The Female Voices Rock Film Festival Champions Diverse Voices

This weekend, I had the pleasure of visiting the Female Voices Rock Film Festival screening in Brooklyn and interviewing this incredible festival's founder.

Catherine Delaloye created the Female Voices Rock festival in 2019, celebrating women and advocates for the inclusion of underrepresented filmmakers. But FVR doesn't stop there. Catherine created an online platform and community to provide year-round support and opportunities through educational workshops, webinars and networking events, all aiming to amplify female voices and create a more inclusive and diverse space in film.

(via Female Voices Rock Film Festival)

Mhaya Polacco: I would love to know how you got your start in film. What pushed you to create Female Voices Rock Film Festival?

Catherine Delaloye: I started as an actor as a teenager in London. There, I did a lot of independent work and independent films. Then I got to a point in my early 20s where I just got really tired of not having the right roles. I felt like the roles were very—I don't know—the girlfriend, the sexy waitress, etc. I just got really annoyed at the roles and was just like, that's it, I don't want to act anymore. I want to start writing my own roles for myself. So I started writing empowering roles.

Then, I decided, I'm going to take it further. I'm going to start directing my films. I started submitting to film festivals, and I started doing the whole film festival circuit, and then I started to realize that there just wasn't real gender equality in these film festivals. I kept being in film festivals with just two other women, and everyone else was men. I just got really frustrated with that, and then I said, you know what? I need to create something just for women where we can have a space to tell our stories and reach a wider audience. So I thought, F it, I'm going to create my own space and my own festival, and I'm going to offer women these opportunities. So I created the festival in 2019, and I started programming films and inviting executives, producers and agents to attend our festivals, and it has grown since then. I've given women many opportunities I thought I couldn't find myself.

(Photo credit: Dan Bassini)

MP: Tell me more about Female Voices Rock Film Festival and your mission behind it.

CD: The mission is to increase diversity and inclusion in the industry. We are trying to achieve gender equality. We want to hear more women's voices, and we want to reach wider audiences. I want to create a world where our stories are being told. Hence, Female Voices Rock. Let's hear our voices and our stories.

(Photo credit: Dan Bassini)

MP: You managed to create such an inclusive space, lifting the voices of women and BIPOC. Tell me more about the importance of that for you.

CD: It's super important. As long as we are only hearing one perspective, one narrative, we are not going to get an authentic version of what is happening in the world, you know? As much as I support men (I have a son, this is nothing against men. If they are allies, great!), but we still need to tell our own stories. They are not going to have our experiences. They are not going to have our version of our world. If we don't allow women to tell their stories, history will not be told the right way.

(Photo credit: Dan Bassini)

MP: What's the future for the festival? Where can you see it going in the next five years?

CD: I hope it keeps growing and we keep expanding our programming. I hope we can attract sponsors to help us grow, increase the programming, and get more support to further support more females.

MP: What do you look for in film entries? What are you hoping to find?

CD: I want to feel moved. I want something to move me, and it could be in any genre. It could be horror, or it could be comedy. I want to feel like I have felt something new and have experienced something. If your story moves me, then I am very likely to program it.

(Photo credit: Dan Bassini)

MP: What's your advice to aspiring filmmakers? Can you speak to those afraid to put themselves out there?

CD: Just do it. Just put yourself out there. If you do good work and you are persistent, you're going to get noticed. Lastly, find other festivals that support your kind of film, your voice. If you are a woman filmmaker, try to submit to female festivals because we are here to support you. Don't be afraid. We all start somewhere. We all start small, and the only way to grow is to keep going.

(Photo credit: Dan Bassini)

MP: Where can we find out more about the festival and you?

CD: On social media, we are @femalevoicesrock on Instagram. On Twitter, we are @FVRfilmfest, and our website is www.femalevoicesrock.com. My Instagram is @cateedelaloye.

(Photo credit: Dan Bassini)

Want to find out how to support some other female-founded brands? Click Here for our favorite female-founded brands to support this International Women's Day