NYWIFT Blog

She Said, She Said: Jane Applegate and Abigail Zealey Bess

by Terry Greenberg

Creative collaborations are magic. And, this magical one began at a NYWIFT workshop on crowd-funding presented two years ago by Jane Applegate, a writer and producer.

Director/producer Abigail Zealey Bess and screenwriter, Holli Harms, signed up to learn how to raise money for their short film, Icarus Stops for Breakfast — a quirky comedy about two misfits in love. “Jane shared all the challenges of raising money from friends and followers,” recalls Zealey Bess. “Both Holli and I were immediately struck by Jane’s energy which in turn inspired us to ask if she would come on board to help us produce the project.”

abigail bess

Abigail Zealey Bess on the Icarus Stops for Breakfast set

Applegate was impressed by Zealey Bess’ energy and sassy style. “She was funny and smart — two of my favorite qualities in a person.”

Now, they are producing a new play by Susan Eve Haar directed by Zealey Bess and Caroline’s Wedding, a full-length narrative written and co-directed by NYWIFT member Easmanie Michel.

Their co-produced short, Icarus, will have a sneak preview on April 26 at NYWIFT’s members’ screening at Anthology Film Archives.

ARVE Error: need id and provider

AZB: Jane, you are so comfortable moving between film and theater projects. How did that come to be?

JA: I began my producing career in theater, serving as the first president of the San Diego Repertory Theater. I was appointed president because I was the only one who owned a pants suit and wore it to collect our first support check from a local bank. I love the live aspect of theater and the lasting impact of film.

JA: Abigail, you began your career as an actor in England, then shifted to a directing career in theatre and film once you arrived in this country. You’ve also been a locations manager. Now, your focus is on directing and teaching. Does being a professional actor help you be a better director?

AZB: Yes, absolutely – For me being an actor has always been invaluable to understanding the actor’s journey and how to go about creating a role. Jane, you also made a transition from writing and producing big-budget television documentaries to low-budget films, starting over as a producer’s assistant and craft services gal. Did you ever question if this was the right path for you?

JA: I’ve always been a risk taker. I never went to film school or thought about producing. I fell into television production after a wonderful career as investigative reporter at the Los Angeles Times and then as a syndicated small business columnist. I wrote a popular book and to promote it, I keynoted and co-produced dozens of corporate-sponsored events. That’s how I learned to produce video. Through a random connection, I landed a job as a supervising producer for several Discovery Health specials. One freezing cold day, I was producing a complicated World War II battle scene with a fabulous film crew when I thought, ‘I love working with these people,’ and decided I wanted to make films.

IMG_5500.JPG

Jane Applegate with Woodstock on the set of Icarus Stops for Breakfast

JA: There is no better way to learn how to run a set than to be responsible for the care and feeding of the cast and crew. Your locations background must have served the same purpose, right?

AZB: I think the best thing about working in locations is it teaches you everything there is to know about how to put a production together. I learned how to be the eye in the storm when everyone is going crazy around you. That’s when I decided if I was going to be working on anything that I cared about, it better be a project that I believed in and was directing or producing it myself.

AZB: [We both love working with young women.] Which brings me to ask, why is it important for us to be mentors?

JA: I never had a female mentor. There’s all this attention on how women are treated badly in the entertainment industry. I say stop bitching and make great work.

AZB: Yep. I think it’s so important to support fellow women in the industry and be the change we want to see. By not “pulling up the ladder” but making sure that we consciously help women to have an equal opportunity to get the work and those jobs in an industry that desperately needs the female energy and drive. Only then, can we create the collective Band of Warrior Women that will take us all to the next frontier.

1907879_776444942429033_1008963096583454204_n

Zealey Bess (left) and Applegate on set

Terry Greenberg is a veteran studio marketing executive and currently serves on the NYWIFT Board of Directors.

 

PUBLISHED BY

Terry Greenberg

Terry Greenberg Following a distinguished and rewarding career in film publicity and marketing, Terry is currently the owner of Short and Sweet Productions (www.shortandsweet.nyc). She served on the NYWIFT Board for six years, and is now happily ensconced on the Advisory Board.

View all posts by Terry Greenberg

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

*

*

Related Posts

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Lindsey Lambert

Lindsey Lambert is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker originally from Austin, Texas. She works as a location scout for film and television in the NYC area, currently on Law & Order: Organized Crime. After receiving her Master’s Degree in Human Rights from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in the spring of 2022, she began directing and producing her debut feature documentary Teaching Social Studies about public school education and the anti-critical race theory laws in Texas. It is currently in production and she hopes the film will be completed by the summer of 2025. In our interview, she discusses her decision to go back to school, her work on the new Amazon Prime series Étoile, how to educate young people about our challenging history, and the most memorable location she's scouted to date. 

READ MORE

Cracking the Code on Film Fundraising: Insights from NYWIFT’s Winter Film Festival Panel

On a brisk February afternoon, I found the perfect escape from the cold—diving into an eye-opening discussion at the 2025 Winter Film Festival. One of the standout moments? Navigating Film Fundraising with NYWIFT, a must-attend panel for any filmmaker tackling the most daunting part of filmmaking: raising money. Leading the conversation were Easmanie Michel, NYWIFT’s Director of Artists Programs and Finance, and NYWIFT Member Joanna Rudolph, executive producer of Burning Annie and The Co-op: The Kids of Dorie Miller. Their wealth of knowledge made for a powerful session, packed with real-world success stories and actionable strategies. Marchelle Thurman summarized some key takeaways to help you fund your next film.

READ MORE

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Melody Gilbert

Welcome to our new NYWIFT member, Melody Gilbert! Melody is an Emmy-nominated and Alfred I. duPont award-winning documentary filmmaker. Over the course of her career, Melody has directed and produced 20 documentaries that have been screened at several film festivals and distributed internationally. Melody is also an educator committed to teaching new and emerging filmmakers. She has been on the faculty at several universities (including the American University in Bulgaria), teaching documentary production, multimedia, and journalism. Currently, Melody is traveling the world and spreading her love for film by teaching pitch training workshops and conducting her “Documentary Boot Camp” while working on her new documentary about the scandalous topless monokini bathing suit in 1964. The most recent documentary she helped produce, Queendom, was shortlisted for an Oscar in the feature documentary category. In our interview, Melody discusses her move from chilly Minnesota to NYC, her unconventional documentary subjects, and key lessons she shares with film students.

READ MORE

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Amanda Deering Jones

Welcome to NYWIFT, Amanda Deering Jones! Amanda Deering Jones is the director of the new short film Little Mother Lies. She is also the Producer of the Academy Award-nominated animated short film Borrowed Time. She has over 20 years of experience working with Dreamworks Animation and Blue Sky Studios and is currently at Pixar. Her career began in Cooperstown, NY, as House Manager at Glimmerglass Opera before transitioning to film. Amanda is a zero-waste advocate and a published writer for the Producer’s Guild Magazine. She is an active member of the Producers Guild of America, Women in Film, Women in Animation, a Governor of the Emmy’s Northwest Chapter Board, and now a NYWIFT member. Amanda discusses her theatrical roots, getting into animation (without drawing!), and how she creates work that elevates our thinking and highlights the complexities of being human!

READ MORE
JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER
css.php