It’s early ‘90’s New York. Melissa comes from a violent home; her fix for it is to get away. Hopping a train to the big city, she seeks refuge with her friends and embraces the drugs, dancing, techno music, and faux family of the underground club life. With ambitions of performing as a DJ and freestyle MC, Melissa doesn’t want to leave. From doing drugs to selling drugs to make ends meet, Melissa gets in way over her head when she owes a debt to drug dealer Loki. Once he has her in his clutches he won’t let her go, except to sell her out. Melissa’s struggle to pursue her ambitions puts hard choices in her path, with harder consequences. But in this world, opportunity can only come from adversity. Melissa has learned the rules of a lawless game, and she keeps playing. How else can she gain the stage?
Film Specifications
- Short
- 10 minutes 35 seconds
- US
- Filmed US
- Languages: English
- Awards: Los Angeles Film Review (SILVER AWARD), UCLAx Film Festival (“Best Unique and Artistic Film”), 50th Annural WorldFest Houston (Silver REMI)
- Awards: Southern States Indie Fan Film Festival (Best Experimental Film)
- Screening Date: Saturday June 8, 2019
- Time: 1:45-3:00 pm EDT
- Location: AMC Empire 25
- ShortFilm Showcase D
Director Rosa Costanza
Rosa is a Writer, Director, and Producer who has worked in media production for over 15 years. She has independently produced films, music videos, Grammy selected music albums and international events. The first short film she has written and directed, titled XING, has won 3 awards and screened in 8 festivals – most notably in Cannes at the Short Film Corner 2017. The XING short is a “proof of concept” for the feature length script she wrote which is currently in development ahead of independent production.
Rosa comes from a family of award winning TV and documentary film producers, and is the third generation to work in entertainment. Rosa has a perspective that comes from her immersion in the behind-the-scenes processes from a young age, interning on film sets at 16 years old.
Rosa jumped in to filmmaking as a technician first, she has been a member of IATSE Hollywood Local 695 as a Production Sound Mixer since 2007. Employers include Warner Brothers, Paramount Pictures, Fox, NBCUniversal / Telemundo and networks Hallmark, Lifetime, Discovery, NatGeo, and more. She has credits on over 100 film & TV projects from the USA, Canada, India & Africa.
Highlights include: Video Utility on (2016) “SULLY” Dir: Clint Eastwood; Video Coordinator on (2015) “PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: The Ghost Dimension” Dir: Gregory Plotkin; Recordist for (2011) “THE FUTURE” DIR: Miranda July
She additionally has a music production background, having recorded traditional and contemporary African music in Tanzania for a 3-year ethnomusicology project from 1998 to 2001. Rosa is a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) for over 13 years.
Most recently, Rosa was a panelist at The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) annual Career Summit 2016. Rosa gave a lecture on sound for documentaries as part of an event at Yale University’s Film Studies Center in 2010. Teaching Master Classes in Production Sound for Film and an Industry Overview seminar for film students at Orange Coast College has been another highlight. Rosa mentored female film students at Utah Valley University’s FEMME program, in 2015. She gave a lecture on Production Sound for the Ojai Film Society in 2016. Rosa enjoys mentoring those seeking a lifelong career in the entertainment industry, and believes in volunteering her time for the arts.
Rosa has formed her own independent production company with three business partners, called “Seven Directions Studios” and is actively developing both film and TV projects.
Director’s Statement
True love of storytelling necessitates vicious truth; the kind of reality born of pain and grief seems less than the kind born of unconditional LOVE. Both offer inspiration. Writing and Directing is my refuge, and my time spent engaged in the art that I so enjoy has been time hard won, so increasing my delight to be able to produce my creative works. I can sit down with the flood of memories, of people whom I loved or vilified, of places where impactful events took place or some spirit captured my imagination. My privilege is that I can translate these creative resources in to cohesive narrative structure. The story arcs, characters and plots, reveal thematic threads weaving together a new cloth on the loom of my mind. These idea skeins, these yarns are so much straw in to gold.
Film Credits
- Rosa Costanza, Director
- Rosa Costanza, Writer
- Rosa Costanza, Producer
- Reba Massey and Ross Ryman, Producer(s)
- Key Cast: Jordan Bridges, Mina Marlena, Ernie Omega, Nicky Ottav, Josephine Pearl Lee, DJ Odi
- Erik Forssell, Cinematographer
- Peter Bean, Editor
Xing we lived it 🕺🏻
Congratulations Rose 🌹