Melissa Sweazy, Co-Director
"Three years ago I took a tour of the Grief Center, and before setting foot inside the building, I was nervous, like the pain might be contagious. But then I got there, saw this beautiful building, met staff who all had smiles on their faces, and I was deeply moved by their commitment to help those suffering. Before leaving that day, I knew I wanted to make a movie that addressed people just like me, the ones who might see the words “grief center” or “grief camp” and run the other direction. Our culture may not make a lot of room for people to experience grief, but the Grief Center and their subsequent camps welcome the bereaved in their many kaleidoscopic forms. This movie is a tribute to those suffering loss, those accompanying them on that journey, and the tremendous hope and healing experienced by all." - Melissa Sweazy, Co-Director
Melissa Anderson Sweazy is an award-winning screenwriter, filmmaker (Indie Memphis Best Hometowner Short for "John's Farm," Indie Memphis Best Homeowner Doc Short “AJ,” Special Jury Prize for Best Ensemble at Oxford Film Festival for "Department of Signs"), music video director, and professional photographer based in Memphis, TN. She is the recipient of the Indie Memphis Grizzlies Grant for her animated short “Stephanie Loves the Grizzlies.” Her commercial work for corporate clients have won her Emmy nominations and multiple Addy award wins. Her essays have been published in Dirt is Good For You (Babble Press), McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and she delivered a Tedx Memphis talk entitled “If You Love Them Let Them Go: A Hypocrite’s Guide to Free Range Parenting.” You can see and read about her work at melissasweazy.com
Laura Jean Hocking, Co-Director
"In our first meeting with Angela Hamblen-Kelly and Baptist in February of 2015, I told them we wanted to make a movie about life not death, about living not dying. I hope that presenting a 'grief movie' that is sobering, but also funny and wise, can help the audience approach grief and grieving in a fresh light." - Laura Jean Hocking, Co-Director
Laura Jean Hocking is a Memphis filmmaker best known for producing and editing Antenna (2012 Indie Memphis Audience Choice Best Documentary Feature and Special Jury Award, 2013 Oxford FIlm Festival Special Jury Award) and Automusik Can Do No Wrong (2004 Indie Memphis Best Hometowner Feature) as well as the popular feature Eat (2006) with her husband C. Scott McCoy and Oddly Buoyant Productions. In 2012 she worked with filmmaker Morgan Jon Fox on director Craig Brewer’s "Indie Origins" as well as the special features for The Poor and Hungry Blu-Ray/DVD. Since 2013 she has worked with Grammy winning writer/director Robert Gordon (Best of Enemies, Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story) on various projects, including Peter Guralnick’s enhanced e-book of Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock'n' Roll, the special features for the Best of Enemies Blu-Ray/DVD, and most recently “A Boy From Tupelo” for Sony Music. In 2015 she edited several episodes of Morgan Jon Fox’s web series "Feral." Also in 2015 she completed editing and associate producing Bad, Bad Men for Old School Pictures, assistant editing “Carbike” for Cat & Fish Productions, winner of the 2014 Indie Grant from Indie Memphis and editing bonus material for the Best of Enemies DVD/Blu-Ray. She and C. Scott McCoy won the 2015 Indie Grant from Indie Memphis for their short film “How to Skin a Cat"; “AJ", which she co-directed with Melissa Anderson Sweazy won the 2016 Indie Memphis Jury prize for Best Hometowner Documentary Short. In December 2016 she and Sarah Fleming won one of the inaugural Grizz Grants, a collaboration between the Memphis Grizzlies and Indie Memphis. She is currently editing the comedy/horror feature Cold Feet.
Sarah Fleming, Co-Producer, Director of Photography
For over a decade Sarah has worked as a filmmaker and visual artist in the Memphis area. She has produced and directed numerous award-winning works of art, spanning the spectrum from narrative and documentary films to music videos to experimental films and projection pieces. Currently she heads up her own production company, Cat and Fish, and is an active member of both Team Electron and Memphis Women in Film. Sarah is passionate about creativity and an engaged member of the Memphis community.