Athena Mandis is an award-winning filmmaker and lecturer in Film Practice at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). Her works include the short films Daughter and Losing Grace. She is currently working on her first feature – which she’s keeping details secretive on right now.
It’s not uncommon for people in film not to initially pursue it, and for Athena, this is no different.
“I always think the journey is particularly interesting with filmmakers because sometimes it’s quite an accident
“I loved theatre, but my degree was in Hispanic studies. I did everything there was to do around theatres. We were prolific, and when I graduated, it was really difficult if you were a woman and you weren’t connected.
“To find a way into the creative industries I mean it was practically impossible. I mean film was not even on my radar, it was like going to the moon with a pair of skis.”
After graduation, Athena did her master’s at the Central School of Speech and Drama, where she trained as a Dramaturg, an individual whose job is to reflect and shape the story being told.
During her studies, the David Glass Ensemble accompanied her cohort in producing Unheimlich Spine, starring Kathryn Hunter.
“It was a baptism of fire. I created the text and worked with Kathryn Hunter. At that time, she was an Olivier-winning actress. So I was sort of plunged in at the deep end to create this script, and I learned a lot about story.”
Her first taste of film led her to create her first documentary, which consisted of running around Mexico shooting a female photojournalist.
“I was able to point the camera where it needed to be pointed to tell the story so instinctively, adapting to that world and I loved it.
“From that point on, every step was a discovery. Every step was kind of like what happens next? I have no idea. I really learned the hard way.”
This was in 2005, when there were limited female-led initiatives and recognition of extra support for women filmmakers to break the industry. Athena expressed her desire to create a fiction film called Back Roads, which was picked up by the British Film Council.
“I think because I was sort of stumbling in the dark I never quite knew how to strategize my experience, it was a really good film and I thought that we’re going to be sending it off to festivals, but I missed the boat and it didn’t go anywhere.
“After that, I had a baby and then things stalled a bit, it wasn’t until I think 2016 when I started to come out of a cave and think actually I need to be looking at my work now and focus in on that.
“I applied to everything, got loads of rejections, some acceptances, some surprise things and what was happening was I was building a foundation and network in this space.”
Athena began teaching at QMUL around this time, which made her aware of the complexities of getting into filmmaking and the variety of unique journeys.
“It’s important to be chill about the map of your journey. Everyone’s journey is different now there is one path that goes: you go to a film school, get selected by BFI or Film London, your short films get funding, and then you become supported to make your debut feature.
“Very few are on that pathway. Then there’s the slower track, which is you make it work, you constantly crowdfund and find so many ways to stick at it long enough, then eventually you will find a way to break through that.
“In that pathway, you just have to keep turning up, and you’ve got to get off the idea that one thing will necessarily lead to another. You’ve got to create your own opportunities.”
As she is currently crafting her first feature, Athena has made use of the access provided by her university to equipment, actors, and students who are begging to help crew the set.
Related: The history of female filmmakers
“The one thing I want to be doing is directing, to be telling stories. This feature is being shot in two weeks with the parameters set by me that each story from the anthology has to be filmed in a day and of all in the same location.”
When it comes to advising younger women aspiring to become directors, Athena has a key piece of advice.
“I would say, work with what you’ve got. We’ve got a 4K camera in our pockets. Make something every month and keep working in a way that you can. Everyone says they haven’t got time. I’ve got a job. I get it, and it is true but make time if you really want it, make it.
“Any programme that gets you on a set, when you turn up, be the best version of yourself. I know it’s a cliche but so many people had their break because they were really on it. Be the best tea maker as a runner; people see that and they think how you do one thing is how you do everything.
“When you get a rejection, it means not now. Maybe that person isn’t right for you and you need to be working with the right people, not just people that just say yes. It needs to be people who get you, want to work with you, and both want this project in the same way.”
Daughter is a female-led drama directed by Athena and written by Jo Harper, which follows an adoptee’s experience of meeting their birth mother to be greeted with no balloons or sense of reunion. The short stars Juliet Cowan and Lynne Anne Rodgers. Created through crowdfunding, the team continued to shoot during Covid in Plymouth.
The BFI and London Film remained in stasis during this time, refusing to green-light any projects, but Athena and her team made it work.
“It’s really important to know that film is not a logical world. It’s a crazy magical world where people are a bit delusional, and you’ve got to be a bit delusional to be in it.”
Daughter turned out to be a glittering success, being shown at an array of festivals and achieving a plethora of awards, such as Best UK Short at the South Coast Film Festival 2022 and Audience Choice Award at the CINEfem Festival in Uruguay 2021.
“I would say this to anyone wanting to enter the industry: Don’t wait to be ready; you are ready. Women hold themselves back a lot more than men. Do just get out there.
“You need to sign up, and when you do, the magic happens: you’ll meet that person, you’ll meet them again and by the third time, you’ve become a friend.
“At the beginning going to networks always feels like you’re sitting in the corner looking like a Billy no mates. That’s normal, and networking isn’t you being interesting. It’s about you being interested in them. People love to be asked about what they do.”
