“A deeply intimate, direct chronicle of the pandemic...”
Benjamin Franz, Film Threat
“Excellent. A wonderful film, almost a meditation, told with the help of a child’s unique perspective. Revealing touching…”
- Tim Cogshell of NPR’s Film Week
Second grader Sylvie navigates the absurdities and emotional turbulence of her eccentric multigenerational Jewish matriarchy, a dad who lives far away and life gone virtual, seen through the lens of her filmmaker, single mom.
Film Threat describes the film as "...a document of a family attempting to manage the breaking of the world… The raw direct presentation of emotions and conversations are essential to discuss this period of time on a small scale.”
@sylvieofthesunshinestate
Sasha Levinson is a director and writer of films and commercials. Inspired by the inner life of humans and the life narrative, her work is focused on story, exploring the goodness that connects us all. Sasha spent the formative years of her career shooting music videos with such luminaries as Mary J Blige, 50 Cent, Angelique Kidjo and Cake. This electric sensibility still informs her aesthetic today. Her work has premiered at SXSW, Cleveland International Film Festival, MTV and AICP Awards, and has been published in the Communication Arts Annual. Her branded short film for Las Vegas tourism, about a surprise Lesbian wedding in Vegas went viral with 13,000,000 views. She currently works with internationally renowned celebrities, brands, and philanthropic organizations, including the Dalai Lama, Oprah Winfrey, Serena Williams, Google, Microsoft and Blockchains. She's in love with both the collaborative film making process and the solitude of writing.
Katie White is an independent creative producer. She has produced award-winning films including BEST SUMMER EVER (SXSW 2021), a musical feature made with an integrated cast and crew of people with and without disabilities, hailed as a ‘Critics Pick’ by the New York Times, and praised widely for its groundbreaking inclusivity, WHAT I SEE WHEN I LOOK (Sun Valley 2021, Palm Springs 2021) and STILL WYLDE (SXSW 2020, Palm Springs 2020). Most recently she produced the queer comedy BRIDESMAN, Grindr’s first foray into narrative series, which premiered at OUTFEST 2021. Katie is a 2021 Sundance Creative Producing Fellow, co-founder of the Eastside Women’s Film Club, a volunteer with SELAH, and an active member of the DPA, Member and Inclusion committee.
An LA native, Jonathan Sanford earned a degree in film at San Francisco State University, did a stint in Berlin as a camera assistant and translator, then returned home to shoot independent features and work as a creative producer for Art Linson. As a filmmaker and cinematographer, his work has screened at Sundance, South by Southwest, Edinburgh, and ArtBasel Miami. In 2016 he produced the hybrid documentary-fiction featureThe Other Kids. Jonathan is a 2019 Sundance episodic lab fellow.
Emmy-award winning filmmaker Chris Brown has directed, produced, and/or edited a wide range of features and documentaries, including Cries of Our Ancestors (2020), Let Them Eat Dirt (2019), the award-winning The Providers (2018), and critically lauded A Thousand Mothers (2017). Brown’s fictional feature, The Other Kids (2016), won 10 awards internationally, was hailed as “Genuine and relevant” by Variety and “Extraordinary” by The San Francisco Examiner. In 2015, Brown co-produced the acclaimed documentary On Her Own, which premiered at HotDocs and was named "A must see" by Moviemaker Magazine. In 2013, he edited and helped produce the Sundance Grand Jury Award-winning documentary A River Changes Course. Brown also edited, co-produced and co-directed the PBS favorites We’ve Got the Power (2014) and The Next Frontier (2011), which won an Emmy Award for Best Documentary. Brown’s fictional feature, Fanny, Annie & Danny (2010) won 16 awards internationally, was declared “An indie masterpiece" by The Huffington Post and a "Critics' Pick" by The New York Times.
Samuel Joseph Kim is a multi-instrumentalist performer, songwriter and producer based in Seattle, WA. Samuel Kim also works as a freelance soundtrack composer for short films, brand films, documentaries and more. To learn more, visit samueljosephkim.com
Sylvie Bellanca is a master of imaginary play, free spirit and fourth grader. In the 2020-2021 school year she won the award for most academic growth. When she grows up she wants to be a teacher.
“Excellent. A wonderful film, almost a meditation, told with the help of a child’s unique perspective. Revealing touching…”
Tim Cogshell of NPR’s Film Week
“A deeply intimate, direct chronicle of the pandemic...”
Benjamin Franz, Film Threat
“...innovative in its approach toward telling this raw and often chilling tale of a mother and daughter...sure to be inviting to a wide range of viewers.”
Kyle Bain’s Film Reviews
Nearly 93% of households with school-age children report some form of distance learning during COVID-19.
US Census Bureau
Close to 25% of U.S. children under the age of 18 live with one parent and no other adults (23%)
Pew Research Center
From as early as I can remember, I’ve been captivated by the life narrative. In every experience I seek beginnings, middles and endings that mirror cathartic cinematic structure. It’s almost a compulsion. Writing and directing film has, for many years, been a bandage for the wounds of my childhood. It’s how I make sense of the world and feel sane and safe.
I am a commercial director, branded content director, narrative filmmaker and screenwriter. My shorts have premiered at SXSW and Cleveland International Film Festival and gone viral. Making my first feature film, however, has been illusive. I’ve had many almosts and was under the erroneous notion that someone other than myself, needed to say yes, in order for me to accomplish this long time dream.
Then 2020 came along. As a single mom, suddenly isolated with my 9 year old daughter, without the ability to actively practice the art form that makes me feel whole, I began shooting. Deeply moved by the death of Lynn Shelton, I felt compelled to say yes to myself, as she had.
Sylvie of The Sunshine State is the result. This is my first feature film. It is also a mirror of my life. At times I like what I see. At times I feel deep shame and self judgment about my parenting. But it is honest. And it is a gift. Looking at my daughter through a camera for four months straight, allowed me to fully see her, perhaps for the first time. For this I am infinitely grateful. It is my hope that parents and children everywhere, will benefit from this film.
To explore more about the director visit SashaLevinson.com.
