Meet Anastasia Gambino | Screenwriter

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

Hi Anastasia, is there something you believe many others might not?
I don’t think that you need to wait for your career to take off or to be exactly where you think you need to be to have a family.

Obviously this is a bit nuanced – financial stability certainly plays a role, but there are ways to work in the creative industry towards your ultimate goals without having to sacrifice starting a family. I’m not a “tradwife” by any means, I am gung ho on being a working mom, but I believe that there is no such thing as a foolproof formula to do this. I’ve heard many of my friends say, “I want to be a mom, I want to get married, but I want to be further along in my career first, so I probably won’t end up having any kids.”

I took what would be considered a “backwards” approach in that vein. Due to being adopted and having never met my biological parents in person, it was imperative for me to have a baby of my own and start my family with my husband. It has fulfilled me in ways I never thought were possible. I am so enamored with my daughter and I hope I can honor her to the best of my abilities as her mom while I raise her.

Regarding my career, I have always been a writer – from the moment I could read and write so it was only natural that it would become my focus as a career. However, the uphill battle of becoming a recognized and working writer has always been daunting, especially when I had the gnawing desire of being a mom first. So I focused on that – acquiring the right partner and patiently progressing with him until the earliest possible moment it was appropriate to get pregnant. Then quite literally while caring for my newborn, I jumped headfirst into writing full time. I started what I love to call my magnum opus, my feature length screenplay Rubina, when my daughter was around 6 weeks old, and finished when she was a year and a half.

It certainly is more difficult to write when I have a small human who relies on me to exist safely, but the courage and confidence I gained from giving birth was all the momentum I needed to tell the stories I need to tell.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
It is imperative that I explain a bit of my back story. I am a Romani-Russian screenwriter who tells authentic stories. I experienced the horrors of a Russian orphanage as an infant before my adoption, and that pre-verbal trauma has unfortunately stayed with me. Yet, I use it as a beacon of hope for myself as it deeply informed my darkly comedic narrative writing. I wrote my screenplay Rubina when I was in the trenches of postpartum depression – seeking solace through telling my 15 year old birth mom’s story. She was disturbingly taken advantage of and in my film I examine, through a surrealist lens, the events leading up to my own commodification as an infant. My orphanage was the kind that gets investigated by human rights organizations only for them to leave slack-jawed and hungry. I couldn’t find any reconciliation for this depthless inhumanity in any inward sense so I turned my hopeless emotions outwards, which presented itself as my screenplay, Rubina. It was the proverbial “two birds” situation – it was vindication for what was done to my underage birth mother and it served as a way to fill a void in my heart that I had been holding onto for over 27 years at that point. I believe very deeply in her story, getting it out there, and I am beyond excited for where it will be going – as it is beginning to gain traction.

Most recently, I placed as a semi-finalist in the Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards Diversity Initiative. That was beautifully surprising and I am incredibly thankful that a group of renowned WGA writers loved Rubina. Interestingly, it was also the same week that I got some of the worst feedback I’ve ever received regarding my screenplay. Art is and always will be highly subjective and where I’ve received some 6’s from the Blacklist (a well-known hosting site where producers and directors go to read new scripts), I’ve also gotten the highly elusive 8’s and 9’s. As Karen O says, art is hard.

Yet, I’ve had some interest from producers, directors, and even literary agencies. All of this was difficult to come by, as any writer in LA knows. Writing, acting, filmmaking – all of it can be incredibly heartbreaking as you’re constantly met with rejection. I’ve certainly received my fair share of it. But when I’ve been told no, I’ve told myself YES, and I’ve actively chosen to resurrect from every negative situation that has been handed to me – career wise and other. I could almost consider writing Rubina as the easy part, while getting it out there has been the most difficult.

I assembled a table read soon after finishing a second draft. I was in the middle of writing an original TV pilot, a comedy sketch show that I was co-writing and directing, as well as taking screenwriting classes at UCLA’s Extension program. The table read was the most important endeavor as a slew of people I knew – actors, writers, creators adjacent, were present and gave me useful and constructive feedback for my story. Around 6 or 7 rewrites followed. This only garnered more confidence on my part. I was invited by my friend and neighbor Sam Dever, who hosts the Sam Dever Podcast, as a guest on an episode. I was able to tell my story, chat about my writing process, and it ultimately opened up some more doors for me.

My advice is to ask, ask, ask. Ask and you shall receive – you’ve got a 50/50 shot and one “no” doesn’t mean it can’t be a “yes” from someone else. It’s highly important to maintain genuine friendships with people who identify creatively if that is part of your identity. Creativity only breeds more creativity and writing in this industry is highly collaborative. Taking classes that mimic writers’ rooms will also serve as a great way to meet people and get a hang of how the writing world works.

Through referrals from friends I was able to get a few phone calls with some bigger name producers and while I was unreasonably scared to take those calls – I reminded myself of my ultimate goals, what I am currently grateful for, how even one big “no” could still bolster my career in some facet, and that my higher power would have my back no matter what. So I took those calls and now I can confidently say I got my screenplay in the hands of people who can make it something almost tangible.

In my opinion, filmmaking is the highest form of art there is. It’s so close you can almost touch it. It is the intersection of photography, dialogue, acting, music, and sound. Every part of a film grabs at your senses and it leaves a mark on us. That is why this industry is important to me and I believe with every fiber of my being that I can leave an impression on those who experience my stories.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
When people visit me, the first place I take them to is the LA County Arboretum in Arcadia. It is a 127 acre botanical garden with nicely paved trails (great for strollers) and some historical buildings on site. The lush gardens and waterfalls are almost ethereal. It’s a great place to relax as well as get some exercise. Their restaurant also boasts some of the best, most crisp salads I’ve ever had. Absolutely delicious.

I grew up in New York after my adoption, so I’m always looking for great pizza – which brings us to Pace Joint on Sunset and Fairfax. Their parent restaurant is Pace which is on Laurel Canyon at the base of the hills by West Hollywood. Both use incredibly fresh ingredients and have wonderful service. Another favorite restaurant of mine is HOME in Los Feliz. My husband and I went on our first date there, we had our engagement party there, and it was one of the first places we took our baby to. That place means a whole lot to me and if you go, make sure to order their crispy chicken sandwich.

For some entertainment, I’d definitely head over to the Upright Citizens Brigade theatre on Franklin. They have comedy improv shows every night of the week and their improvisers are top notch. Now I don’t drink anymore, but when I used to, my friends and I would hit Good Times at Davey Wayne’s bar in Hollywood almost every week. I must say, it’s always a good time at Davey Wayne’s. There’s a small stage for live music and the entire bar looks like a 1970s living room. It’s its own little time capsule.

And don’t forget, you can always end the night at Salt N Straw on Ventura Blvd. in Studio City. I went there far too many times than I would care to admit while I was pregnant. Their vegan chocolate mint chip hits the spot every time.

LA is my favorite place I’ve ever lived. I’ll be celebrating 10 years of being here soon and I have no intentions of ever leaving this place. Come check it out, there’s so much to do and it’s so beautiful every which way you turn.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First and foremost I need to thank my higher power for putting this love for writing on my heart. I also want to shout out my husband, my parents, and my friends for their relentless support, help, and encouragement.

Thank you to my incredible other half – my husband Michael Gambino (a working actor and comedian) who loved me every second of every day while I navigated early motherhood and writing at full force.

Every draft of my screenplay was sent to my mom, Mary-Ellen, (a published author) who spent months helping to edit and flush it out with me. All the visual work I created, including pitch decks, my website, etc., was shown to my dad Scott (a professional photographer) and he gave me his valuable input and suggestions. I will also thank my stepmom, Meryl, who helped with my essays and applications to various screenplay competitions and fellowships before she passed away in August 2024.

My three closest friends, Sofie, Ashley, and Tatiana have been bombarded with rewrites of Rubina for well over a year and have reassured me of my capabilities when I almost lost steam a few times. They also worked within their own networks of creatives to get me phone calls and meetings with anyone they knew who could listen to my pitch.

But I would be sorely remiss if I did not mention my birth mother Rubina, who is the star of my screenplay – the woman whose story I would do anything for to tell. And of course I attribute a wealth of my success to my sweet little daughter Sofia who made me the woman I am today.

I will leave with one other person: Diablo Cody. My favorite writer in the entire world, the lady I pray to every morning via hamburger phone (a Juno reference); the goddess of dialogue.

Website: https://rubinafilm.com

Instagram: @stasiagambino