Documentary First

In this episode, our hosts are joined by Flavie and Thomas: two cast members from The Girl Who Wore Freedom . These two are from Normandy, France but how they wound up staying with Christian was quite the adventure! As a result of their stay, they've played an essential role in documenting the rights and clearances for the film. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need...

In this episode, co-hosts Jason Rugg, Joshua Lindsay, and Christian Taylor are joined by guest Yesenia Thomas to discuss exciting plans for an animatic and where things are at with the latest cut of the film. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the veteran's stories!

In this episode, Director Christian Taylor shares what it was like to visit the Sundance Film Festival and bump into celebrities (sometimes literally)! Her documentary film,  The Girl Who Wore Freedom , is almost ready to be submitted to festivals and this turned into the perfect opportunity to learn new things about the industry and the film festival process in general. Want to help us make the f...

In this episode, Director Christian Taylor shares what it was like to take a plunge and attend the Sundance Film Festival. Listen in and hear her stories about things that she was surprised by and what she figured out not to do next year! Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the veteran's sto...

This episode originally aired on March 6th, 2019. It's been a very exciting couple of weeks and we thought it'd be good to revisit our origin story. -- Today we talk origin stories. We’re looking at how Director Christian Taylor got her start in filmmaking, the necessity of building a good team and how being a Mom helped her as a producer! Christian, Josh, and Jason discuss voiceover, working with...

In a previous episode, hosts Christian, Josh, and Jason discuss the important lesson of killing sacred cows (or killing your babies ) in order to set aside personal emotions and improve the film. In this episode, Christian shares how this helped her find peace in pairing down even more of the film to create an even more whole representation of the story. Want to help us make the film? We're lookin...

As we near the final stages of the film, Director Christian Taylor continues to get critical feedback and has to make difficult decisions. This time, more sacred cows are cut out and voiceover work is scrapped and rewritten to accommodate an accelerated pace. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us t...

What should you do when you get critical feedback? In previous episodes, we talked about the practice of killing your babies and working with experienced consultants to make the film better. This episode is all about hearing difficult feedback and deciding to take action or "live with the flaw." Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://nor...

It's critically important to get professional help or consulting throughout the entire process of producing a film. How else would a first time filmmaker know what to look out for when trial and error are so costly in both time and money? Is first time filmmaker Christian Taylor ready to take The Girl Who Wore Freedom to the next level or is that still a long way off? Want to help us make the film...

Thanks to the many focus groups in 2019 Christian Taylor has accumulated a long list of things to fix and improve in The Girl Who Wore Freedom. The goal is to be "picture locked" by February 6th so that we can submit to film festivals and move on to the next stage of the project. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com...

When you're making a film, remember to take notes about the archival footage, usage rights, and sources for everything added to the film. Learn from our first time filmmaker, Christian Taylor as she talks to co-hosts Josh Lindsay and Jason Rugg about creating the "rights bible" required for proving their rights to the footage in the film. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers...

Christian Taylor visits her family in Tennessee and (surprise, surprise), she screens the film. While she was there she hears new stories that make her start thinking about her next film. (Is there some sort of filmmakers Stockholm syndrome?) She goes on from there to an adventure with Flo Planna and ends up cleaning a world war museum's storage locker and returning home with some incredible memen...

In this episode, co-host and Director Christian Taylor recap focus groups events from one coast to the other: The Villages, Florida to Phelan, California. These two focus groups were on different ends of the spectrum but both very special for their own unique reasons. Listen to hear the stories and people who have helped make this possible. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for voluntee...

In this episode, co-host and Director Christian Taylor recaps her experience running two of the most impactful focus groups so far at the Branson Military Film Festival. Hear how the original girl who wore freedom, Dani Patrix, visited from Normandy and received the key to the city. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories....

Collaboration on a project as large as a film like The Girl Who Wore Freedom is difficult. Films take years to produce and it's natural for our priorities or goals to shift along the way. In this episode Director Christian Taylor and co-hosts Jason Rugg and Josh Lindsay discuss how to work with folks and roll with the punches. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need do...

In this special Thanksgiving episode, first-time filmmaker Christian Taylor looks back over the last year and shares the many things for which she's thankful. Want to help us make the film? We need volunteers and donations to help finish work on the film. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the veteran's stories!

In the heat of the moment, you can feel very low when you feel like a meeting or focus group goes poorly. But it's impossible to know how a single conversation will lead to more opportunities and ultimately influence the success of your project. Want to help us make The Girl Who Wore Freedom ? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help...

Everything is possible, but what's best? In this episode, our hosts discuss what it feels like to make a documentary film and the multitude of options and opinions out there about what should happen next. Film festivals? The Oscars? Distribution rights? In the midst of all of the focus group events, it can be difficult to know what to do. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers...

Fundraising is tough. Even the best documentary filmmakers like Ken Burns still has trouble finding doners that make films possible. What works? Hosts Christian Taylor and Josh Lindsey share some of the things that have worked and how to brainstorm new ideas. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us t...

What does it take to be a voiceover actor? Or a film director? Or a book author? Hosts Christian Taylor and Josh Lindsey discuss entrepreneurship to highlight common skills needed for success in a multitude of careers. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the veteran's stories!

Have you ever wanted to write a book? In May of 2019, Christian Taylor co-authored a book with Peggy Sue Wells to give people another avenue to learn about the stories of veterans and (hopefully) raise some money for the film by the same name, The Girl Who Wore Freedom . Get the book at https://amzn.to/2HtQ9iF . Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please...

In this episode, Director Christian Taylor shares her difficult technique for turning people into your biggest fans. Invest your time to listen to them! Hear how she came to that conclusion and all about her adventures with focus group events in TN. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the ve...

Director Christian Taylor shares an emotional story of serendipity as she reunites two long lost brothers and brings together veterans, French families, and high schoolers for a memorable focus group event in Stoneybrook, NY. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the veteran's stories!

If you're planning to make a documentary, be prepared for a lot of failure and unexpected setbacks. It takes someone like Thomas Edison (or Director Christian Taylor) to spin "1,000 mistakes" into "1,000 small steps to success". Learn some of the mistakes The Girl Who Wore Freedom has already made and what hope to do about it. Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need do...

In this special edition episode of Documentary First, we bring you important information about upcoming screenings for The Girl Who Wore Freedom . Listen in and see more at https://www.normandystories.com/screenings . Want to help us make the film? We're looking for volunteers and need donations. Please visit http://normandystories.com/donate and help us tell the veteran's stories!