Today we’d like to introduce you to Laa Marcus.
Laa, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
The seeds of my artistic journey were planted at a young age. Born in Dallas and moving to sunny San Diego with my family at age 11, I performed weekly plays alongside my two sisters. In high school, I saved up to purchase my own mini DV camcorder, marking the start of my journey as a writer, director, and actor in my own short films.
Following my passion, I pursued a major in screenwriting during my time at film school. After graduating, I made the move to Los Angeles, where I immersed myself in the business side of the film industry, working with notable production and management companies. Alongside my professional endeavors, I wrote and directed several award-winning short films that captivated audiences across the festival circuit and garnered attention from broadcasters like Shorts TV and other channels.
Inspired by motherhood and my return to my hometown of San Diego, I recently embarked on my most ambitious project yet—writing, directing, and producing my first feature film, the dark comedy-murder-mystery “Glass Casa,” which showcases my unique storytelling abilities, combining elements of humor and suspense.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
We definitely faced more challenges an average first feature film shoot should have! We ended up having to shoot 18 days over 3 weeks instead of 15 days because we had to reshoot the first 3 days all over again after I fired the initial lead actress. Luckily, Harley who was originally cast as one of the friends and was perfect for the lead role, was able to step in that 4th night and I filled in as a body double for the actress that would play the friend and come down from LA the next day. So we smoothly were able to keep on filming, and everything worked out great in the end.
We also lost our First AD, which is a vital role on set with organizing the schedule and managing timing to finish shooting days (and stay on budget), after he quit for no apparent reason halfway through production. My friend and I luckily were able to fill the role as smoothly as we could.
I also had 2 different day-player actors just not show up the day of shooting and I had to scramble last minute to fill those roles!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a filmmaker driven by my passion for storytelling and my willingness to push boundaries in the industry, while captivating audiences with my distinctive vision and unwavering dedication to my craft.
I believe I have a unique sense of humor and perspective of life and the world that comes across in my work…
I am most proud of my feature film, a true labor of love, which I wrote, directed, produced, etc…
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
That I love to act and sing as well and that I may be making much heftier appearances in my future films
Contact Info:
- Website: https://glasscasathemovie.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laa_marcus_films/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauren.manes.7/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@filmnerd74?si=-1cyQQnNUYD4RHmb
Image Credits
Glass Casa LLC
