Julie Rubio discusses her film about art deco icon, Tamara de Lempicka - Hosted by Heather Lenz

Our special guest today is Julie Rubio. Julie is an award-winning film producer, writer, director, and actor. As President of Women in Film San Francisco Bay Area and founder of East Meets West Productions, she produced the acclaimed “East Side Sushi,” which has enjoyed both domestic and international distribution via the Samuel Goldwyn Company, Sony Home Pictures, HBO North America, and Netflix. Rubio is the writer, director, and producer of the comedy “Too Perfect,” which found its audience domestically on Amazon Prime and through Osiris Entertainment. She was also the writer, director, and producer for "Six Sex Scenes and a Murder," available on Netflix and Apple TV. Other cinematic ventures Rubio has helmed include "Soledad is Gone Forever" for Haiku Films, "Oakland B Mine," the comedic "Del Cielo," "Everything is Temporary," and "Impression." Her films have graced numerous domestic and international festivals. Rubio’s latest work, "The True Story of Tamara de Lempicka & The Art of Survival," marks her debut as a feature documentary writer, director, and producer. For years, the enigmatic allure of Tamara de Lempicka's paintings and life story have captivated Rubio and we are thrilled to discuss the film with her today.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 1:12

Today we are joined by our guest host, filmmaker Heather Lenz, best known for directing and producing the Sundance documentary Kosama Infinity. Our special guest is Julie Rubio. Julie is an award-winning film producer, writer, director, and actor as president of Women in Film San Francisco Bay Area and founder of East Meets West Productions. She produced the acclaimed East Side Sushi, which has enjoyed both domestic and international distribution via the Samuel Goldwyn Mayer Company, Sony Home Pictures, HBO North America, and Netflix. Rubio is the writer, director, and producer of the comedy Too Perfect, which found its audience domestically on Amazon Prime and through Osiris Entertainment. She was also the writer, director, and producer for Six Sex Scenes and a Murder, available on Netflix and Apple TV. Other cinematic ventures Rubio has helmed include Soledad Is Gone Forever for Haiko Films, Oakland Be Mine, The Comedic Del Cilio, Everything is Temporary and Impression. Her films have graced numerous domestic and international festivals. Rubio's latest work, The True Story of Tamara de Lampica and The Art of Survival, marks her debut as a feature documentary writer, director, and producer. For years, the enigmatic allure of Tamara de Lampica's paintings and life story have captivated Rubio, and we are thrilled to discuss the film with her today.

SPEAKER_00 3:11

Well, thank you so much, Claire, for the lovely introduction. And thank you, Julie, for taking time out of your busy schedule to join us today. For our listeners who haven't seen your newest film yet, can you please tell us what it's about in your own words?

SPEAKER_01 3:26

Thank you, Claire, and thank you, Heather, so much for having me here today. I really appreciate it. Well, um, for your listeners that have uh little knowledge about Tamar de Limpica, um, I think um it's gonna change soon because uh she's really having her moment right now in the United States. She's really quite popular in Europe. Um, and I think it's it's really her moment right now. So uh the true story of Tamar de Olympica and the artist's survival, um, it's I think it's such a visually stunning and sweeping uh feature documentary, and it traces the life and the survival of the renowned painter. You know, she's really um a powerful artist uh from her rise to international stardom in 1920s Paris uh to her move to the United States in um 1940, fleeing fascism, and then her revival in the current art market. And she was really uh she's kind of known as the uh queen of art deco uh painters, uh and there's the centennial uh of the art deco now. So it's uh it's really like I said, her moment is she she does these high gloss sensual nudes and portraits of high society uh during the jazz age, and she was you know marginalized like so many female artists, and and then she gained notoriety uh for her romantic liaisons uh and her models and her indulgent uh decadent lifestyle. But she was really so much more. Uh she was it it's an empowering story, um, a multi-talented, really brilliant artist. And she captured what I believe she hoped would be the the new future, you know, a new woman, a new man, and a new society, and and allowed us to really uh her her art spoke to the future. Uh, and through those paintings, you see that she was tormented by the events of the world, and she had to deal with ageism and sexism, and and she still had though this will to be great and to be seen, you know, in a world that didn't want to see women artists or Jewish people or LGBTQ people or anything that she was, you know, anything that was other. Um, but she still had that courage and she just broke down those barriers and she opened up doors for female artists and really for all artists and just kind of led them into this place where we can have creative choice. And I think um she puts that struggle and turmoil and and all that truth onto her canvas, and you can see that there, you can see that humanity. It stares at you and it's um exposing her secrets for I think all of us um to kind of witness. So just a really brave artist and a hero of her own story, and then she leaves behind this legacy that I believe really continues to inspire and captivate. Um, and I've I I would not have made this film without my team. Svetlana Svetko is our co-producer along with Neva Tassin, who's just been like my rock. And um, you know, my husband is also a co-producer, Jennifer Wallace, and I have a creative producer, Amy Harrison, and David Scott Smith edited, and Nikki Hauser also edited. And um my associate producer, I spoke with Daily and Malaga, which were nine hours apart, so you can just imagine. Uh Jorgen, Lily Felt, Windstrom, and um Atasha Nesbitt, and then my son, my son, he's uh worked so hard on this film and just uh editing and and doing all I mean, every hat you can imagine, this whole family, and without their support, this film would have never happened. And then, you know, I am the president of Women in Film San Francisco, so having uh my board support this and even the members, it's been extraordinary. And they're in kind. People have really donated their time in kind because we couldn't get funding. So it's just um it's been really a brilliant, amazing experience.

SPEAKER_00 8:04

Well, thanks for explaining a bit about who Tamara is. I must say I'm a huge fan of her work. And while you were explaining her, you talked a little bit about Art Deco, and there is a section of the film that covers Art Deco, and it's mentioned that Tamara recorded this time period in its own language. But for our guests who may not be, you know, art enthusiasts and um knowledgeable about Art Deco, I'm wondering if you could just explain in a really basic way what Art Deco is for anyone who may not be familiar with it.

SPEAKER_01 8:40

Um well, Art Deco is a style, it's um it's uh visually uh it's like a visual art, you know, it's it's architecture, it's design. Uh it first appeared in France and and just before World War uh one, and then it flourished internationally uh in the 20s and the 30s and in the 40s, and it it just characterizes these rich colors and really bold um geometry. It's uh got a lot of like delicate detail, uh but it's it's very avant-garde, you know, and uh Tamar's art is quite a quintessential example of that kind of style. It's it's uh distinguished by luxurious streamlines and um aesthetics. But you know, her art is so much more than just art deco. Uh, but you can see that that it features those sharp uh geometric shapes, you know, with uh it's it which you know that creates a sense of elegance and um modern. Um and then she additionally it's it's often I guess uh used um with um and like kind of an intense, vibrant colors, you know, and uh it it's dynamic, it's it's dramatic, it qual I I think her paintings uh definitely have those elements. And I guess another hallmark uh of her style is very glossy finishes, and um that applies to, you know, she applied to the canvas and um kind of a sculpture quality. Uh those elements combined uh her work, you know, it really kind of stands out as very uniquely Art Deco. And she was known as the queen of Art Deco. And that I think in that era, that was she was very ahead of her time. And um, like I said before, this year marks the hundred-year centennial of Art Deco, and there's been a notable resurgence in popularity. Uh, there was a recent article the other day in Vogue highlighting uh the revival discussing what is currently in, you know, and what is out in its design trends. And they pointed out that Art Deco is experiencing a significant comeback, um, you know, which is quite interesting timing-wise for tomorrow to be having these exhibitions, and then um for uh the film to also be coming out, it's very serendipitous that way. Um and I would argue that Art Deco never went out of style. Uh, for those that love it, you know, the style's more than just a trend, it's a commitment to innovation and really a way of thinking outside the box, you know. This chair doesn't have to just look like a chair. Um, this building doesn't have to just look like, you know, this boring building. And it just invites us to discover that there's more, you know, just what we're tradition more than what we're traditionally taught to think and feel. And it challenges that, you know, to redefine beauty in a in a functional way, um, but within our environments. And I think um tomorrow's art definitely challenges us to think outside of uh what we're traditionally taught is is um acceptable.

SPEAKER_00 12:25

Well, great. And anyone who would like to learn more about it should certainly watch your film. Um, so and they can um, you know, definitely see the examples depicted. So, how did you originally hear about Tamara's story and how did you begin the process of making the film?

SPEAKER_01 12:43

Oh gosh. Uh well, um, I was 21 years old and I um found myself um standing in a hotel in Miami because there's several little boutique hotels there, and I kind of stumbled into one, had breakfast with a friend, and um going through afterwards, there was this small kind of exhibition that had um her work, obviously copies of her work. But as I I walked through, I was just like, wow, I was captivated. It was, I don't know, just vibrant, sensual paintings. And I was like, who is this? And my friend he said, yes, Tamar Delampica. And her art was so bold and those colors and just those striking figures. It just really spoke to me in a way that was, you know, deeply personal. I was like, wow. And I I was told that day that Tamara's art was influenced by her relationships with both men and women, and that really struck a chord with me because I was like, What do you mean? You know, he said the word bisexual, and I was like, huh. And it was interesting because I had had girlfriends in the past, and I had even been in love with a woman before, and I but you know, and then I had boyfriends too, but I didn't really understand that there was bisexuality, that that existed because I grew up in a really small town and I was told you're either gay or you're straight, and that there's no in between. So I think as I explored Tamara's life further, I discovered her bisexuality uh because she was one of the first women to ever paint nudes, and she did have many relationships with the women that she was painting. And I just kind of not kind of, I I definitely recognized that same truth within myself. And it was just a moment of clarity, you know, and acceptance. And I think it highlights the importance of um representation, you know, that whole if you can see it, you know, like what you see, I don't know. It's just it's it's important and it it helped me to understand that love is love. And years later, I um I had just finished a screenplay years later, like gosh, probably 10 years later. Um uh I had written about the impressionist painters, about Monet, Monet, Degas, Ramois, Berth Morrison, Cassadin. I had made a short film about Degas's painting of the rape. It's also known as The Interior. And a friend of mine uh had seen it, and he worked at this gallery in San Francisco at Union Square, huge, huge gallery. But that they were going, it was called the Weinstein Gallery, and and they were gonna have a small exhibition. And he asked, he he because he had seen the film, he said, you know, uh, would you like to meet the Limpica family because they're they're gonna be here for this small exhibition of Tomorrow de Limpica's work? And um he said, you know, they're looking for a woman to to write a narrative screenplay, and they want to make a feature and they want a woman to direct it. And I was like, no way, because at that point we only had one percent of women directing, and so I was like, they're looking for someone, okay, I'm there. So I went, I met the family, and I instantly, I just as I was talking to them, um, I just instantly gosh, I was just thinking, like before I arrived, I was so sick. Like I didn't think I was gonna be able to make it. Um and I remember just walking in, and they were both just so calming and nice and down to earth and real. Um, and that was uh over 20 years ago. And so it just set me on this journey of writing this narrative and diving deep into her life and working closely with the family, gathering all the insights and just researching. There were things coming up all the time. And uh, you know, working with art historians and the collectors and fans and just years of research. So my passion for directing the project just really grew stronger and stronger. But I just really found that um, you know, after spending about 15 years attempting to secure that financing, that um for a narrative film about a life of a female um woman, artist, Jewish artist, bisexual artist, that I wasn't gonna be getting any funding, especially in a period piece. It just wasn't happening. And so um, you know, just so many women, uh, it's just a fact. We just don't get funding, uh, obtain the funding compared to male, our male counterparts. So that experience highlighted uh just this persistent uh disparity, you know, that was that just on my heart, and then just also just within the whole film industry. I was like, oh God, this isn't gonna happen. Um, but I kept trying, you know, for 15 years I tried off and on. You know, I even wrote uh another screenplay with her granddaughter, and uh she's so lovely, Victoria Dulumpica, and um really dug in. And then during the pandemic, my team and I decided to just pivot. We're like, you know what, let's make a documentary. Amy Hearst was like, why don't you just make a documentary? And I was like, you know what? You're right. Why don't we? So I, you know, I approached them and they were open to it. And we're in lockdown. So I'm thinking, like, is it at the end of the world? Like, does it is this even matter? But I have to say I'm really grateful because um I was one of the lucky ones, you know. I got to wake up every morning to Tamar D Olympica's artwork. It's exciting, it's really stimulating, and it it as she would say, you know, it vibrates you. You just like, whoa, what is this? And there's a story, you know, within each painting for each year where she's at. So I was one of the lucky ones, you know. I had something amazing to wake up to every day. Um, that didn't mean it still didn't suck, you know. I lost my mom and my best friend during that time and during making the film, and I dedicate the film to them. And um I really felt like she taught me how her art, her story, because she went through so many horrific things. Uh, you know, losing both of her countries from war and having to be a refugee, having to escape fascism, uh, losing husbands that had died and friends and family members that had died in the Holocaust, and you know, having to raise her daughter sometimes by herself, um, and be the breadwinner, you know. She went through so many things. And so I looked at that and I kind of was like, you know what, this is a roadmap, this is a mirror for me to understand that people have come before us and they've gone through horrific things, and I'm gonna be okay. And I just have to get up every day and put one foot in front of the other, and um, it's gonna be okay. You know, we each get a turn being hit in the head with a two by four. And it's nice to know that there are other people before us that have made it through, and their stories are important, their stories show us how to navigate, you know. So I really am fortunate for that.

SPEAKER_00 20:27

Well, Julie, listening to you talk, there's so many parallels with uh my experience. As you know, I directed a film about the female artist Kusama and um Love it. Oh, thank you. And I was also exposed to her work in my early 20s and spent nearly two decades working to get a film about her. So um I can relate to so much of what you're saying and the problems with the funding and everything. I mean, I I wish that some of the celebrities that collect um this kind of work would put together fund for women um directors to make films about these people. You know, they have such amazing stories, but alas, no such fund exists. And it's just really such an uphill battle to get funding for these kinds of films. And um I really also would love to give a shout out to the her family for standing by your side and not deciding to, you know, dump you for uh uh, you know, some hotshot male director who maybe could get financing better because um, you know, in the end, you can just see how much, you know, passion went into making this film. And it's just, you know, an absolute work of art. And and so, you know, I'm glad that you had a, you know, that kind of support. Um thank you.

SPEAKER_01 21:42

Yeah, and it and it's not always easy with the family because you know, I I had to go to the family and say, you know what, we're not going to be doing a narrative anymore. So this isn't a team decision. This is one cook in the kitchen making the decision at the end of the day. Um, because with documentaries, you know, you're not paying people uh to interview them. And so sometimes they're not gonna say the things you like um and that the family would necessarily like. But in the end, I was um I was very fortunate to still have a a great relationship with them. Um, and fortunate that um they really felt like Tamara would uh I think it was Marissa said, I think she's watching from above and she's quite happy with the film. You know, and that doesn't mean they were happy with everything in the film, you know, the the the entire family. It it just means that they felt like she would be, and that was important enough to them to give a nod, which was really, you know, um it was it was it was great, you know.

SPEAKER_00 22:51

Yeah, well, I think um, you know, uh an audience really should appreciate what it what it is for a family to see a film made about someone they love and and yeah, that can be challenging, but it is a just a beautiful film. So you did a great job. And and I'm wondering what's the most surprising thing you learned about tomorrow during the making of the film?

SPEAKER_01 23:12

Oh gosh. Great question. Just really, you know, that depth of her strategic thinking. It was astonishing. I don't know if you saw the eight millimeter, but even how she dressed, you know, when she was in Venice, she's got this big hat on with her grandchildren walking in Venice, you know, just dressed impeccably. And that wasn't on accident. You know, she was creating her own image. She was uh creating this art, but crafting a brand. And uh I think in a time when women are so overlooked at you know, at that time, um, and now uh and overlooked in the arts, um our groundbreaking research, you know, that we were able to unveil, um, and that was unveiled to uh uh finding out that you know her name, her real name, Tamara Rose Horowitz, and that she had to convert from Judaism to Calvinism, uh, and that her family, you know, had to convert the children, and that she actually has a different birthday, and that she wasn't born May June 16th, uh, 1898, that she actually was born June 16th, 1894, uh, with a completely different name. And that, you know, those are revelations, I think, that were really profound and and really helped understanding her life and her work and add layers uh to her and how she had to navigate such really choppy times, scary times, horrific times, uh, you know, having to navigate losing everything through two wars, knowing that she's Jewish, and you know, signing her name as a man, signing her name as a different person, um, becoming someone else in order to, you know, not just uh get the deal, but in order to pass, in order to survive. Um, and I think that that was previously obscured. It was she was marginalized and she was um kind of like put up as this pinup girl and kind of oversexualized. Um, these discoveries I think clarify that Tamara was not just a liar, um, but that she was strategically navigating her identity, you know, to protect herself and her family during really horrific times. Um, and that insight, I think, reframes her actions, not as deceit and you know, she's such a liar, she's so vain. She said that, you know, she was young, she was, she pretended she was younger because of the vanity. She was so vain, but really that she was trying to survive and casting her in a light that um I think shows her resilience and her adaptability in face of real danger. Um, I think that that is profound uh to show that this woman had the ability to navigate all of that and also put both of her, but you know, put her child through school and then her child her her daughter Kizette's children and and help pay for their lives, that she was an artist that actually she made she had a she had I I don't want to say she just made a living, she she actually was doing fantastically well financially. Um and most artists don't ever get to experience that while they're alive. And and she especially as a woman, and she wasn't married to a man that was a great artist and got a leg up, like so many other female artists have have had in in the past, not to diminish them, um, because it's a small circle, and of course, you know, there's love in that circle, but she didn't have that, so she was navigating her her branding, her, her business, um, and her survival all at the same time. And um, that's you know, really remarkable, and knowing when to leave, you know, she read six different papers, she spoke several different languages, she knew what was happening with Hitler. She understood that what she had gone through losing everything in the Russian Revolution was happening again, and so she was able to get out and get her husband out that was Jewish and and openly Jewish, um, and sell things slowly so that she could get out. She flee, was fleeing. Um, but she did it in a very quiet and strategic way. And um that's uh unfortunately happening again. You know, we have a lot of things in history that are repeating itself. So um she was smart enough to understand that history repeats itself and get out when she needed to.

SPEAKER_00 28:50

It's interesting to hear you talk about how she, you know, carried herself as a female artist. And there's so many parallels with other uh early artists like Frida Kahlo and even Kusama, that not only did they make amazing work, but they um carry themselves in a way that, you know, if they walked into a room, they just had this magnetic appeal. You can really see that with her. And um, I'm wondering, um, you know, you mentioned, unlike a lot of women artists, Tamara was successful during her lifetime. And one of the things she purchased with her earnings was actually jewelry, but there were reasons for this that had nothing to do with vanity. And I was wondering if you could just talk a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_01 29:33

Um well, you know, as you know, there were um horrible things going on um with the persecution of the Jews, and she knew uh what was coming with Hitler. She knew after dealing with the Russian Revolution that when things shift like that and they're coming for you, you know, maybe at first they're coming for your your neighbor, or they're coming for someone down the street, but when they finally are coming for you, you're not gonna know it necessarily. And so she knew this, and she knew that the jewelry w w each bracelet w was a way of um of making sure that she could flee at any moment, at any time, and that she would have that security, and they would sew them into the clothes so that um they would be able to financially, you know, take care of themselves. And so, you know, she used to tell Marissa, uh Marissa tells a story of how she was in Cornovaca with her grand or great-grandmother, and she tells her a story of how you know she she wanted nice things again, and she would paint and she would paint and she would paint, and she would sell her paintings until she would have nice things again, and she would buy herself a bracelet, she told Marissa, and she said, and I told myself that I wouldn't stop until I had bracelets from here to here, and that was on her wrist, this huge amount. And there are pictures where she has all of these bracelets, and um, you know, someone could look at that and think she's superficial, but really it was a survival mechanism. And I look at the bangles and the bracelets of women throughout the world, and I think of them in a very different way now.

SPEAKER_00 31:31

Um, if you could time travel and have coffee with Tamara, do you have an outstanding question you would love to ask her?

SPEAKER_01 31:39

Oh gosh. Um gosh, that one was really hard for me. Um well, I mean, there's so many things I'd like to know. I think um if if I think she I would like to know what she feels about the climate right now. You know, what's happening? How how history does seem to be repeating itself again. Um that to me is something that I I would like to know what she thinks about because um you know, she lived through all of this at once, and and we're living through some really choppy waters right now. And so I think that she would be able to um, you know, I don't know, just have a sense of what to do, what not to do kind of thing. Um but I I I also think I I'd like to ask her um what she thinks of the film. You know, is she okay with it? Uh it's it's her art up there for the world to see. Many of her drawings and photographs and things that people had never seen before. So yeah, I I get the impression that you know, this is a place where she gets to um see her work, you know, completely laid out for the whole world to see. And how does she feel about seeing it all there? Um because what a life, you know, that you're judged just on your your your kind of um prime moment in your life, you know, not the beginning art, not the end art, which is just so sad because we have a whole life that we live, and we have so much ageism, you know. So I I'd like to ask her about how you know she feels about getting to see her art celebrated in one place.

SPEAKER_00 33:50

Well, it would certainly be fun to have that opportunity to to meet with her. The art in the film is just so incredible, and at times you added animation to it. And I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about that process.

SPEAKER_01 34:04

Oh, the animation. So Tamar's art, you know, it was uh it's it's so bright, you know, and it's so bold. But we had to be really careful because um I didn't want it to look cheesy, you know, you're messing with a masterpiece, uh, and you're adding movement, and um, you're taking these static images and you're that that are not lacking in any way, and you're trying to make them um more. Uh, so it was definitely carefully maintained. And uh I wanted there to, you know, be an integrity of the original work while just adding a dynamic, just kind of visual element that's just slight. Uh so a slight movement of the hair, a slight movement of the arm or the dress. So it wasn't um it wasn't uh over the top by any means. And I think that she would have been okay with it. And I think that the the family was okay with it. I think uh other people I've talked to, they were okay with it. It we we just didn't want it to come across as um as cheesy, if that makes sense.

SPEAKER_00 35:20

Yeah, it adds a little bit of movement and life and so forth. So, but of course, everyone has their own opinions about these things. I'm also wondering, do you have a favorite painting by Tamara? And if so, which one is it?

SPEAKER_01 35:35

Oh gosh. Um I guess a portrait of Ira Perot. It's um Ira was uh Tamara's best friend, but she was also her her love of her life. It was her lover, her love. Uh, and their relationship was deeply um significant. And uh the more I dug into that, I the more I found out that um she was a constant source of inspiration. Tamara painted her uh over 10 times and drew her. And this that painting is particularly special, also um uh it captures uh era's physical appearance in a way that a lot of her paintings you can see in the eyes, they're kind of dead, as Eden Espinoza and I were talking about recently. Um, when we were in New York, uh, when we when we opened up at Lincoln Center there and had our New York premiere, and we were talking about how dead the eyes are. But when you look into Ira's eyes, there's this physical appearance there that's just like so alive, so soulful, so depthful, and just really encapsulates that emotion, that intimacy, and that connection that they shared. And it's just so vibrant, it's like really intimate and um you and apparent, you know, that this woman meant a lot to her, and that there was a lot of passion there and several of her paintings of Ira. And um I I was really like I said, I I worked with Barbara Streisand um on her section of the film, um, and she lent me her high resolutions, and she used to own Ira Perot. And so um that also was really important to me that visually, you know, that uh we represented that properly and and made sure that uh and important to to Barbara that it we had that high resolution, that integrity there. Um and uh I think you know that adds a historical allu to that particular painting. But I also have a personal connection to that piece because I have a drawing of Ira that is uh ink uh and and gouache on uh paper that um I I won the auction at Christie's uh in Paris, uh not this last November, but the November before. And it holds just like this amazing place now in my heart. It's uh drawing of her of Ira. And it's called Era, and it says era I R A on one side, and the other side says era backwards. Um, and it Tamara's favorite uh jewelry was pearls, and she's wearing pearls, and she's holding a um a lily, and um she she looks kind of sad, but and you know, they were separated by the war, and Tamara would go back and and still had her studio there and still see her, but they were separated, and Tamara was living in the States once she left. You know, she had moved to Beverly Hills and then later to New York for 15 years and then to Houston and you know, Carnovaca, Mexico. So they were separated, but she would go back and see her. But in this particular painting, you can see she's smiling, but she looks sad, and so we've loaned that to the exhibition, and it was in San Francisco, and it was part of the irresection that they made. They made an irresection after watching our film. Um they would have had an irresection, anyways, but they kind of understood, I think, the romantic and depthful relationship a little bit more from the film and um all the research and all the the interviews that we did where people really helped give us those connections. So that's the long answer. Sorry, it's so long, but I really do care about that.

SPEAKER_00 39:58

Yeah, it's great to hear about your favorite. My favorite is the one, the self-portrait in the green car. I just love that one. It's just great. And your opinion, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:08

So in the green Bugatti, and in in that is our poster. So that that is that, and actually, so is Era. So those are our two posters. So you got a good eye. Um, you've done this before. I I see. Uh that also the Eras are all traveling, that exhibition's traveling to Houston, too. So um people in Houston will be able to see that exhibition of Tamara's work soon.

SPEAKER_00 40:32

Can you please talk a bit about how much Tamara's work currently sells for and how much art by the top female artists sell for in general versus the top art by men?

SPEAKER_01 40:45

Ah, great question. Um, Tamara's work has uh it's it's fetched millions uh at auctions, and it's that really, you know, underscores the status uh, you know, of her as the third most valuable female artist just um behind Frida Calla and George O'Keefe. And uh despite you know that recognition, uh, there's a significant gender gap that still remains in the art market. So Roland Weinstein in our film, he's a collector, um, and was interviewed uh and also uh owns a Tomorrow Dolympica, he discusses uh this um at length, you know, for instance, her painting of uh Marjorie Ferry, it sold for$21 million. And so that's you know how she got the ranking of the third most valuable. Actually, at that point, she was the second most valuable, but then Frida had a painting that sold. Um, so you know, showcasing that high demand, you know, for her work. Wow, wow, this is really significant, right? Really puts her up there. Um, but the prices commanded by top male artists are typically much higher. And I'm talking millions and millions of dollars higher. And it's a stark disparity when you're comparing the market value. So you might need to review, let's say, hundreds, even, you know, like I said, thousands of uh male artists, you know, before you actually get to the top female artists uh that have uh that are auctioning for significantly less. Which actually, you know, if you think about it, when and if female artists become popular, you're going to actually probably get yourself a steal there if you were to invest in female art. Uh but so Tamara was exceptional in that she archived uh this uh, I mean, sorry, that she achieved, you know, this level of success. And um, that's that's really great. And she also, Roland talks about in the film that she uh didn't, she wasn't married to a very famous male artist, which so many women have been. Um, and that doesn't take a away from them. It's a small community of people, but um just the fact that she stood on her loan, uh, she stood, she had to stand alone uh in and making uh and she wasn't a she she struggled throughout her life, but she actually had wealth as an artist during her life. That's shocking, uh, and really uh was the breadwinner in her family. So um, you know, Annie uh Patty is in the film, and uh I interview her. She talks about the fact that uh, you know, there's this new auction that's going to be happening at Christie's, you know, and her and I were uh talking about this that's actually happening uh in real life, uh this Dr. Picard painting. It's really an iconic painting. And he was one of tomorrow's biggest collectors, and this auction is coming up on March 5th, and uh it's going to be really interesting to see uh how much this painting goes for. And uh we both predict that it will go for over 20 million, maybe 25 million. You know, all the the market is, you know, starting to acknowledge uh just beginnings uh to recognize female artists more equitably uh equitably. Um, but there's still a long way to go, you know. So we're millions of dollars apart when it comes to equity.

SPEAKER_00 44:23

Well, thank you for explaining that. And earlier you talked a little bit about the challenges of um, you know, with regards to your attempt to fund a uh narrative film about the artist and that you changed to making a documentary. But funding a documentary um at this level is also not um easy. And I wonder if you could talk a little bit about how you funded the film.

SPEAKER_01 44:49

Wow, yeah, securing funding for female uh filmmakers that is just statistically it's so significantly less, anywhere from like 96 to 98 percent of all funding goes to men. So it's uh was definitely the the the most horrific challenge. Like it really. We it it was it was mind-bending. You're just sitting there going, Are you kidding me? And we I applied to probably over 30 to 50 grants, and we received none, which initially seemed like uh a huge barrier and made me feel like we couldn't do this, you know. Um, but I found just innovative ways to gather the necessary resources. So, you know, during the pandemic, we had like a Zoom fundraiser uh where we had Eden Espinoza and we had my friend from The Voice, who's Paul Merkovich, uh, come perform and we did an auction and auctioned off a couple posters and books, and that helped. And then, you know, I had this unbelievable uh lucky day where Barbara Streisand's uh right hand person answered the phone, and uh she agreed, uh she was busy writing her book, but she agreed to lend her high-resolution collection of Lumpica's work that she owned. And so that was uh incredible uh to have her. Uh, you know, she's so significant in in the film world with producing, directing, and uh every world, uh, and for her to, you know, provide us with that rare access. And then she also participated in the editing process for her section. For over eight months, she just really made sure that the depth and the accuracy of her section of the film um and really enhanced it, uh, the quality, you know, and she just made it more significant and really taught me a lot and made me feel like I was doing what I was supposed to be doing with this film, you know. Um, and then Angelica Houston lent her voice and her personal stories of uh wearing tomorrow's jewelry to the Oscars because she had acted and was played Tamara in the longest-running play in Los Angeles, and she played Tamara Delempica. So uh Jack Nicholson was with her at the time, and he had given her this jewelry that she ended up wearing to the Oscars, and she lent uh her her voice um and allowed us her narrative into the film. So, you know, those are multi-millions of dollars worth of uh of time and in and contribution. But then, you know, I had Chris Martin, he did all of our coloring for free, he's an amazing colorist, and just my I told you, my family, my husband's my co-producer, my son, but such a powerhouse of women. I mentioned everybody's names earlier. Um, and you know, working with like Jorgen, Lily Felt, Woodstrom on a daily basis in Malaga, that was crazy. Nine hours ahead, and we're just making it work. Um, so you know, so much in kind, and and that that came out to millions of dollars and in kind. I would say probably five million, and we're probably going on six when it comes to distribution, when it comes to like us, you know, touring the this film around. Um, and so um that that community backing, uh, and then I couldn't have done it without women in film, you know. I I'm the president of Women in Film San Francisco. So having the Bay Area and having these women support this project and come out and support me and support the project and support independent film was absolutely uh uh breathtakingly uh beautiful. And and just my board is amazing, could not be doing this without my board.

SPEAKER_00 48:45

Yeah, these grants, I think a lot of people don't understand how challenging it is to get them and they're they're so competitive. But on top of that, a lot of the top organizations who fund documentary film, they don't even allow you to submit applications for biographical films. And it's really unfortunate because I feel like they're contributing to having um these trailblazers, you know, written out of history because you can't get the funding to tell the story. So it's just it's a really unfortunate thing. But um, in any event, could you talk a little bit about the process of getting the film out into the world? I mean, anyone working in the film industry right now knows, you know, in the indie indie um film space that the distribution landscape has is just rapidly changing. And I I wonder if you could just talk a little bit about your experience.

SPEAKER_01 49:38

Yeah, I mean, getting this film out to audiences uh has been intense, you know, it's been rewarding, but it's been intense. It it took about four and a half years to to make, as I said. And you know, with no grants, it's just like you're what, you know, funding is just like not there. You're sitting there going, oh my God, so how are we gonna do distribution? And um, you know, my my co-producers, my husband and uh Blake Willen, and he just has played such a crucial role in in these efforts and like just on a daily basis, reaching out to um, you know, different uh organizations, film festivals, embassies, museums, and really uh booking us. So we've been booked into um, you know, we opened up, we premiered at Mill Valley and we sold out there. We we played at the Roxy, six uh screenings in San Francisco. That was amazing. Um, mostly sold out. So that's crazy. And then the Dee Young Museum included us in the exhibition of Tamardi Lampica's um very first retrospective, and our film was sold out there. So that was just it's all incredible. Uh, just recently we spoke at the Art Deco Society in New York, and then we premiered in New York at the um the Lincoln Center. So that was extraordinary, you know, for the New York Jewish Film Festival and the New York Museum. Put that on, and that felt incredible. Uh, two screenings all sold out, and then in between, just walking around Lincoln Center, going, Oh my god, I'm here. Um, that was probably just one of the best moments of my whole life. Um, and then we just played San Diego. We're playing Maine coming up in March, and Aspen Film Festival is having a um screening on March 4th at five o'clock. Um, and Marissa and I will be there and we're gonna do a QA. And then the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston will be there. Uh, that's March 15th, and the film will be there for April 5th as well. And then there's a small theater where tomorrow used to go in Houston called the River Oaks. It's gonna play there, pre-theatrical there. And then we're premiering in uh at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and then the Washington, D.C., where we're gonna be playing in um the Polish Embassy there at the JJ Festival. That's in May. And then the Baker Museum, we're gonna be playing there as well as the Jewish Film Festival there, and then Crokow Poland, which is extraordinary because she is kind of the queen of Poland, so that's amazing. And then Estonia is doing the fashion film festival, and then Tel Aviv LGBTQ, which is really important to us that the LGBTQ community sees this film, and that's in Israel. Um, and then Paris. So we're going to a shaded view on fashion and film in France. So that's gonna be in November, and then 10 cities in Australia. So that's just the beginning. We have so many other people we're talking to, museums and embassies and uh schools, and uh we'll the whole industry is really kind of cracked apart. And you know, we've had the fires, we had the strikes, we've had so much against us. Now we have AI. The industry has changed and distribution has changed, and self-distribution isn't such a dirty word anymore. Um, we are in talks with major distribution companies, um, but we want to make sure we get a really good deal because this we don't want this film just put up on a shelf. And the more people that see it and the more that we tour it and the more that we're actually there representing it, we really feel that people will be able to um, you know, request this film and that we'll be able to make sure that this film gets proper distribution. My last film sold to HBO, so I'd I'd really like to do something with them, but I'm open, you know, Netflix isn't such a bad place. It's a great place. So, you know, we're really open to to going and and screening this film, all these different places and seeing what ends up happening. But if we have to do self-distribution, we'll do that as well. The world wants this film. It's it's definitely Tomorrow D'Alempica's time.

SPEAKER_00 53:48

Well, I applaud you for all the um hard work you're putting into getting the film out there. And um while we're on this topic, since you'll be adding new um, you know, dates and screenings and so forth, could you go ahead and please share with us your website, the social media handles that are relevant to this film and your personal uh website also and and social handles if you'd like to share them?

SPEAKER_01 54:12

Yes, of course, that's so important. So for those that are interested in staying updated, um the our website is uh www.tamara doc. So it's t-a-m-a-r-a-doc. And then uh our Instagram is Tamara Delimpica doc do c. So Tamara D-Limpica Doc. And then uh we also have a Facebook. Um my personal Facebook's Julie Colleen Rubio, and then I also have we have the gallery that uh Jorgen is the founder of, and that we have is our uh Facebook. So it's the Tamara D Limpica Gallery. We have 52,000 followers there, we have 12,000 on Instagram. So we answer, I answer questions. I'm constantly on their DMing. So if you have any questions there, and then if you go to our website, um, the Tomorrow Doc, you will find in our announcements that we announce, uh, you know, constantly updating our screenings and making sure that that way people know where we're we're playing next.

SPEAKER_00 55:18

Great. And I wanted to ask you too, how did you get into filmmaking in the first place?

SPEAKER_01 55:24

Oh wow. Um so you know, I was a um I was, you know, I was born in Los Angeles, so and I went to acting school there, and then I went to Lee Straussburg in London and in New York for producing and directing. And I just was drawn, you know, to acting, but also eventually, you know, the producing, the directing, be being behind the camera. And then I had always written, I'd written my whole life. So producing my own projects uh was really um I I felt like was something that you know was uh under uh under represented with women, you know. So uh I have a funny story. The first time I was ever directing, I was supposed to just be producing uh a short film called Impression, because you know, I've been writing this uh this piece for six years uh about uh the impressionist painters, and uh I had realized no one was giving me uh$20 million as a first female director when there's only one percent of women directing at the time. So I decided I'll just do the short myself. So it was about Degas's painting of the rape, and it was also been called the interior. So I had hired a female producer, and um also um I was producing on it, and then she was uh also gonna direct. And so there was like, I don't know, about four hours of her and this actor on set that was playing Degas fighting, and we hadn't even got a first shot off yet. And, you know, this is a narrative. Uh so I'm sitting there going, oh my God, we only have this location for 24 hours, and we've already lost four hours of this. And everyone's tired, you know, and there's just what are we gonna do? And next thing I know, she quits. She walks out, she's like, I'm leaving. And I I walked out there, I begged her, I was like, Don't do this. I said, you know, I'm a woman, you're a woman. Like, let's like, let's not do this. Like, we have to support each other here. And she said, I can't deal with him. I I'm leaving. And so she she she just left. And I just said, Okay, it was like three o'clock in the morning at that time. And I was like, Okay, I have an entire set of 15 actors, 25 extras, you know, it's three. I gotta go. And I literally pulled up an apple box, you know, and I had done, I had done my homework. I had done, I had uh completed uh my producing and my directing in in school, but you know, here I am, this is a real deal. And so I just started, I said action, let's go. And I got that in the can. And I was very pleased with how it looked for my first film, and it went to film festivals, and you know, I just really I wasn't going to walk away from that challenge. And um, you know, I I really felt at that time it sucked that, you know, a male actor felt like he could do that um to a female director. Uh, and and now I wouldn't have put up with that for a moment. Um, but it it did turn out that one of the reasons why she walked out that day was because she had breast cancer. And she decided that was more important the healing process than having to deal with this schmuck on set, you know. So I really understood where she came from, but she really saved my life because she gave me that gift of feeling like you know, I could do it and didn't have time to think, oh, I'm an imposter. I just I just went. And from that point on, I've always written and directed and produced and and obviously could not do this without my team. I've mentioned that before, but honestly, my team's amazing, and you you can't do the filmmaking without you know the band. It's it the band doesn't play alone, you're not the only person in the band. And so it's amazing to work with such qualified, amazing women. And then, you know, if you're in my family, you're you're you're having to make film. You have no choice. Even though my son works for Meta also, but he um and owns his own side company. He he gets forced into all my stuff all the time and helping me. So I'm really lucky to I have such a a powerful team.

SPEAKER_00 59:44

Wow, that's quite a story of your uh directorial debut. I I enjoyed hearing that. So you're the president of women in film up in San Francisco, and I'm wondering how do you juggle that with your own filmmaking career, which you know, also I I would add includes your own life and being a mother. So that's a lot to juggle. And I wonder if you could just talk a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:10

Yeah, I I um it's a good question. Some days I'm like, what am I doing? How am I doing that? I I couldn't do it without my board. I have such a great board of directors um who handle so much and and and take on uh so much that that it just feels like I can maintain a balance, you know, because they're they're so amazing. Um I think it's challenging uh having actual film career that's you know doing something right this second. It it's it it's um it feels very scary some days, but it's I think all about time management and prioritizing the projects and then just kind of aligned uh aligning that with um with my values, you know. Like I used to put my head down and not come up for air because I can hyper focus. I'm dyslexic. Um and I really feel and and I have this my one of my superpowers is like I am able to hyperfocus. But one of the things I realized was I don't have to just do the work, I have to do the people, like I have to connect to the people, I have to love my family, I have to love my friends, and and I'm not always so balanced with that. So I pull myself out a lot. And if I have a rule, like if a person comes in and they won't have a question, like my son or my husband, like I everything else goes off. And it's like, what do you need? Because and they get full attention because it's um you have to pick people over this thing, and it's this thing is it's magic, this thing is powerful, this thing is the most powerful medium we have in the world, and it is the we it it can start wars and it can end wars, and it's a huge responsibility, um, what you produce and what you put out to the world, and so you know, um it pulls you in, it sucks you in, it eats you, and you're like gone. If you if it's a calling for you, you're in. And uh I don't think uh that's always a good thing. Sometimes I think you have to balance it, you have to pull out, you have to be there with your family and ground so that you can give again, you know.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:51

And um, that's great advice. I'm also wondering what what advice would you give to first-time filmmakers?

SPEAKER_01 1:02:58

Oh gosh, I think we were talking about this before. Um I just would say don't do it, no kidding. Although I've talked to quite a few people that say that. Um I don't know. I think when you're embarking on this career, it's really not for the faint of heart. It's um perhaps one of the most challenging and you know, rewarding paths one can take. Um, one can choose because it's a choice. But don't romanticize this industry, you know, it's tough, especially as a woman still. And it's just and it's getting worse. Um and it's it's unforgiving, and and it's just it's a big challenge. So I would hope, you know, even uh post-me too, that that things get better, but uh the business side of this, it just remains gritty and imbalanced and uh lack of equity. Uh and it's it's just you don't get the same funding, you don't get the same pay, it's stark. But if it's a calling, you know, and you really feel that, you know, don't give up your day job. But if it's a calling, then you gotta do it, right? So because you can uh you you can if you can't imagine doing anything else, then okay, fine, just go ahead and do it and then pursue it, pursue it with your heart. But then I would definitely say, um, you know, don't like shy away and be like, oh, I have to have everything perfect. Like, just go be messy, go be dirty, go take your phone, make a film, you know, and uh experiments, see what works, learn AI, explore with using AI and all of the technology advancements and that are at your disposal, but learn AI. It's the most important thing right now. It's not going away. And I know that there's a lot of controversy, and I agree with a lot of things that you're thinking right now about AI, but it's not going away. And, you know, somebody the other day asked me if I would get off of uh a particular um social media that we've built like a really big um uh following. And I said no, because we're one of the good ones at the table. So, you know, we can't just go away. And AI, if you don't learn it, you will go away. It is like electricity has landed, and you are saying, I don't want to use electricity. Well, I'm sorry, you're going to use electricity, it's going to run you over. So get ready. And so make sure you're learning that because you will become a dinosaur very, very fast if you do not jump in. And um, you know, just don't expect this to be easy. It's not going to be an easy path. And the industry is so imperfect, it's just it's unbalanced, but it's uh also full of really great opportunities that um, you know, that allow you to meet some make something uh meaningful. So just learn as much as you possibly can. Just learn, learn, learn, learn, learn. And you be the change, you know. Just hire qualified women, write powerful stories for women, put them in your scripts, and just make change happen and know that you can and just go after that passion.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:28

Well, that's excellent advice as well. So thank you for that. And um, I always hesitate to ask filmmakers about their next projects, knowing that it's a full-time job to distribute a film. But if you are working on anything new that you would like to share with our audience, of course, we would love to hear about it.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:47

Yeah, I mean, my mind's always running forward too, like, what am I going to do next? And I've written quite a few screenplays that are sitting on my desk. One's Impression, it took six years to write. I have another one called Mass Truth, and then I have this one called One. Um, and it's based on uh this real situation at Harvard that completely blew my mind years ago. You know, at Harvard, 50% of your grade depends on your. Class participation. And if you, if you don't speak up, you know, if you're raising your hand and you're not speaking up, then you're not going to get the same credit. But uh something strange was happening. They were realizing that in the graduate program that women weren't graduating with the same honors as men as when they first came in. So they did it like an experiment. They put monitors into the classrooms, and this really happened. So they they observed that and found that women weren't being called on as often when they were raising their hands. And uh the professors, male and female, and the students, they weren't remembering what they said. Um so that's even worse, right? Like, okay, finally you're chosen, and you know, male and female students and teachers don't recall what you've said and what your contributions are. So um they were able to eradicate that. And that was pretty amazing. And so when I looked at that, I just kind of was like, wait a minute, that means, you know, imagine you're a little girl, you're raising your hand in class, and no one really is hearing you. Um, and imagine happening that your whole life, that when you finally get to an institution like Harvard, that this is continuing to happen. You know, it's gonna, it's gonna make you realize that you live in a world that's kind of shrinking you down. Um, and it's it's beyond a subtle bias, you know. But so I I figure, you know, here's the hopeful part of the film. It's like, um, so it's it's about this Latina that lives up in Harvard and I mean lives in um in Napa, and she goes, she gets into Harvard from really hard work, and she learns about this um issue, and she becomes part of of solving the issue and and helping change it, like they really did at Harvard. And, you know, just by they found that just by making people aware of the biases, and uh she's she realizes that there's um this power in awareness and and that you know, people don't necessarily all they're not all bad, they want to be better, they want to know that they're doing this to one another, and that women can do this to each other, you know, even more sometimes than men can. So that we're kind of holding each other down. So if we're only listening, you know, to half of the voices in the room, we're only getting half the answers. And and I don't know about you, but I think we you know, we need all the answers. Like, how are we gonna solve uh some of the major issues that we're we have today? You know, how are we gonna cure cancer if we're only listening to half of the answers? So this film's just about it's it's not just about like Harvard classroom, it's uh it's about how we all have these blind spots and how once we see them, we can actually do something about them. And um, you know, I know we're like eradicating DEI and and uh you know we're we're saying like let's let's it's all fair, it's all fair, let's not focus on this anymore. But statistically, we're 51% women i in the room. We're 51% now. And so, you know, hey, if you don't want to do it because it's fair, you know, you don't want to do DEI because oh, that's fair. Uh, and that's you know, that's that's diversity, you know. So fine, you don't want to do that, fine. You know, you live in a capitalistic country, you know, maybe you want to make more money. So, as sad as that may sound, you're gonna make more money if you listen to 51% of the voices in the room. And guess what? Your garden is going to be better if it's diversed. That's just nature, that's just common sense, that's just reality. And so if you can't do it because it's fair, do it because you want to make more money. And since we live in this capitalistic country, that's kind of my solution to this issue is start listening, start listening to everybody in your room, especially if you own a company. Um, and make sure if you're on a set that you're hiring, you know, and you're not just putting men as extras in your background, you're you're putting women in your as your extras in your background, and that you're not just writing, you know, these stories uh of keeping women down. Um, so it's it's a it's it's a positive, fun story that takes place in Napa and then moves to Harvard and it comes back to Napa. There's a little love story in the middle, but we'll see what happens with that.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:48

Well, thank you so much for sharing all of that. And I think that's a great place to wrap up today. But thank you so much, Julie, for taking time out of your schedule to you know share um all of this great information with our audience. We really appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01 1:12:04

Thank you both so much. And Heather, I just absolutely love your film. Everyone needs to go and see it. It's an important film, and uh, you're an important uh person. Uh, and what you're doing really matters. So thank you from the bottom of my heart and from my team for listening to us because not everybody listens to independent film, and we've been really fortunate. So thanks so much.

SPEAKER_00 1:12:29

Oh gosh, thank you so much for your kind words. I really appreciate it. And thanks everyone for listening. Yes, thank you, the audience.