Filmmaker Spotlight: Heather Ross

Filmmaker Spotlight: Heather Ross

By Caroline Jackson

How did this project come about? Had you worked with young adults before?

I had been looking for a good topic for a while, but nothing had strongly called to me. I knew I wanted to do something with young women as lead characters, and one day I heard a segment on NPR about this program at Warrenville (prison facility). I was taken with the idea of telling these girls' story; you never hear the voices of marginalized girls, girls in the system - they're always side characters in some gangster drama - and I was excited to hear what they had to say. And what a great way to connect with them because there is this crazy musical, the last thing you'd think a tough girl would want to do. These girls are really just kids, and it was a way of getting at the childish side of them. I never set out to make a political or social activist film, I wanted to tell a story. I love this concept because it's funny, it brings you in,and it turns the prison documentary idea on its head.

What were some of the obstacles in shooting at a detention facility?

We were really lucky, although we didn't know how lucky at the time. First got in touch with the people at Story Catchers Theatre when they about to do their first show at Warrenville. We then talked to the warden and found out no state allows you to reveal the identity of a minor, so we took it to the governor. Fortunately Rod Blagojevich approved the idea, possibly seeing the benefit in showing a positive aspect of this system, and we got special permission. Here, they were trying to do something different, trying to connect with the kids any way they could. At first, the wardens kept their eye on me, scared I might be planning some kind of exposé, but eventually hey got used to my presence, like "Oh, that's just Heather."

How long were you in Illinois for the shooting of the film?

The filming was over 9 months, then returned to do some follow-ups. It was shot in a traditional style, where we went to every rehearsal and every writing sessions -- we had a ton of footage, but this allowed us to capture some nice subtle moments.

How did the girls initially react to the presence of the cameras? Did they feel like it was an intrusion at first, or were they immediately receptive?

The first time I went to Warrenville was to see their first performance. At first, I put on my tough girl face. I didn't want them to see me as some wimpy girl with a camera, but when they were getting ready to go on stage, they were all just being teenage girls, excited to perform; it was a fun way to meet them. When I came back to begin shooting, most of them were pretty into it. They come from a culture where being on camera is a powerful and very cool thing, but that also made it harder was to get them to relax and be real. Then there were a few girls like Whitney who approached it as: "well, this is just one of many weird things in my life right now."

The girls seemed to really respect Miss P. What are some of the unique ways she interacts with them to gain their trust and respect?

There's many different things, some of which Ms. P describes in an interview on her methodology that comes with the educational version of the film. One thing is that she's coming in and offering something fun, something so different that even if it's a little goofy at times, the girls still want to participate. She's asking them to come in and get on stage, but also lets them take ownership of it. It's always a choice: if you don't want to be here, you don't have to. Most importantly, just being a good listener is key. Most of these girls have never had someone really listen to them; the older people in their lives are often disappointments, ineffectual or authoritarian, so just listening and being there for them is very important. Miss P very respectful to the kids and treats them like her own children; she's not phased if someone starts yelling and screaming, she handles it calmly.

While Stage Catchers may have been the first program of its kind, the film has inspired others to start similar programs at youth facilities in other states. Was this a goal of yours?

Not exactly. My intention was to see what was going on in this system, and then let the girls tell their own stories with the thinking that just letting them do this causes transformation, personal growth, and a different understanding of their world. As the film has grown, however, we're actively trying to have it be used as a tool for educators or people running youth based programs. I am excited for it to have a community engagement.

Christina's situation is really heartbreaking, having been released and then imprisoned again soon after. Have you spoken to her since? Have the main few girls seen Girls on the Wall?

Unfortunately Christina's situation is not too unique. After she ran, I kept asking about her, but I found out on the prison's website that she had been locked up again. The good news is that she did get out recently on good behavior, and she is living in Illinois and has stayed out of trouble since then. The three main girls have all seen the film, and Rosa continues to help out, doing Q and A's once in a while. We're hoping to involve her in some more community outreach in the future; right now, we're trying to get a grant to do community screenings for girls who aren't locked up but might be heading in that direction. Whitney likes the film, but has ambivalent feelings about so much of her personal life being out there; she struggled with that a little bit, but then went to few screenings and saw how people are rooting for her, not condemning her. We had be sending her cuts throughout the editing process, so she knew what to expect.

Although many of the girls seemed cynical at first about putting on a musical, when it came time to preform, they all took it very seriously and did a fantastic job.

These are kids who were never motivated to complete anything. They didn't stay in school - these girls didn't have anyone in their lives to teach them how to finish a project or reach a goal. This is the first time they are really achieving something big, and when you go back stage during the performances, there is so much pride and fear and emotion. They are just teenagers, and like any teenager, they are good at hiding some emotions but not others. Just completing something that was their own and that they could share was huge.

Have been begun working on a new film since the release of Girls on the Wall?

I have a couple very different projects in the works, but Girls on the Wall is like my first child - I'm still hoping this film continues to make its way in the world. I am, however, working on a very different documentary about an unsung hero of the comedy world. This guy has trained many of the best American comedians but is little known himself. I haven't started filming yet, but laying the groundwork, I'm really excited about it; there are so many interesting people connected to his story, and he was such a great storyteller himself. We did recently have some big news for Girls on the Wall: Gabourey "Gabby" Sidibe of the movie Precious saw the film and was so moved by it that she wants to be involved in a fiction version of Girls on the Wall. Right now we're trying to figure out who the right writer is; it will be different than the documentary, and the new writer will make it their own, but we will of course give them access to the hundreds of hours of film I shot with all the stories I couldn't include in the final cut.

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