The name “Girls on Film” speaks for itself.

I started Girls on Film while I was in the process of creating my first short film. I was looking up tips on creating short films, and each article that popped up was written by a man. Each short film I watched was written and directed by a man. Each story revolved around a man. And in every story, every teenage girl would only be able to stare into the mirror and talk about boys. I feel we are in an age in film that recycles the same white middle-aged male directors, the same actors, and the same plot lines, just so they can make hundreds of millions of dollars and maybe get an Oscar nomination. Of course, all those people are extremely talented, for the most part, and GOF is no way a major production company that expects to bring in profit, but as a young filmmaker, I want something new. I want new, real voices. I want to know my peers. I want to know the other GenZ girls who are interested in filmmaking. Most of all, I want to help tell our stories. There is a lack of film education in general. Many feel that the only way to educate themselves on filmmaking is to pay thousands of dollars for film camp, just to make a half-baked music video. That’s fine. But the best way to learn is to do, so as messy as it can be, I want to help high school girls make actual films, whether it’s just a short film or a feature film. For female-centric film, you have to have girls in front of the camera, but more importantly, behind the camera. Writing these stories. Directing these stories. Living these stories.

⁃ Soa, the founder of GOF