Today we’d like to introduce you to Bee Pedersen.
Bee, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was born and raised in Denmark and, like many people, I took an unusual path to where I am today. As a young woman, I loved literature, and many of my books were published to some acclaim. My first novel, “A Dandelion is Also Beautiful,” which I wrote in Danish when I was 24, was republished recently by the largest publishing house in Denmark. Who would have thought that would happen years later?
Though I have a Master’s Degree in architecture, as the currents of circumstance flowed, I found myself pursuing a career in business. I worked for some years for Oracle Consulting with my ultimate responsibility for overseeing global business practices and operations. Later I started my own software company. But my deep passion has always been writing.
So that’s what I returned to, happily. After moving to the United States twenty years ago, and later on to San Diego, I found myself challenged and inspired by screenwriting. One of my screenplays was taken up to be produced in Hollywood but alas the finances fell through.
In 2016 I formed Flying Dolphin Productions. I am used to taking matters in my own hands and figured that establishing a production company would be the way to get great film produced.
About that time, I met a fellow screenwriter, Felicity Mudgett, who shared a unique, intriguing and delicious screenplay, “Sweet Taste of Souls,” that I was instantly attracted to. I was able to scrounge up the financing for this project, and my production company filmed it last summer in Julian/ California. Meeting a woman like Felicity with the same years of life experience and passion for writing and film made it possible, fun, and exciting to produce our film. A few production companies from Los Angeles approached us to acquire the project – tempting indeed, but the passion and desire to make this ourselves were greater.
Now to the hard part; editing, sound design, color correction, grading, titles, then distribution. Challenging and fun, and with our business backgrounds, we are both eager to do it the right way, learn, and so make it more comfortable with our next film.
“How hard can it be?”
That’s a running joke.
San Diego has such a vibrant and talented film community – we are very fortunate to have discovered.
Has it been a smooth road?
You can read all the books, take all the classes, but reality has always got a trick up its sleeve. As well as a sense of humor!
Pre-production, (financing, assembling troops, locations and paperwork), production (leading troops, managing locations, logistics, supplies, more paperwork… then there was the on-set goblin. Funny the books and classes didn’t warn about that!) post-production (artistry and more paperwork!) every aspect needed to be executed with military precision.
Through it all, keeping focused on the goal – Nothing a good cabernet wouldn’t solve.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
Eventually, you get there; you know the wind, and you trust your wings.
When I arrived at that point, I started Flying Dolphin Productions. With the first leap, I knew FDP would be unique and the most fundamental way.
Filmmakers, typically Indie filmmakers, are guided by their artistic drive. Filmmakers give us delectable and innovative storytelling. But their films are designed to fit the filmmaker’s definition of art, ever hopeful the market will agree and make her, or him, successful.
Moviemakers, Hollywood, is guided by return on investment. Hollywood tends to make predictable, perfectly marketable, homogenized movies, too often stripped of all the artistry that could reduce commercial success. Hollywood makes movies for accountants.
Flying Dolphin Productions always starts projects with a column promise to the audience: give them the emotional thrill ride they bargained for, respect genre, logline, and synopsis.
Then we exceed that promise.
Flying Dolphin Productions strides the thin wedge between filmmaker and movie maker, that’s where the audience is queen or king. That’s where art and success reign supreme.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Yes, I do feel San Diego is a wonderful place for film production. Plenty of talent here without the formal constraints of Hollywood.
Probably, however, it would be wonderful if the City could do a little more to help sponsor productions.
Contact Info:
- Email: bee@flyingdolphinproductions.com
- Instagram: Flying Dolphin Productions and Sweet Taste Of Souls
- Facebook: Sweet Taste of Souls and Flying Dolphin Productions
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