The full version of this interview with accompanying spread was featured in Issue 1: Bloom.
Interview/Design by: Isabella Vega
Art by: Brekken Selah
Gerwig, Anderson, Spielberg: Every single film maker has a specific style; as soon as their work flashes on their screen, you immediately know who’s behind the camera. Ella Fields is a visionary of film who attacks each project she makes with a sort of vigorous authenticity that has come from cultivating her own voice. Through making movies that center around her own personal experience, Ella leaves little pieces of her soul in each frame.
Isabella: How have you cultivated your own personal aesthetic that is true to you?
Ella: I get inspiration from my friends, movies, Pinterest and random things that I think look visually cool. A lot of my personality is my randomness, because I try to be as random as possible in my life. My technique right now is to think “Ok, what is the most random I can do?” and a lot of vividness comes out of it. As well, I try to be as positive as I can, and color brings that out in me.
Isabella: How do you feel about the issues in the film industry and how do you think they can be fixed?
Ella: I think the issue is a corruption of power. Throughout history, women did not have the same rights as men. We’ve never been seen as the “powerful” ones or the ones who should be in leadership roles. Being a director is a huge leadership role on a film set and in the industry, and I think that now since women are starting to take on these leadership roles, that can be the solution. Women will be able to utilize that power to uplift each other. Another thing, is that people get so caught up in the process of having that power and forget about how film is the truest form of art.
Isabella: In your Intro to Bloom video, you talk about the film being a cathartic process for you, like a form of healing from your experience of sexual assault; how did this film aid in that process of healing?
Ella: The way that my films happen is that the subject matter that usually covers something I am personally experiencing. I knew that tackling the topic of sexual assault was going to be my next mission in film and in life. I wasn’t sure how which medium to use: it actually started as a documentary, then progressed into a live-action thing, but everything that could go wrong seemed to be going wrong for these projects. I just couldn’t make the film! I had to go back and realize that I hadn’t fully processed my own experience with sexual assault. I couldn’t tell others to heal from something and not be afraid to speak out when I hadn’t myself. The Claymation itself was difficult to work with, so many tears went into the clay, but the end result was perfect.
Isabella: The issue’s theme is “Bloom”, and it’s basically about finding creativity in the chaos of the present moment. How are you spending this time in quarantine/how do you feel about it, creatively? How are you keeping up with yourself?
Ella: Honestly, I feel like I’m thriving right now! Everyone’s reaction to this time is so different, and I know that we’re all different people who process things differently. I’ve been having struggles with social distancing, but I really needed this time to be able to self-reflect.
Find more of Ella here:
Instagram: @elllafields
Youtube: Ella Fields