
they don't, they're not thereyet.
Then may and then the next yearthey come back and we can see
the movement that's happening.
And usually the second or thethird time you'll get into the
(22:09):
hot films or into the finalist,and then move into winning, but
it may take you two years.
So the key with grants is don'tgive up, keep going back.
SPEAKER_00 (22:20):
Right.
Don't give up, keep going back.
There's always more, you canfind different ones.
Um, I ended up grants got methrough college.
Um, I just kept applying, and nomatter how big or how small,
because everything adds up.
SPEAKER_03 (22:38):
Exactly.
Everything is a win, a potentialwin.
Now back to your own projects,and when you are presenting the
project to potential investors,what materials or strategies
prove the most effective inhelping the donors understand
the vision and the businessopportunity for investment?
SPEAKER_00 (23:00):
Right.
Um I I I don't feel uh let'sjust say uh what am I trying to
I'm trying to like say sorrybefore I even say anything.
I know that I'm giving mythoughts.
Um I'm sure there's a hundredmillion ways to do things.
And so you're just gonna hearfrom what I have to say.
(23:21):
But I wanted to say also um atUSC I had this professor, Joseph
Hacker, and he said, in theentertainment industry,
everything is impossible, butthere's a million ways.
And that is the motto that I'mtaking because there isn't a way
to do things.
There's not a, you follow A, B,C steps, and then voila, it's
(23:45):
gonna happen.
And so it's a lot of adjustingand people relationships and
building them.
And you have no idea whensomeone's gonna say, okay, yes,
I'm ready to give you a milliondollars or even a thousand
dollars.
And but they're relationships.
These are people that we'reworking with.
They're not machines, they'renot robots.
And so I have pitch decks.
(24:08):
Uh, you know, we have footage ofprevious projects, we have
resumes, we have uh the team ofpeople who are a part of it.
Um and like I was talking withAngel Studios, my documentary is
gonna be on the Angel Studiosstreaming platform.
And so I was talking with AngelStudios about the next project,
and I said, Hey, we're gonna,Phil Wickham's most likely gonna
(24:29):
be a part of it.
And their response was, Oh mygoodness, we love Phil Wickham
because he just did the Davidcartoon movie with them.
And you know, having and theworld is small.
We are, I feel like we're allconnected somehow.
Um, and you can be across, youcould be somewhere else in the
(24:50):
world, meet someone who livesdown the street from you, just
like this podcast.
Um, you know, the the podcasteris in the same city as me, and
we didn't even know that.
And it's just a small world.
And so keeping goodrelationships, having all of the
uh pay not paperwork, but all ofyour stuff together, all your
(25:12):
ducks in a row, make sure thatyou care about what you're
doing, you're confident aboutwhat you're doing, don't have
false confidence, and don'tdon't overpromise.
That's a big thing.
You can't say, oh, well, thisfilm's gonna make 20x, because
that's rare and probably nottrue.
Um, but being honest about thisis an investment.
(25:33):
Um we here's other films thatare similar to ours, and this is
the success that they'veencountered, and and we expect
to encounter similar successlevel or responses, and we're
hoping for more than that.
And that's that's in yourinvesting in well for my
projects, also the the purposebehind it.
(25:56):
Um, the audience that we want toreach in the way that we want to
reach them.
And so I do view my films as aministry, as a ministry, not
just spiritually, but a ministryfor people who need to feel seen
and need to um just feel lessalone and then a little tiny bit
(26:19):
educational for the people whodon't understand their loved
ones who are going throughstuff.
So it's multifaceted, I believe.
Um, but it's all aboutrelationship.
SPEAKER_03 (26:31):
Yes, it certainly is.
And I'm amazed you're uh andcongratulations for working with
Angel Studios because it'sreally difficult.
Thank you.
And so what's your um experienceworking with Angel?
SPEAKER_00 (26:51):
Yes, so it's the beginning stages.
Um, we uh we are in back andforth with what it's gonna look
like for the documentary to bestreaming on their platform, and
it's very beginning stages.
Um again, I I'm using the wordhope.
I would love to work with themon the production side of the
(27:12):
next projects.
We'll see what happens withthat.
Um, I can't, nothing's signed,so I can't, you know, I don't
know, expect much.
But um, and you know what?
If if we end up workingseparate, like if I if I'm doing
this more independently, that'sperfectly fine too.
There's actually other I canname drop them all, but there's
(27:37):
faith-based production companiesin the US that we've met with
face to face who are reallyexcited about our next projects.
Um a lot of them actually.
We had 17 meetings, and I wouldin like 15 of them were like,
wow, let's do this.
Um so I feel like we'll we'll beable to get one.
(28:01):
Um, I do have my favorite, mytop favorite ones, and the the
people who I would trust themost to get this um done the
right way.
SPEAKER_03 (28:09):
So that's really good news.
SPEAKER_00 (28:12):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_03 (28:13):
But this is happening because you are
initiating these phone calls,these Zoom calls, right?
Yes.
Money.
SPEAKER_00 (28:22):
Yes.
Um, I am an initiator.
That's what I do, that's howGod's created me.
Um, the meetings were in person,um, which was really fabulous.
Um, NRB, which nationalbroadcast, I have we say it
wrong.
NRB is a Christian conferencefor media and a lot of film.
And we were able to haveface-to-face conversations with
(28:43):
these people there because theyall go there, which is which was
wonderful.
Um, yeah, so they always theysay, well, show me the next
step, show me the next step, andwe're almost done with the next
step.
So I'm I'm excited.
SPEAKER_03 (28:57):
Right.
Well, faith-based films oftenbalance ministry and marketplace
goals.
So, how did you navigatecreating a film that is
spiritually meaningful whilealso reaching a broader
audience?
SPEAKER_00 (29:14):
Absolutely.
So I'm from California, and Ihave always been a Christian,
and I've always had friends whoare not Christians.
And every person is a human, andwe and let me also say this: my
one of my spiritual gifts isevangelism.
And so every friend that I'veever had knows exactly what I
(29:37):
believe, why I believe it.
We some of us have hadarguments, fun arguments.
They're never angry.
Um, I would always make it apriority because I care, I
guess, to have theseconversations with film people,
crew members on these big sets.
Um the conversation always wentthere because people are
(30:00):
starving.
They're starving for the truth.
And in I was just in LA recentlyfor less than a month.
And in it, I feel like inCalifornia, people are starving
more than well, I live in Texas.
They're starving more for wait,you're a Christian?
Wait, you're cool.
Wait, I can have a conversationwith you and I'm not judging
(30:20):
you.
And they're just like, what ishappening here?
Um, and that to me is veryimportant to put in the films
and to have these films reachpeople of faith and people who
don't think they have faith.
Um, because, well, first of all,let me kind of make fun of my
mom for a second.
My mom is a Christian and sheloves Christian movies.
(30:42):
And usually when she tells me,hey, Jessica, you need to watch
this Christian movie, I'm like,well, I don't know because you
like everything, and I'm prettysure it's gonna be cheesy.
And so the opposite of cheesy isreally what I'm going for and
what I've already made and whatI'm making.
Um, because when it's highquality, when it's good acting,
when the cinematography isbeautiful, when the story is
(31:05):
spot on and powerful, then itreaches the human heart.
It goes past the judgment ofquote-unquote religious talk.
And that to me is the mostimportant thing.
So, like I said before,evangelism, evangelism is one of
(31:25):
my spiritual gifts.
And that's I'm not going to bepreaching to the audience.
However, you will 100% know thatGod is the strength behind what
the um what the healing processwill look like for the
characters in my scripts.
And and it's from a personalexperience and it's from other
(31:49):
powerful testimonies that I'veheard.
Um, but yeah, I think the wholeworld should that's gonna make
me sound like I'm a peaceperson, but get along.
Um, we don't need to be againsteach other.
And so it ha my documentary hasalready, and this film will, I'm
(32:09):
saying this, I'm c I'mcommanding it to happen, but
will reach everybody whereverthey're at.
And yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (32:19):
So that's the purpose.
SPEAKER_00 (32:21):
That's okay.
SPEAKER_03 (32:23):
Well, let's talk about audience building.
Okay.
So, what lessons have youlearned about connecting with
viewers before you release yourfilm?
SPEAKER_00 (32:36):
Okay, I think this is a it's a little bit of a
tricky subject because you wantto share the story and people
can get excited about it.
So the closer I'll I'll use anexample.
I have a neighborhood Biblestudy that I go to.
Uh, maybe there's 25 to 35people on any given time, so
(32:57):
it's kind of big.
It's women only.
And I would always be asking forprayer.
And I'm like, hey, you know, Ineed prayer for time.
I need to get this done in aweek, or I have prayer for a
location to work out orsomething else.
And so they felt like they werea part of it through the
process.
And then the moment I was ableto show them the documentary,
(33:21):
they were ecstatic.
They were just, they felt like,wow, I can't believe that, you
know, we felt like we were partof the process.
And you can't do that with thewhole world, but you can kind of
share little pieces withoutgiving away the whole.
Um, that's why they havetrailers, but even just having,
(33:41):
oh, you guys, it's so funny.
God downloads things in my mind,and I just got an idea of how I
could do that, is have littlevideos of maybe testimonials
that I can share that are aroundthe story that don't give away
the whole script or the wholemovie to get people really, I
guess, excited about what's tocome, and then and then bring
(34:06):
their friends and say, hey,well, this is something that I
think my friend Natalie needs tosee, you know, and then they can
go together or watch ittogether.
Um yeah, so it it is, I feellike it's a part of me.
It's not just what I do, it'salso who I am.
And so when I talk about theseprojects, I'm talking about
(34:31):
myself and my my heart and myvision, um, and and the reach,
because that's the whole point.
You want to reach people, andthis is a message, you know, to
share.
So it's impossible, but there'sa million ways.
SPEAKER_03 (34:48):
It's impossible, but there are a million ways to do
it.
You're right.
So um basically what you'resaying is those short videos uh
bring people uh to the undermore understand what your film
is about.
That is a wonderful way to addaudiences, audiences to your
film, right?
SPEAKER_00 (35:10):
I think so.
I think so.
And I know that having uh thecast and sometimes even crew
share their experiences, BTS,BTS, sorry, the pictures you
take while you're filming um isreally fun too.
People love to see behind thescenes photos, uh videos, that
type of thing is is nice aswell.
SPEAKER_03 (35:32):
Yes, they love it.
So um let me ask whatdistribution path are you
pursuing for your film?
And what advice would you givefilmmakers about preparing for
distribution long before theproduction is over?
SPEAKER_00 (35:48):
Okay, so I'll tell you what I did.
Um there are Christianconferences that have pitch a
thons where you can meet thepeople you want to meet for
distribution.
Usually those groups ask for afinished product.
Um so you have to be careful.
(36:09):
You have to have either afinished product or meet with
the ones who are willing to seebefore um before production,
maybe a pitch deck.
Um, maybe you filmed a teaser ora trailer before you do
principal photography so you canshare what it's gonna look like,
what it's gonna seem like.
And um and yeah, there are and Ijust saw, I don't know any
(36:33):
information about this, but Ijust saw another one that's not
faith-based for a pitch-thon inLA um happening soon.
And so there's opportunities forindependent filmmakers who don't
already have the relationshipsto sign up for something like
this and get face-to-face time,which is usually five to seven
minutes.
Um, so not that long.
(36:54):
But it it is meaningful and itmakes a big difference.
And with the documentary goingto Angel Studio Streaming
Platform, I can see the nextprojects doing the same.
I mean, I hope so.
Um, I still would have to passthe guild, which is I don't even
know how many people have tovote on it, hundreds uh for it
to pass.
(37:14):
And yeah, so I mean, it would begreat to have everything in one
place, you know, to say, like,oh, these three projects that
are all around mental health areall on angel streaming
platforms, and you can watchthem back to back, and it has my
name on there.
And so maybe they can find itthat way.
Um so yeah, there's and like Isaid, it's building
(37:36):
relationships and keeping intouch with people.
SPEAKER_03 (37:39):
And your vision, that is a really good vision,
Jessica.
SPEAKER_00 (37:43):
Thanks.
I just had it right now.
SPEAKER_03 (37:48):
Uh so looking back on the entire journey from
concept of financing toproduction and distribution,
what would you do differently ifyou were starting this project
today?
SPEAKER_00 (38:03):
Great question.
I think it's okay to put alittle bit of my own money in
projects, but at some point,like for the next for the
future, I'm raising$2 million,and I can't do that.
Um, I I can do nothing close tothat.
And so um ideally you can findinvestors to jump on board
(38:26):
early, but that's not the casethat I've come in contact with.
Um it's hard to say different.
It's not really how my mindworks.
Um, I don't try to live withregret.
And I know you didn't ask thatquestion, but it I know what we
did with the documentary, and Iknow that it's worked.
(38:47):
It did take some time, buteverything takes some time.
Um, once we won the first grantfor that, we had only two and a
half weeks over Thanksgiving toput it all together with the
editor, and it worked.
I mean, it wasn't the idealtiming, but it did work.
And then I was able to submit tothe the festivals that I wanted
(39:09):
to submit to in time.
And um I just wish I had moretime, but you can't really
change that.
You can be as productive as youcan be, but you know, we all
need sleep, we all need familytime.
I love my family.
I prefer to just be with themand eat good food.
And so it's balancingeverything.
(39:30):
Um I am a balancer as well withfriendships, with social life,
with work life, with family,with everything.
And I just I think that findingthe right balance is really
important.
Um, I did, however, this issilly, but I had to say, okay, I
need to create time.
So what do I need to take out ofmy schedule?
(39:52):
And I ended up taking friendsout, and that was hard.
Um, so I'm trying to build thefriendships back in because for
about a year, all my friendssaid, Where did you go?
And I was like, Well, I'm makingmovies.
Um, and that's and I love it.
I love it so much.
And I thrive on my computer bymyself, editing stuff for hours
on end.
Like that's I'm I'm an introvertat heart, even though everyone
(40:13):
thinks I've been extrovert.
And I do the love friendships.
So I think having the rightbalance is really important.
I thankfully do have a verysupporting spouse.
Um, I mean, even just a couplemonths, months, I don't know,
very recently I said, Hey, uh, Igotta go to LA for three weeks.
(40:34):
Is that okay?
He's like, that's what you haveto do, absolutely.
And so that's something youcan't, you know, change, but I'm
so blessed to have it.
Um, to have a spouse whobelieves in the projects that
I'm making and even makingintroductions for me and and and
being my cheerleader because hebelieves what I'm doing is a
(40:56):
beautiful thing as well.
So I didn't really answer yourquestion because it's hard to
say what I would do differentbecause I just know what I have
done.
Um, and then, you know, everyday you can try something new.
You can try something else um toget it going.
SPEAKER_03 (41:14):
Yes, you definitely can, because there are many ways
to get through the maze and intosuccess.
But I will say to you that youridea of going after the$2
million for the future is uhreally important to uh
understand that usuallydevelopment costs for uh$2
(41:36):
million is around$200,000.
$150 might do it, but thatdevelopment money is what you
want to come in tax-free uhthrough your investors giving
you the money, uh, not as aninvestor, but as a donor.
If you can get that 150 throughyour nonprofit from the heart,
(42:01):
that gives you the money to hireyour attorney, your casting
agent, the people that you needfor the film, to move to develop
your film.
And then you go out with your uhproduct placement memorandum and
your attorney to the wealthypeople looking for investments.
SPEAKER_00 (42:23):
Right.
Once everything is on paper, notjust you know uh a desire.
Um absolutely, and that's thegoal.
That's that's absolutely thegoal, um getting the donations
first.
SPEAKER_03 (42:39):
And I think that you're so lucky to be working
with the prayer group becauseprayer works.
Um, you know, I do this classcalled intentional filmmaking
class.
Well, the when I started theclass, the idea behind it was to
have people intend or pray forthe people in the class so that
(43:05):
they were able to achieve more.
And when I offered this to myfirst class years ago, only one
woman said, Yes, I want someoneto pray for me.
And so I gave the film to a wifeand husband who devoted
Christians, and they began tointend for her.
(43:28):
Well, it didn't come inJessica's here, here's a 10,000
donation,$10,000, or things likethat.
But what happened was one, aphone call from a friend saying,
I have an office availableoverlooking the ocean.
Would you like that for a year?
Yes.
Well, yes.
What is that,$50,000?
(43:48):
Maybe I don't know, but that'sthe money that you don't have to
spend.
And then her boss, where sheworked for a living, started
sending her to the cities whereshe needed to interview people
for her documentary on death anddying.
And so there she just paid forone more night, spent the night,
(44:11):
did the interview, came homewith footage for a few hundred
dollars.
These uh synchronicitiescontinue to happen.
SPEAKER_00 (44:20):
Right.
SPEAKER_03 (44:22):
And she finished her film, and she had been to uh
she's from Canada, she'd been tothe Canadian government asking
for the money for the film inthe first place.
They saw the completed film,said, Oh, why didn't you come to
us?
She said, I did, but you turnedme down.
They said, Oh no, we won't dothat again.
(44:43):
She said, I have enough film uhenough ideas and footage to have
half the second film done.
They said, We'll fund you.
SPEAKER_00 (44:52):
That's beautiful.
SPEAKER_03 (44:53):
She is on her third film on death and dying.
So he's the only one that tookthe concept.
And so you must you don't beafraid to ask people to pray for
you.
SPEAKER_00 (45:07):
Oh, yes, and pray for you, yes, and connect you
with people and offer what theycan.
And when it's God's will, Ithink praying for success is
perfectly good.
SPEAKER_02 (45:19):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00 (45:22):
If it's wrong and it's a ministry for him, and
yeah, not just blindly saying,make me a rich person, you know,
but make this project besuccessful to reach your people.
Um, that's beautiful.
I love that.
I love that story.
SPEAKER_03 (45:37):
Good.
Thank you, Jessica.
Well, keep keep those uh womeninvolved and use them uh to help
you create this film and yourprayer group, which is really
valuable.
SPEAKER_00 (45:51):
Uh uh it really is.
SPEAKER_03 (45:55):
Thank you so much, Jessica, for this uh information
sharing your experience and yourwisdom and your faith-filled
approach to filmmaking becauseyour journey with your film is a
reminder that meaningful,meaningful films begin with a
vision.
And we really appreciate yourhonesty about producing,
(46:16):
fundraising, audience building,and distribution.
And I know our listeners willtake away valuable insights to
use on their own projects.
And all of us at uh the Art ofFilm Funding podcasts, thank you
very much.
We invite you to join us againnext week for another
(46:37):
conversation with industryprofessionals here to shape the
future of independent films.
And until then, uh please keepdeveloping your stories and
building your community andraising the funds you need, and
most importantly, uh keep makingyour films because the world
(46:58):
needs your voice and they needyour vision because you are the
magic.
Hollywood needs you.
I'm Carol Dean and Claire Papin,and I will be here next week
with another Art of Film Fundingpodcast.
Thank you, Jessica.
SPEAKER_00 (47:19):
Thank you.
Thank you guys so much.
SPEAKER_03 (47:21):
And thank you, Claire.
I'm so glad you could join us on the Art of Film
Funding podcast, the show wherewe explore the creative,
financial, and entrepreneurialside of filmmaking.
We bring you conversations withfilmmakers, producers,
investors, and industryprofessionals who are finding
innovative ways to get theirfilms made and seen.
(01:36):
Today we're delighted to welcomeJessica Lee Rabel, a versatile
and respected actress, aproducer with more than two
decades of experience intelevision, film, and theater.
Originally from Los Angeles,Jessica has appeared in
acclaimed television seriesincluding Mad Men, Desperate
(02:00):
Housewives, and The Young andRestless.
She holds dual degrees inneuroscience and musical theater
from the University of SouthernCalifornia.
Known throughout theentertainment industry for her
collaborative spirit and strongprofessional relationships,
(02:20):
Jessica has built a reputationas both a talented performer and
an accomplished producer.
She's the creator and producerof an upcoming feature film and
a short film, projects rooted intransformation of faith,
emotional truth, and the powerof God's presence in our lives.
(02:46):
Today we'll discuss Jessica'sjourney as a producer, how she
financed her film, the uniqueopportunities and challenges of
faith-based filmmaking, and whatshe's learned about bringing an
independent film from concept toaudience.
Joining Jessica for today'sconversation is Carol Dean,
(03:10):
founder and president of Fromthe Heart Productions, one of
the leading physical sponsorshiporganizations supporting
independent filmmakers.
Carol has spent decades helpingfilmmakers raise funding, build
audiences, and bring importantstories to life.
And Carol, I'm going to turnthis over to you now.
SPEAKER_03 (03:33):
Thank you, Claire.
Well, Jessica, we're reallyhappy to have you.
So let's jump in and start withwhat inspired you to create your
film and why did this story feelimportant for you to tell at
this point in your life and yourcareer?
SPEAKER_00 (03:50):
Absolutely.
Well, thank you so much for thatbeautiful introduction.
And I'm so excited to share withyou guys what's on my heart.
And hopefully we'll be on bigscreen soon.
So I have been in the Hollywoodfilm industry for a while.
And first as an actress, I wouldtry to find projects that I
(04:14):
thought were worthwhile telling.
And it wasn't easy, I'll becompletely honest.
Being in LA, we we told a lot ofsilly stories.
And I woke up one day, maybe 10years ago, and I said, you know
what?
There needs to be more qualitywork that is meaningful and
(04:36):
meaningful that can reach topeople's hearts to encourage
them, to show them that they'renot alone, to really be the
human on the screen.
Um, not just uh fun, sillystories are always fun.
I'm not poo-pooing on that, butI wanted to tell more meaningful
things.
My one of my love languages isquality time, and quality time
(04:58):
is soul connecting.
And so as a filmmaker, I want toconnect to people's um hearts
and their the depth of the humanexistence.
And so I'm I have already um Imade a documentary about mental
health and addiction, and wehave three individuals telling
(05:18):
their journeys through seriouspain, through addiction, through
homelessness, through abuse onhow God has saved them, saved
them uh literally their theirsouls, but also saved them from
the tragedy of addiction andabuse.
Um and now I'm telling mypersonal journey through
postpartum depression andtalking to some close friends
(05:42):
who went through it as well intheir own version of the story.
Um, and so I'm hoping thatbringing this topic to the big
screen will help peopleunderstand loved ones a little
bit better who are and have gonethrough it, and also give um a
visual and a and um a way forpeople to who have gone through
(06:05):
it and who are struggling tosay, hey, that's me.
Um and I and that's a hopefulmessage, and I hope that my
story you know ends with lightas well.
So that was a long-windedanswer.
SPEAKER_03 (06:19):
That's wonderful.
Well, your background isfascinating.
You studied both neuroscienceand musical theater.
So, how have these twodisciplines influenced your
approach to storytelling andproducing?
SPEAKER_00 (06:36):
Yes, I actually think it is that if I tell
people that that is what Istudied at USC, first they're
shocked.
But if they know me well,they're like, wow, that makes
perfect sense because I'm allabout understanding the brain
and the human body and what itmeans and how to heal it
physically and mentally, and allof those things.
And that's exactly what I'mdoing on screen.
(06:58):
Um, and then musical theater, Imean, it's just performing and
loving the performances and thelights and the cameras and
bringing the joy to thestorytelling.
I think that's the musicaltheater side of me.
And um, I did for a hot secondthought I needed to become a
(07:19):
type of neurosurgeon.
And my advisor, who's aworld-renowned neuroscientist,
encouraged me to be an actor.
And that was that was reallynice of him.
Um, I also wanted to say itwasn't that I was a bad student,
I was actually a very goodstudent.
So, but just for him to un toknow me as a person and to say,
(07:40):
hey, I actually think you needto go into the entertainment
industry, not become ascientist, um, was was
encouraging.
I did start working as fordoctors and research and that
type of thing, but I this iswhere I ended up, and this is
the perfect plan, I think, formy career.
A couple decades later, don'tage me.
SPEAKER_03 (08:01):
Yes, I think storytellers are born still.
Yeah.
Well, as both the creator andthe producer of the film, what
was your original vision for theaudience experience?
And what transformation did youhope viewers would experience?
SPEAKER_00 (08:21):
Absolutely.
So I'm gonna talk about a pastproject and then this current
project.
Um, the documentary has andstill is reaching people to this
level that most you know moviesand movie theaters don't
necessarily do.
So these I if I have ascreening, um, well just say at
(08:41):
the River Oaks Theater inHouston, we had a screening and
it's a beautiful theater.
I don't know how many people,hundreds of seats.
Um, it's newly renovated.
And after that was the firstscreening we've ever had.
And after that screening, I hadpeople come up to me hugging me,
crying to me.
I didn't know them at all.
And they said, Thank you somuch.
(09:02):
This is my story, or thank youso much, this is my father's
story.
Um I it was completely speakingto me.
It encouraged me.
Or my um, one person said, Mybrother is stuck in this place,
and I want him to see thisdocumentary.
How can he see it?
Because he needs to know thatthere is still hope out there.
And so that response is exactlynot just what I want, but what
(09:27):
God is doing through theseprojects.
God told me to make thedocumentary, and he's telling me
to make the next coupleprojects.
Um, and so this very next one isabout postpartum depression.
And I have uh God, me, whatever,um, God's telling me to make it.
(09:47):
Um, and my heart behind it is toum help people be seen, heard,
and affirmed in their struggle.
And I believe that not only thepeople relating to postpartum
depression, but any type ofmental health um struggle, I
(10:08):
feel like people will respondand see themselves in this story
because really I don't thinkanyone's perfect.
Um, even if they think they are,everyone needs love and needs a
hug and just needs God.
Not trying to be preachy, but Ido um I have found solace in my
(10:32):
relationship with him, and Iknow other people have as well.
And so this project, the nextone about post-partner
depression, is faith-based, butit's for everybody.
Um, men included, and menespecially, I would say, because
they don't experience thespecific mental health issue,
um, but they can learn from itand they can see their wives and
(10:54):
sisters and daughters in the inthe film.
Um, so I am hoping to reachpeople's hearts, but also
educate just a little bit umwith my personal journey with my
testimony.
SPEAKER_03 (11:08):
This is most important because the guys have
no idea what's going on.
No, not the wall they married,they just know that things are
different, and the baby, ithappened with the baby, so uh
the whole thing blows theirmind, and many divorces happen
at this time.
This is uh an important issue.
(11:30):
So thank you for making thisfilm.
SPEAKER_00 (11:33):
Oh, of course, it is a really hard time.
It's a really hard time, and myjourney was five years, it was
not five months, and um also Isay my poor husband, because he
went through a lot, you know,because I went through a lot.
Um, and you know, and we'rewe're not just coming out on the
other end.
(11:53):
My kids are 11 and 9 now, so Ifeel like we've came out a while
ago from that um darkness, butyou're right, and it's what I'm
trying to be respectful at thesame time.
Um my father, my husband, andothers have said, well, what
(12:14):
does it feel like?
What do you mean somethinghurts?
What do you mean you can't getup or have a conversation or you
can't like are you just tired?
I'm like, no, it's it's morethan just tired.
When people's hormones aremessed up, it really does mess
you up.
It doesn't make you feel like aperson.
I always say I felt like a deadperson walking.
(12:36):
I felt like a zombie.
Um I don't remember a lot of mytime in in that five years.
I, I don't know, blacked it out,I guess.
Um there were I can get into allthe details, but it is it's a
really hard place to be whenit's not who you were.
(12:56):
You know, I was always energeticand full of life and got
everything done in type A, andthen and then it all just hit,
and you're taking care of thistiny little baby, and you're
figuring it out, and you wantthe best for your baby, and you
forget to take care of yourself,and then it just falls apart.
So yes, um, I don't thinkthere's a word or words to even
(13:20):
describe it.
So that's why I'm putting it onthe screen because a picture is
a thousand words and a video iseven more.
SPEAKER_03 (13:26):
Exactly.
Well, every film begins with adream, but eventually it
requires financing to approachfunding and the development and
production of this film.
SPEAKER_00 (13:40):
Sure.
So um with the documentary andwith our next one, we are
partnered with From the HeartProductions as our fiscal
sponsor.
And so we ended up winning alocal Houston grant.
It was quite small for thedocumentary, and we needed to
raise more funds around it tomake it something special, to
(14:05):
make it as quality as I wantedit to be.
And so, you know, we reached outto our network of people, of
friends, of family, of churches,and and asked them specifically,
hey, this is a tax-deductibledonation.
It goes through from the HeartProductions.
Um, would you feel comfortablegiving towards that?
(14:27):
Um, so that the documentary wasa lower budget uh project, which
was helpful so we can get itdone without having to raise$2
million.
And for this next one, I'mcurrently writing a script with
um Adrian Adrian Grabe from theMadam Secretary Writers Room.
(14:48):
And we are going to submit itfor the same but a larger local
Houston grant to get us started.
But we do need twice as much ormore of that grant.
So I'm going to also reach outto people.
I wanted to, I guess it's ashout out.
My home church in San Diego,Marinatha Chapel, Daniel Bentley
(15:12):
offered his time to be thepastor to wrap up the message in
the documentary.
So I wanted to say thank you tohim and their, you know, film
crew and everything.
Um, they made it happen so thatwe can make finish the
documentary with a bang, I wouldsay.
Um, so you can, you know, wepartnered with my church I grew
(15:35):
up in.
Um I'm hoping to partner withthem again in the next project.
I did talk with the head pastor,and he said, Great, tell me
more.
So that's exciting.
Um also getting the right peopleinvolved is is good.
So having the right pitch deck,um, I'm I I spoke with John
Wickham, who's Phil Wickham'sfather, and I I've known him a
(16:00):
little bit.
He's at our home church in SanDiego.
He leads worship there.
And so I'm hoping I'm I'mcrossing my fingers and praying,
and I think it might work out toget Phil Wickham on the
soundtrack for this nextproject, um for him to write a
song for us and then sing it andput it in the movie.
And I think it would be fewbeautiful and fabulous.
(16:22):
So the more name and the morethe right people that God's
bringing to the project alsohelp, you know, building the
team to bring it to someone tosay, hey, look, this is what
we're doing.
Here's the script, here's thecast, here's the crew.
You know, this is gonna be ameaningful project.
(16:43):
Um, yeah, so we're we're we'reworking with From the Heart
Productions for for the majorityof it.
So thank you, Carol.
SPEAKER_03 (16:54):
That's great to work with you.
Yes, because you your heart's init, you're you're in it with
both feet, you're determined,and that's really what it takes.
Uh, tenacity is the bestfilmmaker.
So good for you.
SPEAKER_00 (17:10):
Tenacity is my favorite word.
Can I tell you a quick storyabout it?
Yes.
Okay, so I was at USC, it wasParents' Weekend, my mother was
sitting next to me.
We were in Beauvard Auditorium,which is very big and beautiful,
and uh Henry Winkler was onstage talking because he was
there because his son Max was inthe film school.
(17:32):
So he had a talk, and afterwardswe walked up to him, and my mom
embarrassed me.
And she said, Hey, Henry, mydaughter wants to be an actress.
How does she become an actress?
I was like, Mom, I didn't wantyou to say that.
But he took the magazine, um,the USC magazine, and he wrote
(17:53):
tenacity.
He said, You need tenacity, andhe signed it, Henry Winkler.
Oh, and and so that was thetenacity story.
And then there's an end, there'sa second section.
So I was filming on Children'sHospital, and Henry Winkler is
one of the leads.
And so I went up to him, I said,Henry, I wanted to tell you
thank you for writing tenacityon my USC magazine.
(18:16):
And he remembered having theconversation with me and my
mother after his talk inBeauvard Auditorium at USC.
He remembered me.
And I, and that was probablyfour years later, and I was
blown away, blown away by all ofit.
So he said, See, I told youtenacity is it, and now we're
here filming together on a show.
So I wanted to say thank you tohim.
SPEAKER_03 (18:37):
That is incredible all the way around from right to
the end, and and there you go.
Yes, that's what it is thebackbone of the filmmaker
tenacity.
SPEAKER_00 (18:49):
It's beautiful.
SPEAKER_03 (18:50):
What were the biggest challenges you
encountered while raising money?
And how did you maintainmomentum when you when you had
obstacles?
SPEAKER_00 (19:01):
Yes.
So what I've run into so farwith typical investors is that
they want to see a project.
And it's a catch 22 situationbecause you need money to make
the project, but they want tosee the project before they give
the money.
And it's it's it's reallydifficult.
And so there are a couple thatwe were able to say, hey, here
(19:25):
is for the documentary, wefilmed dailies, uh, we filmed
first before we didpost-production, which was more
expensive for the documentary,usually always.
And um we were able to showthose dailies, and then they
said, Okay, I can see exactlywhere this is going.
Um, and for the next one, I haveI'm gonna have a script, I'm
gonna have a pitch deck, and I'mgonna say, This is what we got.
(19:50):
This is how much we need.
Please be a part of it.
This is our vision, too.
This is this is our ministry,this is our um desire to just
reach people in a deep way.
Um, so I'm hoping, I keep sayinghoping, but we're intending to,
you know, real uh convincepeople that this is the right
(20:13):
thing to really care about.
Um the catch 22 is definitelydifficult, especially for a
feature.
So we were working on this, thefeature, which is mental health
and addiction.
We'll we'll bring it down to aparticular I have a story
written, but anyway.
It's a little it's taking mypersonal story and making it uh
(20:34):
beautiful fictional drama.
And um to write a feature scriptis it's expensive, you know.
And I so I've put a lot of moneyof my own into the beginning
stages of these projects becauseI believe in them fully 100%.
Um, but once we get a little bitfor people to bite, it's a
(20:56):
little easier.
So, and then grants, you have toapply to them and you hope and
pray and cross your fingers thatyou win.
So that's another um I mean, I'mplanning on having a grant, but
you never know until you get itor you don't.
SPEAKER_03 (21:14):
That's right.
You have to keep after them, youhave to go back.
SPEAKER_00 (21:20):
Find more, find specific ones to the topics that
you're doing or the places thatyou're filming.
SPEAKER_03 (21:27):
Exactly.
But um, I've seen where peoplewho applied for my grant by the
third or fourth time is whenthey win because one, they
usually start applying forgrants too early, right?
Yeah, they haven't reallydeveloped the film to the to
(21:47):
show its true potential.
It's not right.
So once they do apply, and yousee, we see the potential, but
they don't, they're not thereyet.
Then may and then the next yearthey come back and we can see
the movement that's happening.
And usually the second or thethird time you'll get into the
(22:09):
hot films or into the finalist,and then move into winning, but
it may take you two years.
So the key with grants is don'tgive up, keep going back.
SPEAKER_00 (22:20):
Right.
Don't give up, keep going back.
There's always more, you canfind different ones.
Um, I ended up grants got methrough college.
Um, I just kept applying, and nomatter how big or how small,
because everything adds up.
SPEAKER_03 (22:38):
Exactly.
Everything is a win, a potentialwin.
Now back to your own projects,and when you are presenting the
project to potential investors,what materials or strategies
prove the most effective inhelping the donors understand
the vision and the businessopportunity for investment?
SPEAKER_00 (23:00):
Right.
Um I I I don't feel uh let'sjust say uh what am I trying to
I'm trying to like say sorrybefore I even say anything.
I know that I'm giving mythoughts.
Um I'm sure there's a hundredmillion ways to do things.
And so you're just gonna hearfrom what I have to say.
(23:21):
But I wanted to say also um atUSC I had this professor, Joseph
Hacker, and he said, in theentertainment industry,
everything is impossible, butthere's a million ways.
And that is the motto that I'mtaking because there isn't a way
to do things.
There's not a, you follow A, B,C steps, and then voila, it's
(23:45):
gonna happen.
And so it's a lot of adjustingand people relationships and
building them.
And you have no idea whensomeone's gonna say, okay, yes,
I'm ready to give you a milliondollars or even a thousand
dollars.
And but they're relationships.
These are people that we'reworking with.
They're not machines, they'renot robots.
And so I have pitch decks.
(24:08):
Uh, you know, we have footage ofprevious projects, we have
resumes, we have uh the team ofpeople who are a part of it.
Um and like I was talking withAngel Studios, my documentary is
gonna be on the Angel Studiosstreaming platform.
And so I was talking with AngelStudios about the next project,
and I said, Hey, we're gonna,Phil Wickham's most likely gonna
(24:29):
be a part of it.
And their response was, Oh mygoodness, we love Phil Wickham
because he just did the Davidcartoon movie with them.
And you know, having and theworld is small.
We are, I feel like we're allconnected somehow.
Um, and you can be across, youcould be somewhere else in the
(24:50):
world, meet someone who livesdown the street from you, just
like this podcast.
Um, you know, the the podcasteris in the same city as me, and
we didn't even know that.
And it's just a small world.
And so keeping goodrelationships, having all of the
uh pay not paperwork, but all ofyour stuff together, all your
(25:12):
ducks in a row, make sure thatyou care about what you're
doing, you're confident aboutwhat you're doing, don't have
false confidence, and don'tdon't overpromise.
That's a big thing.
You can't say, oh, well, thisfilm's gonna make 20x, because
that's rare and probably nottrue.
Um, but being honest about thisis an investment.
(25:33):
Um we here's other films thatare similar to ours, and this is
the success that they'veencountered, and and we expect
to encounter similar successlevel or responses, and we're
hoping for more than that.
And that's that's in yourinvesting in well for my
projects, also the the purposebehind it.
(25:56):
Um, the audience that we want toreach in the way that we want to
reach them.
And so I do view my films as aministry, as a ministry, not
just spiritually, but a ministryfor people who need to feel seen
and need to um just feel lessalone and then a little tiny bit
(26:19):
educational for the people whodon't understand their loved
ones who are going throughstuff.
So it's multifaceted, I believe.
Um, but it's all aboutrelationship.
SPEAKER_03 (26:31):
Yes, it certainly is.
And I'm amazed you're uh andcongratulations for working with
Angel Studios because it'sreally difficult.
Thank you.
And so what's your um experienceworking with Angel?
SPEAKER_00 (26:51):
Yes, so it's the beginning stages.
Um, we uh we are in back andforth with what it's gonna look
like for the documentary to bestreaming on their platform, and
it's very beginning stages.
Um again, I I'm using the wordhope.
I would love to work with themon the production side of the
(27:12):
next projects.
We'll see what happens withthat.
Um, I can't, nothing's signed,so I can't, you know, I don't
know, expect much.
But um, and you know what?
If if we end up workingseparate, like if I if I'm doing
this more independently, that'sperfectly fine too.
There's actually other I canname drop them all, but there's
(27:37):
faith-based production companiesin the US that we've met with
face to face who are reallyexcited about our next projects.
Um a lot of them actually.
We had 17 meetings, and I wouldin like 15 of them were like,
wow, let's do this.
Um so I feel like we'll we'll beable to get one.
(28:01):
Um, I do have my favorite, mytop favorite ones, and the the
people who I would trust themost to get this um done the
right way.
SPEAKER_03 (28:09):
So that's really good news.
SPEAKER_00 (28:12):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_03 (28:13):
But this is happening because you are
initiating these phone calls,these Zoom calls, right?
Yes.
Money.
SPEAKER_00 (28:22):
Yes.
Um, I am an initiator.
That's what I do, that's howGod's created me.
Um, the meetings were in person,um, which was really fabulous.
Um, NRB, which nationalbroadcast, I have we say it
wrong.
NRB is a Christian conferencefor media and a lot of film.
And we were able to haveface-to-face conversations with
(28:43):
these people there because theyall go there, which is which was
wonderful.
Um, yeah, so they always theysay, well, show me the next
step, show me the next step, andwe're almost done with the next
step.
So I'm I'm excited.
SPEAKER_03 (28:57):
Right.
Well, faith-based films oftenbalance ministry and marketplace
goals.
So, how did you navigatecreating a film that is
spiritually meaningful whilealso reaching a broader
audience?
SPEAKER_00 (29:14):
Absolutely.
So I'm from California, and Ihave always been a Christian,
and I've always had friends whoare not Christians.
And every person is a human, andwe and let me also say this: my
one of my spiritual gifts isevangelism.
And so every friend that I'veever had knows exactly what I
(29:37):
believe, why I believe it.
We some of us have hadarguments, fun arguments.
They're never angry.
Um, I would always make it apriority because I care, I
guess, to have theseconversations with film people,
crew members on these big sets.
Um the conversation always wentthere because people are
(30:00):
starving.
They're starving for the truth.
And in I was just in LA recentlyfor less than a month.
And in it, I feel like inCalifornia, people are starving
more than well, I live in Texas.
They're starving more for wait,you're a Christian?
Wait, you're cool.
Wait, I can have a conversationwith you and I'm not judging
(30:20):
you.
And they're just like, what ishappening here?
Um, and that to me is veryimportant to put in the films
and to have these films reachpeople of faith and people who
don't think they have faith.
Um, because, well, first of all,let me kind of make fun of my
mom for a second.
My mom is a Christian and sheloves Christian movies.
(30:42):
And usually when she tells me,hey, Jessica, you need to watch
this Christian movie, I'm like,well, I don't know because you
like everything, and I'm prettysure it's gonna be cheesy.
And so the opposite of cheesy isreally what I'm going for and
what I've already made and whatI'm making.
Um, because when it's highquality, when it's good acting,
when the cinematography isbeautiful, when the story is
(31:05):
spot on and powerful, then itreaches the human heart.
It goes past the judgment ofquote-unquote religious talk.
And that to me is the mostimportant thing.
So, like I said before,evangelism, evangelism is one of
(31:25):
my spiritual gifts.
And that's I'm not going to bepreaching to the audience.
However, you will 100% know thatGod is the strength behind what
the um what the healing processwill look like for the
characters in my scripts.
And and it's from a personalexperience and it's from other
(31:49):
powerful testimonies that I'veheard.
Um, but yeah, I think the wholeworld should that's gonna make
me sound like I'm a peaceperson, but get along.
Um, we don't need to be againsteach other.
And so it ha my documentary hasalready, and this film will, I'm
(32:09):
saying this, I'm c I'mcommanding it to happen, but
will reach everybody whereverthey're at.
And yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (32:19):
So that's the purpose.
SPEAKER_00 (32:21):
That's okay.
SPEAKER_03 (32:23):
Well, let's talk about audience building.
Okay.
So, what lessons have youlearned about connecting with
viewers before you release yourfilm?
SPEAKER_00 (32:36):
Okay, I think this is a it's a little bit of a
tricky subject because you wantto share the story and people
can get excited about it.
So the closer I'll I'll use anexample.
I have a neighborhood Biblestudy that I go to.
Uh, maybe there's 25 to 35people on any given time, so
(32:57):
it's kind of big.
It's women only.
And I would always be asking forprayer.
And I'm like, hey, you know, Ineed prayer for time.
I need to get this done in aweek, or I have prayer for a
location to work out orsomething else.
And so they felt like they werea part of it through the
process.
And then the moment I was ableto show them the documentary,
(33:21):
they were ecstatic.
They were just, they felt like,wow, I can't believe that, you
know, we felt like we were partof the process.
And you can't do that with thewhole world, but you can kind of
share little pieces withoutgiving away the whole.
Um, that's why they havetrailers, but even just having,
(33:41):
oh, you guys, it's so funny.
God downloads things in my mind,and I just got an idea of how I
could do that, is have littlevideos of maybe testimonials
that I can share that are aroundthe story that don't give away
the whole script or the wholemovie to get people really, I
guess, excited about what's tocome, and then and then bring
(34:06):
their friends and say, hey,well, this is something that I
think my friend Natalie needs tosee, you know, and then they can
go together or watch ittogether.
Um yeah, so it it is, I feellike it's a part of me.
It's not just what I do, it'salso who I am.
And so when I talk about theseprojects, I'm talking about
(34:31):
myself and my my heart and myvision, um, and and the reach,
because that's the whole point.
You want to reach people, andthis is a message, you know, to
share.
So it's impossible, but there'sa million ways.
SPEAKER_03 (34:48):
It's impossible, but there are a million ways to do
it.
You're right.
So um basically what you'resaying is those short videos uh
bring people uh to the undermore understand what your film
is about.
That is a wonderful way to addaudiences, audiences to your
film, right?
SPEAKER_00 (35:10):
I think so.
I think so.
And I know that having uh thecast and sometimes even crew
share their experiences, BTS,BTS, sorry, the pictures you
take while you're filming um isreally fun too.
People love to see behind thescenes photos, uh videos, that
type of thing is is nice aswell.
SPEAKER_03 (35:32):
Yes, they love it.
So um let me ask whatdistribution path are you
pursuing for your film?
And what advice would you givefilmmakers about preparing for
distribution long before theproduction is over?
SPEAKER_00 (35:48):
Okay, so I'll tell you what I did.
Um there are Christianconferences that have pitch a
thons where you can meet thepeople you want to meet for
distribution.
Usually those groups ask for afinished product.
Um so you have to be careful.
(36:09):
You have to have either afinished product or meet with
the ones who are willing to seebefore um before production,
maybe a pitch deck.
Um, maybe you filmed a teaser ora trailer before you do
principal photography so you canshare what it's gonna look like,
what it's gonna seem like.
And um and yeah, there are and Ijust saw, I don't know any
(36:33):
information about this, but Ijust saw another one that's not
faith-based for a pitch-thon inLA um happening soon.
And so there's opportunities forindependent filmmakers who don't
already have the relationshipsto sign up for something like
this and get face-to-face time,which is usually five to seven
minutes.
Um, so not that long.
(36:54):
But it it is meaningful and itmakes a big difference.
And with the documentary goingto Angel Studio Streaming
Platform, I can see the nextprojects doing the same.
I mean, I hope so.
Um, I still would have to passthe guild, which is I don't even
know how many people have tovote on it, hundreds uh for it
to pass.
(37:14):
And yeah, so I mean, it would begreat to have everything in one
place, you know, to say, like,oh, these three projects that
are all around mental health areall on angel streaming
platforms, and you can watchthem back to back, and it has my
name on there.
And so maybe they can find itthat way.
Um so yeah, there's and like Isaid, it's building
(37:36):
relationships and keeping intouch with people.
SPEAKER_03 (37:39):
And your vision, that is a really good vision,
Jessica.
SPEAKER_00 (37:43):
Thanks.
I just had it right now.
SPEAKER_03 (37:48):
Uh so looking back on the entire journey from
concept of financing toproduction and distribution,
what would you do differently ifyou were starting this project
today?
SPEAKER_00 (38:03):
Great question.
I think it's okay to put alittle bit of my own money in
projects, but at some point,like for the next for the
future, I'm raising$2 million,and I can't do that.
Um, I I can do nothing close tothat.
And so um ideally you can findinvestors to jump on board
(38:26):
early, but that's not the casethat I've come in contact with.
Um it's hard to say different.
It's not really how my mindworks.
Um, I don't try to live withregret.
And I know you didn't ask thatquestion, but it I know what we
did with the documentary, and Iknow that it's worked.
(38:47):
It did take some time, buteverything takes some time.
Um, once we won the first grantfor that, we had only two and a
half weeks over Thanksgiving toput it all together with the
editor, and it worked.
I mean, it wasn't the idealtiming, but it did work.
And then I was able to submit tothe the festivals that I wanted
(39:09):
to submit to in time.
And um I just wish I had moretime, but you can't really
change that.
You can be as productive as youcan be, but you know, we all
need sleep, we all need familytime.
I love my family.
I prefer to just be with themand eat good food.
And so it's balancingeverything.
(39:30):
Um I am a balancer as well withfriendships, with social life,
with work life, with family,with everything.
And I just I think that findingthe right balance is really
important.
Um, I did, however, this issilly, but I had to say, okay, I
need to create time.
So what do I need to take out ofmy schedule?
(39:52):
And I ended up taking friendsout, and that was hard.
Um, so I'm trying to build thefriendships back in because for
about a year, all my friendssaid, Where did you go?
And I was like, Well, I'm makingmovies.
Um, and that's and I love it.
I love it so much.
And I thrive on my computer bymyself, editing stuff for hours
on end.
Like that's I'm I'm an introvertat heart, even though everyone
(40:13):
thinks I've been extrovert.
And I do the love friendships.
So I think having the rightbalance is really important.
I thankfully do have a verysupporting spouse.
Um, I mean, even just a couplemonths, months, I don't know,
very recently I said, Hey, uh, Igotta go to LA for three weeks.
(40:34):
Is that okay?
He's like, that's what you haveto do, absolutely.
And so that's something youcan't, you know, change, but I'm
so blessed to have it.
Um, to have a spouse whobelieves in the projects that
I'm making and even makingintroductions for me and and and
being my cheerleader because hebelieves what I'm doing is a
(40:56):
beautiful thing as well.
So I didn't really answer yourquestion because it's hard to
say what I would do differentbecause I just know what I have
done.
Um, and then, you know, everyday you can try something new.
You can try something else um toget it going.
SPEAKER_03 (41:14):
Yes, you definitely can, because there are many ways
to get through the maze and intosuccess.
But I will say to you that youridea of going after the$2
million for the future is uhreally important to uh
understand that usuallydevelopment costs for uh$2
(41:36):
million is around$200,000.
$150 might do it, but thatdevelopment money is what you
want to come in tax-free uhthrough your investors giving
you the money, uh, not as aninvestor, but as a donor.
If you can get that 150 throughyour nonprofit from the heart,
(42:01):
that gives you the money to hireyour attorney, your casting
agent, the people that you needfor the film, to move to develop
your film.
And then you go out with your uhproduct placement memorandum and
your attorney to the wealthypeople looking for investments.
SPEAKER_00 (42:23):
Right.
Once everything is on paper, notjust you know uh a desire.
Um absolutely, and that's thegoal.
That's that's absolutely thegoal, um getting the donations
first.
SPEAKER_03 (42:39):
And I think that you're so lucky to be working
with the prayer group becauseprayer works.
Um, you know, I do this classcalled intentional filmmaking
class.
Well, the when I started theclass, the idea behind it was to
have people intend or pray forthe people in the class so that
(43:05):
they were able to achieve more.
And when I offered this to myfirst class years ago, only one
woman said, Yes, I want someoneto pray for me.
And so I gave the film to a wifeand husband who devoted
Christians, and they began tointend for her.
(43:28):
Well, it didn't come inJessica's here, here's a 10,000
donation,$10,000, or things likethat.
But what happened was one, aphone call from a friend saying,
I have an office availableoverlooking the ocean.
Would you like that for a year?
Yes.
Well, yes.
What is that,$50,000?
(43:48):
Maybe I don't know, but that'sthe money that you don't have to
spend.
And then her boss, where sheworked for a living, started
sending her to the cities whereshe needed to interview people
for her documentary on death anddying.
And so there she just paid forone more night, spent the night,
(44:11):
did the interview, came homewith footage for a few hundred
dollars.
These uh synchronicitiescontinue to happen.
SPEAKER_00 (44:20):
Right.
SPEAKER_03 (44:22):
And she finished her film, and she had been to uh
she's from Canada, she'd been tothe Canadian government asking
for the money for the film inthe first place.
They saw the completed film,said, Oh, why didn't you come to
us?
She said, I did, but you turnedme down.
They said, Oh no, we won't dothat again.
(44:43):
She said, I have enough film uhenough ideas and footage to have
half the second film done.
They said, We'll fund you.
SPEAKER_00 (44:52):
That's beautiful.
SPEAKER_03 (44:53):
She is on her third film on death and dying.
So he's the only one that tookthe concept.
And so you must you don't beafraid to ask people to pray for
you.
SPEAKER_00 (45:07):
Oh, yes, and pray for you, yes, and connect you
with people and offer what theycan.
And when it's God's will, Ithink praying for success is
perfectly good.
SPEAKER_02 (45:19):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00 (45:22):
If it's wrong and it's a ministry for him, and
yeah, not just blindly saying,make me a rich person, you know,
but make this project besuccessful to reach your people.
Um, that's beautiful.
I love that.
I love that story.
SPEAKER_03 (45:37):
Good.
Thank you, Jessica.
Well, keep keep those uh womeninvolved and use them uh to help
you create this film and yourprayer group, which is really
valuable.
SPEAKER_00 (45:51):
Uh uh it really is.
SPEAKER_03 (45:55):
Thank you so much, Jessica, for this uh information
sharing your experience and yourwisdom and your faith-filled
approach to filmmaking becauseyour journey with your film is a
reminder that meaningful,meaningful films begin with a
vision.
And we really appreciate yourhonesty about producing,
(46:16):
fundraising, audience building,and distribution.
And I know our listeners willtake away valuable insights to
use on their own projects.
And all of us at uh the Art ofFilm Funding podcasts, thank you
very much.
We invite you to join us againnext week for another
(46:37):
conversation with industryprofessionals here to shape the
future of independent films.
And until then, uh please keepdeveloping your stories and
building your community andraising the funds you need, and
most importantly, uh keep makingyour films because the world
(46:58):
needs your voice and they needyour vision because you are the
magic.
Hollywood needs you.
I'm Carol Dean and Claire Papin,and I will be here next week
with another Art of Film Fundingpodcast.
Thank you, Jessica.
SPEAKER_00 (47:19):
Thank you.
Thank you guys so much.
SPEAKER_03 (47:21):
And thank you, Claire.
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