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Affogato World Premiere at Austin Film Festival

Oct 4, 2024

AFF: Why did you choose Austin Film Festival for your world premiere? 

Austin’s film scene holds a special place in my heart. My first experience with AFF was when Moondogs premiered here. This was the first short film I had ever done in Texas and to this day it remains one of my favorite experiences. It feels like a full circle moment now because many of the people involved in Moondogs have also worked on my film Affogato!

AFF: How long ago did you come up with your project, what motivated you to finish it?  

The initial seed for Affogato, when it hit, was instant. The script went through 15+ variations though. My struggle at the beginning was finding the drama. Everything was too perfect in the early versions of the script. After getting some feedback, I then knew I needed to raise the stakes. Which is hilarious because in acting class, we’re taught to raise the stakes for our characters so I was a bit embarrassed that it didn’t come naturally to me at first when writing. I knew I wanted to make Affogato.

AFF: What advice would you give new storytellers when it comes to finishing their screenplay or other projects?

To start before you’re ready and to not worry about it being perfect. Perfection is the killer. If you could just get in the habit of getting your work out there, there’s always going to be room for growth.

AFF: How did you and your team celebrate being accepted to AFF? 

It was special because I had already planned an affogato date with my co-star and best friend Sarah J Bartholomew at June’s on South Congress. An hour before, I got the call from AFF. It felt so serendipitous that we’d be celebrating over affogatos just an hour later.

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