THE INTERVIEW
January, 2025
SHELDON WOODSON
DIRECTORS OF VESSEL
BEST SCREENPLAY
Sheldon, tell us a bit more about yourself. Where does your desire to be a director come from?
My desire to make movies started when I was a child. I thought my way in was to write and sell my scripts and eventually become a producer, actor, and maybe director. When I started getting producers interested in my work, they’d always express making some kind of change that didn’t make sense to what I was writing, so I’d decline, and my opportunity to be funded by them would disappear. I saw an interview with Quentin Tarantino saying the same thing, about how he’d decided to write and direct his work versus someone else due to disagreements with the film’s vision. I think if you want what you want on the screen, you have to be a director.

What is your background?
My father was a bricklayer, cement finisher, and overall construction man, which means I was too, from around 12 years old to 18. Shortly after graduating high school, I had a short college career while working old jobs, which included construction. I wanted something more than general labor, so I joined the military. I served in the military for 24 years. While in the military, I fell in love with reading and music. Because of this love, I started a small music group, and I started writing books. My biggest influences on writing were Stephen King, Anne Rice, and John Grisham. I published three books and decided I should probably turn my passion for writing and music to the ultimate of them which became writing, producing, and directing movies.

You are a writer, but also a federal employee, veteran, and real estate agent. How do these different roles contribute to and enrich your filmmaking?
I served in the US Navy for 24 years. That experience took me all over the world and allowed me to meet, talk to, and experience cultures firsthand. When I write about France, or Spain, or Italy, etc.. My writing comes from a place of knowledge based on experience. The military disciplines are different than the discipline of the federal government, just my work real estate is a lot different than both the Fed and the military. I had to learn to be somewhat of a chameleon, which allows me to see things from the other side.

What were your references for Vessel?
I have what-if moments and create the universe in which I believe it would exist. I talk to people about my “what if” scenarios and ask them what would they do? or how would they feel. I often times put the character I’m writing about shoes on my feet and try to answer questions from the other side. I talk to people, using my scripts, to gauge their responses. If I find it interesting, I use it. Vessel, has a line in it that talks about the film The Exorcist. It mainly asks if good spirits can enter a body like bad ones. Vessel answers that question.

Sheldon you won Honorable Mention Best Screenplay at the RED Movie Awards, what does that mean to you?
It’s the best honor above all honors other than actually winning. In my art, I take the most pride in my writing, especially when creating original stories. I write my stories to be the show’s star, so if you forget everything else in the film, you do not forget the story. In a competition among the talent I’m going up against at Red Movie Awards, it’s nice to see that the judges watch it, thought it was great, and, though it wasn’t a winner, had to acknowledge it. I’ll take honorable as a win, every day, all day.
How did you work with the for script?
As primarily a writer, I write what I want to do, put on my producer hat, and give myself the green light. My films are self-contained and have a very low budget. I do this only to get the movie made, out on the market, and back to creating again. When you’re the producer and director, you can commission the writer, which is also you. To write what you want to see on a screen.

What was the biggest challenge in this shooting?
Mostly, scheduling to get the right cast or crew members on the same page. Because I work a regular job and most people I work with do as well, sometimes folks want to enjoy their weekend after a week of mental and physical labor. Here I am, asking them to give me three to six of their weekends straight to make a movie for little money. Depending on the week, you may or may not get the best version of them. Motivating someone to do their best when they’re tired is very hard.
Do you have an anecdote to share with us in particular?
Love and trust the process. If you’re an indie filmmaker with no or a low budget, learn to do it all. You don’t have to be an expert. Sometimes mistakes, errors, and unplanned occurrences improve the film, and you won’t know it until after an audience views it. Despite the outcome, wash, rinse, and repeat after lessons learned.

What is your next project?
The Model, The Mannequin, and Me. A group of clothes designers fight it out to gain recognition as the best of the best while ignoring strange things happening to them. Some folks believe the peculiar happenings are coming from the mannequins, but the mannequins don’t move. Or do they?