Amy Grace sits down with Jenna Oosterholt from The Ville Caffeine Bar to talk about how the social distancing measures during the pandemic has affected Jenna both personally and professionally.
We are so proud of the women we have featured over the past year and a half.
As we came to the end of the interviews we had backlogged before our provincial shut down for social distancing, we discussed how we could serve others and bring support to those we know, those we haven’t met yet, and those who follow us.
How Instagram Live Series will work:
*unseen technical difficulties notwithstanding
On Monday’s
We will announce and introduce our feature guest of the week.
We will share the exact time of the Instagram live chat
On Wednesday’s
We will host the Instagram live interview / chat
We will share the live video on our feed post-interview
On Friday’s
We will share a takeaway from the live chat
Shower the week’s feature guest with love & support!
How you can get involved
Follow us on Instagram! <——
Join in celebrating various creative/entrepreneurial women by sharing and liking their work.
Join in on our live chats.
Share with us the various brilliant women you know and love!
Halley Davies
IATSE 667 Camera Assistant & Freelance Director of Photography
Halley can be found giving her whole self to her union and freelance work behind the camera, while also finding ways to honour her busy and quieter seasons through various creative outlets.
Halley is passionate about working on projects that have value to the viewer and takes great care in how she prepares approaches her work both physically and mentally.
She also happens to bring a healthy reflection in what she accomplishes and communicates, allowing herself and others to shift perspective and see differently.
MORE HALLEY
Since March 19th, I have been getting up Monday - Thursday mornings at 6 am.
I pull on my robe, grab my phone & headphones, turn on a podcast and listen as I let the hot water boil for my coffee or tea.
I light a candle, sit down with my warm drink, switch from podcast to music and write.
So far, during these write mornings over the past three weeks, I have edited and arranged 21 pages of a project I am passionate about & drafted up half of a short film.
Some mornings it comes easy.
Falling out of my fingers like a waterfall.
Other mornings
I stare at the window beside my desk and seek the light that comes brighter every minute.
I have learned that there are some moments in these sessions that I should listen to my antsy body.
One of those times, I made myself sit through the two hours with cramps distracting me.
I should have taken my laptop, tea and settled on the couch. I should not have worried about the potential of being found out by my four-year-old and just embrace what needed to happen that morning.
Another time, up at all hours with a fevered child, I told my spirit that today was not the day to wake up at 6 am and force it.
Sometimes, you have to appreciate what your body, mind and soul are saying.
The skipping is about protecting creativity, not abandoning it.
Find something equally challenging and exciting for you & show up for it.
“In every job that must be done,
there is an element of fun.
You find the fun and Snap!
The job’s a game.” - Mary Poppins
I didn’t realize that as we introduced our almost five-year-old to the musical Mary Poppins that the songs would become something of a little lesson to our hearts. Finding our lives restricted and altered by a death in the family and COVID-19 pandemic shutting our provinces and cities down on unprecedented levels.
There is an air of unknowns and worries. There are also many things that I am doing to further my work.
I have made a few commitments this spring to help me with the honouring of and getting a handle on specific projects I have on the go.
Getting up at six am four mornings a week and writing for two hours.
Learning how to use a Sony A77.
Learning how to use Final Cut Pro editing software.
Setting aside time for the creative muscle to be challenged differently: daily walks, ukulele and piano practice, weekly baking.
If there were an overarching intention for this new season of Spring 2020, it would be to embrace my love for creativity. To renew how I interact with it in all, it’s forms. In all it’s expressions.
“The honey bee that fetch the nectar
from the flowers to the comb
Never tire of ever buzzing to and fro
Because they take a little nip
From every flower that they sip
And hence
They find
Their task is not a grind.” - Mary Poppins
Aren Morris
Fine Arts Specialist, Facilitator, Writer, Mom & Wife
Aren can be found working with schools to create space for students to explore fine arts, facilitating the 'Creating Space' retreats, while also embracing her role as a wife of fifteen years and mother to two young boys.
Aren is wholehearted about channelling creativity in all that she does as an arts specialist, writer, and especially as a mother where she takes great care and energy in helping to create an atmosphere for her children to grow and discover who they are.
She also happens to carry a fantastic ability to ground herself in the present moment and find words and concepts to share that bring awareness, creative ideas and insight to the surface of all that she does and to everyone she interacts with.
MORE AREN
WEBSITES
https://sites.google.com/gnspes.ca/fineartspecialists-halifaxwest/
https://www.facebook.com/creatingspaceretreats/
Women in Film & Television Atlantics ‘Women Making Waves’ Conference sets the bar
for what it means to connect, find solidarity and hone in on one’s own personal and professional directive.
Every single woman (and man) who attends this conference brings their own unique skills and experience to the table. To witness this communing and celebrating what each of us brings is something I continue to be amazed by. This year was no different.
Highlights of the Conference
Friday Workshops
This is the first year I have been able to attend the add on workshops that kick start the conference. I had so many personal and professional takeaways from my time in the sessions I attended.
Really I’d Never Considered That! A Career Strategy Session with Sharon McGowan
Sharon approaches the industry in a unique and relaxed way. She is passionate about the work and also practical in her thinking about it. She does have an immense amount of experience behind her, which I believe is also why she can approach the journey with insight as well as a healthy dose of practicality. My take away’s from Sharon is the tenacity and how she doesn’t approach the industry with a clad iron fist of ‘now or never’ but with consistency, love for the work and showing up to continue pushing boundaries that have come against women for decades.
How to Create a Binge-Worthy Show in the Era Of Global Streaming with Amy Cameron
Having the opportunity to interview Amy Cameron for the Tidings a month before her coming allowed me the knowledge of what this woman brings to the table. Insight, discernment and a passion for the creative drive. You can see that with all the work she has done in the past and all the work she is pushing forward now lines up with her values and determination to create projects and storytelling that gives a hearty edgy wink while also making us think deeper than the mere surface.
Spotlight Conversation with Meredith MacNeill: Playing the Game While Changing the Game
Meredith made us laugh and she also made us think. I was most surprised and elated by her because admittedly I am behind in watching her sketch comedy and previous work. Her story is a story that although we might not all have, we can all relate to it. To hear her carve out space for the many elements of her life both personal and professional is refreshing and something we all need to hear again and again. It makes me less ashamed to have put my young daughter a focus the past few years and celebrate that by honouring my desire and need to be her primary caregiver I will also be able to grow into the professional and woman I need to be.
Musical Chairs Networking Lunch
This is the second year of the musical chairs networking lunch, (where everyone is given two numbers on two different coloured papers, sits at one table that corresponds to one number for the first twenty minutes of lunch and then a second table the last twenty mins.) Although I was hosting a table this year, I still gained the benefits of it. I would never have met the women and man who sat at my table if not for this unique way of getting us talking, connecting and celebrating the work we do.
The IOM Media Ventures Wave Awards Celebration Dinner
Ending the night with friends and, new connections with food drink and celebrating the work of others is all apart of creating a healthy and dynamic growing industry. A lot of exhaling was happening around the table I sat at & I was so thankful for that time.
THANK-YOU
To have something in the Maritimes with this amount of accessibility is phenomenal. From the New Waves program which introduced me to the industry, to writing for the Tidings here and there, joining the board, finding my way and connecting with women who want to see me grow and be challenged has been life-changing. We have so much to thank the founding members for spearheading this WIFT chapter form the very beginning. If anything, I hope to lift up and celebrate as many women as they continue to do.
Erica Meus-Saunders
Creator / Storyteller / Founder of Storybook-Entertainment
Erica can be found working at Screen Nova Scotia as their membership coordinator, while also running and growing her recently launched platform, ‘Storybook-Entertainment.’
Erica is passionate about the large format and possibilities in storytelling and is continually finding new ways to bring various communities, cultures and creative mediums together.
She also happens to bring a sense of thankfulness and appreciation for the collaborations she is apart of and seeks to uplift and celebrate others in every corner of her work.
MORE ERICA
Story-book Entertainment Platform
Story-Book Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/storybook.ca/
Erica’s Instagram
For my interest and light professional development, I took up ‘The Beautiful No’ by Sheri Salata, Executive Producer of the Oprah Show, for five years.
Entering into my journey in the film and television industry the last four years as a writer and producer have me interested in taking in the stories of others who have journeyed into the film industry later, rather than straight from university.
Sheri comes into her experience as a producer after an eclectic series of professional roles and choices.
What I learned from this book:
Everyone hits moments where they are entering a new chapter of their life and need to re-evaluate. No matter how successful.
Making the next right choice matters over worrying about what you haven’t done yet.
If something is telling you that you want something, it’s probably not wrong; it just may not be the right time yet.
Welcome the no’s and keep going.
Rachel Bruch
Songwriter, Performer, Music Educator / Therapist & Visual Artist
Rachel Bruch can be found using her vast musical skills in a broad spectrum of platforms and is learning to adjust and balance, raising her one-year-old daughter amidst it all.
Rachel seeks to remain grounded in her creative entrepreneurship and aims to find connections with others through the projects she pursues.
She also happens to carry a genuine and peaceful presence with her that enters into her conversations with others and the music she creates.
MORE RACHEL
Website
https://bluelobelia.bandcamp.com
https://www.instagram.com/bluelobeliamusic/
https://www.facebook.com/pg/bluelobeliamusic/posts/?ref=page_internal
Women in Film and Television Atlantic's Women Making Waves conference is fast approaching.
Not only does the conference land on the weekend leading up to International Women's Day, but it's also the association's tenth anniversary.
Women Making Waves is special to me.
WMW. 2019. photo: Claire Fraser Photo video
It's where I saw, felt and heard that writing for the film and television industry is possible. I have started describing my experience with WIFT-AT akin to an open door. I wasn't aware that it was there, but when I found it and attempted to step in, there was an instant acceptance and making room for the new. This conference also does this. It brings top-level professionals to the Maritimes and seeks to create unity, growth and conversation to the women who work here. For me, it succeeds every time.
In the lead up to this conference, everyone has been busy at work to prepare.
Especially the WIFT-AT executive board members. For myself, I have been advance interviewing a handful of the women flying in to give talks and workshops, seeking out silent auction donations, and committing to 'hosting/facilitating' different sessions.
During one of my recent interviews, it was pointed out to me how miraculous WIFT-AT is as an association. With only one paid staff, spanning and providing opportunities for four provinces, a yearly conference, a five-week crash course on the industry, and so much else, all for women in the film and television industry.
I have to admit,
I am proud to be serving on the board. To have a chance to find my place in the association, meet and interview the women who make our industry thrive and to learn as I go. It's an honour to be alongside these women who serve on the board, have created WIFT-AT to be what it is today and to continue to find my place in it.
Jenna Oosterholt
Entrepreneur
Jenna can be found running the Ville Caffeine Bar in downtown Halifax, N.S., while also harnessing her passion for people by working to bring an element of entertainment to those who frequent her establishment.
Jenna is enthusiastic about bringing others a unique take on coffee, community and foodservice and remains grounded by working on her entrepreneurial goals by reminding herself of her core values in creativity and people.
She also happens to carry unique energy that brings her closer to others and continues to propel her forward in all that she does.
MORE JENNA
https://www.instagram.com/thevillecaffeinebar/
Website
Characters.
They are my catnip in the story world.
One of my goals this year is to better delve into the world of character development. It seems like a natural part of the writing world, but it is also one of those intricate parts that have no end. Only they, the characters, can reveal to you who they are and what motivates them. Just like people, this takes longer than a short chat. One needs time and a refreshing beverage between them.
In the real world, people are in constant motion.
They have their ways, and they're why's. I find that as I watch them at a distance, I can see the glimmer of childhood pain that sits there behind their own eyes. See the way they tug at their collar with a self-conscious tick. A small gesture becomes something that informs the world on a subconscious level who they are.
Characters are reflections of who we are.
They should be more than just two dimensional. What makes a character succeed outside of one single scene and into multiple scenes is how multi-faceted they are. When we treat our characters as if they are real and vulnerable people, we create not just better plots, but a platform for real and raw human quality work.
Currently, I am practicing taking my characters and working on holding them with a new reverence and understanding. I am asking them the tough questions and working to hear them differently. New. Characters, just like people, have so much they aren't telling you.
Depending on who you are, you might need to pour another cup and listen awhile longer.
Jasmine Alexander
Artist & Musician
Jasmine Alexander can be found using her passion for art and creativity in her work as an event coordinator for a downtown business improvement association, while also maintaining her studio practice as an oil, watercolor and gouache painter.
Jasmine is a strong believer in creativity being fuel for personal identity and expression and brings that value system into how she approaches her studio practice and community work.
She also happens to find humor in life easy and holds space for others tenderly while also encouraging them in their personal and creative lives.
MORE JASMINE
Website
http://jasminealexanderart.com
https://www.instagram.com/jasminealexanderart/
Lifelines Instagram
This week marks a year if running Brilliansea.
A year of seeking to create space for the voices of women. Women who are charting their paths, finding creativity in the corners of their lives, starting new ideas and businesses and creating brilliance where ever they go.
A year of Brilliansea existing and telling us what it wants to be.
WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED SO FAR…
We work best when we honour the core values of Brilliansea. Creating space and a platform for the voices of women locally and beyond. It has been a year of many changes and events in our personal and professional lives. Learning to honour each other through these stages, while also running Brilliansea together has grown us and brought us back to the values of Brilliansea.
WHAT WE ARE WORKING ON NOW
Entering into this new year, Claire and I will be focusing on continuing to curate and craft the spotlight interviews. We are working on making the group of women we gather for each interview filming session to be diverse, varied in age, mediums and life experience. We want to work on reflecting the immense sea of women we know to be out there. We are also honing in on the right next steps for creating our documentary project based on our short documentary. Along with those two big projects, we are excited to continue connecting with local creative and innovative women by hosting and creating space for socials.
With clarity and a reminder of everything that has created Brilliansea into being, we move onward.
Chelsea Rose
Paramedic & Social Media Figure
Chelsea Rose can be found embracing all aspects of creativity and collaboration through her social media platforms ‘Rose on the Coast’, while also balancing her career as a paramedic and working towards finishing her business degree.
Chelsea is passionate about local and worldwide collaboration, cultivating her creativity with everything she touches and using her platforms for sharing her most honest and authentic self.
She also happens to bring a beautiful sense of celebration and fun into everything that she does and at the same time isn’t afraid to address more serious topics when the need arises.
She is Brilliant
MORE CHELSEA ROSE
Website
The days ticked by in December.
I still hadn’t identified my one word for 2020.
A year that looks and feels like something special. 100 years ago, women in North America and beyond were beginning to modernize and break out of the molds that had been set for them. It seems fitting that we are entering a new decade where #metoo, cultural sensitivity and gender parity are topics on the table. Ten years ago I graduated as an American Sign Language English Interpreter, got engaged to my now partner in crime and started my first career-focused job interpreting at a high school. I was attempting to fit the mold I believed was what I was made for. Part of it was learned, part of it was my own interpretation of what was expected of me, and part of it was fear of not having a place in this world. So I made it myself.
I didn’t ask permission then, and thankfully I don’t ask permission now.
It was seeing a simple posting from a professional entity on social media mid-December that moved me into 2020. A simple post about an opportunity. So I clicked. I clicked through many links and read through all the information and then it dawned on me.
This is my next BOLD right move.
Bold
bold | bəʊld | adjective 1 (of a person, action, or idea) showing a willingness to take risks; confident and courageous
It’s wasn’t the certainty that I could get something that made me sense the rightness of it. It was the realization that I had come to a place, somehow in the past 365-day journey where I could click through all of these links and recognize that who I am matched what was being asked for. That I could step up, raise my hand and ask “How about me?” and do that with a nervous heartbeat, but one that was assured, confident and ready to step out and welcome the risks.
I am ready.
2019 was, in many respects, a difficult year. It was also a year of growth and seeing that growth made me realize that it is time to be making moves.
Not rushed and unsure moves.
Just simple, patient and the next bold right move.
I started 2019 off by choosing a word to focus on for the year both personally and professionally.
Curate
verb: select, organize, and present (content, merchandise, information…)
typically using professional or expert knowledge
Personally
It is comedic to look back and realize that I chose this word not knowing that we would have to fully gut and renovate our kitchen. The early weeks of 2019 were full of anxiety, discomfort, and unknowns as we trial and errored to fix a serious house problem which led us directly into the very raw and real experience of having to strip what we had down to the bare bones and begin to build back and choose carefully how we would put a new kitchen in (as well as manage our house better to avoid this problem re-occurring). It forced us to naturally curate as we went. For that I am thankful. The journey was harsh, but now, as we use our renovated kitchen, host our friends and make goals for the new year, it is obvious that the work we put in over the months have carefully and naturally curated what we have (physically and metaphorically) into valued and treasured elements of our lives.
Professionally
I went into the year wanting to align myself with projects and people that created empowering and insightful content. Using those values as a guide I have been able to see first hand how taking one’s time, carefully choosing the next right yes and discerning carefully along the way creates strong long-lasting work. Launching Brilliansea with Claire Fraser gave me hands-on experience with seeing film and media projects go from conception to reality. While managing a new platform and personal home renovations I also was able to honor my writing sessions to put ideas to paper and begin creating drafts of various new projects for pitching, applications, etc. Staying true to who I am has led me to create strong connections with many women including those on the board of ‘Women in Film and Television Atlantic’. Being welcomed on the board has been an honor and a joy.
As I begin to close the chapter on this year’s word “Curation” I feel proud and excited to see what is to come in 2020.
Autumn came with a beautiful gust of change.
Beginning with the release of Brilliansea’s short film ‘Her Business Your Story Our Calling’, moving through with the a completed outline of a one-woman show and it’s final rewrites to create it’s full first draft, a word goal completion for a personal project, continuing to curate and interview women for the spotlight series and getting immersed into what it means to be on the Board of Women in Film and Television.
This season has been full, enrapturing and exciting.
What I have learned
Enjoy the Process
With hard work put in both personally and professionally, I felt the instinct to let go of the expectations of others, myself and even the outside world. To simply enjoy the work before me. Board meetings, writing sessions, rewriting sessions, they all are apart of the process and have allowed me to sink deep into where the projects and work are asking for me to go.
Be Okay Going it Alone
I have realized that although I value and desire to lift others and bring them to where they need to be, I also am worthy of that cause myself. My work has weight and merit too. I can’t remain demure, simply because I enjoy the collaborative process. I can be both a team player and an advocate for my own independent projects.
As Autumn has been fading the past few weeks
I sense an exciting ripple effect beginning as I plan to release new projects, concepts and work into the air in 2020. I hope that as I continue to cultivate, curate and breathe life into existing and new projects, that I continue to honor the integrity and core of them as each new stage reveals itself.
Hannah Hicks
Artist
Hannah can be found selling and representing her art in various art shows, events and fundraisers, while also investing in her family and taking deep joy in her new role as ‘Auntie’.
Hannah is highly passionate and finds deep meaning in coming alongside others by connecting, fundraising and bolstering others through her abstract art.
She also happens to carry a joy for creativity that her passion and enthusiasm for it not only leaks out in her work, but right into every interaction she has with those around her.
MORE HANNAH
Website
https://www.hannahhicksart.com
https://www.facebook.com/HannahHicksArt/