Meet Aliza Brugger | Director/Screenwriter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Aliza Brugger and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aliza, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I attribute much of my career as an artist to my siblings and my upbringing on a small, working class farm in rural Nebraska. In the chaos of our overpacked household and tiny farm that was always on the brink of collapse, my siblings and I were masters of entertaining ourselves, making play out of farm work and wreaking havoc all over the prairie in our small pockets of freedom. This time fueled my journey as a storyteller.

My mom was insistent that we succeed in school, and we eagerly accepted that challenge, but with our parents’ time consumed by work, much of our education was self-guided. We did our schoolwork, chores, piano lessons, reading, and creating largely on our own. Our unregimented upbringing gave me the courage to navigate uncharted territories and the confidence to pursue a life as an artist.

My hope as a filmmaker is that I can connect audiences to my images which will in turn connect them to each other and the world. I believe in film’s ability to create empathy and honesty in ourselves, and this is my goal with each story I tell.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
As I mentioned, my rural upbringing played a significant role in my decision to be an artist, but this background also fuels the stories of my films as well. Much of my work focuses on queerness, gender and class issues in rural USA which in mainstream cinema is quite unexplored. This unique lens allows me to share a part of myself, to critique and question, but also elevate and honor my roots.

Outside of my work itself, I’m very proud of my education. My siblings and I are first generation college students, so to have been accepted into an Ivy League school to pursue an advanced degree despite having fewer resources than many was an incredible feeling. I applied to schools all over New York and Los Angeles, and was accepted into all of them including AFI. Recently, I was holding rehearsals in a space at AFI for an upcoming film, and I realized that the last time I was there was when I was interviewing with the directing faculty. I felt so proud during this full circle moment when I realized that the place I once applied to learn has now become a part of a film I was being paid to write and direct. It was a really special experience. I’ve been creating and telling stories since I was a kid, but now, every time I’m on set, I’m overwhelmed with pride and gratitude that it’s become my career.

Within my work, I’m very proud of my ability to connect my audiences to the characters on screen. As I mentioned, my goal as a filmmaker is to create empathy through my characters, so I aggressively place my audiences in the shoes of my characters, characters they likely don’t interact with on a daily basis in order to truthfully explore the pain and joy of people different than ourselves. I’m also very proud of my ability to actualize the subconscious. When my characters are enduring something that we can’t see in real life, I have found successful ways to visualize their experience, and I believe it’s one of my strongest and most interesting skills as a storyteller.

I am very excited about an upcoming film that I was hired to write and direct by an acclaimed musician. We’re currently in post-production for the film, and I’m very excited about how it’s turning out. It’s a cool project because it’s sort of a narrative film with some music video elements, and the freedom I had to explore surreality with the story was really fulfilling.

I’m also excited about a lot of my writing work. While freelancing is incredibly difficult, one aspect that has been great is the time I’ve been able to spend writing. I’ve been diving into pilots and features and really getting to give the projects the time and space they deserve. Each of my scripts give me so much life when I’m feeling discouraged by the state of the industry and the challenges of beginning a career.

It’s difficult, but good to reflect on how I got to where I am today–difficult because I am nowhere near where I want to be, but good to consider how far I’ve come. There are two challenges that I spend a lot of my time confronting–one financial, one mental.

I finished school during a pandemic and graduated into a writer’s strike, so quite literally surviving has been the most immediate and present challenge. However, in a lot of ways, it’s also been the push I’ve needed to advance my career. On the one hand, having financial support so that I could focus on my own work would have been a luxury I can’t even imagine. On the other, because I have no other choice but to work in the industry my student loans paid for, I’ve had a very intense drive to work which has led to some really great projects, and I can’t ask for more than to get paid to do what I love.

Additionally, making space for myself and making my voice heard have always been a struggle, and I imagine always will be. The creative world is filled with clashes and confrontation, and fighting for myself and my vision has never been easy, especially when I felt like I didn’t belong in a space. Being queer and non-binary made it difficult to feel at home in my conservative, rural environment and later, being a working-class, first generation college student made it difficult to find my place in the academic world and sometimes the film world. My working solution to this problem has been to work as much as possible so that I begin to trust myself and so that the loudest, clearest voice in my head is my own. With each shoot, collaboration and script, my vision and voice become stronger and easier to fight for.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Whenever I have friends or family in town, Quarters KBBQ in Koreatown is a must. It’s a bit of a splurge, but it is phenomenal. I’d also take them to eat al pastor tacos at Leo’s food truck in Los Feliz. Happy hour at Figueroa’s Bistro is great, and I love a chicken sammie from Birds Cafe. LA is great for rooftop bars, so I’d end our day at Harriet’s Rooftop, Perch or Mama’s Shelter.

If they come on a Tuesday, they will find me on the beach in Santa Monica playing volleyball (Go Topos Chicos!) and on a Sunday in Vernon getting bruises at roller derby. Bike rides between Venice and Santa Monica are very rejuvenating, and the hiking options are endless. Universal is always a crowdpleaser, and if all else fails, we can’t go wrong catching a movie.

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?
My group of friends (lovingly labeled The Scumbags) have been a cornucopia of support long before I made my first film. They encouraged me to take the first steps into the industry, donated to crowdfunding campaigns, acted as background, and came to every screening. They cheer me on when I succeed and support me when I fall. These fools have been my ride or die bitches, and I love them dearly. Thank you Elise, Andrés, Laura, Neal, Jess, Brady, Laura, Justin, Heather and Jameson. You’re real ones!

Website: www.alizabrugger.com

Instagram: @aliza.brugger

Other: https://vimeo.com/user108606865

Image Credits
Andres Solorzano Macy Olson Eric Fisher