As a very young girl, Kathryn-Grace Stacio used to dictate stories to her grandmother, whom she called “MiGi.” Little did either know that simple interaction would produce a budding writer, filmmaker and director. At 14, Kathryn-Grace has made her first professional movie, a short called “A Memory Jar,” screened a few weeks ago at the Aurora Cineplex in Roswell. Although MiGi was not there — she died in 2013 — her memory and influence were very much present on what her granddaughter called “the best night of her life so far.”
Q: Tell us more about your grandmother.
A: My grandmother was and still is my role model. When I was little, she and I would sit at her kitchen table, surrounded by paper and crayons, and she would write down my stories, and then pass the paper to me to draw the pictures. My grandmother and I were a lot alike it many ways. I was very determined when I was little and MiGi supported that. She was someone who was always happy and positive and optimistic — I feel like everyone needs to be that in life. She was just very inspiring to me. I was devastated when MiGi passed away from pancreatic cancer. That's when I really started getting into emotional, more serious kinds of writing.
Q: How did you end up writing screenplays?
A: I sort of gravitated toward it. I went to a film producing camp and I was lucky enough to get to work behind the scenes on the set of the feature film. After that, I wrote a very not-too-great short film called "Camp Sleepover Gone Wrong," which I shot with a few of my friends in the guest room of my home. I stayed up all night editing it and making sure it was perfect. I was very, very proud of it and thought I was going to get a ton of views on YouTube. After a few months, I thought this probably isn't the best I could do and quickly took it down.
Q: What about your new film, “A Memory Jar?”
A: I don't want to reveal too much but it is about a girl who loses her memory in a car crash. Her friends give her a memory jar and tell her that when she remembers stuff, to write it down and put it in there because they think that it would help her regain memory. I approached Carrie Anne Hunt, a producer and my mentor, to see if she would help me with fine tuning and editing my script. With the urging of my friends and family, I decided to try to make my screenplay into a film. I set up an Indiegogo campaign and managed to raise $3 over our budget for the project. We were very fortunate to get very talented actors, both union and nonunion. I am very proud of the movie.
Q: Can people see it?
A: Not currently. We are entering it into film festivals and we are not allowed to show it before the festivals give us permission. Eventually, people will be able to see it and it will be worth it.
Q: Do you plan on making another movie and if so, do you know what it will be about?
A: I'm currently writing a new one, with a big plot that will surprise watchers of "A Memory Jar." This script is based on real-life experiences of me and friends of mine, and it is going to be fun.
Q: Is it unusual for a 14-year-old to pull off making a movie?
A: I'm sure other young people have made their own short films, but they had financial backing from school or theatrical programs. It was important for me to fund the movie myself and do the work. My friends and family helped my dream come true.
Q: Anything else you want to say?
A: Those young directors or writers out there should just know that they can do this if this is something they want. They should go for it because amazing things can happen.
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