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DIRECTOR, PRODUCER, AND WRITER

BIO STORY

Fade in. Imagine little Deana Williams, age 7, sitting in her mother’s dark room staring at the screen of a 25 inch floor console model television watching *Friday the 13th*. The sounds of siblings fighting, pots and pans clanking, and the vroom of the vacuum just outside the door. On the screen, the climax of the film. Deana screams in horror. Her worried mother rushes in. Suddenly, Deana’s fright turns into laughter. Her mother sighs as Deana begins to rewind the movie and start it all over again.
That was me in elementary school when I told my mom I needed to make movies when I grow up. Inspired by every type of film but especially horror films, I was destined to be a moviemaker. I was in love with every aspect of moviemaking, and as a kid who lost her father at an early age and moved around a lot, movies helped me to escape, laugh, and learn. I decided to go to Miami Beach, not just to party but also to attend AI Miami International University of Art & Design where I studied filmmaking. There I found out that my skills were best suited for writing and producing. I even got an award for Outstanding Filmmaker in my class. Once I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree in 2003, I worked as a manager for a notable movie theater on South Beach. There I worked closely with many film festivals and watch all the movies my little heart desired. Next, I worked at Miami Dade College’s School of Entertainment & Design Technology where I managed the film equipment room while also teaching camera and lighting classes at the Florida Film Institute, a non-profit organization that teaches high schoolers how to make a movie from development to distribution. It was at this time that I got the directing bug. My first budgeted short film was Tracks. It got into over 20 film festivals world wide and was my first baby. Following the film, I produced Miami Curves Week+, a live plus size fashion event for Miami Swim Week and Name Dropping: The Frustratingly Fun Movie Card Game, while also still making shorts and developing feature content.

TORN

Pain Painting Poster (27x40)chelsea SMALLER.jpg

Korey is ready to take her relationship with girlfriend Angela to the next level but Angela doesn’t share the same sentiment. Soon secrets are revealed and their love is put to the test.

TRACKS

A shy and lonely runaway falls for a flirtatious high school basketball player with an overbearing, church-loving grandmother.

“My plan is to create a production company that produces and distributes films that represent me; creative, artsy, quirky, black, queer, non-binary, lesbian, humanist, freethinker. Making content with this in mind, I insist on building a better world where marginalized people feel connection, positive self-identity, and value in all spaces and situations.”
- Deana Williams

Inspiration from Halloween

One of my early memories of watching films that had an effect on me was of watching the 1978 classic Halloween. Sure, you might be saying, “That’s just a silly horror film about a guy named Michael who breaks out of a mental hospital and hunts a high school teenage girl that he saw at his old abandoned house on halloween night and then kills everyone who gets in his path. Why would that be an inspiration?” Well let me tell you why. Halloween has become a cult classic. While watching our troubled 21 year old tear through this small fictitious town of Haddonfield, Illinois killing naughty teens, we begin to root for the safety of Laurie Strode, the young girl he is terrorizing. We don’t know exactly why he is terrorizing her and although we are here for the thrills and kills we aren’t here for it when it comes to Laurie. We like her quite a bit. She is sweet, a good friend, a great student, and most importantly a virgin. Isn’t it funny how these themes seem to suggest that if you have premarital sex, you will DIE?! So why is Halloween such a great film? It all starts with the score, which is one of the most unique scores within the horror genre. John Carpenter, the writer and director was not only a great filmmaker but a creative composer. The iconic Halloween theme music is one of the greatest horror tunes to ever be created. Next, he’s got some great filmmaking skills. The opening POV shot is just as iconic as the score and it’s scary as all hell. Watching a murder through the eyes of none other than a 6 year old kid. One word, creepy! Something I find most intriguing and scary at the same time is that Michael stalks Laurie mostly in daylight and it’s just as scary as him coming after her at night. He also seems to walk at his own pace while she runs from him and he still can pose a threat. That’s one scary guy. Oftentimes when I am home alone late at night I think that I see him in the doorways. This is how much this film has penetrated my life. And you know what? I love every minute of it. This film is exciting, scary, well shot, great to listen to, and has great acting. All these elements come together to say, “hey this is clearly one of the best horror films of all time”, and I wouldn’t disagree with that.

Television That Makes Us Think

In September 2021, Netflix presented the supernatural horror community with a miniseries called Midnight Mass written, directed, and executive produced by Mike Flanagan. This piece of work is something that I had longed for as it was a new take on the vampire archetype, it was in mini series form instead of a feature film, and it dealt with strong commentary on theism and atheism. Your traditional supernatural horror mostly deals with the ghosts or poltergeists that are isolated within a house that the main characters have to dispel, but this had a bit of a different feel. The story is about Riley Flynn who at the start of the show returns to his home island town to reconnect with his family after spending a short time in prison for accidentally killing someone while drinking and driving. When he arrives so does this mysterious priest who happens to have supernatural things happening around him. Over the course of the series the townspeople experience changes that at first glance are welcomed but as time goes by they begin to rethink things. Each episode’s title is the name of a book from the bible. What inspires me about the work outside of the wonderful acting and the amazing visuals is the conversation that you can have around grief, faith, death, and ultimately life. On the topic of death, god, and afterlife, the series investigates humanity's differences and its similarities and leaves us with a lot to think about with family and friends. I am an atheist and I have never seen the atheist perspective presented in such a poetic way and within the horror genre. I also love mini series’ and have gone on record saying that I would prefer to direct a mini series over a television show. I am a feature director and having the option to extend the work without having to continue making season after season is the best option for me. As a consumer I can be invested in the material and then it can end fairly quickly, giving me time to watch other things. Mike Flanagan is inspirational to me as I want to bring similar topics to cinema in a poetic way. This is a must watch series if you are a horror fan or someone who enjoys discussing life, death, and what’s beyond.

OMG! Ryan Murphy & RuPaul had a baby, and their name is Deana Williams

I made my first film when I was thirteen years old. It was a whodunit infused with humor. My early influences have been movies that deal with sci-fi, true crime, horror, and comedy. I was drawn to dark themes and laughter. When I got to film school I began to write and direct movies about my fully realized identity. So lesbian films became my niche. My first lesbian film was a comedy. Next, I decided to do a lesbian crime and my last individual film was a lesbian horror. Once I graduated I continued to make shorts which included a drama and a thriller. Many artists struggle to find their unique voice. I have certainly lumped myself in this category in the past but as I explore what types of content inspires me most I always end up back to crime, horror, thriller, suspense, mystery, and everything queer. This goes to show that oftentimes your passions will be rooted deep within childhood. I fell in love with Ryan Murphy when American Horror Story premiered. The show was scary, creepy, kinky, and brilliantly acted and shot. The show scratched all my content itches. Since I love to laugh, be silly, and act super gay, RuPaul’s Drag Race content I could identify with. I am so proud of my identity and being a part of the gay community that I want to immerse myself in it in every creative way possible. It was not until recently when I started my Master’s in entertainment business program did I really start to rethink my niche. What do I have to say to the world as an artist? What do I want to contribute to the industry and to audiences? After much reflection on the genres that I love and how I can bring those genres to the BIPOC LGBTQ community, I figured out that I would make cinema that is a mixture of what we see from RuPaul and Ryan Murphy. My voice would be one of horror, hope, and humor. There is an audience out there of LGBTQ folks who want to see themselves in leading roles in sci-fi films, horror films, and crime thrillers films that are also filled with the distinctive culture that the community has created.

Introducing Kew Films

“Finally a film on 2 lesbians of color but they are studs. Stud for stud usually gets looked down on by the lesbian community so this was great to see.”
- Comment by a moviegoer “Cuzitsnecessary”