WXFF 2020: Mikaela Roberts
Another one of our Women X Filmmakers Mikaela Roberts, director of Ilana Dances, talks to us about giving a voice to small communities, intimate relationships over production and Canada, land of the free.
Tell us about yourself and the work you do
Right now I’m a film student at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. I do some freelance film work to pay the bills (my favourite is filming weddings… I always cry!), but my heart is set on documentary. I love directing and editing, and bringing people’s stories to a larger audience.
What is your proudest moment of your career so far?
My proudest moment of my career so far has to be completing Ilana Dances, which is my most recent completed film. It was the first film that took me an entire year to make, and not just in terms of actual production. Building a real, intimate relationship with Ilana and her daughters took months of dedication, and being able to look back on my journey directing this film, seeing our relationship grow from one of strangers into one that is fully trusting was definitely a career-defining moment for me.
How did Ilana come to be the subject of the film?
I met Ilana through a friend of mine who is a photographer, and had recently finished shooting a photography series about motherhood. I thought Ilana’s story as a burlesque and pole dancer was fascinating and I wanted to get to know her. When I met her, I knew right away that I had to make a film portrait about her and her daughters. My goal as a young female filmmaker is to highlight women’s stories, and motherhood has always been something I’m interested in. Ilana’s take on motherhood was so refreshing that I had to share her story.
This is very much an unobtrusive and candid film - did you plan that from the get go or was that something that came about in the filmmaking process?
Not at all - the decision to be a silent observer with the camera was a decision that happened in editing, actually. After spending hours recording question and answer style interviews about motherhood and sexuality and how the two are linked, what do the kids think about it, etc… in the editing room, I decided that the real magic was what the camera caught when we became silent observers — no questions, no prompts. The genuine love I saw captured between Ilana and her daughters became the story I wanted to tell, and the images spoke for themselves. So, after hours of interviews I completely cut from the film, I decided to only keep the interview with Ilana’s eldest daughter to provide context and a little bit of backstory. To me, that interview spoke for itself and made the images of Ilana dancing with her daughters much more powerful but in a subtle way. So, to answer the question, no, I hadn’t planned to cut all my interviews and create such an unobtrusive/candid film. But it’s crazy what happens in the editing room. The most important thing I learned is to keep an open mind to change. Your film may not become what you intended, but you can’t force a story that’s not there. You can only look at what your images captured, and find the beauty in them. That’s what I took out of this experience most!
Working with the children, did they need much prompting when talking about their lives or were they naturally open?
The kids were great! I fell in love with them. For the most part, they were very talkative and curious about my crew and I. The most important thing was to talk with them like equals. My crew and I tried as much as possible to help them feel at ease with us. At the beginning of each shoot, we would draw with them and let them tell us stories about school and their pets. Building a relationship with them, as equals, was the most important thing and allowed them to open up to us. They are also such genuinely happy kids who love their mom, so talking with them about her was easy.
What themes do you want to explore in your future work?
The themes that I find myself most drawn to in my work are of personal and collective identity: who are we, and what memories do we collectively share as humans? Themes of community and the environment are also close to my heart. I care deeply about protecting smaller communities with smaller voices, and also protecting the environment. Part of my job as a documentary filmmaker is researching these themes extensively before I decide to make a film about them, so I make sure that they are themes I’m passionate about. (That’s the great thing about documentary filmmaking… I get to learn so many new things about the world around me in every new project I start!)
What three things do you always have on your bedside table?
1) My salt lamp: I live for that moody orange glow. 2) my autumn-scented candle: yes, even when it’s not autumn! 3) and my favourite succulent: I named her Judy.
What are you working on at the moment/next?
Right now I’m working on a personal documentary about my grandfather, a first generation Canadian immigrant from Jamaica in the 50s. I’m also working with a team of folks putting together a short documentary about the erasure of Black history in Canada. Both these projects are currently in the editing stage, so they’re coming soon! Finally, I’m also in the pre-production stage of another short documentary I’m co-producing and directing, about water protection, and the danger of giant conglomerates stealing water from the land to bottle for profit.
Tell us three things you're grateful for?
I’m unbelievably grateful for my family. My parents, sister and grandparents have always supported my dream to be a filmmaker, I really couldn’t thank them enough. (Also for watching hours upon hours of rough cuts!). I’m also grateful for my partner and our cat, Monsieur, who also wakes me up everyday and motivates me to pursue my creative passions (yes, even the cat!). Lastly, I’m truly grateful for living here in Canada, where I have amazing opportunities not only in my career but in my life in general. I am so, so lucky to be here (yes, even in the -40 degree winters!)
