After years of planning and postponements due to Covid-19 and the Screen Actors Guild and Writers Guild of America strikes, CJ Jones and his team were finally able to host the first SignLight International Film Festival in Hollywood, California in April.

It was a great success, with over 195 films by people from many countries. There were also many workshops with familiar names such as Melissa Malzkuhn, John Tartaglia, CJ Jones, Matt Daigle, and a trio of young actors, Keivonn Woodard, Shaylee Mansfield, and Mila Davis-Kent.

We were honored to sit down with CJ Jones as he shared takeaways for him and the attendees, future plans, and the overall impact of the Deaf film festival.

Transcript:

Melissa: Hello, CJ! Thank you for joining us for this interview. We’re excited to spotlight you. My name is Melissa (shows name sign). I’m the Ambassador Relations Manager. I recruit customers to be ambassadors for Sorenson. I’ll be interviewing you today. Ready?

CJ: Ready, always!

How the SignLight film festival started

Melissa: Perfect. Congratulations on the first SignLight International Film Festival. What gave you the idea to start this festival?

CJ: Basically, it started with SignLight, which is a nonprofit organization focused on advocacy and training programs such as filming, lighting, writing, and acting, and supporting people in successfully getting a job in the film industry.

Then I decided to shift to the SignLight International Film Festival to bring Deaf filmmakers from all over the world, plus people from the industry/Hollywood such as HBO, Sony, NBCU, etc., together so they can collaborate. The goal is to show the Deaf how to break through into the industry and help the hearing understand the talent Deaf people have and how we can work together.

Where SignLight is going

Melissa: What are your plans for the future of this festival?

CJ: Very good question. The plan is to grow, manifest, and build bridges between the industry and the Deaf community around the world.

For example, I brought a group of five Deaf Colombians who are filmmakers. They are from in Bogota, Colombia and invited me to their first international film festival. We had a very enjoyable time there and came away motivated. I decided to have them be our first ambassadors and come to learn and also share their talent with other Deaf filmmakers.

It was a wonderful week! That’s the whole purpose behind me bringing people together every two years: so they can grow, learn, and one day make movies together. That’s my dream.

International impact

Melissa: What was the impact of making this an international festival?

CJ: Sure, sure. I noticed, for example, people from Norway, England, BSL Zone, Italy, Russia, Australia, I believe, among others, came and learned one big thing — the impact we all have when we are together to talk and improve.

We can look at someone’s film and say, “What needs to be done so this can break into the mainstream world and not just have a limited Deaf audience?”

We need more people to break out by going to the mainstream film festivals, or showing their film to the world, perhaps by getting them on streaming services. They need to sell their stories to a larger, international audience, not just a small one. The more we have filmmakers from all around the world, the more powerful we become. That is the key — not alone, isolated. Unity makes the messenger more powerful.

Exceeding expectations

Melissa: How did the festival compare to your expectations? Did they meet, not meet, or exceed your expectations?

CJ: Wow. It more than met my expectations. I thought we would come out okay. Actually, it was overwhelmingly positive. They kept asking, “Next year? Next year?” I had to say, “No, no, two years.” I was overwhelmed with their appreciation. They said it was the best film festival they ever attended. That’s a nice compliment and honor and much appreciated.

It was hard work! Two years of planning. Let me back up. We should’ve had our first film festival two or three years ago. Of course, COVID-19 postponed everything. Then we had the actors’ and writers’ strikes. Another postponement! And it was hard to raise money in the middle of a strike with the industry shut down. We had to work through and around those barriers. Took a lot of sweat to make it happen by getting donations through those barriers.

The support was great. One thing that really touched me was the industry was openminded and supportive. They invested in us and became sponsors of our festival. I tip my hat to them. There were others who couldn’t support financially due to cuts making it hard for them, but they were willing to become partners. They supported us by spreading the word about SignLight International Film Festival and encouraging attendance. There was good community involvement from the industry that made it happen.

Yes, it was overwhelming that everyone enjoyed our festival. And the next one will be in two years, not next year. Keep that in mind, everyone. Thank you.

Lessons from the first SignLight Film Festival

Melissa: What did you learn from your experience in planning and attending this festival?

CJ: I learned that it is really important to have more staff. Also, we need to bring those doubters who don’t think they will be successful. They have a place here at the festival. They will see and be inspired to go out and be more assertive instead of waiting for the jobs to come. It doesn’t work that way.
They have to be assertive and involved. That involvement will make them grow. The more involved you are, the more seeds you plant, the more growth and recognition there is. Others will want to be involved.
That’s one of the lessons I want everyone to understand: how important it is that we all work together. Not separately, please.

Melissa: What do you think was the biggest thing attendees will remember from the festival?

CJ: What they will remember is they can achieve their dreams. That it is important to meet and learn from each other. That they have a network they can rely on to move up. When they go back home, they will share what they learned and were inspired by which will influence others as they share their experiences with those in their home countries. That will help those places grow stronger and become a bigger part of the international community.

What they learned at all the panels blew their minds, learning things they never thought about. Panels and workshops are important. There is more to the festival than watching movies, seeing who won, and then leaving. They won’t have that network.

That’s why many people came from other countries — for the panels, workshops, and the networking. They can bring that back home and roll up their sleeves to do better.  They will learn new tools to grow.

What’s next for CJ Jones

Melissa: Lastly, is there anything else you want people to know about the SignLight International Film Festival?

CJ: Now that the SignLight International Film Festival has become a well-complimented success, we will work with the industry to see how we can help them become more accessible to general work and filmmaking.

My next step is to teach people how to make movie pitches. I want to teach them how to pitch their story ideas to people in the industry. That’s a very important part. Secondly, I’m working with the industry to develop training and mentorship programs with NTID, Gallaudet, and other colleges. So people can come and be mentored for their future degrees and jobs.

Melissa: Yes, yes. Thank you so much for being willing to meet with us today to talk about the SignLight International Film Festival. It was really fascinating. I’m excited to see where this will take you in the future. Maybe one day the festival will be in different places around the world. Los Angeles is just the beginning.

CJ: Please!

Melissa: Thank you so much. I appreciate you taking the time for this interview.

One of the presenters at SignLight Film Festival was Melissa Malzkuhn. Learn about her animation work and groundbreaking children’s show, Here Comes Mavo!