I meet with Rebecca Reid on Thursday to discuss possibly directing ‘Leave a Like’. It was a productive meeting where we shared our thoughts on where the project could go. I gave ideas and mentioned how I could see this as a significant opportunity to address men’s mental health.
I asked Becca questions about where she thought the project could go and if she had any references. I also knew she was talking to other people, and we addressed this, establishing a mutual understanding with no expectations.
I am very close friends with Becca, so we also talked about boundaries and how we would work together moving forward. We discussed the possibility of using WhatsApp for all film-related conversations and other apps for our general chats. And that there would be no pressure to reply to one or the other at the same time. I think these boundaries are very healthy and show a good working attitude.
Later that day, Becca let me know that, after talking to her team, she had decided to go with Guénolé as director but would love to have me on board as Producer.
I initially felt disappointed and upset because I wouldn’t be able to direct anything for my final film. I also think the disappointment from not going ahead will the Documentary caught up to me. But I also noted that this was the right choice and the vision Guénolé had for the project aligned better with what Becca had. This made the decision even harder to swallow because I knew it was the right one.
I took a day to process it before accepting it and starting to produce….
Tomás Vega Roulet 