5 Questions with Ashley Kron
1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?
In 7th grade I won $150 from a poster contest, and I used the money to buy a video camera. I started making films whenever I could—for class projects, at sleepovers, with the kids I was babysitting. Film was this natural synthesis of all the things I loved: writing, art, performance, music. It also gave me a newfound agency to interact with people that as a kid, I was constantly seeking. It felt both vulnerable and empowering, and that stuck with me.
2) What’s the backstory here - what was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?
At the time I wrote Hole Man I was unemployed and living at my parents house. I felt directionless and stuck, and an oracle seemed like a fitting person to write about since I so badly wanted someone to tell me what to do in my own life. Hole Man evolved as soon as friends/collaborators became involved. It was truly a labor of love by a lot of people, and so much better because of it!
3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And generally what part of the creative process do you enjoy the most, and the least?
The best part of the project for me was being a writer/designer. Hole Man required a lot of fabrication, so as I was making things in my living room I'd make changes to the script based off my own limitations. I hope I can find a way to do something like that in the future because it was such a fluid way of developing an idea.
The most challenging part of the project for me was editing. I love living in hypotheticals, and facing the reality of what you've shot always feels limiting to me, I get so self-critical. Luckily my editor/bff Nour Oubeid gave the project a second wind. She brought so many ideas and solutions to Hole Man, I would not have made it through the editing process without her.
4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?
One of my all-time favorite films is called Skate Witches. It's literally a 2 minute skate video I discovered in college and I think to this day it informs the kind of style/content I want to make as I director. Recently I learned about Danny Plotnick, who's the filmmaker behind Skate Witches and a bunch of other films. I went down a rabbit hole on Youtube with that. He also used to co-edit a zine called Motorbooty which introduced me to a bunch of underground music and comics. I call it like a "brain blitz" when you discover something that makes you get all buzzy and excited, and his work really does that for me! It's super lowbrow and culty and I LOVE IT.
5) What’s next for you?
I'd love to make more Hole Man episodes, and I'm slowly developing a new short film! Obviously with everything going on right now I'm both anxious and unemployed, so I'm finding a lot of solace in writing every day. It's something that's giving me a daily structure, since everything else feels so confusing.
IG: @trashley.clone