Case Study

All is Well Interns

Seattle-based film studio All is Well was frustrated by the lack of diverse talent they were attracting to fill their job openings. So, they partnered with Africatown Community Land Trust (ACLT) and FujiFilm to launch an internship program to help overcome their challenge. 

FujiFilm joined the effort as a corporate sponsor providing funding for two full-time positions for the year as well as gear and technical training on the gear. 

ACLT acted as a community partner to All is Well and Fujifilm to be the source and connection to emerging talent and to build out the program for success, keeping white privilege in check and identifying racial bias and blind spots that could undermine the goals.

The result was a year-long paid internship program that paired two creative talents together full-time for a three-month curriculum in All is Well’s creative department. 

In addition to ongoing client and business-development work, the interns were immersed in an intensive story-making curriculum, developing the essential creative concepts and technical craft to make commercial films for clients. They each produced a 60-second spot on behalf of All is Well.

Nura Ahmed

Nura Ahmed (She/her) is a Somali American poet, writer, filmmaker, and organizer born in Uganda and raised in South King County and Seattle. In her exploration of media and art, Nura immediately fell in love with film. She is a passionate and powerful storyteller who sees meaning behind telling the stories of her community. Nura hopes to continue to shake the pavement so that the world can hear the beautiful stories behind the Black, Muslim, and immigrant experience in Seattle and in the US.

Markel Tomaras

Markel Tomaras (He/They) is a gay, mixed-race, filmmaker and photographer, whose goal is to direct horror films with LGBT+ and BIPOC driven stories and cast. He has made a killer re-creation of the Scream 4 opening scene that can be found on his Instagram, YouTube and portfolio. He has also worked with a few local drag performers on a photoshoot as a director/photographer/lighting specialist. Markel is inspired by directors like Wes Craven and Jordan Peele. His “favorite scary movie” is Scream (1996), what’s yours?

Eric Fortson

Eric Fortson (He/Him) is a filmmaker from Victorville, CA. With a background in dance and classical music, Eric loves being part of a creative team. While studying music at the University of Redlands, he had his first filmmaking experiences working on student films. He instantly fell in love with the community these small sets fostered, and has continued to follow his passion for visual storytelling all the way to Seattle.

Luz Tovar

Luz Tovar (He/They) is a Mexican American filmmaker from Kennewick, WA. Luz is currently pursuing their Bachelors degree in film at Cornish College of the Arts and working on their senior thesis film. In their free time, Luz enjoys watching and taking inspiration from directors such as Jordan Peele, Wong Kar-Wai and Satoshi Kon. Their diverse casts and unique storytelling are what inspired Luz to become a filmmaker. 

Aaron Jin

Eric Fortson (He/Him) is a filmmaker from Victorville, CA. With a background in dance and classical music, Eric loves being part of a creative team. While studying music at the University of Redlands, he had his first filmmaking experiences working on student films. He instantly fell in love with the community these small sets fostered, and has continued to follow his passion for visual storytelling all the way to Seattle.

The curriculum worked like this: 

  • The first month of the internship involved learning story concepts and receiving technical training.

  • The second month puts that training to work writing a fully developed treatment and script for the All is Well 60-second spot.

  • The third and final month required making it all come to life as the director of a full professional production crew.