Author: Elizabeth Mihelich

I recently produced a short film, Always Remember Me, which was shot on 16 mm film. I’m a producer, so naturally my first inclination was to try to convince the director and executive producer that we didn’t NEED to shoot on film as it’s a much more expensive medium. The film stock costs a lot of money plus you have to pay to have someone digitize it in order to edit it and screen it in all theaters today. Why shoot on film just to have it turned into a digital medium? This particular short had been in development for…

I recently saw the movie “Don’t Think Twice” written and directed by Mike Birbiglia about an improv team that goes through some changes and while it was an enjoyable movie, I don’t think I’ll ever watch it again. Why not? The emotional roller coaster of that movie was too much to handle. The subject matter, the journey, the characters are all so close to my heart that watching them go through it made my heart ache so much. There were parts of every character that I could relate to or identify with. In the movie, they are all part of…

“Love is All You Need?” is the title of Kim Rocco Shields short film that went viral in 2014 and is now a feature film playing the festival circuit. Recently, I attended the Cayman International Film Festival where it won Best Feature Film. I sat down with Rocco to chat about her journey with this film and how she ended up with a film that’s not only entertaining, but also changing people’s lives. Rocco was inspired to write the short version of “Love is All You Need?” in response to the increasing amount of teen suicides that were happening as…

A few weeks ago a friend asked me if I would stage-manage her production of “Disrupted” that is making its debut in the Hollywood Fringe Festival this year. I agreed to help her out, thinking that it might be nice to get back into some hardcore theatre. (Hardcore theatre is the kind that comes with scripts, blocking, rehearsals, tech rehearsals, etc). I regularly participate in soft core theatre, aka improv, but it’s been years since I’ve been part of a play. Since I moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film and television this isn’t really a surprise,…

One of my favorite TED talks is by Brene Brown. I often turn on TED talks while I am doing something else, but Brene’s resonated so deeply with me that I quickly found myself just listening to her talk, The Power of Vulnerability.  I’ve never heard of anyone like Brene Brown. She actually studies human connection for a living. She investigates vulnerability, courage, authenticity and shame and how they affect human connection. Human connection is something that I think about often and it’s a driving force behind why I want to make films, act and tell stories. Connection, human connection, is…

The improv community in Los Angeles is reeling, angry, confused and hopeful. A community that’s built on “Yes, And . . .” is trying to find the balance between being a good improviser and being able to hear a No. Over the last few months’ women in the improv comedy community have been coming forward in private Facebook groups with stories of sexual harassment, assault and in some cases, rape. As the stories of these women were shared, the individual theatres in the community were notified and all began to react in different ways. Personally, I was one who sent…

Molly Hawkey feels like she’s about to barf. She’s fielding calls from E!, Buzzfeed and Self but she takes a second to thank everyone on her Facebook for their support. A few days ago her friends, mostly in the tight-knit improv community and members of her basketball team, The Pistol Shrimps, were sharing this great video she made. Those friends shared it, some celeb friends tweeted it and then Buzzfeed picked it up and before she knew it she was fielding all those calls. They say if you want to make it in Hollywood in this day and age that…

The most recent season of Project Greenlight was beyond frustrating for me to watch. I realize that even “reality” series are scripted and edited in order to heighten the drama and make for good TV, but it was as if we were being shown a literal interpretation of what’s going on in the Film Industry, without them realizing that they were showing it to us. There has been much debate and discussion about the lack of women and the lack of diversity in film and both of these issues were at the forefront of this season. It wasn’t only those…

Have you ever had an out of body experience, standing nearby, watching yourself in a scenario that you can’t stop from happening and you’re not exactly sure how you got there? That’s how I felt as I watched myself, standing on my porch having a conversation with Mr. Money screaming at me, “You’re not a producer. STOP CALLING YOURSELF A PRODUCER.” Let me back up a little bit. About 5 months ago Mr. Money, who I’d been a friend with for 10 years, called and asked if I would help produce his feature that he’d been sitting on for 10…

I remember the day vividly. I can see the blue-carpeted stairs that are oddly shaped and feel like you could fall down them at any moment, as I walked up them to meet with our coach. Our fearless leader who was the expert, that guided us through rehearsals, gave us loving and direct notes when that ever elusive Harold we were chasing derailed in front of our eyes, under our feet and in front of an audience, but still loved us anyway, had called us to a meeting. Bounding up the stairs excited at the prospect of new information, a…

originally published at: Shatteringthefacade.blogspot.com There were a few things I knew to expect during my crowdfunding campaign on PasserBy (which is a platform that has now closed), and there were more than a few delightful surprises. I knew going into my campaign that it wasn’t going to be easy. Money is tight everywhere and it takes a lot to get people to part with their hard earned money.  I’m a one-woman show these days. I’m the writer, producer and actress on the project. I’ve chosen to work with a director that comes with his team of producers, makeup, camera guys, composer,…