Meet Shannon Massey Smith | Owner, Girls To The Front! Productions

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shannon Massey Smith and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shannon, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?I’ve been working in the film industry on set since 1998 and as a script doctor/ghostwriter (one of the good ones) and sensitivity/authenticity reader casually since 2002 and professionally since 2004. While we have made strides in making the industry safer and bettering advancement opportunities for marginalized creators, there is still a long way to go.

The idea to start my own production company has been kicking around for the last decade. To create a safe space for marginalized creators and women (those perceived as women) to thrive. I have countless stories of women being exploited, abused, and harassed on set. Of dangerous work conditions and being expected to just push on. Actors treated as objects, people of color subjected to racist diatribes, and more. I knew that we could be better and do better, that everyone from the bottom to the top deserved it. In 2021 thanks to a decent tax return and the stimulus money from COVID I finally had the disposable income to start Girls To The Front! Productions. Was starting a production company in the middle of a pandemic the best idea? Maybe not, but after decades in the industry advocating for change, I knew it was time to step up and be the change we need to see in our industry.

Girls To The Front! Productions believes everyone should be paid a living wage, have access to sustainable benefits, and there needs to be a work/life balance so we never work more than 12 hours a day and have regular breaks.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Professionally, I started working in the film industry in 1998 as an extra on a commercial for Campbell Soup. I mostly did extra work until 2000 when I (turned 18) got my first gig as a Production Assistant and I worked my way up the ladder from there. I’ve always used Colorado as my home base and traveled for work. In addition to commercial’s and narrative I’ve done everything from working as a disaster videographer for the American Red Cross and embedded videographer with an NGO to filming concerts and corporate events.

My entire career both on set and as a writer has been dedicated to helping tell other people’s stories. With Girls To The Front! I finally have some creative control over what stories are told and how they’re told. I can support the stories and people often times left behind.

It was not easy to get here, especially working as a women in departments typically dominated by men. I’ve always had to work twice as hard to make it half as far. Constantly being told I was a diversity hire and taking the job from a man that was more deserving. I always told myself things would be different when I was in a position of power. I worked hard and stuck with it knowing the further up the ladder I climbed the better off things would be for those coming up behind me. I learned to unapologetically stand strong and stick up for those that need the support. We are always stronger when we stick together.

I am simply here to be the change the industry needs to see and make things a little better for everyone coming up behind me. To show you can tell original stories with diverse casts and be profitable doing so. To show you can pay everyone a living wage, maintain a work/life balance, and still keep budgets balanced and timelines manageable.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well as of right now with two pandemics and inflation so high I recommend people stay home and choose to self quarantine so that we can stop the spread.

If that wasn’t an issue though and I wasn’t on the tight budget I am right now (meaning there was actually a budget to work with haha) with a week in no particular order:
We’d go down and camp for a night at the sand dunes.
On the way back we’d stop in pueblo for green chile then to Colorado Springs for Bingo Burger and O’Dell Brewing company.
The next day we’d go feed the giraffes at Cheyenne Mt. zoo and hike Garden of the Gods before heading to south Denver. We’d spend the night at the restaurants in Park Meadows Mall and stay the night.
Then we’d take a couple days to hit the museums in city center and enjoy all the great places to eat around LoDo. Go see a concert at the Marquis and enjoy the amazing pizza served there. Maybe hit the Irish Snug before taking in a concert at the Bluebird, Lost Lakes, or Grandma’s House. Take in the experience that is Meow Wolf.
Go to Red Rocks for a concert or Movie on the Rocks. Take in the nightlife on SoBro (South Broadway), hit Sputniks and Hi-Dive, grab a book from Mutiny Now.
If there’s time we’d go up to Boulder to hike the Flatirons before going to support the buskers on Pearl Street.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Obviously my family is hugely influential. However as some of you may have assumed Girls To The Front! is a nod to the Riot Grrrl movement. (Yes, like all women’s movements there were some homophobic and racist issues. No, I don’t support those parts of the movement). I am who I am because of women like Tina Bell and Kathleen Hanna. The Riot Grrl manifesto and Third Wave Feminism were hugely influential on me growing up and coming of age during the nineties. They still are. I was raised to be a feminist and told women can do anything men can. Which is a binary way to say everyone is equal.

Website: www.GirlsToTheFrontProductions.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/ShannonMasseySmith

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-massey-smith-ba980945

Twitter: www.twitter.com/@S_Massey

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GirlsToTheFrontProductions

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbHqrtvnI6DEWJX6HCNIIPQ

Other: https://www.patreon.com/GirlsToTheFrontProductions for those that want to help support Girls To The Front! and what we’re doing you can do so here 🙂

Image Credits
Christina Rose (Actor: Ava Abidi-Khan) and Amirah Counts(Actor: Camellia Abidi-Khan) from Welcome To The Resistance: Breathe (production still). Elisa Vasquez (Actor: Dr. Eva Munro) from Earthrise (production still). Shannon Massey Smith (Director), Helena Gruensteidl(Cinematographer), Emily Turon(Actor: Amara Sinclair), Erin Manker(Actor: Mik Jamison), Taylor Neumann(on set sound), Evelina Meiklejohn (Behind The Scene’s photographer) photo by Jax Meyer (Writer/Producer). Shannon Massey Smith (Writer/Director) and Erika Arlee (DP/Editor) Welcome To The Resistance: Breathe photo by Kathleen Wallace. Shannon Massey Smith (Assistant Director, Art Director), Ken Hendricks (Director of Photography), Danny Saratino (Writer/Director/Producer), Noah Mittman (Steady cam Operator), Hawley Penfold (Actor: Natalie), Macy Friday(Actor: Chelsea), Bruce Penfold (Production Assistant) photo by Evelina Meiklejohn. Erin Manker (Actor: Mik Jamison) from Grace Note (production still). Risa Scott (Actor: Grace Thomas) and Rhianna DeVries (Actor: Kay Ling) from Grace Note (production still). Emily Turon (Actor: Amara Sinclair) from Grace Note (production still).