WIHM Special - Felicia Mead


An accomplished writer, director and producer, Felicia Mead has been slowly working her way up the genre's ranks from independent series to short films, including several up-and-coming projects. Now, in honor of Women in Horror Month, I talk with her about her start as a horror fan, breaking into the filmmaking business and her directorial projects.



Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, how did you get into the genre?
Felicia Mead: I would have to thank my parents for that. My mother while pregnant with me, she used to spend a lot of time watching horror films. To name one, in particular, she watched The Exorcist one-month before she had me. Later on, when I was around the age of two, my mother watched The Exorcist with me, it was one of her favorites. It wasn’t one of mine. That movie scared the heck out of me! My father on the other hand, when I was five he took me to the theater, to see a Disney movie we missed the movie and end up seeing Halloween Three, which he said I enjoyed.

Me: Were you always into genre films growing up? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
FM: Absolutely!  Since the age of two years old, I’ve watched films such as Night of the Living Dead, The Entity, Vamp, and The Twilight Zone, to name a few. Stephen King’s The Shining, Tales from the Dark Side, mostly all of the early ‘80s classics.

Me: Being from the African-American community, was it common among your friends growing up to be into the genre? Was the local scene where you grew up accommodating and accepting of your passion for movie-making in general?
FM: In my community of African Americans, people that I’ve met either think that I’m weird or hella crazy, especially people in the church; they think that I’m of the devil. I have actually been told that.  For example, they’ve said things like “What’s wrong with you” or they’ve said, “I’m going to pray that devil out of you.”  Even people out at events have said things like that to me, like “Wow, you’re beautiful, I can’t believe you do horror films,” “Why do you do that?” or “Something’s got to be wrong with your mind, you should be doing children’s stories or love stories.”

On the other hand, I do get some positive feedback, as well.  Some say, “That’s dope!” or “Hey, that’s cool.  I’ve never heard of a black woman that does horror” or “That shit’s hard – can I at least be an extra in your movie?  I don’t mind getting killed.”

Me: How did you decide to go into filmmaking as a profession?
FM: Ever since the age of seven I used to write and tell scary stories to my little cousins. However, film wasn’t my first choice; I tried doing other professions before getting into horror. I owned my own store, I was a massage therapist, a housekeeper, and a barista at Starbucks. Then, I got injured at work, which landed me at home where my godbrother and I used to hang out; he was always writing.  One day I mentioned to him that I wanted to write and he said, “You should write.” I took his advice and started writing.

Me: When you entered the University for your Studies, was there a push towards a specific style or were you allowed to pursue your own interests?
FM: I went to Los Angeles City College and West Los Angeles College. At LACC, the professor allowed the filmmakers to come up with our own ideas for our projects. The professors gave us a certain amount of time and a deadline to have our films completed or we would lose points from our grades. I was always so excited to film, my projects were always done ahead of time!


Me: When the time came to start your own work, you started the miniseries Confessions of a Dark Mind. How did the concept for that come about?
FM: For my second project after film school, I wanted to make a couple of shorts to build up my YouTube channel and other film making platforms. I wrote, directed, and produced level one, The Knock at the Door and it turned out pretty well. I entered it into a film festival but I never heard back from them. Soon after making The Knock at the Door, my favorite professor at West Los Angeles College told me I should make a miniseries. I thought that was a great idea and that’s when I came up with the Confessions of a Dark Mind series. The Confessions of a Dark Mind series is a collection of horror shorts that contain different meanings in each story. I was only able to produce four levels, due to a lack of funds.

Me: Being the writer, director and producer of the series, did it challenge you to be involved in various capacities at once on a project like this? How do you balance those priorities during a shoot?
FM: Yes and no.  The first thing is to prioritize your schedule. As an independent businesswoman, with my type of schedule, I have to really prioritize every moment of my day to be able to make short films. When it’s time to film, I put filming first and work everything else around the rest of my schedule.  his works best for me because once my production ideas are on my mind, I’ve got to get to work on them right away, otherwise, I’m all over the place and stressed out.

Me: What did you learn from that series to move onto your next projects The Lonely Man, The Overnight Guest and A Sort of Hunger? How would you describe the sets while shooting the films?
FM: I learned a lot from each short that I’ve done, the main thing being that I wanted to make the next one better than the last one.  For instance, I would look at a certain mistake that I made in one and I would be sure not to let that happen in the next one. Each mistake that I’ve made has made the next film better.

I wrote The Overnight Stay in one day and it took two weeks to film, but not without complications.  I had an unexpected weather change, it rained and I had no idea that it was going to rain that day; our boom operator did not show up because of it. At that point, I had to ask the photographer to operate the boom and he had never done it before, but he did a great job.

The Lonely Man was written in two weeks. It was actually a long shoot, 17 hours for a 30-minute short. We started at 10:00 a.m. Saturday and ended at 5:00 a.m. Sunday. Everyone believed in the project and didn’t mind putting in the extra effort to complete the film. Later, I had a fundraiser so I could have a private screening, which had a great turnout.

A Sort of Hunger has been my best cast to work with, so far. However, I did have that one diva on set and sometimes for a director, that can be very stressful. Patience – you’ve got to have it. On set, you will deal with all different types of actors and actresses with different types of personalities, some stronger than others. What I learned from A Sort of Hunger was I needed a PA, a grip, and of course, an extra boom operator! On a positive note, I was very blessed and thankful to be able to complete A Sort of Hunger. Overall, it was a fun film, especially when you have an awesome cast that believes in you and the project. We became a family. I can’t wait for everyone to see this film in a private screening, coming in March 2020.

Me: Your latest effort is called Hotter Than a Mofo. What can you tell us about that?
FM: This has been one of the biggest opportunities for me ever. This year started off really well for me. I was a part of shooting the commercial Hotter than a Mofo for comedian, J. Anthony Brown, which will be a part of his new feature film, coming soon. This was a new cast with one old cast member from A Sort of Hunger. This cast was smooth and easy to work with and my first time working with two celebrities, J. Anthony Brown and Flame Monroe. Also, it was my first time working with a dog on set; he was very well behaved and very cute. As an aside, if you are planning to work with a dog, make sure they have plenty of treats on hand!

Me: When can we expect to see the finished project?
FM: Since Hotter than a Mofo is part of another project, I’m not sure of the release date.

Me: Lastly, being that this is Women in Horror Month, what special message do you have for any women out there looking to join in the industry in any capacity as you are one yourself? Thank you again for your time!
FM:We all have a dream placed inside of us.  It’s up to us to go out and fulfill the requirements needed to make it work.

Surround yourself with those who believe in, support, and encourage you while chasing your dreams.  Not everyone who dreams fulfills them.  Don’t allow yourself to be around negative people who don’t have any dreams, it only tears you down.  Remove them from your life ASAP!  Always trust in The Most High which will lead you to your right destiny and purpose in life!

This interview ran as part of our month-long Women in Horror Month celebration. Click the banner below to check out all of our reviews and interviews we've conducted for the event:

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