Interviews: Women in Film Chicago 2014 Focus Award Honorees

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CHICAGO – Women in Film (WIF) Chicago is a advocate group for women filmmakers, on-set professionals and executives in the creative arts, and every year they present their Focus Awards to significant contributors in those arenas. The honorees in 2014 were Shira Piven, Susan Credle, Erin Sarofsky and Christina Varotsis.

The event took place on November 5th, 2014, at the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago, and was hosted by marketing executive Melissa Thornley. Each of the recipients were feted with a video tribute, and each told their stories when they accepted the award. HollywoodChicago.com spoke with three of the honorees, with a diversity of voices for women in the film and creative industries.

StarShira Piven, Film and Theater Director

Shira Piven is part of theater royalty in Chicago, as her parents Byrne and Joyce founded the Piven Theatre Workshop in Evanston, Illinois, and her brother Jeremy is a notable film, theater and television actor. She has written and directed in theater, television and film – including her upcoming directorial effort, “Welcome to Me,” featuring Kristen Wiig. She also is married to filmmaker Adam McKay (“Anchorman” series).

Shira Piven
Honoree Shira Piven on Set for Her Latest Film, ‘Welcome to Me’
Photo credit: Women in Film Chicago

HollywoodChicago.com: Since you are from this area, what does this local honor mean to you, and how do you think Women in Film Chicago creates and helps the community of filmmakers?

Shira Piven: I think that any organization that helps women connect with other creative people is great. The business can be intimidating, and Women in Film Chicago provides a great outlet for networking and to meet like-minded people. It’s more important in Chicago, because the business is smaller and less concentrated.

HollywoodChicago.com: What is the origin of your interest in directing ‘Welcome to Me,’ and what about Eliot Laurence’s script most intrigued you?

Piven: I was told about his script through a mutual friend, and although I read a lot of scripts, I love Ellot and I think he’s amazing. I fell in love with the script right away – it was alive and original – with the character of Alice being one of the finest woman roles I’ve ever encountered. It’s an ‘Annie Hall’-type role; Alice is the movie.

HollywoodChicago.com: Since your parents were and are dedicated to the art of acting, what characteristics have you picked up about that particularly art that is best used when you are directing film or theater?

Piven: Everything. What I bring to a film is about that training that has been ongoing my whole life, both in performance and working with actors. My strength as a film director then becomes getting to the emotional center of the film, and then to bring out the performances in the actors around that center.

HollywoodChicago.com: Also your family history is embedded in the roots of The Second City. Since your husband was also involved in the institution, what do you this the greatest legacy is of the ‘Chicago school’ of what The Second City has contributed to the comedic arts?

Piven: The Second City was the first of its kind and it brought comic improvisation into the public vernacular, and introduced it as a viable creative form. It influenced so many improvisation comedians, like Robin Williams, and that is very significant.

HollywoodChicago.com: What past or present film directors directly influence you and have you ever put embedded a tribute to them with any of your films?

Piven: With ‘Welcome to Me,’ I wanted it to light the scenes similarly to ‘Being There,’ directed by Hal Ashby. I loved that film, and this film has a similar tone. The production designer and I watched the opening to ‘Being There’ a number of times.

HollywoodChicago.com: What is the best piece of show business advice you’ve ever received, and how have you applied it to the philosophy of your career?

Piven: Make the other person look good.

StarChristina Varotsis, Film Producer

Christina Vartosis is an award-winning film and television producer, who most recently finished work on “Lost River,” an official 2014 Cannes selection. Her past film work includes “Death of a President” (2006), “The Rite” (2011), “A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas” (2011), and the TV shows “Sirens” and “Shameless.”

Christina Vartosis
WIF Chicago Focus Award Honoree Christina Vartosis
Photo credit: Women in Film Chicago

HollywoodChicago.com: As a producer based in Chicago, what does this Women in Film Focus Award mean to you?

Christina Varotsis: It’s very humbling, and I’m very grateful for the award.

HollywoodChicago.com: On a scale of 1-10, with 1 meaning the movie scene is not working in Chicago, and 10 meaning it’s working completely, what number would you assign to where we’re at and why?

Varotsis: We’re not doing that well, but I won’t give a number. It’s not only Chicago, but it’s the overall independent film industry. The problem is the production model is completely different now than it used to be, as the budgets has gone from five to fifteen million to under a million for the same level of films, or there is a movement to called 20-40 million dollar films ‘independent.’ The medium level independent film doesn’t exist anymore. It’s hard also because Chicago has become more of a TV series town, which for me is not as exciting.

HollywoodChicago.com: You were the line producer in 2006 on the controversial film ‘Death of a President.’ What do you think was misunderstood about that film, and the message it was sending about its subject matter?

Varotsis: Many of the harshest critics didn’t see the film, they just assumed what it was about. There were death threats when we were in production, and the negativity kept people from actually seeing the film. We were not condoning the killing of the president [in this case, George W. Bush], that’s not what is was about. It was about the modern environment we’re in, and what would happen in that kind of assassination, given the events of the post 9/11 world of that time.

HollywoodChicago.com: What was your first job in film, and what did you learn on that set that you have kept with you as you’ve worked on the evolution of your career?

Varotsis: I began as a producer on a TV pilot, and what I learned most of all is that you have to gather a great team. If you pick the right people, and you give them your trust, they will give you 1000 percent.

HollywoodChicago.com: You’ve been on large scale studio sets and small independent film sets. How does an indie film often use their resources better than the large scale production?

Varotsis: Both types of sets offer challenges, in whatever we’re doing there is never enough money. [laughs] Even on studio productions, I use my team, because I think it’s important to have a cohesive group around you, to work well and quickly. We make it work together. I always like to hire locally, the more you do that the better the product will be, because the community-at-large embraces the project.

HollywoodChicago.com: You mentioned your father in your speech and how he wasn’t sure your career choice. What’s the best compliment he eventually gave you?

Varotsis: It happened indirectly, as he had already passed. I was doing a miniseries in Moscow. My mother and brother visited the Red Square set, saw the large scale of the production. It was my brother that said, ‘Dad would be so proud.’

StarErin Sarofsky of Sarofsky Corp.

Erin Sarosky is the president, owner, and creative director of Sarofsky Corp., which specializes in live action production, visual effects, 3D development, design, animation and editorial for film, TV and advertising. Sarofsky Corp. has produced the main titles for TV shows “Shameless,” “The Killing,” “Community,” “Happy Endings,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” and the recent films “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.” 

Erin Sarofsky
WIF Chicago Focus Award Honoree Erin Sarofsky
Photo credit: Women in Film Chicago

HollywoodChicago.com: Since you run your own Creative Factory in Chicago, what does the Focus Award mean to you, and how do you feel Women in Film Chicago complements the filmmaker scene in the Windy City?

Erin Sarofsky: They are a resource for all women producers, not only in films, but also commercials, from young women just starting out through professionals later in their careers. The fact that they would call attention to me in any context, really means the world. I’m committed to being in Chicago, even though I’m originally from New York, I want to build something here.

HollywoodChicago.com: Your company’s specialty is creating opening sequences to film and television shows. With the lessening of time in network shows to the lessening attention spans, how do you think that art has evolved, and how do you approach that evolution in what you create?

Sarofsky: First, we are hired by the producers, directors and marketers of the film or TV show, so it depends on what they want. And yes, with a sitcom that only has 20 minutes of storytelling time, they just might want to brand the show and then start it up. But with pay cable shows like ‘Shameless,’ we had the opportunity to create a mini-narrative – they are less concerned with running time. Feature films are a whole different form, it’s based on fully realizing the concept, whether it’s at the beginning or the end. It’s about flow if it’s in the beginning or wrapping it up if it’s focused on the end.

HollywoodChicago.com: Are you familiar with the great title masters, like Saul Bass?

Sarofsky: Absolutely. Our ‘Captain America’ titles were a direct homage. Because the main film played like a 1970s spy thriller, we wanted to capture a Saul Bass 1970s feel, illustrated like a comic book.

HollywoodChicago.com: On you way up the corporate ladder, and as a person who represents and owns a company, what push back toward women do you still find in the professional atmosphere?

Sarofsky: I’d like to say it doesn’t matter, but I’ve definitely lost jobs because I’m a female creative lead, especially in a boardroom with white-haired Fortune 500 men, who are more comfortable in a male environment – it’s different for them when I roll in as a bawdy, younger woman telling them what they need to do with a distinct point of reference. It’s scary for them, but they will eventually go away and be replace by fresher thinking. Being a woman will never be a reason I get a job, and moving forward I hope it isn’t a reason I don’t get a job.

HollywoodChicago.com: Since you work closely in the power of the image, what do you think about how images become less important the more you see them on your mobile devices, social media and broadcast channels? How do you get more people to pay attention?

Sarofsky: What is interesting about what you just said is that I don’t think of any of those media as separate anymore. If it’s a strong idea it will cut through. If it resonates with a brand, and speaks to the audience it’s suppose to speak to, it will cut through. People get information how they want to get it, and it can come from anywhere. The delivery is up to the user, and with demographic use of media more specific, I think it’s a bit easier to reach certain groups. It’s always about the concept.

HollywoodChicago.com: Finally, what is the best piece of advice you’ve received during your professional quest, and how do you apply it to what you do?

Sarofsky: It’s mileage, not age. The more you do, the more you learn. It’s cumulative, and it allows you to get to the point where you know what you’re talking about. It’s about having confidence in your concept, and that comes with experience.

For more information about Women in Film Chicago, click here.

HollywoodChicago.com senior staff writer Patrick McDonald

By PATRICK McDONALD
Writer, Editorial Coordinator
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2014 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

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