All About Action - Gabrielle Gorman
Interview by: Christal Mims
Photography: Sideara St. Claire
Brimming with optimism and confidence is filmmaker Gabrielle Gorman. Having just turned 19-years-old, the young creative has been nominated to be a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts, the highest honor for young artists in the nation. Gorman also had the opportunity to shadow director Jann Turner on the hit television show, How to Get Away with Murder, and shares her plans for breaking social barriers, and curating a more accepting world through film.
Originally published in IN #6, Fall 2017
Christal Mims: Tell me a little bit about yourself?
Gabrielle Gorman: When I was younger, I always got these little cameras for Christmas. I had this Hannah Montana camera, I had a flip camera, and I’d always make little stop-motions with my dolls. Then, in 9th grade, I started writing a lot of poetry and decided over that summer to make a film out of this poem I wrote called, “Blossom.” It was a reflection of what I was going through. I felt like I was growing so much and starting to accept myself. I had so much fun [with] the whole process and editing it. The video is terrible if you look at it now! But I fell in love with it and I took my first film class the next year.
CM: How to Get Away with Murder is arguably one of the best television shows currently on air. What was it like being on the set of one of your favorite television shows?
GG: It was crazy! I got to be on the set for two weeks and I met all the cast members. Everyone was just so inviting. My favorite was Aja Naomi King. She’s my idol and she just came up to me and we had the best conversation for like 20 minutes. She was so sweet. I liked how I could walk up to anyone on the set and be like, “So, what do you do?,” and they would just explain to me how they got into it. The whole experience was really educational and just amazing. Being on that lot and watching how much work goes into each scene – it was the time of my life.
CM: The U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts is the highest honor awarded to young artists in the nation. What was your reaction when you discovered that you were nominated?
GG: I was nominated through a program called Young Arts and I was a national winner for that. I went to the program in Miami and LA. It was a huge honor on its own. When I first applied to Young Arts, I thought I would just be at least a regional finalist, so going from that to being nominated to be U.S. Presidential Scholar was completely unexpected.
CM: What are you inspired by?
GG: In terms of the content that I use in my films, I’m inspired by the news. One of my films, Dear America which is, like, my favorite piece of work that I’ve made, was inspired after finding out that Michael Brown was killed. I had so many emotions. I just got my computer and started writing and then from that I made it into the film. I ended up using my own voiceover and talking from the heart. It was originally supposed to be about police brutality and as I was making the piece, I started thinking about how I felt impacted by racism and my struggle with accepting who I was when I was younger. I think that really resonated with a lot of people. As for what inspires me in terms of imagery, I get it from a lot of music videos and magazines. It could be a catalogue or an editorial magazine. If I see a photo that I really feel a connection to, that can inspire a whole piece.
CM: What are your thoughts on black stories in the media?
GG: This year, with the Oscars, there were a lot more movies about the black experience. I love that these movies are exploring a lot of intersectionality, whether it be being black and in the LGBTQ+ community or being a black woman. I hope that we continue to explore that avenue but also make films that are just about, you know, someone’s going through a tough breakup and they happen to be black. Just focusing on them apart from race. Putting black people or people of color, people of different communities, in roles where it’s not made specifically for their specific identity. I feel like we need those, too.
CM: What would you say your experience has been as a young, black woman in the film industry?
GG: I think my experience has been a little bit different so far. I think when people see me they say, “Look at this young woman” and they can connect with that. Like Jann Turner and other people who have given me a lot of amazing opportunities. They understand how hard it was for them to get where they are because they’re a woman or a woman of color and they want to help me because of that. It’s created a great sisterhood.
CM: Does it ever get overwhelming?
GG: I’m never satisfied. If anything, I get overwhelmed if I feel underwhelmed. I need to always be doing something. If I’m not working on a film I feel like, “What is my life right now?” I feel like I’m going through a mid-life crisis. I always like to stay busy.
CM: What would you say is one of your favorite movies?
GG: Honestly, my favorite film is The Grinch because when I was younger, me and my sister went to a school that was mostly white. Everyone came from upper class families and we felt very left out and alienated. I saw a lot of those themes in The Grinch. It was a way for me to understand what I was feeling and what I was experiencing before I even knew what terms like “alienation,” “discrimination,” “racism,” even meant. I love children’s movies that can educate kids on social constructs and social issues in a way that is easy for them to understand.
CM: For me, I’ll watch High School Musical almost every month and I know it’s bad but I can’t stop watching it.
GG: I definitely have my guilty pleasures. One is National Treasures: Book of Secrets. I’m obsessed with that movie. It’s very patriotic and they quote a lot of presidents, they talk about the values that we should be upholding, but we’re not upholding. It’s really funny, too. Also, This is the End. I don’t even know how many times I’ve seen that.
CM: What is it like working with a crew and actors?
GG: With my actors, I like to do as much as I can to get them in to the mental space that I want them to be in. I was taught that you never tell them, “You’re supposed to be feeling sad” or “You’re supposed to be feeling angry.” I try to say, “Remember you’re going through this” or “Remember this happened yesterday.” I did a film about post-slavery black concentration camps, which a lot of people don’t know about. I had a lot of dancers and I had them doing a lot of movement. I would tell them, “Remember your kids are starving. Remember you’re being forced to work. Remember this is happening to your wife.”
CM: How did the film, I Am a Woman Who come about?
GG: The people at I Am a Woman Who reached out to me about co-directing and editing and I ended up being in the piece. We had about two days of dozens of girls writing down who they are. I said, “I am a black woman, I treat every day like a fashion show, I like to day dream,” things like that. Then, they painted it on a huge poster and I stood in front of it and read it out loud. We got to show it at a TEDx event in Santa Monica and I also got to help film that event.
CM: The theme of the next IN Mag issue is Incredible and it’s inspired by what goes into preparation and work as well as how luck plays into certain outcomes. How much do you feel luck plays a part in what ends up happening with your films and how much of it is preparation and hard work?
GG: You have to be prepared. I mean, I’ve had a couple of times where I found out about something the day before the deadline, applied, and it ended up pulling through. But, especially from my position, I don’t really think luck plays into it. I know a lot of people who are able to get farther because their parents are more connected or something like that and it just means that I have to work harder. I’m willing to do that. It means that I’m committed and passionate. I would say that it’s definitely more hard work than luck.
CM: What’s your next step?
GG: Right now, I’m working on a piece just to celebrate as many different types of people that I can. With the election I felt like I wanted to do something inspired by that. I met with a bunch of people and got shots of them, asked them what they hope to see in the future and how they feel young people can help shift the path that our world is going on. I’m just trying to gather a bunch of perspectives. I’m also really happy because my film “Dear America” is going to be in a PBS special on race. I’ve also been working on having it in a French textbook and there’s going to be an online part that people can go onto. It’s been my dream to educate people with my films so for it to be actually a part of a curriculum is all I can ask for.
Follow @thegabriellegorman on instagram