” After the first minute, I knew this would not be an LA – guns – and – car – crash film.
There was artistry, care and attention to detail, but most of all an homage to intelligence – allowing the audience to think for themselves. Cali dares us to sit and watch or else, just – turn on a re – run of, say… “Columbo”. I kept writing as I watched in response, not out of criticism, but, tracking, as a witness. As in any art form – that refuses to be told – I let go and it took me back to where all art should take us: to love, to oneself and forgiveness for the natural sin of guilt.
The dreamy woman, almost asleep on the stern of the boat is not just the character, she IS the film maker, her subconscious streaming, inviting us into the pre – sleep dream that we all understand, like T. S. Elliot’s “Love Song Of J. Alfred Proofrock”:
“Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky,
Like a patient etherized upon a table…”
The woman dreaming on the boat is our abraxas or the horizon line before the sun drops to the darkness of another day or, the light that explains, prepares us for the events and responsibilities of the agenda’s we all set for ourselves, during the waking hours. She could be a surfer girl or the beauty who zips by on blades along the promenade in Venice, leaving those in her wake, cranking necks to watch her disappear into the anonymous crowd.
But, Cali never allows us to look away. At times she gazed straight into the camera, definitely, stating, without fear or apology – that she knew we were there. We all knew why she was there. Her personal strength and as the character’s – evolves: committed, palpable, specific and alive placing us, on the other side of the proscenium yet – in her thrall. It is a comfort to the viewer – we do not have to worry.
Wings was beautiful. So simple and true; thoughtful, at times, funny but slightly repentant as the handsome old man next to the clock with no hands. I never thought I could feel sympathy for a deity but he made me realize that even God recognized that there was a new sheriff in town and – it wasn’t John Wayne.
Something happens to us. We have to dare to accept the intricacies, the subtle nuance of the literate dialogue, scenes that would rival Brecht, Pirandello or a French Film Auteur’s like Jean – Luc Godard, invoked from the 1950’s. It was no “he – said, she – listens”, conventional scenes out of a Syd Fields plot – point script designed to “sell” to the “suits”. It demanded that “attention must be paid”, with distinct references to literature, history, art, dance and music. At times the film makes fun of the Greecian conventions of “Beginning, Middle and End”. Cali knew you were keeping score, thinking you were a step ahead. No, she knew. Poof! “Doc” makes mention of the structure of the film, alluding to story development – or lack thereof. Just sit back and accept it, on its own structure. (Cali’s music, her singing, her lyrics with Wings playing the instruments underneath, throughout, seemed to mix naturally into the feast like herbs directly plucked from the garden).
But horror and fear, a subtle reference to a Snub Nose 38, all co – mingled with the proud, personal denial of one’s own racism and the ever – present fear of one’s own sexuality, a topic that pinches us into squeamishness and denial for those of us brought up in the “goodness” of the puritanical Judeo/Christian tradition. No! Throw all that out! You’re on your own…
I rarely think about films after I’ve seen them once. I’ve watched “La Strada” a hundred times and will watch again – any time it’s offered. And I know I will cry at the end. I know it. I access something about myself every time I find out “she passed away”. The same applies to “Cool Hand Luke” when Newman plays a banjo to his mother’s death. “Waiting for Godot” never allows me to “think clearly” but I will rush to get a ticket to see it again.
If I am honest and willing to have the courage to see into my own fears, “Eve N God This Female Is Not Yet Rated” helped explain the inexorable pull to sexual jealousy, possessive impulses of the women I’ve known and loved. I recognize, with regret, any rights I might have imposed on their thoughts and feelings, that I could invoke on their desires, on nature or on humanity itself – especially when it comes to love. No one has the right to climb into the hypothalamus of someone else’s brain and tell that 3 pound organ that those pleasure impulses, those electrical charges of desire are within the purview of another, not in spite of marital commitment, but – in the nurturing of the those lucky enough to wake up in the morning and say, “ I love you – but I don’t own you”. In a strange way, the experience “liberated” me from the fear of sexual possession. The universe knows what it wants from us all and, sometimes – we simply must – just, get out of the way.
This film would be in demand, played on a loop in NYC art houses, women’s movements, LGBTQ community and anyone who thinks they are better than the ones they stand next to, in line, at the DMV. Men who think they are “MEN”! – Oh, really?
It takes astonishing courage to step out of the confines of linear expectations, walk alone into the woods with just a True North compass; to launch a small, single – woman sailboat into the Pacific, living out of the sea. Or – to make a film, in LA, with a beggars budget and, yet, have it all become so intellectually gratifying and allowing us to think on it long after.
Bravo! ”
Gary Swanson’s show business career began in the circus as a Steel Pier High Diver in Atlantic City. He moved to NYC and became a contract player on Day Time TV show “Somerset” leading to a life – long career as film, TV and theater actor. He’s written for numerous magazines, taught masters programs. He still acts, directs, writes and produces. His political barnburner, If You Can Keep It, is in development. He lives by the Atlantic in Montauk, NY.
“ We raised and released 42 monarch butterflies last season and during this year’s cycle from the returning mommy monarch fluttering all around our faces, entrusting us with her eggs, to the fat caterpillar crawling into chrysalis then magic emerging newborn into flight, I marvel that every moment is a “time of useful consciousness.”
“Time of Useful Consciousness is an aviation term defined in Wikipedia:
“the amount of time an individual is able to function effectively (e.g. perform flying duties) in an environment of inadequate oxygen supply.[1] It is the period of time from the interruption of the oxygen supply or exposure to an oxygen-poor environment to the time when useful function is lost, and the individual is no longer capable of taking proper corrective and protective action. At the higher altitudes, the TUC becomes very short; considering this danger, the emphasis is on prevention rather than cure.”
Like many young Americans aware of gaps in my education I know enough to understand these midterm elections 2022 are indeed a “time of useful consciousness” for the ideas we cherish, for humans being, wildlife, sea-life, America, global democracy, the survival of our mothership, this blue planet and the multiverse in which we float, hurtling toward our future past in a time-space continuum which barely recognizes us.
“Losing consciousness” would mean losing democracy and sinking into the warm bath before the ice cold fascism shuts down humanity by legally assassinating the constitution from within, using our own petard as hoist.
We’ve managed to avoid asteroids and now, we know how to billiard them away from impact with our cool-AF NASA pool cue. Now we must build ourselves a different kind of pool cue to tip away impending “asteroids” hurled at us by the 21st century American iteration of that smelly old cult of authoritarians, that deadliest plague on humanity, fascism.
Break down the word “fascism” for demystification in the word “fascia” a thin casing of connective tissue binding together the internal structure of a body.
Our choices in life, including a girls’ right to make her own decisions, will be subject to the will of the state, which will always usurp the will of every individual.
Not just HER choice.
YOUR choice too.
Every individual would serve the state. Not just the unfortunate 10-year-old rape victim in some news story.
You.
You will serve the fascist state.
You down to clown?
The “us and them” mentality serves fascism. Are you REALLY “US” ? Or are you really THEM?
Are you a member of the LGBTQ community?
A feminist?
Are you Jewish?
Muslim?
Non-supremacist Christian?
Are you a person of color?
An “environmentalist”?
A vegan ?
“Are you … or have you ever been … ”
It’s been said that antisemitism is the oldest hatred and while those old tropes live on in conservative ideologies,
I’ve posited in my movie “Eve N’ God This Female Is Not Yet Rated “ with original soundtrack album “this female is not yet rated“ that the “independent female” characters known as “Eve” and “Lillith” from the Bible story, who represented “female freedom,” were the original “scapegoats” illustrating that older hatred against : the independent female.
Anyone feminine, including those in the LGBTQ community, any femme creature who is vulnerable, wild – and free, including wildlife, sea life and nature was and is demonized and targeted for control.
The power of the independent female, which I suggest, thrives in the souls of all living beings thinking freely, yearning for an independent free existence on this beautiful blue planet, was and is – so scary to the patriarchal “state” of mind, SHE in all her wildness, beauty and freedom, needed to be “tamed, “held back, lest she “learn” too much from that “tree of knowledge” and choose to leave Eden for a new kind of paradise.
In my movie, I’m suggesting that the “original sin” was and is, in fact, the sin against our sisters. “eVe” tells about the added disgrace of Nazi Germany, along with the dehumanizing of Jewish persons labeled by “yellow triangles” and that of homosexuals by “pink triangles,” women with “choice” who opted for birth control and lesbians were labeled with “black triangles.”
“they were called workshy”
My movie posits that the supremacist societal ideals expressed by the psychotic Nazi slogan “work makes free” be countered by a 21st Century humanist ideal :
“Play Makes Free”
The hatreds function like a roaming virus seeking entry points at weakened gateways of the body politic. As if some cosmic surgeon left behind a scalpel for an opportune infection moment. That moment when a culture sleeps through her “time of useful consciousness,” relaxes into the simmering bath, if only just to rest from the incessant drone of propaganda garbage pails spilling over into the street, courts, congress, the connective tissue.
You know that moment when your dentist, doctor, veterinarian, or lawyer delegates the bill for their services because this highly paid “professional” needs to look away from you and your dog or cat, like so many look away from a homeless person?
High paid “professionals” benefit from American “Liberal Arts” education, yet some denigrate the word “liberal.” American culture has been poisoned. Some of us chose to defend our liberal arts, while others just cashed in at the ATM. We need these professionals to stand up with us, the people, if only at the ballot box.
I could quote Emerson, Thoreau, Billie Holiday, Langston Hughes, Nina Simone, Mahalia Jackson, Studs Terkel, Leonard Cohen, Tupac – many “liberal” cultural icons warning us against cultural poison.
I’ll just sample Thomas Paine:
“ ‘Had we a place to stand upon, we might raise the world ‘ The revolution of America presented in politics what was only a theory and mechanics. So deeply rooted for all of us, governments of the old world,and so effectually had the tyranny, and the antiquity of habit established itself over the mind that no beginning could be made in Asia, Africa, or Europe , to reform the political condition of man, freedom has been hunted around the globe, reason was considered as rebellion and the slavery of fear had made men afraid to think.”
We never dealt with what happened during that other “time of useful consciousness” : the candidacy of Hillary Clinton. So now, let’s use it wisely.
Let’s bind together our connective tissue : all decent Americans, all women , persons of color, LGBTQIA, anyone who cares about wildlife, sealife, nature, climate change, natural disasters, clean air , clean water, ocean life … Mother Earth – let’s all of us , together, finally use this “time of useful consciousness” to form “the more perfect union. “
Let’s beat the fascists at their own game, “binding” together, so we don’t fall for anything, and everything, anymore. “
Addendum
In today’s 21 st Century Media eco-system I’d extend the urgency of “Play Makes Free” toward a subject that in full disclosure directly affects my professional work and personal life so I have a vested interest, but I believe that makes it no less relevant. I’m referring to what I call “ the gentrification of culture,” which in my opinion has flooded the cultural conversation spaces of both big money media and social media with corporate dollars to such a saturated tipping point that our very freedom of thought , our ability to think independently away from the corporate “cultural industrial complex “ has become an endangered species. Independent artists, working class artists, are the canaries in the coal mine and if we are not provided access to distribution of our independent art, including film, music and all forms of media our cultures will continue to bottle-feed from ideas by corporate money mind instead of finding “soul-food” from home-grown, wild-harvested, organic artists like me tending our crops, bringing them to market like farmers and food-growers, like artisans of handmade bread or cheese or cookies, distributing them fairly. In my letter to Congress and the Executive Branch I referenced the recent fair meat distribution bill put forward by Senator Jon Tester in Montana who stands up for independent meat producers. We need a similar bill for independent artists. You can read an excerpt from my letter to Congress and the Executive Branch here : “Independent Artists are First Responders To The Soul Of Culture” https://calililiindies.com/2022/07/10/independent-artists-are-first-responders-to-the-soul-of-culture-dearworld-lets-quit-our-addiction-to-superiority-dominance-motherearth-kindnessculture-thrive-21st/
Actress-Director & Singer-Songwriter Cali Lili was skipped several grades (having been tested as reading at college level in grade school) took her first college course in the entire works of Shakespeare, at age 13, never graduated high-school, never even went to a prom, was swooped up, by NYU, then earned her Masters’ Degree on full scholarship with awards / stellar reviews for early works.
The Cali Lili ™ Band recorded Cali’s original Debut Album: “ this female is not yet rated ™️“which forms the core of the soundtrack for her debut Oscars 2020 Contender feature film 🎬 eVe N’god this female is not yet rated ™️“ 🎬 available on iTunes movies 🍎 Apple TV, Google Play Movies, YouTube movies & Vimeo worldwide. Album available on Apple Music 🍎 etc
Most Recently Cali was hired by award-winning producers to sing one of her songs on camera as the title track for an upcoming documentary .
That on camera recording session was filmed at the legendary “Nightbird Studios” housed in the equally legendary Rock N’ Roll hotel the “Sunset Marquis” in Hollywood. There was thunder and lightning in Hollywood that night. ‘Nuff said.
Stay tuned for the release of that new single, lyrics uploads and more upcoming movies & music by Cali Lili from her sustainable upcycled SustainableStudio™️ a SurfShackLoFt™️ green space in Venice Beach Los Angeles where Cali composes and releases sustainable movies & music.
You can read an edited version of this essay published as a guest piece at Will Pollock’s Cranky Yank
“ We raised and released 42 monarch butterflies last season and during this year’s cycle from the returning mommy monarch fluttering all around our faces, entrusting us with her eggs, to the fat caterpillar crawling into chrysalis then magic emerging newborn into flight, I marvel that every moment is a “time of useful consciousness.”
“Time of Useful Consciousness is an aviation term defined in Wikipedia:
“the amount of time an individual is able to function effectively (e.g. perform flying duties) in an environment of inadequate oxygen supply.[1] It is the period of time from the interruption of the oxygen supply or exposure to an oxygen-poor environment to the time when useful function is lost, and the individual is no longer capable of taking proper corrective and protective action. At the higher altitudes, the TUC becomes very short; considering this danger, the emphasis is on prevention rather than cure.”
Like many young Americans aware of gaps in my education I know enough to understand these midterm elections 2022 are indeed a “time of useful consciousness” for the ideas we cherish, for humans being, wildlife, sea-life, America, global democracy, the survival of our mothership, this blue planet and the multiverse in which we float, hurtling toward our future past in a time-space continuum which barely recognizes us.
“Losing consciousness” would mean losing democracy and sinking into the warm bath before the ice cold fascism shuts down humanity by legally assassinating the constitution from within, using our own petard as hoist.
We’ve managed to avoid asteroids and now, we know how to billiard them away from impact with our cool-AF NASA pool cue. Now we must build ourselves a different kind of pool cue to tip away impending “asteroids” hurled at us by the 21st century American iteration of that smelly old cult of authoritarians, that deadliest plague on humanity, fascism.
Break down the word “fascism” for demystification in the word “fascia” a thin casing of connective tissue binding together the internal structure of a body.
Our choices in life, including a girls’ right to make her own decisions, will be subject to the will of the state, which will always usurp the will of every individual.
Not just HER choice.
YOUR choice too.
Every individual would serve the state. Not just the unfortunate 10-year-old rape victim in some news story.
You.
You will serve the fascist state.
You down to clown?
The “us and them” mentality serves fascism. Are you REALLY “US” ? Or are you really THEM?
Are you a member of the LGBTQ community?
A feminist?
Are you Jewish?
Muslim?
Non-supremacist Christian?
Are you a person of color?
An “environmentalist”?
A vegan ?
“Are you … or have you ever been … ”
It’s been said that antisemitism is the oldest hatred and while those old tropes live on in conservative ideologies,
I’ve posited in my movie “Eve N’ God This Female Is Not Yet Rated “ with original soundtrack album “this female is not yet rated“ that the “independent female” characters known as “Eve” and “Lillith” from the Bible story, who represented “female freedom,” were the original “scapegoats” illustrating that older hatred against : the independent female.
Anyone feminine, including those in the LGBTQ community, any femme creature who is vulnerable, wild – and free, including wildlife, sea life and nature was and is demonized and targeted for control.
The power of the independent female, which I suggest, thrives in the souls of all living beings thinking freely, yearning for an independent free existence on this beautiful blue planet, was and is – so scary to the patriarchal “state” of mind, SHE in all her wildness, beauty and freedom, needed to be “tamed, “held back, lest she “learn” too much from that “tree of knowledge” and choose to leave Eden for a new kind of paradise.
In my movie, I’m suggesting that the “original sin” was and is, in fact, the sin against our sisters. “eVe” tells about the added disgrace of Nazi Germany, along with the dehumanizing of Jewish persons labeled by “yellow triangles” and that of homosexuals by “pink triangles,” women with “choice” who opted for birth control and lesbians were labeled with “black triangles.”
“they were called workshy”
My movie posits that the supremacist societal ideals expressed by the psychotic Nazi slogan “work makes free” be countered by a 21st Century humanist ideal :
“Play Makes Free”
The hatreds function like a roaming virus seeking entry points at weakened gateways of the body politic. As if some cosmic surgeon left behind a scalpel for an opportune infection moment. That moment when a culture sleeps through her “time of useful consciousness,” relaxes into the simmering bath, if only just to rest from the incessant drone of propaganda garbage pails spilling over into the street, courts, congress, the connective tissue.
You know that moment when your dentist, doctor, veterinarian, or lawyer delegates the bill for their services because this highly paid “professional” needs to look away from you and your dog or cat, like so many look away from a homeless person?
High paid “professionals” benefit from American “Liberal Arts” education, yet some denigrate the word “liberal.” American culture has been poisoned. Some of us chose to defend our liberal arts, while others just cashed in at the ATM. We need these professionals to stand up with us, the people, if only at the ballot box.
I could quote Emerson, Thoreau, Billie Holiday, Langston Hughes, Nina Simone, Mahalia Jackson, Studs Terkel, Leonard Cohen, Tupac – many “liberal” cultural icons warning us against cultural poison.
I’ll just sample Thomas Paine:
“ ‘Had we a place to stand upon, we might raise the world ‘ The revolution of America presented in politics what was only a theory and mechanics. So deeply rooted for all of us, governments of the old world,and so effectually had the tyranny, and the antiquity of habit established itself over the mind that no beginning could be made in Asia, Africa, or Europe , to reform the political condition of man, freedom has been hunted around the globe, reason was considered as rebellion and the slavery of fear had made men afraid to think.”
We never dealt with what happened during that other “time of useful consciousness” : the candidacy of Hillary Clinton. So now, let’s use it wisely.
Let’s bind together our connective tissue : all decent Americans, all women , persons of color, LGBTQIA, anyone who cares about wildlife, sealife, nature, climate change, natural disasters, clean air , clean water, ocean life … Mother Earth – let’s all of us , together, finally use this “time of useful consciousness” to form “the more perfect union. “
Let’s beat the fascists at their own game, “binding” together, so we don’t fall for anything, and everything, anymore. “
In today’s 21 st Century Media eco-system I’d extend the urgency of “Play Makes Free” toward a subject that in full disclosure directly affects my professional work and personal life so I have a vested interest, but I believe that makes it no less relevant. I’m referring to what I call “ the gentrification of culture,” which in my opinion has flooded the cultural conversation spaces of both big money media and social media with corporate dollars to such a saturated tipping point that our very freedom of thought , our ability to think independently away from the corporate “cultural industrial complex “ has become an endangered species. Independent artists, working class artists, are the canaries in the coal mine and if we are not provided access to distribution of our independent art, including film, music and all forms of media our cultures will continue to bottle-feed from ideas by corporate money mind instead of finding “soul-food” from home-grown, wild-harvested, organic artists like me tending our crops, bringing them to market like farmers and food-growers, like artisans of handmade bread or cheese or cookies, distributing them fairly. In my letter to Congress and the Executive Branch I referenced the recent fair meat distribution bill put forward by Senator Jon Tester in Montana who stands up for independent meat producers. We need a similar bill for independent artists. You can read an excerpt from my letter to Congress and the Executive Branch here : “Independent Artists are First Responders To The Soul Of Culture” https://calililiindies.com/2022/07/10/independent-artists-are-first-responders-to-the-soul-of-culture-dearworld-lets-quit-our-addiction-to-superiority-dominance-motherearth-kindnessculture-thrive-21st/
Actress-Director & Singer-Songwriter Cali Lili was skipped several grades (having been tested as reading at college level in grade school) took her first college course in the entire works of Shakespeare, at age 13, never graduated high-school, never even went to a prom, was swooped up, by NYU, then earned her Masters’ Degree on full scholarship with awards / stellar reviews for early works.
The Cali Lili ™ Band recorded Cali’s original Debut Album: “ this female is not yet rated ™️“which forms the core of the soundtrack for her debut Oscars 2020 Contender feature film 🎬 eVe N’god this female is not yet rated ™️“ 🎬 available on iTunes movies 🍎 Apple TV, Google Play Movies, YouTube movies & Vimeo worldwide. Album available on Apple Music 🍎 etc
Most Recently Cali was hired by award-winning producers to sing one of her songs on camera as the title track for an upcoming documentary .
That on camera recording session was filmed at the legendary “Nightbird Studios” housed in the equally legendary Rock N’ Roll hotel the “Sunset Marquis” in Hollywood. There was thunder and lightning in Hollywood that night. ‘Nuff said.
Stay tuned for the release of that new single, lyrics uploads and more upcoming movies & music by Cali Lili from her sustainable upcycled SustainableStudio™️ a SurfShackLoFt™️ green space in Venice Beach Los Angeles where Cali composes and releases sustainable movies & music.
Read more at Calililiindies.com and online @CaliLiliIndies ™️
“I’m still that teenage runaway with a scholarship…”
Cali Lili @ Cali Lili Indies ™️
Pictures Words Music In Motion ™️
feMt0™️studi0
CuttingEdgeOfThePacific™️
Movie Review:
Times Square Chronicles , New York City :
Cali Lili ‘s Eve N’ God This Female Is Not Yet Rated
1 Day in the Epiphany of a 21st Century Girl, who kissed a Girl ™
2017 Interview with Actor/Writer/Director/Producer Cali Lili
(2022 Update !
NOTE : Updated Oscars 2020 Contender information enclosed below as an addendum to this 2017 interview )
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Wow thanks so much ! And THANK YOU for this opportunity ! I appreciate it and so does my team !
LOL Why ???????? Whew. It was INEVITABLE. “Destined,” so to speak ( I am not “religious” … only speaking “spiritually” ) … there was NO WAY this film was not getting made.
I had and still have a burning need 2 express feelings welling up in me (and what I hear from others) … as a “21st Century Girl” …
it was literally a “coming of age” film for me … the script was my reaction to my own “awakening” to the fact that sexism, racism and homophobia were indeed still “active” in this Century.
I had taken for granted that these “Isms” were an … “anachronism” … but upon entering the professional world of the film industry, and as I began to “navigate” the world outside University, I began to realize, to my shock, that these ugly “isms” were still a factor in some “guiding hand” / bias underlying most of society’s institutions including marriage, law, medicine, and also of course the entertainment industry.
Since then, I realize that some of those old “biases” old “paradigms” are now unconsciously incorporated into new “institutions” that were created to counter the old ones … so … even in LGBTQ and Feminist communities and organizations … we seem to have “ingested” the old patriarchy of “labelling” and “exclusionary” behaviours … the “cliques” the “hierarchies” … so … these are some of the factors I consider when telling my stories …
A super cool elderly guy who manages an lgbt owned store in West Hollywood, took me aside one day when I was shopping for stuff for the film set … and he told me in a whispered tone ” you know missy, our lgbt community can sometimes be quite racist and misogynist … ” well … to say the least, having just recently learned about my own sexuality … I had definitely idealized the LGBT community … but of course … we are PEOPLE … and humans are fallible … so… yeah … we all need to find our better angels don’t we …
A world that includes “Girl” … should be one that improves upon old models … and I feel strongly we must begin by learning from the mistakes of “HIStory” as we create “HERstory.” I have been learning this as I reflect on experiences lately … “growing up.”
I ADORE being an actor. I mean, I am BORN to be an actress. I realized however, that most actors are treated like slaves in the entertainment industry ( I am not referring to the 1 Percenters, however, they take their orders from the “powers that be” too ).
FLASHBACK : This was our heritage, as I am told that in “ye olde Hollywood” certain “Rooms 4 Rent” establishments discriminated against Actors, Jewish Persons, and LGBTQ, as well as African American Persons alike … again it’s that “exclusion” that I feel we must do our best to let go of as a culture of “humans being” … that’s what we are … “humans … being …”
Cut To : Modern Times : Still we find, actors of the female persuasion, actors of color and LGBTQ persons are often subjugated to even lower “totem pole” positions within the industry.
Flashback : I had an excruciating childhood, featuring emotional and violent abuse, but my knowledge of my “inner artist, my thirst for knowledge and passion for performance, along with my precious TEACHERS, who were angels … became my saviors. These beautiful educators guarded and guided my path during a very dark time. Their faith in me, the scholarships and awards, provided for me the “space” I needed to sprout from a seedling, who always knew my purpose.
Flash Forward : I’m “commuting” form NYC to LA for acting roles while finishing school and it’s cool … I learn that I truly belong on a film set, doing this work.
Montage : For some unknown reason, I have always “known” in my bones … that THIS is what I know, THIS is what I do … and that THIS is where my “contribution” to humanity can best be accomplished. Due to that difficult childhood, I knew : contributing to the world around me, thru my art, was my ultimate healing. In fact it was that “knowing” ( and my teachers ) that literally saved my life.
After a few initial roles as a teenager, I began to realize : most of the female roles involve degrading material. Well. After a few”offers” for roles in films that might have been somewhat lucrative, and maybe provide some professional benefits as a new actress in Hollywood … I surprise myself by turning down three roles in a row.
I could not betray my teachers, myself, or … other women in that way. Mind you , I felt this as a teenager, but that’s a response in keeping with a kid who has grown up too soon.
I was lucky that my manager ( and also my partner, Wings Hauser ) were supportive of my decision to build my own film and music studio like Charlie Chaplin did. It was a crazy idea but the best one I’ve ever had. I wrote my “WomaniFest0™” Vision Statement : “The Declaration of IndiePenDance™ feMt0™ re EVOL ution™ ” and … raised the “half a shoestring” budget.
eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ was outlined on a bunch of stickies. It was one of several films I had planned to create, with it’s own soundtrack. All my films have their own albums. I also secured the rights to a Zane Grey novel during this period too … and that is a project I plan in future …
Around this time I began writing more songs … I had already written like, 100 songs in various stages of completion … I am not good with math, numbers, etc … but my voice was always “burning” to sing … I mean, physically it was a burning sensation. For certain reasons connected to my abusive childhood and a violent person who was a musician / mathematician … I felt that music was not available to me … and yet songs in the form of poetry … and singing was always there just under the surface … and when that bubbled over … my healing began. That healing lit the way for me to embrace who I am.
My first “deal memo” was with an Academy Award winning producer who fell in love with my project and my work … and for whom I will always be grateful for both the support as well as the really disappointing but important lessons I learned. During that deal I realized that I know what I am doing as a producer, as well as an artist. I found myself getting yelled at by some major players in Hollywood … and LOL found myself able to yell back … LOL
We were in a co-production deal to make a film written by myself and my partner Wings Hauser. Throughout that pre-pre-production I met great people. However, as I lived through that deal, I kept hearing from my co-producer that ” I had too much power in the deal.” This was so confusing, bc we had negotiated through lawyers, a 50-50 deal. But my co-producer claimed he should have 51%. That extra 1 % would have made my choices in the destiny of the film, practically nullified. I realized, that if I did not give up that 1% … thus giving up my voice, my control on the finished project … my co-pro would not come thru with the financing as promised.
It was time to do my own thing “for reals”. That meant, taking responsibility for every aspect of the projects. I didn’t fully know what I was taking on … but somehow, I just knew that this was the right path for me … I am not certain it’s the right one for everybody … it’s really challenging …
I consider the “nuts and bolts” of my hand-made film and music – making “works” to be the work of a magical, mystical, “craftsperson” that is channeling through me, ideas and sounds, pictures… as I called it ” Pictures Words Music In Motion™ ” … something akin to “witchcraft” 😎 Same for my acting and music.
Coincidentally, in my personal life I was learning about my own sexuality, I was learning about what it means, to be ” a girl ” in the entertainment industry and in fact, the world … so … I began the fleshing out of those notes I had written on “stickies” for eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ and it flowed like water … the script and the songs literally poured out of me … and the rest is HERstory.
eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ – all female crew
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
To partially paraphrase fromscreenwriter and actor, Quinn Redeker …The film will “take you somewhere you have never been, ” … I’m pretty certain of that.
I believe the studio is worth supporting for various reasons, it’s female owned and operated, it’s “green” … and my themes always deal with social justice / earth justice topics in fun entertaining manner … This film was shot almost entirely on the water. The album was also recorded on the water. This was important for me bc … the Ocean is “temple” and “home” for me … and I am VERY concerned with preserving our waters … our coral reefs … I feel this is CRUCIAL to life on earth.
My tiny feMt0™studi0 is made from “upcycled” and “recycled” materials and in harmony with the water / nature surroundings in Venice Beach. I created Cali Lili Indies™ Pictures Words Music In Motion™ at “VenusBeach™ Cutting Edge of The Pacific™ as both a destination and state of mind. We are at the edge of the water, just a few blocks from “Hollywood.” Completely indie, self sustaining, and green.
I try to operate my little “SurfShack” feMt0™studi0 as “green” as I possibly can! All biodegradable materials in harmony with the Ocean and Marine Life all around us. I also try to serve organic lunches for crews ( unless they prefer junk food LOL which we also serve … we cater to the crews’ wishes ! but I do encourage healthy food ).
I hope also that my film and album will inspire you to care about the world in a new way … and about yourself. I truly believe you will have FUN if you relax into the experience, bc I intended it to feel like an experience…
I know you will see some beauty, hear some cool beats and … I hope hope hope … some of the imagery andmusic might mingle with your own dreams that night …
and the next day … images and sounds might return for you as I wish them to… perhaps inspire you to treat yourself and others in an extra loving way … perhaps you might question some bit of dialogue or idea in the film… which might, I hope … inspire you to see it again …. and then see it again … perhaps a third and fourth time after that … and then … six months down the line, a year later, five years later, perhaps you might revisit the film … and in the revisiting … perhaps you might see how you have personally changed, by virtue of your own new responses to the material … and perhaps you might learn something about yourself as you see your own responses to the film change over time … always … it is my wish that when you are in that experience with my films … you are in contact with “love” and with”rhythm” …
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Ah. Great GREAT question. They work completely synergistically. They are completely inextricable from each other. That is my ethic, my method, and my sincerest wish.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
I shared a bit earlier about the “stickies” … which became the script. It really was a “coming of age” bc … I found my voice as an artist in the development of the project and my feMt0™ studi0 was “built” concurrently with the development of the script and album … so … this was an organic birth … with every step of the way feeling “guided” byMy “Goddess Of Film” … “she” seemed to light the way … and along with the “Goddess of the Ocean” … it seemed really “ordained.” Again I don’t say this as a religious person … just a “spirituality” that is based in nature and “girlpower.”
When I decided the project would be an “all female crew” … I didn’t realize how many nasty responses I’d get from simply including in my adverts that we considered every resume but that we : “encouraged resume submissions from women and lgbtq communities as well as “persons of color” ( these labels bother me but we tried to communicate to applicants, that this project was supporting under-represented persons in the entertainment industry and in the world ). Well, it was amazing that some crazies wrote in to protest this little statement … WOW.
What further amazed me, was that my assumption the project would immediately find support from feminist and LGBTQ organizations was not accurate. Somehow, we have perpetuated a patriarchal exclusionary model of the universe. I write about these things in order to figure out how to contribute to the healing of these hurtful habits. I’d like to help form an economy and ecology that is nourishing for our entire planet and the one “race” “gender” to which we all belong : “living beings on mother earth.”
I believe eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ is possibly the first or one of the very first narrative feature motion picture productions crewed by an all female team of technicians and artists ? I haven’t definitively declared that, bc I haven’t done that heavy research on the topic … but I began blogging about it approximately late 2011 / 2012 and I do believe we inspired the current trending of “all female crews” on some projects. I am super proud we got the “Triple F rating” from Bath Film Festival, which stands for “written, directed and produced by a female” … and of course my theme deals with “girl” themes, and related themes. Our set was “magical.”
I needed two of three main characters “Miss eVening Lily / “eVe” and “doctor goddard / “god” to be in separate locations … so I had to figure out a bunch of logisitics …. and as the practicals became clear … they influenced my story-telling style and things began to flow quite easily after the “hiring” stage was completed.
The completion of the film, the shooting of the “ending scene,” was delayed by approximately 1.5 years because initially, I had the idea that I wanted an all female music team to match the all female production crew. But after a few female musicians and a female recording engineer came on board the project and experienced complications in their personal lives / professional lives, some of which were the result of conflicts with OTHER female musicians who felt challenged by the work they were doing with me ( HUGE EYEROLL HERE ) … I decided … that true diversity would include male musicians … and indeed the music backing my lyrics and vocals needs “muscularity” … why not include male team members in the music? I felt my integrity was on the line bc I had “pledged” in 2010 … to use all female crews … but … I was evolving as the project evolved … and after all, some of the male musicians were in the LGBTQ community … some were “allies” … so … that included an added “diversity” …and again … I am … “growing up… ”
eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Amazingness. The few persons who have seen the film, are people who’s opinions I truly respect, and I just wanted them to be honest with me about their “experience.”
I had this idea … to ask “regular people” ( albeit people who’s ideas and intelligence / integrity I respect ) to “write mini reviews” … If you think about it … our “reviews” come from people who are seeing hundreds of films and let’s face it, they are in the biz so they often do have allegiances and “inside baseball” “inner circle” dramas LOL …
Now, I believe in art “scholarship” … film “scholarship” … I love reading or hearing from professionals who do this for a living … I truly believe in the age of “cell phone movies” and “good enough” videos on YouTube … the de-professionalization of the artist is democratizing but a bit … um … deplorable. Artists are treated badly enough … so I don’t relish any further disrespect of the professional artist, OR the professional art “scholar.”
But I did feel it was cool to ask “people” for their “mini reviews” during this early stage …here are some of the quotes … with more on the way … ( they remain anonymous out of respect for them and for the project in its early stages of distribution )
A.K : “Wow. Every minute is engaging. It really (draws) you into the experience …just incredibly engaging from start to finish. You are both sympathetic and conflicted as a character. At times I go , hell yes ! You are so right. And at other times I go, un, whoah. Take a step back. It is awesome ! It also gives you time to just reflect on things … I have to admit, I really wasn’t sure what to expect or if I would find the film engaging or relatable, but it was both ! … You wanted to know how it made me feel. Well. I think I ran the gambit. It is a sexy film. The tension, the beauty, the music. All of it together makes for a very sensual experience. So if you aren’t paying attention to the intellectual side and just letting the film set the mood, it does that. Of course, that only really lasts for the first 30 minutes or so. After that, the conflict changes a little, it becomes grittier and more real and less sexy and more awkward. Like watching two people fight at a restaurant. You don’t really want to interfere, but you also don’t really want to stop watching. Sometimes I felt lost in a good way …and other times in a bad way. But I felt empathy for both characters, and at each step I was curious as to what would come next … (and) the soundtrack is just killer. We loved it. There is something there for everyone. ”
M.K : ” … i felt like I had to talk to somebody about this film … but I was just watching it alone … so I talked to my dog about it … ”
H.H.S : ” this is a real cinema experience … it’s not trying to be a “feminist” or “lgbt” themed film … but so fitting that it is all that too … it takes those themes to a whole other level into cinematic innovation and disruption … it’s unusual in LGBTQIA material in that it deals with bi-sexual and poly-amory themes too …this is a new voice, an auteur pushing the boundaries of cinematic art “
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Hmmm. It has confirmed my highest wishes for my “baby” project … my first … of course I wished for comments like these … not really just an “ego” thing ( tho yeah it feels good lol ) but it feels as though I “communicated” thru the medium of film and music … and I wished to communicate ! … so that feels awesome …
My point of view, such as it is … is usually about discovery. So my pov is expressed in the making of my art … although my characters are not always “me” … I am exploring ideas and in fact, my characters speak through me … I am feeling more like I am channeling their voices.
Once my art is out there … it’s like my “baby” is taking her “baby steps” and while I definitely am a “jaguar” when it comes to protecting my art and my team … my baby … ( jaguar mothers are VERY protective grrrrr….. )
I am quite interested in allowing the audience to embrace and experience whatever it is they will experience … bc I have experienced audience members telling me stuff I hadn’t dreamed of … bc my projects elicited something in THEM …. and THAT is really fascinating for me to hear !!!!!
Not many people have seen the film, but those who have, are people I truly respect. Their enjoyment and delight and their unexpected comments about the film has nourished me.
I am SO pumped to share the film with TONS more … I am REALLY stoked to hear about people’s experiences!
As my team and I weigh options for distribution … we are interested in opening up opportunities for sharing the film with as wide an audience as possible … I also do need to make sure that the film earns something … bc I am working as a professional artist and doing so independently of corporate. I am grassroots, sustainable and “fiercely indie” I like to say. Additionally my “green” / “water-based” studio requires upkeep AND I PAY my crews … nobody works for free on my projects … my budgets are modest but crews are paid.
One of my mottos is “HandMade 2 Make A Difference™” and I have put the blood, guts and sweat into that statement… so … yeah … I really have made this film in order to hopefully”make a difference” … I really wish for as many girls, women, LGBTQ communities, global communities, allies / men … and humanities / democracy – minded individuals as possible, worldwide, to see and hear the experience of this film … and I wish for it to “spark” feelings, thoughts, ideas, action, and dialogue …
I am already working on my next film …. so I want to spark a dialogue with our audience … ASAP … bc I want to share some ideas … and at this critical time in the 21st Century … I feel a true URGENCY about sharing these ideas ASAP ! So … when you see this film, hear this album … you are in “dialogue” with me / us for the next one … and you are supporting this new concept of a “film and music studio ” … literally “supporting the arts by sustaining the artist ” … and I believe in that … buying from the artist and sustaining artists … I really need that kind of support from the audience …
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Buyers !
Distributors !
Film Festival Directors !
Journalists !!!!!!
YES PLEASE !!!!!!
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
LOVE ! and AMPLIFICATION ! and SHARING through purchasing my films, albums, merch … and telling others about it please … encouraging Audiences to BUY from the Artist instead of expecting our work for free … after all … a movie / album can be played over and over … and you purchase it once … why not purchase it and support an artist who works toward a better world ? I really do believe … if we lose artists to poverty or indifference … if we ignore the artist … we nail the coffin of our own cultures. We need artists like oxygen and so often, they are victims of the worst cultural tendencies …. the canaries in the coal mine … look at all the authoritarian governments who sacrifice the artist … an artist disrupts our assumptions … and that’s both healing and crucial.
We have gotten used to “free music ” and “free movies” … well .. the corporations who are “gatekeepers” of what’s in movie theater and on tv / on the radio … they are not working for free … but very often artists are … and independent artists are ” an endangered species” … I’m not kidding. Let’s pay the artist, let’s keep her alive … our lives depend on it.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
This is a critical time in History and HERstory … please everybody … SHOULDER to SHOULDER we MUST overcome autocracy and BUILD DEMOCRACY TOGETHER … this is IT .. this is THAT TIME and every moment matters.
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
We are working on the next project in the slate …
Now laying down new demos for the next album and I am in pre-rewrites on the next script.
I have sometimes considered it a “trilogy” … but each project is really its own universe … so that might be confusing … it’s more like, each project is organically “flowing” into the next … and each one is very much interconnected … which is fitting … bc … we are all dreaming together … and the movies, the music, allow us to hold hands, share some time together, feel the rhythm, move together … and dance.
Cali Lili skipped several grades (having been tested as reading at college level in grade school) took her first college course in the entire works of Shakespeare, at age 13, never graduated high-school, never even went to a prom, was swooped up, landing at NYU, then completed her Masters’ Degree on full scholarship with awards / stellar reviews for early works.
Cali is told that she was born “early” and “on the water.” Her love of body surfing, all things “ocean” and all marine life, especially dolphins, has proven to her that this must be true.
Having experienced an extremely difficult childhood “on land,” she does not revisit childhood memories and often speaks out against all forms of abuse.
Born of multi-cultural heritage, Cali is keenly aware and concerned with what she sees as a form of “tribalism” too often employed as “nationalism.” Cali writes about these issues and acts accordingly when it comes to her public image.
Cali adores being an actor and takes that craft very seriously, but found herself turning down 3 acting offers, that she felt were disempowering to women, in order to “turn up” what she calls fempower (TM) by scraping together “half a shoestring budget” to build her “green” “off-grid,” upcycled “floating” “surfshack” feMt0 (TM) studi0 at the Venice Beach Canals in Los Angeles, California where she makes “Signature” auteur Motion Pictures, Albums and Books, with “ToyBoxTechnologies” (TM) “HandMade2MakeADifference” (TM).
Based on the quality of her work as an artist, and her uncompromising dedication to excellence, she then raised modest financing for her upcoming Slate of Motion Pictures, Albums, and Books.
She works from the Cutting Edge Of The Pacific ” (TM) Venus Beach (TM) at The Cali Lili Indies (TM) ” where she stays “afloat” connected with her love and devotion to “rippling waters of the world,” the “mother / sister ocean” energy, so inspiring to her work and life, in order to make social justice themed films, albums, and books.
Cali’s degree included extensive studies in anthropology as well as performance techniques from all over the globe. She holds an added background of intense New York studies in dance /choreography.
She is proud to share her deep connection with “Mother Africa” and is greatly inspired by African culture, the cultures of Oceania, and that of her other diverse intercultural studies.
Cali Lili :
“We all originate from one mother in Africa, the Ocean is our collective unconscious, so let us honor each other, our mutual mother, our waters, and our blue mothership, earth. In doing so, we save ourselves. ” …
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): Buyers, Distributors, Film Festival Directors, Journalists !
Made in association with: Sister Ocean, Mother Earth
Where can I see it in the next month?
(2021 Update : please see enclosed links for Oscars 2020 Contender information ; Both Movie + Album available on 🍎 iTunes Apple TV 🍎 Apple Music , Youtube, Vimeo etc …)
Recently completed both film and album, We want to be sure this film and album are distributed in a manner that is in keeping with the quality of the material …”
end 2017 interview :
2021 Update : OSCARS 2020 contender information + links below
1 Day in the Epiphany of a 21st Century Girl, who kissed a Girl ™
2017 Interview with Actor/Writer/Director/Producer Cali Lili
(2021 Update !
NOTE : Updated Oscars 2020 Contender information enclosed below as an addendum to this 2017 interview )
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Wow thanks so much ! And THANK YOU for this opportunity ! I appreciate it and so does my team ! LOL Why ???????? Whew. It was INEVITABLE. “Destined,” so to speak ( I am not “religious” … only speaking “spiritually” ) … there was NO WAY this film was not getting made.
I had and still have a burning need 2 express feelings welling up in me as a “21st Century Girl” … and what I hear from others … it was literally a “coming of age” film for me … the script was my reaction to my own “awakening” to the fact that sexism, racism and homophobia were indeed still “active” in this Century.
I had taken for granted that these “Isms” were an … “anachronism” … but upon entering the professional world of the film industry, and as I began to “navigate” the world outside University, I began to realize, to my shock, that these ugly “isms” were still a factor in some “guiding hand” / bias underlying most of society’s institutions including marriage, law, medicine, and also of course the entertainment industry.
Since then, I realize that some of those old “biases” old “paradigms” are now unconsciously incorporated into new “institutions” that were created to counter the old ones … so … even in LGBTQ and Feminist communities and organizations … we seem to have “ingested” the old patriarchy of “labelling” and “exclusionary” behaviours … the “cliques” the “hierarchies” … so … these are some of the factors I consider when telling my stories …
A super cool elderly guy who manages an lgbt owned store in West Hollywood, took me aside one day when I was shopping for stuff for the film set … and he told me in a whispered tone ” you know missy, our lgbt community can sometimes be quite racist and misogynist … ” well … to say the least, having just recently learned about my own sexuality … I had definitely idealized the LGBT community … but of course … we are PEOPLE … and humans are fallible … so… yeah … we all need to find our better angels don’t we …
A world that includes “Girl” … should be one that improves upon old models … and I feel strongly we must begin by learning from the mistakes of “HIStory” as we create “HERstory.” I have been learning this as I reflect on experiences lately … “growing up.”
I ADORE being an actor. I mean, I am BORN to be an actress. I realized however, that most actors are treated like slaves in the entertainment industry ( I am not referring to the 1 Percenters, however, they take their orders from the “powers that be” too ).
FLASHBACK : This was our heritage, as I am told that in “ye olde Hollywood” certain “Rooms 4 Rent” establishments discriminated against Actors, Jewish Persons, and LGBTQ, as well as African American Persons alike … again it’s that “exclusion” that I feel we must do our best to let go of as a culture of “humans being” … that’s what we are … “humans … being …”
Cut To : Modern Times : Still we find, actors of the female persuasion, actors of color and LGBTQ persons are often subjugated to even lower “totem pole” positions within the industry.
Flashback : I had an excruciating childhood, featuring emotional and violent abuse, but my knowledge of my “inner artist, my thirst for knowledge and passion for performance, along with my precious TEACHERS, who were angels … became my saviors. These beautiful educators guarded and guided my path during a very dark time. Their faith in me, the scholarships and awards, provided for me the “space” I needed to sprout from a seedling, who always knew my purpose.
Flash Forward : I’m “commuting” form NYC to LA for acting roles while finishing school and it’s cool … I learn that I truly belong on a film set, doing this work.
Montage : For some unknown reason, I have always “known” in my bones … that THIS is what I know, THIS is what I do … and that THIS is where my “contribution” to humanity can best be accomplished. Due to that difficult childhood, I knew : contributing to the world around me, thru my art, was my ultimate healing. In fact it was that “knowing” ( and my teachers ) that literally saved my life.
After a few initial roles as a teenager, I began to realize : most of the female roles involve degrading material. Well. After a few”offers” for roles in films that might have been somewhat lucrative, and maybe provide some professional benefits as a new actress in Hollywood … I surprise myself by turning down three roles in a row.
I could not betray my teachers, myself, or … other women in that way. Mind you , I felt this as a teenager, but that’s a response in keeping with a kid who has grown up too soon.
I was lucky that my manager ( and also my partner, Wings Hauser ) were supportive of my decision to build my own film and music studio like Charlie Chaplin did. It was a crazy idea but the best one I’ve ever had. I wrote my “WomaniFest0™” Vision Statement : “The Declaration of IndiePenDance™ feMt0™ re EVOL ution™ ” and … raised the “half a shoestring” budget.
eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ was outlined on a bunch of stickies. It was one of several films I had planned to create, with it’s own soundtrack. All my films have their own albums. I also secured the rights to a Zane Grey novel during this period too … and that is a project I plan in future …
Around this time I began writing more songs … I had already written like, 100 songs in various stages of completion … I am not good with math, numbers, etc … but my voice was always “burning” to sing … I mean, physically it was a burning sensation. For certain reasons connected to my abusive childhood and a violent person who was a musician / mathematician … I felt that music was not available to me … and yet songs in the form of poetry … and singing was always there just under the surface … and when that bubbled over … my healing began. That healing lit the way for me to embrace who I am.
My first “deal memo” was with an Academy Award winning producer who fell in love with my project and my work … and for whom I will always be grateful for both the support as well as the really disappointing but important lessons I learned. During that deal I realized that I know what I am doing as a producer, as well as an artist. I found myself getting yelled at by some major players in Hollywood … and LOL found myself able to yell back … LOL
We were in a co-production deal to make a film written by myself and my partner Wings Hauser. Throughout that pre-pre-production I met great people. However, as I lived through that deal, I kept hearing from my co-producer that ” I had too much power in the deal.” This was so confusing, bc we had negotiated through lawyers, a 50-50 deal. But my co-producer claimed he should have 51%. That extra 1 % would have made my choices in the destiny of the film, practically nullified. I realized, that if I did not give up that 1% … thus giving up my voice, my control on the finished project … my co-pro would not come thru with the financing as promised.
It was time to do my own thing “for reals”. That meant, taking responsibility for every aspect of the projects. I didn’t fully know what I was taking on … but somehow, I just knew that this was the right path for me … I am not certain it’s the right one for everybody … it’s really challenging …
I consider the “nuts and bolts” of my hand-made film and music – making “works” to be the work of a magical, mystical, “craftsperson” that is channeling through me, ideas and sounds, pictures… as I called it ” Pictures Words Music In Motion™ ” … something akin to “witchcraft” 😎 Same for my acting and music.
Coincidentally, in my personal life I was learning about my own sexuality, I was learning about what it means, to be ” a girl ” in the entertainment industry and in fact, the world … so … I began the fleshing out of those notes I had written on “stickies” for eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ and it flowed like water … the script and the songs literally poured out of me … and the rest is HERstory.
eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ – all female crew
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
To partially paraphrase fromscreenwriter and actor, Quinn Redeker …The film will “take you somewhere you have never been, ” … I’m pretty certain of that.
I believe the studio is worth supporting for various reasons, it’s female owned and operated, it’s “green” … and my themes always deal with social justice / earth justice topics in fun entertaining manner … This film was shot almost entirely on the water. The album was also recorded on the water. This was important for me bc … the Ocean is “temple” and “home” for me … and I am VERY concerned with preserving our waters … our coral reefs … I feel this is CRUCIAL to life on earth.
My tiny feMt0™studi0 is made from “upcycled” and “recycled” materials and in harmony with the water / nature surroundings in Venice Beach. I created Cali Lili Indies™ Pictures Words Music In Motion™ at “VenusBeach™ Cutting Edge of The Pacific™ as both a destination and state of mind. We are at the edge of the water, just a few blocks from “Hollywood.” Completely indie, self sustaining, and green.
I try to operate my little “SurfShack” feMt0™studi0 as “green” as I possibly can! All biodegradable materials in harmony with the Ocean and Marine Life all around us. I also try to serve organic lunches for crews ( unless they prefer junk food LOL which we also serve … we cater to the crews’ wishes ! but I do encourage healthy food ).
I hope also that my film and album will inspire you to care about the world in a new way … and about yourself. I truly believe you will have FUN if you relax into the experience, bc I intended it to feel like an experience…
I know you will see some beauty, hear some cool beats and … I hope hope hope … some of the imagery andmusic might mingle with your own dreams that night …
and the next day … images and sounds might return for you as I wish them to… perhaps inspire you to treat yourself and others in an extra loving way … perhaps you might question some bit of dialogue or idea in the film… which might, I hope … inspire you to see it again …. and then see it again … perhaps a third and fourth time after that … and then … six months down the line, a year later, five years later, perhaps you might revisit the film … and in the revisiting … perhaps you might see how you have personally changed, by virtue of your own new responses to the material … and perhaps you might learn something about yourself as you see your own responses to the film change over time … always … it is my wish that when you are in that experience with my films … you are in contact with “love” and with”rhythm” …
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Ah. Great GREAT question. They work completely synergistically. They are completely inextricable from each other. That is my ethic, my method, and my sincerest wish.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
I shared a bit earlier about the “stickies” … which became the script. It really was a “coming of age” bc … I found my voice as an artist in the development of the project and my feMt0™ studi0 was “built” concurrently with the development of the script and album … so … this was an organic birth … with every step of the way feeling “guided” byMy “Goddess Of Film” … “she” seemed to light the way … and along with the “Goddess of the Ocean” … it seemed really “ordained.” Again I don’t say this as a religious person … just a “spirituality” that is based in nature and “girlpower.”
When I decided the project would be an “all female crew” … I didn’t realize how many nasty responses I’d get from simply including in my adverts that we considered every resume but that we : “encouraged resume submissions from women and lgbtq communities as well as “persons of color” ( these labels bother me but we tried to communicate to applicants, that this project was supporting under-represented persons in the entertainment industry and in the world ). Well, it was amazing that some crazies wrote in to protest this little statement … WOW.
What further amazed me, was that my assumption the project would immediately find support from feminist and LGBTQ organizations was not accurate. Somehow, we have perpetuated a patriarchal exclusionary model of the universe. I write about these things in order to figure out how to contribute to the healing of these hurtful habits. I’d like to help form an economy and ecology that is nourishing for our entire planet and the one “race” “gender” to which we all belong : “living beings on mother earth.”
I believe eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™ is possibly the first or one of the very first narrative feature motion picture productions crewed by an all female team of technicians and artists ? I haven’t definitively declared that, bc I haven’t done that heavy research on the topic … but I began blogging about it approximately late 2011 / 2012 and I do believe we inspired the current trending of “all female crews” on some projects. I am super proud we got the “Triple F rating” from Bath Film Festival, which stands for “written, directed and produced by a female” … and of course my theme deals with “girl” themes, and related themes. Our set was “magical.”
I needed two of three main characters “Miss eVening Lily / “eVe” and “doctor goddard / “god” to be in separate locations … so I had to figure out a bunch of logisitics …. and as the practicals became clear … they influenced my story-telling style and things began to flow quite easily after the “hiring” stage was completed.
The completion of the film, the shooting of the “ending scene,” was delayed by approximately 1.5 years because initially, I had the idea that I wanted an all female music team to match the all female production crew. But after a few female musicians and a female recording engineer came on board the project and experienced complications in their personal lives / professional lives, some of which were the result of conflicts with OTHER female musicians who felt challenged by the work they were doing with me ( HUGE EYEROLL HERE ) … I decided … that true diversity would include male musicians … and indeed the music backing my lyrics and vocals needs “muscularity” … why not include male team members in the music? I felt my integrity was on the line bc I had “pledged” in 2010 … to use all female crews … but … I was evolving as the project evolved … and after all, some of the male musicians were in the LGBTQ community … some were “allies” … so … that included an added “diversity” …and again … I am … “growing up… ”
eVe N’ god this female is not yet rated™
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Amazingness. The few persons who have seen the film, are people who’s opinions I truly respect, and I just wanted them to be honest with me about their “experience.”
I had this idea … to ask “regular people” ( albeit people who’s ideas and intelligence / integrity I respect ) to “write mini reviews” … If you think about it … our “reviews” come from people who are seeing hundreds of films and let’s face it, they are in the biz so they often do have allegiances and “inside baseball” “inner circle” dramas LOL …
Now, I believe in art “scholarship” … film “scholarship” … I love reading or hearing from professionals who do this for a living … I truly believe in the age of “cell phone movies” and “good enough” videos on YouTube … the de-professionalization of the artist is democratizing but a bit … um … deplorable. Artists are treated badly enough … so I don’t relish any further disrespect of the professional artist, OR the professional art “scholar.”
But I did feel it was cool to ask “people” for their “mini reviews” during this early stage …here are some of the quotes … with more on the way … ( they remain anonymous out of respect for them and for the project in its early stages of distribution )
A.K : “Wow. Every minute is engaging. It really (draws) you into the experience …just incredibly engaging from start to finish. You are both sympathetic and conflicted as a character. At times I go , hell yes ! You are so right. And at other times I go, un, whoah. Take a step back. It is awesome ! It also gives you time to just reflect on things … I have to admit, I really wasn’t sure what to expect or if I would find the film engaging or relatable, but it was both ! … You wanted to know how it made me feel. Well. I think I ran the gambit. It is a sexy film. The tension, the beauty, the music. All of it together makes for a very sensual experience. So if you aren’t paying attention to the intellectual side and just letting the film set the mood, it does that. Of course, that only really lasts for the first 30 minutes or so. After that, the conflict changes a little, it becomes grittier and more real and less sexy and more awkward. Like watching two people fight at a restaurant. You don’t really want to interfere, but you also don’t really want to stop watching. Sometimes I felt lost in a good way …and other times in a bad way. But I felt empathy for both characters, and at each step I was curious as to what would come next … (and) the soundtrack is just killer. We loved it. There is something there for everyone. ”
M.K : ” … i felt like I had to talk to somebody about this film … but I was just watching it alone … so I talked to my dog about it … ”
H.H.S : ” this is a real cinema experience … it’s not trying to be a “feminist” or “lgbt” themed film … but so fitting that it is all that too … it takes those themes to a whole other level into cinematic innovation and disruption … it’s unusual in LGBTQIA material in that it deals with bi-sexual and poly-amory themes too …this is a new voice, an auteur pushing the boundaries of cinematic art “
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Hmmm. It has confirmed my highest wishes for my “baby” project … my first … of course I wished for comments like these … not really just an “ego” thing ( tho yeah it feels good lol ) but it feels as though I “communicated” thru the medium of film and music … and I wished to communicate ! … so that feels awesome …
My point of view, such as it is … is usually about discovery. So my pov is expressed in the making of my art … although my characters are not always “me” … I am exploring ideas and in fact, my characters speak through me … I am feeling more like I am channeling their voices.
Once my art is out there … it’s like my “baby” is taking her “baby steps” and while I definitely am a “jaguar” when it comes to protecting my art and my team … my baby … ( jaguar mothers are VERY protective grrrrr….. )
I am quite interested in allowing the audience to embrace and experience whatever it is they will experience … bc I have experienced audience members telling me stuff I hadn’t dreamed of … bc my projects elicited something in THEM …. and THAT is really fascinating for me to hear !!!!!
Not many people have seen the film, but those who have, are people I truly respect. Their enjoyment and delight and their unexpected comments about the film has nourished me.
I am SO pumped to share the film with TONS more … I am REALLY stoked to hear about people’s experiences!
As my team and I weigh options for distribution … we are interested in opening up opportunities for sharing the film with as wide an audience as possible … I also do need to make sure that the film earns something … bc I am working as a professional artist and doing so independently of corporate. I am grassroots, sustainable and “fiercely indie” I like to say. Additionally my “green” / “water-based” studio requires upkeep AND I PAY my crews … nobody works for free on my projects … my budgets are modest but crews are paid.
One of my mottos is “HandMade 2 Make A Difference™” and I have put the blood, guts and sweat into that statement… so … yeah … I really have made this film in order to hopefully”make a difference” … I really wish for as many girls, women, LGBTQ communities, global communities, allies / men … and humanities / democracy – minded individuals as possible, worldwide, to see and hear the experience of this film … and I wish for it to “spark” feelings, thoughts, ideas, action, and dialogue …
I am already working on my next film …. so I want to spark a dialogue with our audience … ASAP … bc I want to share some ideas … and at this critical time in the 21st Century … I feel a true URGENCY about sharing these ideas ASAP ! So … when you see this film, hear this album … you are in “dialogue” with me / us for the next one … and you are supporting this new concept of a “film and music studio ” … literally “supporting the arts by sustaining the artist ” … and I believe in that … buying from the artist and sustaining artists … I really need that kind of support from the audience …
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Buyers !
Distributors !
Film Festival Directors !
Journalists !!!!!!
YES PLEASE !!!!!!
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
LOVE ! and AMPLIFICATION ! and SHARING through purchasing my films, albums, merch … and telling others about it please … encouraging Audiences to BUY from the Artist instead of expecting our work for free … after all … a movie / album can be played over and over … and you purchase it once … why not purchase it and support an artist who works toward a better world ? I really do believe … if we lose artists to poverty or indifference … if we ignore the artist … we nail the coffin of our own cultures. We need artists like oxygen and so often, they are victims of the worst cultural tendencies …. the canaries in the coal mine … look at all the authoritarian governments who sacrifice the artist … an artist disrupts our assumptions … and that’s both healing and crucial.
We have gotten used to “free music ” and “free movies” … well .. the corporations who are “gatekeepers” of what’s in movie theater and on tv / on the radio … they are not working for free … but very often artists are … and independent artists are ” an endangered species” … I’m not kidding. Let’s pay the artist, let’s keep her alive … our lives depend on it.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
This is a critical time in History and HERstory … please everybody … SHOULDER to SHOULDER we MUST overcome autocracy and BUILD DEMOCRACY TOGETHER … this is IT .. this is THAT TIME and every moment matters.
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
We are working on the next project in the slate …
Now laying down new demos for the next album and I am in pre-rewrites on the next script.
I have sometimes considered it a “trilogy” … but each project is really its own universe … so that might be confusing … it’s more like, each project is organically “flowing” into the next … and each one is very much interconnected … which is fitting … bc … we are all dreaming together … and the movies, the music, allow us to hold hands, share some time together, feel the rhythm, move together … and dance.
Cali Lili skipped several grades (having been tested as reading at college level in grade school) took her first college course in the entire works of Shakespeare, at age 13, never graduated high-school, never even went to a prom, was swooped up, landing at NYU, then completed her Masters’ Degree on full scholarship with awards / stellar reviews for early works.
Cali is told that she was born “early” and “on the water.” Her love of body surfing, all things “ocean” and all marine life, especially dolphins, has proven to her that this must be true.
Having experienced an extremely difficult childhood “on land,” she does not revisit childhood memories and often speaks out against all forms of abuse.
Born of multi-cultural heritage, Cali is keenly aware and concerned with what she sees as a form of “tribalism” too often employed as “nationalism.” Cali writes about these issues and acts accordingly when it comes to her public image.
Cali adores being an actor and takes that craft very seriously, but found herself turning down 3 acting offers, that she felt were disempowering to women, in order to “turn up” what she calls fempower (TM) by scraping together “half a shoestring budget” to build her “green” “off-grid,” upcycled “floating” “surfshack” feMt0 (TM) studi0 at the Venice Beach Canals in Los Angeles, California where she makes “Signature” auteur Motion Pictures, Albums and Books, with “ToyBoxTechnologies” (TM) “HandMade2MakeADifference” (TM).
Based on the quality of her work as an artist, and her uncompromising dedication to excellence, she then raised modest financing for her upcoming Slate of Motion Pictures, Albums, and Books.
She works from the Cutting Edge Of The Pacific ” (TM) Venus Beach (TM) at The Cali Lili Indies (TM) ” where she stays “afloat” connected with her love and devotion to “rippling waters of the world,” the “mother / sister ocean” energy, so inspiring to her work and life, in order to make social justice themed films, albums, and books.
Cali’s degree included extensive studies in anthropology as well as performance techniques from all over the globe. She holds an added background of intense New York studies in dance /choreography.
She is proud to share her deep connection with “Mother Africa” and is greatly inspired by African culture, the cultures of Oceania, and that of her other diverse intercultural studies.
Cali Lili :
“We all originate from one mother in Africa, the Ocean is our collective unconscious, so let us honor each other, our mutual mother, our waters, and our blue mothership, earth. In doing so, we save ourselves. ” …
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): Buyers, Distributors, Film Festival Directors, Journalists !
Made in association with: Sister Ocean, Mother Earth
Where can I see it in the next month?
(2021 Update : please see enclosed links for Oscars 2020 Contender information ; Both Movie + Album available on 🍎 iTunes Apple TV 🍎 Apple Music , Youtube, Vimeo etc …)
Recently completed both film and album, We want to be sure this film and album are distributed in a manner that is in keeping with the quality of the material …”
end 2017 interview :
2021 Update : OSCARS 2020 contender information + links below
Cali Lili ‘s Oscars 2020 Contender “eVe N’god this female is not yet rated” Now streaming on 🍎🎬Apple TV, iTunes Movies, Google Play Movies, Roku, Vimeo etc … with original soundtrack available on 🍎🎧Apple Music, Youtube, Tidal music, etc …
Movie Review August 2022 Cali Lili ‘s Eve N’ God This Female Is Not Yet Rated
Times Square Chronicles August 2022 Review by Gary Swanson
Cali Lili Indies™🏝 PicturesWordsMusicInMotion™🎬🎧 femt0™studi0🏄🏽♀️🏄🏼♀️🏄🏿♀️ CuttingEdgeOfThePacific™🦀 ©CaliLili™AllRightsReserved 
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