Director's Note

​From March through July I watched my daughter, my nibbling and my students struggle to adjust to a new and scary world. It was incredibly difficult for them. While adults were speaking loudly, the youth were rarely given the opportunity to share what this experience was like for them. (Dis)Connected is my love letter to these incredible kids and all the kids around the world who have found a way to survive and perhaps even thrive during this difficult time. It is a way to honor them. It is a way to give them the microphone. It is a way to remind them that they are not alone in their experiences. As the director, I feel much of my job was creating the space for these talented young performers to speak up and speak out. There were many challenges to filming during a pandemic - I directed the entire movie remotely and the actors had to film all of their indoor scenes on their own. We leaned into the limitations and discovered beautiful new ways to tell the story. What we created is a testament to the the adaptability of humanity and the unifying power of art and hope during the most challenging of times.

Writing the Script

(Dis)Connected was inspired by the real-life experiences of the writer/director's daughter, nibbling and students during the nationwide lockdown in the spring of 2020.  She witnessed the struggles, the fears and the creative ways they found to connect to one another.  After the George Floyd video and the subsequent civic uprisings, Canedy watched her students organize protests and stand up for what they believed in.  She was so inspired by their incredible strength that she wanted to honor them in some way.
Enter The Atlanta Workshop Players and AWP's artistic director and founder Lynn Stallings.  Lynn asked Canedy to write and direct a short film about COVID 19 and BLM for their summer movie camp.  Canedy knew exactly what she wanted to create and began writing a script that could be shot remotely and/or physically distant. As it began to take shape, she realized that while she wanted to include the protests, the BLM story wasn't hers to tell, so she asked her friend and co-creator, Malachi Nimmons, to write that storyline. Together they found a way to intertwine the various experiences into one cohesive journey of struggle, perseverance and connection.

Shooting the Film

"The aesthetic is dictated by the limitations"

- Randy Mansour, DP

 The cast and crew were scattered all over the country and there was a pandemic, so Canedy and the production team had to approach the filming process with creativity, flexibility and a lot of virtual meetings. The film was divided into three sections: one where the actors set up and filmed their own scenes, one shot over Zoom and FaceTime and the final section where actors were together, but physically distant.
For the first section, three DPs- Don Stallings, Randy Mansour and Zack Housseini- worked with Canedy and the actors to create the shots utilizing locations and lighting available and then the actors (or their parents) filmed the scenes.
For the second section, the cast either filmed on Zoom with Canedy and the DP hidden, or, as was the case for the FaceTime calls, the actors shot their part directly into the phone and the post-production team edited the two parts together.
The third section required the team to work both in-person and remotely. The DP, Don Stallings, and AD, Ashlyn Stallings, lived in the same household and were able to work side by side.  So Canedy directed via FaceTime while Ashlyn held the phone to the playback monitor and repeated Canedy's direction to the actors or Don.  Everyone wore masks, never got closer than 6 feet and had tested negative before filming.  Canedy never saw any of her actors or crew in person and says she can't wait until the day that she can give them all big hugs of gratitude for the amazing work they did.

Post-Production

Canedy and the editor, Don Stallings, worked remotely to craft a version of the film that was true to the experience and also allowed the audience to follow the various storylines.  Actors were needed to record voiceovers on their phones and send them to the team and they even had to reshoot an entire scene with the actor responding only to Canedy's voice as he talked into the camera staring at himself.  To say the cast and crew rose the extenuating circumstances is an understatement.
The music in the film was key to creating the mood of the piece and sending the message of unity and justice that was vital to the success of the story.  Enter George S. Clinton and Hassan El Gendi.  Both immensely talented musicians and songwriters.  George S. Clinton, the Emmy and Grammy nominated film composer, saw the importance of the piece and agreed to lend his incredible skill and create a beautiful and haunting score.  Hassan El Gendi, Oscar nominee, lent his voice to the credit song "Dear Becky/All Lives Matter" which captures the message of the film in a catchy and provocative piece.  Canedy is incredibly humbled and deeply moved that these two masters in their field so generously gave their talent to this project.

A Life of its Own

Since the first private screening, the movie has taken on a life of its own.  It has screened at film festivals in 6 countries and has been nominated for Best Short Film numerous times.  It has won "Best Live Action Short Film" at the KVC Children's Film Festival in Atlanta, "Best Lockdown Film" at FLOW Film Festival, "Best Film of Quarantine", "Best New Director" and "Best Production Team" at the Five Continents Film Festival.
The director and production team represented the film in July 2021 at Diversity in Cannes during The Cannes Film Festival where it won the "Audience Choice Award." It is a huge honor to stand beside other filmmakers at this important festival that makes space for diverse stories and storytellers at the world's largest film festival. 
Beyond film festivals, (Dis)Connected has been shown in classrooms and with youth groups and arts organizations along with its companion program, (Re)Connected, as a tool to encourage young people to share their experiences during the pandemic, explore social justice issues, learn about the filmmaking process, create their own video projects and reconnect in deeper and more meaningful ways.