Shanna Riker on Storytelling
Shanna Riker
In this profile series, Revry is highlighting authentic contributors to the LGBTQ media and entertainment community. We ask questions to find out who they are and where they are going in the future. The questions remain the same but the answers tell their unique story. It’s time to explore and celebrate true representation beyond the limits of Hollywood.
Shanna is a storyteller. She has lived in New York City for many years and early on developed a habit of coffee and people watching. Humans, when observed from a distance, offer the best plots and questions that storytellers seek to answer. Shanna has one independently published novel, BARBECUE, FRIED CHICKEN AND “WHERE’S THE WILL?”, as well as a play of the same name which she produced in New York City. She has directed and/or produced five short films, two of which she also penned. Shanna’s writing interests are vast and she toggles between wild, female led adventures dealing with a broad spectrum of issues and Romantic Holiday films. She and her romantic Holiday screenplays are represented by Mitchel Stein of the Stein Agency. THE LEAP, which had a successful festival run, including one nomination for Best Director, among others, and a win for Best Cinematography in its category for The Couch Film Festival. DAUGHTERS OF SOLANAS, which she produced, had an equally successful festival run and picked up many awards and nominations. Shanna has also been a producer on three national commercial campaigns and dozens of internal videos for a major media company.
What are you best known for?
What an interesting question. I guess what I am best known for is directing THE LEAP. THE LEAP is the first film I directed where I had a [mostly] full crew and it wasn’t myself and one other person running around doing fifteen jobs. This film is very dear to me, for many different reasons. It’s the first film I directed that I didn’t write. It’s the first film I directed that is truly worthy of being in the spotlight. It is a coming of age tale of two teen lesbians in a small, rural town where being gay is not rewarded. It deals with issues relevant to the LGBTQIA+ community as well as toxic masculinity and parents with blinders on. It’s also more than that. On top of those things, this film is a group of people who bonded together so strongly to make this film happen. It is four grown women sleeping on two air mattresses and two iron men sleeping on couches in a house we stayed in for free. It is shooting all day at a waterfall, so please forgive a bit of the audio, then having family dinners in the kitchen and even then having hour-long production meetings with the crew in a car so everyone else could get some sleep. Every piece of the puzzle fit perfectly and together we created a film that we can all be proud of. THE LEAP was an official selection in 18 film festivals, a semi-finalist in 2, a finalist in 1, won honorable mention in 1 and won two awards.
What are some of the first things you worked on?
The first acting role I ever had, I was three and I played a mouse in the church musical, CHARITY CHURCH MOUSE, but that’s not why we’re here. The first film I directed, which I also wrote, is a full length feature, UNFINISHED WORKS. Go big or go home, right? I knew nothing about directing or fundraising, or any number of things, but I was determined to produce and direct this film. I raised a tiny bit of money through fundraising, and based on what I know now, poured far too much of my own into this passion project. I had put together a group of extremely gung ho actors who basically lived in my tiny NYC apartment for three weeks and I paid them far too little money, and yet, they showed up every day and gave me their best. Since I had a budget that was far too small, I was the director, the writer, the producer, the cook, the cleaner, the camera operator, the costume designer; I built set pieces out of cardboard and gave it everything I had. We wrapped on schedule and somehow managed to shoot every scene. However, I will never edit that film or have it edited. The script that I shot is not what I intended as a writer, and the talents of everyone who came to the table are far greater than having someone see them in this film. However, I must have done something right, because Josh Bartosch, one of the actors in UNFINISHED WORKS, returned to work with me in MOUTH-BREATHERS, which I directed as part of a 48 hour film project, and again to take on the role of Brad in The Leap. I am grateful that with The Leap, I was finally able to provide this actor, who believes in me and trusts me, with a proper venue to display his talents. That being said, and this may be leading into your next question, part of my current three year plan is to do a complete reshoot of UNFINISHED WORKS. I have learned and grown and networked and evolved since then. I want to give this script, myself, and actors and characters alike the opportunity to truly shine, so if anyone reading this is interested in investing in a full length feature film, female led, guaranteed to be something different that you’ve never seen before, I’d love to hear from you.
What are you working on that no one knows about yet?
Currently, I am working on a lot of things, and most people don’t know about them, because I rarely talk about what I’m working on. My agent is currently circulating two of my romantic holiday scripts, and it seems we have a few good contenders. I am also in the process of completing the scripts for two short films which I plan to direct and produce as well. One is an interesting jaunt that is about human kindness and also deals with the issue of race and one is a tale of what happens to men when they mistreat southern women. On top of all of that I am working on an epic... A female led Western that covers a wide range of issues that unfortunately still need to be worked on in society. I am also in the early stages of what might become a joint venture with a friend who also happens to be one of my actors from UNFINISHED WORKS. I guess you could say I have a lot of irons in the fire.