Director's Statement

I set about making Busybody as part of a trilogy of short narrative films that are intended to shed light on the vital importance of hearing and believing all women. Busybody is a film featuring an older female protagonist who has been dismissed by so many as eccentric and meddlesome. The stakes for the dismissal in this case are grave.

Every choice we made in the filmmaking process, from casting to costumes to lens
choices, composition and sound design, was meant to show the isolation that can
exist, even in a very pleasant small town, when a woman is disregarded and her
truth brushed-off as crazy or meritless.

The lead character of Florence “Flo” Jackson is beloved by many in her home town,
yet she is still disregarded by the local detective when she reports a crime she
witnessed. The consequences that disregard leads to are dire -- and that is the
point. Seemingly innocuous dismissals can lead to extremely high stakes situations.

This project was borne from my own dismissal in a medical situation that nearly killed me. As I spent time in the hospital, finally being treated after eight months of pleading for help from dozens of doctors, I made it my mission to combine my filmmaking skills and feminist activism to make a difference in the world. Busybody and the larger trilogy, The Cassandra Project, are my way of opening people’s eyes, inspiring conversation and change, and moving the needle in the right direction – towards a world in which all humans are believed, regardless of gender.

Busybody is one woman’s story, but it could be any woman’s story. That is both the reason it is so relatable and so terrifying. Florence could be any of us. I am proud to say we had a crew and department heads that consisted of more than 75% women (along with some wonderful men), a goal I intend to meet for all three of the films in our trilogy. In order to inspire real change, we must lead the way and live by our words.

I hope you are affected by Florence’s story, and that it raises awareness and begins to make a dent in the disparity of belief between genders. It is time to put an end to the inequality that continues to permeate our society.