Cornelia Duryée of Kairos Productions: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became A Filmmaker

You can do this. No matter your age, your gender, your race, your orientation, or your financial situation, you can do this. Get training, and then get on set. Volunteer, to begin with. I did. Be early, be willing, be reliable, be easy to work with, and enjoy the opportunity, with gratitude. Then you will be asked back, and eventually, you may get the incredible privilege of making filmmaking your profession.

As a part of our series called “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became A Filmmaker”, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Cornelia Duryée.

Cornelia has had a long and joyful career in the arts. It was her relationship with Madeleine L’Engle that led the former playwright and stage director into the world of film. With Madeleine’s encouragement, Cornelia adapted two of Madeleine’s novels: Camilla Dickinson and Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun. The latter was a finalist in the First Glance Screenplay Competition, a semi-finalist at Slamdance, and has received numerous other accolades. Cornelia’s feature films include the new release Language Arts, starring Ashley Zukerman, Sarah Shahi, Pamela Reed, Elliott Smith, Lincoln Lambert, and many, many more; the soon-to-be-released Portal Runner, starring Elise Eberle, Sloane Morgan Siegel, Carol Roscoe, Brian S. Lewis, Matt Shimkus, Denny McAuliffe, and Shaunyce Omar; the tense, award-winning West of Redemption, starring Billy Zane, Kevin Alejandro, and Mariana Klaveno; and the award-winning Camilla Dickinson, with a cast including Adelaide Clemens, Cary Elwes, Samantha Mathis, and Gregg Sulkin.

Her first feature film, The Dark Horse, premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival and won Best Feature Drama at the International Family Film Festival, among other awards.

Cornelia co-founded Seattle Shakespeare Company, directed and performed there, and served as its casting director for seven years. A classically-trained actor/director, she directed stage plays for twenty years before moving behind the camera. She is a member of the Directors Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA. Her enjoyment of filmmaking extends into the realm of production, where she served as Executive Producer for cult favorite JourneyQuest Season 1, a producer of JourneyQuest Season 2, and as a casting director for The Gamers: Dorkness Rising, as well as many other Seattle productions. Cornelia, a proud member of Women in Film Seattle for several decades, and is in the process of writing and developing numerous projects for Kairos.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a bit of the ‘backstory’ of how you grew up?

I was raised by a mother who was a potter, painter, still photographer, and horticulturist, and a father who was an electrical engineer, inventor, and amateur filmmaker (on Super 8 film!). My family was always engaged in making things. I was a poet, writer, actor, dancer, stage director, and filmmaker (in that order), and my parents didn’t always know what to do with someone whose “making” was in the form of literary, verbal, and visual media. The things they made were things one could touch and hold. They were bemused and befuddled, yet supportive of my very different path. I think there is a direct line from their kind of inspiration to my own. For me, art is all about making things, no matter the format.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

When I was young, even before I helped co-found Seattle Shakespeare Company, I had the incredible blessing of being mentored as a writer by my Godmother, Madeleine L’Engle. After I had spent about 20 years in the theater, writing, acting, and directing, Madeleine asked to read one of the play scripts I’d been working on. She liked it a lot. I had moved back to Seattle, after many years working with Madeleine in New York, and I was staying with her, in her wonderful apartment on the Upper West Side, as I usually did on my visits back to New York. The day before I was to fly home to Seattle, she brought me into her office, handed me a stack of her old play scripts from the 1940s and early 1950s, and said, “These have never been published. They have been just sitting there since the fifties, not doing anything. I want you to adapt these and produce them for me.” I was amazed and asked her why she would ask me to do this. She said, “You are the only living playwright that I trust”, and then gave me a very long hug. I dropped out of seminary, where I was working on an MDIV, went to film school, and began writing screenplays, in my late 30s and early 40’s. I figured that when Madeleine called one to something, it was wise to respond in the affirmative. I did! The first of the Madeleine scripts is available for viewing, Camilla Dickinson, her semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story, set in 1948, and we are in early pre-production on the second of those adaptations, another story of hers, which will be my sixth feature film.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your filmmaking career?

So, so many, in over twenty years of making films!

One story took place on the set of my first feature, The Dark Horse. It was a scene where the family was eating (there were a lot of those), and in this shot Carol Roscoe, playing Dana, was to eat a salad, fresh from their farm’s garden. Her line was “Mom, there’s a slug in the salad!”, and the other actress, Kathryn Mesney, was to retort, “So pick it off! Just means it’s organic…”

Somehow Carol was otherwise occupied when the Art Department was wrangling the actual slug onto her salad. When the moment came to roll the camera on the scene, Carol looked down at the small shiny slug moving across her bowl of lettuce and had a reaction that was pure, violent disgust and outrage. We all had to fling our hands over our mouths to not laugh out loud.

Another story from The Dark Horse: My son Tallis has a small role in the film. We were filming in an 1800s farmhouse, with tiny rooms, and of course, they were packed with lighting instruments and crew. Tallis was across the room, separated from me by about 20 people, so I was directing at a distance. It was nearly lunchtime, and we would lose the kids at lunch, as that was the end of their 6-hour workday, so I was under the gun to get the shot, and we were not getting it. At about 5 minutes to lunch, in desperation, I gave possibly the most unplayable piece of direction I have ever given. I said “Honey!” In misery, because he knew he did not have it yet, he said “What?” I said, “You know how I am in the morning?” “Yeah.” “Go there.” He did. And we got the shot, with ten seconds to spare.

Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?

Working in film, I get to meet interesting people all the time. I have worked with hundreds of glorious, delightful, hardworking, brave, creative women and men. There are many, many people that I profoundly admire for their talent and heart and commitment. Working on Language Arts, I got to create with over 200 of the best human beings I’ve ever known.

On Language Arts, we were something of a “girl gang”, as Sarah Shahi described it (because we had more women than men). Such a community can lead, in my opinion, to a delightful atmosphere of collaboration and communication. So, I guess today, rather than listing every single member of our cast and crew, whether kid or adult, (which I could easily do!), I will speak of Sarah Shahi.

Sarah is an incredibly warm-hearted woman, who told us that she was very much enjoying making Language Arts, because it was her first film role portraying a mother, and because we had so many women in major acting roles and crew positions. As the mother of three children in real life, she has a deeply loving and welcoming maternal spirit, and that generosity manifested fully in this performance. She really met and cherished the kids who were lucky enough to act in scenes with her, and made them feel at home, and seen.

Sarah’s warmth and emotional accessibility infused every scene in the movie, and one example of this was the day when she was confined to the small interior of a car, driving over the same roads again and again, acting opposite the glorious Ashley Zukerman. Car-driving scenes can often be frustrating and technically challenging because you’ve got lots of things attached to the car, and there can be many delays and technical adjustments for the car-mounted cameras. Sarah’s good humor, sense of fun, and hearty infectious laugh meshed beautifully with Ashley’s wry, intellectual wit and delightful gift for improv, and despite the arduousness of the day, the two of them got funnier and funnier, and more and more poignant, as the day wore on. On those precious days of filming the movie, I always bounced home from set each day, mentally celebrating the joy of working on Language Arts, but I was in bliss mode that day.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

Amen to that, we all need help from mentors who have walked the path before us. Madeleine L’Engle and Larry Estes are the two major reasons that I have ever made any sort of film. Madeleine gave me my start, as I said, by inviting me to adapt her work, but the day I met Larry launched a new chapter for me. Walking up to this Hollywood legend, after he had lectured at a film gathering here in Seattle and asking if I could hand him my first screenplay, was one of my gutsiest moves ever. He took it! I could hardly breathe when he called me, a couple of days later, to say that he wanted to meet and discuss the script. Ever since that day, he’s been my friend, mentor, colleague, and producer of my five feature films. He’s shown me, again and again, the best path to walk in this business. I can never thank him enough for choosing to work with me, and for his dedication to his craft, and to our company.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.” — William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, which was a play I enjoyed performing in, back when I was acting. A little wooden plaque with that quote on it has graced my wall for decades. It was given to me by my high school acting teacher, Liza Benedict Hobbs. I can tend toward the anxious side of the ‘Anxious/Avoidant Spectrum’, to say the least, and that quote helps me remember not to doubt — not to doubt my artistic instincts, not to doubt my capacity, and not to doubt God. Often, I must exercise self-discipline, so as not to self-sabotage and “fear to attempt”, but if I can do that, wonderful things can be born.

I am very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?

As a disabled person myself (I am known as a “#zebra”, because I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, fibromyalgia, and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity) and as the mother of a mixed-race person with ASD (Autism), I’m aware of how challenging it can be, some days, to get out bed in the morning, let alone create something. No story is more important than any other. All stories are valid and need to be heard. The ridiculous pile of obstacles that any story has to overcome to get to the point of being told on film is magnified when it faces bias and discrimination. But that doesn’t mean the story isn’t important. As a white woman with privilege, it’s my responsibility to use the opportunity I have, as someone who is hiring film workers, to do my best to give good strong chances to people of all genders, races, and abilities.

I want my son to be able to see himself reflected in stories. I remember watching him watch Temple Grandin. I saw his face transform in wonder, as he began to see the world through another autistic person’s eyes. He saw Temple Grandin overcome enormous odds to achieve extraordinary things, and he was able to picture that kind of future for himself. Experiences like that are why diversity and representation are so important in film and other media.

Language Arts reflects real life, for some parents of people with autism. Parenting a child with neurological differences comes with moments of extraordinary joy, and it can also, of course, come with moments of hardship, and I think those are less frequently shared. The tough times can make you feel pretty isolated. I hope that people who see this film feel that they are not alone and that their lives are of profound value. I hope that they respond like my son did when he watched Temple Grandin, and feel that they, too, are heroic. Because they are.

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?

Kairos Productions is about to release our second film this year…we find ourselves blessed to be making up for not being able to film in 2020 by seeing the birth of two of our films in 2021, both filmed before the pandemic. Portal Runner, our next movie, is the story of a fifteen-year-old boy who is on the run from a monstrous evil that is chasing him through parallel worlds. When he finds himself stuck in a new world, with a furious older sister that he has never met before, he realizes that she might be the key to defeating his adversary. I love stories about family, and this is a funny, scary, adventurous romp through fantastical realms, that we had a blast creating.

I’m also in pre-pre-production for a film that I’ve been waiting to make for over 20 years. Finally, I have the experience and the backing to contemplate attempting it. It’s an ambitious, romantic, powerful historical drama. I’m scared, delighted, excited, and nervous, because of COVID-19. There are so many unknowns right now. Will we feel safe enough to do it? Will we find the locations, and the crew and actors? Making any movie is like leaping into the unknown, and that is triply true right now, of course.

Which aspect of your work makes you most proud? Can you explain or give a story?

I am most proud and happy when I know that I have communicated with someone. That’s the point of making a film; trying to touch someone’s heart. When a member of the audience lets me know that I have connected with them, then I feel that all the years of work I have put into making a film are worth it. There’s no better feeling in the world. We had a ‘sneak peek’ audience for Language Arts, after which an audience member, who parents a child with autism, reached out to let us know how much of her own life she saw in the film, and how important it was to her to see some of the challenges and joys from her own life represented in the story. That meant everything to me.

Years after our film West of Redemption came out, a veteran of several Middle East campaigns contacted to me to say that that film captured his experience of PTSD. I was astounded, blessed, and deeply touched that he would share that with me.

These sorts of moments are rare, but they do tend to help a filmmaker feel that they are on the right track, and I am so very grateful for them.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “five things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.

1. The secret to success in film is prep. The show is made or broken in its preparation. When you are young and eager, you often get so excited at the opportunity to actually make an actual movie that you pull the trigger too soon, before you are fully ready. It takes time for a show to be properly and fully funded, planned, scheduled, crewed-up, and cast. I came up in the business working on many other peoples’ shows, and I learned from working on poorly planned shoots what Not To Do when it came to be my turn producing and directing. Also, I have been blessed to work with Larry Estes, who is a genius at producing. That said, there was one show I worked on that was a textbook example of a lack of good prep. They ran out of money in the third week (of four planned weeks of filming), and the show ran into an impenetrable wall. They had told everyone to go home. Nearly a year later, they tried to call everyone back together, and of course, they could not. Tragic.
2. The script must be perfect. And when I say perfect, I mean the very best that you, and your editors and advisors, can possibly concoct. You only get one chance to pitch that script to investors, producing partners, and high-profile talent, and if you can’t light up their hearts and minds in the first 5 pages, you’ve lost them forever. When you think the script is done, trust me, it isn’t. Test this again and again, with carefully chosen readers, actor table readings, and many page-one rewrites. Do not be lazy about this, please, please. Patience and time are the only way to have success. The script is everything, and so very many shows get inexplicably made with inferior scripts. I think Language Arts had twenty-seven full drafts…that is typical for me.
3. Always hire people you trust. You are going to be living daily in very intense and taxing circumstances, with your team, for a long, long time. If you don’t have complete confidence in the people you work with, you’ll always be second-guessing, and things will get missed, and broken, and messed up, with very expensive results. If you pick the right people, they will inspire you, and make your mutual vision a reality. If you pick people that are, say, friends of your 8th investor that say they did a film once in college, you might be toast.
4. I think an atmosphere of trust and complete honesty is the only way to make something that will resonate with others. Foster that everywhere, whether in the production office, in a Zoom meeting during prep, or on set. Empower everyone to bring their best self, and to be heard. In my shows, I make it known that no question is stupid, and no idea is wrong. It’s all about timing. Maybe you don’t want to offer your suggestion just before we roll the camera, but there’s often a good time and place to contribute to the conversation. Every single member of the film’s community is vital to the success of the film. We work in a very collaborative medium. That is one reason why my movies never say, “A film by Cornelia Duryée.” They often say, “a film by 258 courageous artists”, or something like that, because that is entirely accurate.
5. The last one is the most important one: You can do this. No matter your age, your gender, your race, your orientation, or your financial situation, you can do this. Get training, and then get on set. Volunteer, to begin with. I did. Be early, be willing, be reliable, be easy to work with, and enjoy the opportunity, with gratitude. Then you will be asked back, and eventually, you may get the incredible privilege of making filmmaking your profession. I worked my way up from Production Assistant. Most of us who now work “Above the Line” started there. And network. Join Women in Film, and other organizations that can help you get to know good filmmaking colleagues and friends.

When you create a film, which stakeholders have the greatest impact on the artistic and cinematic choices you make? Is it the viewers, the critics, the financiers, or your own personal artistic vision? Can you share a story with us or give an example about what you mean?

Stakeholders? I think, mostly, of the film’s future audience. I think of who I am trying to connect with. If you are not making a heart connection with people, there’s no point in making a film, in my humble opinion. But I’m also, of course, thinking about the artists making the film with me, because filmmaking, as I have said, is the work of a community. Even though we are working from a script, I love to have actors improvise in and around that script, if the time is available, in any given setup. In Language Arts, one example of our typical atmosphere of collaboration was the ring shot — Sarah taking off her wedding ring and leaving it on the table. That was her suggestion, and I think it led to a beautiful scene. Ashley rephrased a line in that same scene that rocked my world and expressed the moment far more elegantly than the line I had written. I love the artistic synthesis a crew can achieve when artists feel free to contribute to the story.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

Language Arts basically asks the question: how do we work to give more of a voice to those who (for whatever reason; autism and dementia, in the film) have lost their words, or who experience a challenge in having their voices be heard? How do we become allies in enabling them to speak the way they wish to, and work toward empowering their self-expression? How do we hear their stories, and help others to hear them as well?

As the parent of a person with autism, and as an ally to people with autism, in my personal and professional lives, these questions are very near and dear to my heart. When I read the book, it just broke my soul open…in the right way. As I read it, I was enraptured by the story of a man who was trapped behind self-created walls, and I dove with him as he moved through a deep place of grieving, came slowly to life, and then transformed at the end. That is a journey that I hope and pray that the movie can lead us through.

I think the story of Language Arts shows us that if we look into another person’s eyes and truly see them — if we connect to their inner self, and take in their spirit — we will begin to love what we see, and not see others as foreign, or hard to understand. This is obviously a message that can be helpful in this particular time in history, which seems to only get louder, angrier, and scarier every day. If people can be willing to set aside the fearful thoughts that divide them from others, and try to listen, and do their best to see other people’s hearts and spirits more clearly, perhaps we will not be a country, and a world, so artificially split into opposing tribes. If we can calm down, give each other grace, and look at each other with eyes of acceptance, then maybe our accusations, exclusions, and prejudices can be set aside, and an attitude of openness and inclusiveness can help save us. I believe it can.

If I could start a movement that would give a voice to those that experience not having a voice now, I would, in a heartbeat. In this isolating time, so many of us long to connect. It is my heartfelt prayer that we find good ways to do that, in this new post-2020 world that none of us has chosen, but that all of us must try to live, and thrive, in. We must do what we can to help the planet, and our fellow humans, to survive these crises, and I think the only way to do that is to listen to each other.

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this. :-)

Dame Helen Mirren. I’ve got a project I’d like to talk with her about.

How can our readers further follow you online?

You can find me on Facebook @Cornelia.Moore and Twitter @CorrieDoh. Please check out Language Arts at www.languageartsmovie.com.

This was very meaningful, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!