S3 E4: Azza

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When I would see a young black girl in the crowd looking at Kamala

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Harris, I would always remain

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composed, but internally sobbing because

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thinking about what

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that little girl got to see, that Kamala

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Harris didn't get to see that none of us got to see, right?

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A woman in that role.

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The less we are

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able to show women in their full dignity and authority,

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political business, sports, all of

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the arenas in which women are public figures.

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The less that we have better

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representation behind the camera to make sure that

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those people in front of the camera are

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taken seriously, the less you feel comfortable

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with the idea of a woman in this type of power

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and in this type of authority.

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Change

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the Reel with Monique Velasquez and Piper Kessler.

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For more than 20 years, we've worked in video production behind the

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scenes, helping mission-driven organizations and leaders.

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This podcast exist for leaders who know their

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stories matter and are ready to stop guessing and start

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using video strategically to further their mission,

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not just fill a content calendar.

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Each month, we drop 2 types of episodes.

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One with Piper and I kicking it, sharing production, insight

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from our own work, and another featuring real stories about

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using media to create change and connection.

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This is change the Reel.

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Representation starts here.

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Hey,

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y'all, I'm Monique Velasquez, and I'm Piper Kessler.

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Today, I'm excited to get to know and introduce our guest,

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Azza Cohen.

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I want you to know that Monique read your

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to hear from this point of view just after the administration change.

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And we're gonna keep this focused on media, hopefully.

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Um, and focus on joy for 45 minutes.

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Azza Cohen is a documentary filmmaker,

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in a leading voice on visual sexism in media,

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She served as vice president Kamal

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Harris's official videographer documenting historic

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moments across the White House, 91

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cities, in 28 states, 11 countries,

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Her viral slate op ed.

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I was Kamala Harris's videographer.

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The experience completely changed me, trended nationally

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As a columnist for the contrarian, she educated

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media creators on representing women with dignity

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and authority.

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She taught at the Harvard Kennedy Schools Institute

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of Politics, and as a fellow at Harvard Shorenstein Center.

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Her short film, Float,

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about her grandmother, learning to swim at 82

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was acquired by the New Yorker, which is very, very cool.

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She co-founded Kung Borsha, media

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with wife, Kathleen, where they work

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to shift perspectives, deepen empathy,

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and build a more expansive world,

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one story at a time.

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Azza, thanks for joining.

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Change the Reel.

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Representation starts here.

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Hey, I want folks to know that you're out there in

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the world intentionally shifting perspectives in front of and

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behind the lens, helping people see how using your

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voice matters and how it can change perspectives.

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We know you're out there.

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trying to change the reel.

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And the story about who is and should

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be considered a gatekeeper.

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So this is a question we always ask.

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Let's give credit where credit is due.

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Even if you've never met this person.

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If you could hand out your flowers today, who

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would you honor for shaping your entrepreneurial journey?

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This

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is such a good question.

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I love it so much.

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I would hand my

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flowers to the incredible trailblazing

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Academy Award winning director

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and producer Vanessa Roth.

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She is the 1st female director that

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I ever got to work with.

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And I viscerally remember being

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an intern.

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20 something years old and working

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with her and just seeing the

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way that she ran her set with so

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much empathy, so much curiosity,

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she was trained as a social worker before becoming a

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filmmaker and it really demonstrated

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to me how directing

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doesn't have to be one size fits all.

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I think there's a Hollywood trope, a stereotype

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that a director is, 1st of all,

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a man, you know, in a baseball cap, like yelling at everybody to

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make sure that everything is.

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running and working

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with Vanessa showed me a

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quiet, yet assertive, yet empathetic

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method of leadership because really

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the director is like a CEO of a, a

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small company that is the set and it really changed

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my path showed

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me how much I wanted to be a director and I'm,

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working on another project with her right now and

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it's just been such a joy to reconnect and so

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I would give my flowers to Vanessa for really

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inspiring me as a director with her

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personality and her artistic vision.

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It's so amazing to be able to work with

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somebody who is such a great role model.

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So I'm glad that you we asked this question so that you could give those flowers.

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Uh, so, I'm glad that.

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That was a beautiful question.

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I just, it reflects so much on YouTube that this is the 1st

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question you ask of people.

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I love it.

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Well, we're happy to give credit

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where credit's due or inspiration, right?

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Because part of it is, you know, we don't walk around in

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a vacuum, we actually are a

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line of people, soldiers that we stand on.

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So, uh, that's why we do it.

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I want to ask you a little bit about your business.

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What's at the heart of what you do and what

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keeps you motivated to show up and create every day.

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Well, in these times.

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It is.

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Sometimes harder than ever,

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and sometimes easier than ever at the same time, to

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show up and create every day, after

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working for Vice President Harris, or,

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uh, 3 years in

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the White House, and after losing the election,

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or rather, as I like to say, after America

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decided to choose a predator, pedophile,

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business con man as the president,

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over the qualified other candidate.

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Uh, but regardless, after the

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so upset, so honestly full of rage

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every single day that this incredible person

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that I had spent so much time with and made such

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a sincere, full body, everyday effort to

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portray her with the dignity

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and authority, that,

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She deserves every day to see that person

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be so torn down in the

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uh, questioning whether women are electable,

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and whether a black woman in particular could

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possibly be audacious enough to run for president.

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Um, It was really hard.

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And, What motivated me.

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was realizing that, actually,

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a lot of people in charge of the

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country and in charge of businesses are deeply

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mediocre, and I have a

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really unique perspective, and I had always

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wanted to start a production company.

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I have worked for lots of people.

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And after the election,

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my wife and I just looked at each other and instead

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of saying, why us?

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We started to say why not us?

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And so in

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terms of how we create every day, I'm really,

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I was just talking about this actually with

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a friend of mine, Julie Shane, who has an

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amazing substack called In Habit, and she

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posted recently saying, how do you get

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the courage to overcome your

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nervousness of

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posting something, you know, putting yourself out there, starting a substack,

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starting a blog, starting a podcast, I'm sure the 2

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I have an experience with this.

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And I said to her, Actually,

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I think of all of the badass

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women who came before us and had way more reasons to

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not put themselves out there and they did

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so that we could have an easier time and

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that the path would be paved for us.

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So, that's what I'm telling myself nowadays

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is whenever I have imposter syndrome, I

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just think, what about all of the trailblazers who came before?

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Exactly.

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I mean, we hear this over and over, you know, you are your ancestors' wildest dreams.

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The, you know, coming to life, right?

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Um, and so, yeah,

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but there's also the vulnerability too, and it's,

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yeah, to get past the being vulnerable.

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Right.

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You know, you draw on, uh, your

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strength from either your own experiences or,

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you know, your, your, you know, think about what your ancestors

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have gone through, what they, they had to endure to get to.

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You know, where you are standing.

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Um, and so, now,

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so, can you, can you, you, is it okay if I go ahead?

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No, I'm not done.

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I am not done.

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Well, go ahead then.

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All right, so, Let's talk about your business a little bit.

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You said why not us?

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Explain what it is that you do so so that

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our audience has a better understanding.

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Thank you for this question.

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Cohen Borschow Media specializes in nonfiction,

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video production, from development

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all the way to delivery.

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So, we work with amazing clients

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all over the country and soon to be all over the world

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where we help them figure

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out strategy around storytelling,

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we develop ideas with them, think about the

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creative ways in which they can tell a story, we provide production services.

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So, camera light sound, that

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type of production, and then we also provide

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post-production editing and delivery services.

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We've done a lot of short form content in the past year and

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are expanding into features.

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My wife and I are directing our 1st feature this year, so we're

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really excited about that.

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And everything is really united by our

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core values of representation of,

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uplifting women, uplifting

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queer people, people of color, other marginalized

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people whose, it can seem and feel

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overwhelming, that these stories are not getting told right now

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with the attacks on diversity, equity,

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inclusion, and accessibility, but what I keep

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telling myself and what I'm sure.

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Listeners are feeling is that this is the most important time

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to double down and tell our stories and

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who is going to, if not us.

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True.

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Oh, so now I can go.

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So, can you share a moment when like a

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specific moment when you realize representation was

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missing and you were called to step up and be

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the one to model the change?

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What a

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good question.

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I think.

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About this moment a lot.

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Vice President Kamala Harris

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was the 1st White House principal to visit

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an abortion clinic.

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And I remember planning

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for this, thinking through the big burden.

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This was going to be a big press moment and I thought, okay,

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how am I going to approach making this video,

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how am I going to approach the edit, the framing, and

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as I'm sure you and listeners

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know, filming or any type of image

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making inside of an active health clinic

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is very difficult.

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It's very fraught.

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And especially with not

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only patient privacy, but also the attacks on abortion providers

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and reproductive healthcare more generally.

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We wanted to make sure that everybody felt really comfortable

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with what we were trying

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to do, but also understood the

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opportunity of the moment when the vice president of the

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United States shines a light on this issue.

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So, I remember working

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extensively with the clinic staff.

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Starting with the security team about,

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okay, you can't show any bit

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of the floor plan, right?

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We want to make sure there's no security issues with any part of the video.

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We want to make sure that no patient at

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all, even back of head, something like that, no patients are shown at all.

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We want to blur everybody's identification.

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If you walk past a nurse, And make

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sure that their identity is protected.

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And at the same time,

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The very brave clinic director,

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Dr. Sarah Traxler said, I want my name.

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I want to say my name.

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I want to.

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I want people to know what I do.

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And that Vice President Kamala Harris came to uplift

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the work that we do.

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And something that, was

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a creative decision that was really important to

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me was when we were working with Dr. Traxler,

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she initially was

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dressed very casually and didn't have her white coat.

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And I remember saying to her, I want you to

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put on your white coat because visually, people,

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see a white coat and then they assume that

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it's a doctor, right?

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And I think in our world where representation

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of women in leadership positions is

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already so sparse.

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It was really important to me that people not make

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assumptions about this doctor because she

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wasn't wearing a white coat.

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So we put her in the white coat.

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And then the other framing decision that was really important to me.

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And, uh, I'll send you the

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video so you can see it and link it for folks if they haven't.

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But it was really important to me to not just have the

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vice president in the frame by herself, talking about the importance of this.

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I wanted you to see her with

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the clinic staff, with this doctor, so that it

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became not just a visual story of one

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singular politician.

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making a statement, but that it

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was a communal statement about the healthcare providers

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and the work that they do.

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So I thought a lot about, I practiced

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the shot a couple of times, you know, I got to Minnesota a

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day early before the vice president just to make sure that we could really now this.

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And To your question,

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Piper, about representation.

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I'm not saying that

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Someone of a different gender

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wouldn't take seriously the issue of

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abortion access in this country.

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But, I take it seriously

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because I'm a woman, and because this is something that

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I viscerally understand, and that is why representation

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matters, it's not about lessening the pie for anyone else.

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It's about thinking.

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What different stories can we tell?

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Right.

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You know, we talk to Natalie Bullock Brown,

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who is part of DAWG.

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Um, it is a, you may be familiar with DAWG.

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It's cooperative in New York.

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Uh, cannot remember what the acronym is, but she talks.

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I've heard of it and I also don't know what the acronym is.

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You know, it's like who is best the

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position to tell the story and you have that real feeling.

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of the stakes

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of your own life, in

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a different way than the

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person standing next to you.

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Um, and so I feel like, you know,

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you've answered this question in in a great way

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to give our audience an understanding of where

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you were understanding that the representation

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and who's behind the camera.

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And who was actually telling the story.

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Makes a difference.

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And so, how did you, you

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know, I know that you've come to this job and you're doing this

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particular job, but how did it push you to create

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the change that you wanted to see?

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When

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I 1st heard about the job.

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I thought it was not real because

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it just seemed too good to be true, being the

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videographer to the 1st woman vice president

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of the United States.

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I mean, as a filmmaker, I just couldn't imagine literally

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anything more exciting and what an

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opportunity, not just from a video perspective,

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but a historic perspective, right?

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Because every day that I filmed, Vice

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President Harris doing something was the 1st

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time that a woman had done that thing in that role, right?

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And so going back

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briefly to Piper's question about representation, it

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matters who's behind the camera and it matters who's in front of it, right?

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And it's this chicken and egg cycle that I

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write about, on my substack and

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I teach about, right, that the less we

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are able to show women in their full dignity

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and authority, political, business,

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all of the arenas in which women are public figures.

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The less that we have better

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representation behind the camera to make sure that

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those people in front of the camera are taken seriously.

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the less you feel comfortable with the idea of

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a woman in this type of power and

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in this type of authority.

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So it's just a vicious cycle, right?

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So I also think,

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It's not a coincidence that the 1st

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White House principle to ever go to

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an abortion clinic was the 1st woman.

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So, not only was

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it about me thinking, okay, from my personal perspective,

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how can I make this an important visual moment?

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It's also because Kamala

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Harris decided to be brave and do something that no

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man in her position had done before.

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you know, president or vice president.

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So, I'm so sorry, Monique, I

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forgot your question.

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It is, it is about like,

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how did you push to create the change that you wanted to see.

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And so you see this job.

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And you're thinking, that's for me.

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I had

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so much imposter syndrome.

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Basically every single day of the job, I

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viscerally remember on my 1st day.

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And it was the anniversary of the Americans

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with Disabilities Act.

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So much of her day and the

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White House generally was focused on uplifting this anniversary.

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It's a landmark piece of legislation.

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And as someone with a chronic migraine

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condition, like I really appreciate the protections

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of the Americans of Disabilities Act.

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And so I was really excited.

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Because it's personal to me.

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And I remember, She,

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uh, the vice president had an open, press

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conference before she was going to

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meet in a private round table with activists

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from the disability community, and I was so excited.

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And, She introduced

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herself and did a visual description,

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which is very common for people

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in, uh, who want to be inclusive of a

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disabled crowd and obviously on the

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anniversary of the Americans of Disabilities Act.

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It makes special sense.

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To do a visual description.

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She described her outfit and sort of

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like the room.

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I don't exactly remember her exact words, but then,

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Gosh, later that day,

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not even a couple hours after this event.

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I we had TVs with every news

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channel on in the White House all the time.

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So, I see that there's this Fox News

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piece about,

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Why would Kamala Harris describe

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herself, you know, anybody can see that she's

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a woman and basically denigrating her for doing a visual description.

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And in that moment, I

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lost my imposter

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syndrome, because I thought,

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This is so much bigger than whether I'm nervous.

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This is such a big battle

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where every single thing she says, even

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if it's the smart thing, even if it's the right thing, even if it's

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the respectful thing, she will be torn down every 2nd of every day.

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And it's not my job to be nervous.

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It's not my job to worry

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about whether or not I can do this because

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I was hired and I can do this and

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I know how to use this camera and I know how to capture

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people in a way that makes them look good.

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So,

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That moment was really visceral for me.

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And so when you think about,

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okay, how do you change the perspective?

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Every day I just thought,

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How do I show this in my

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unique lens, right?

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Oh, we love a camera pun, change the reel.

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Um, you know, how do I pick a different

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angle that maybe someone else isn't thinking of?

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How do I bring my own personal lived

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experience as an American to this particular

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issue that she is exploring.

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And so, Again, that goes

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back to that question of representation, Representation

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in front of the camera is so important and

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also it's very critical behind the camera because

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the making of images is a subjective part.

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And people assume that a picture

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is some objective truth, right?

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But as I always,

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Say to people, ask yourself, who took this picture?

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What is outside of the 4 walls of the frame?

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What story isn't being told?

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And I think about that.

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I thought about that a lot in that job in particular and

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I think about it now every day as a cinematographer in other contexts.

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And that's really where the representation matters,

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because it's, we can't just take for

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granted that the picture that's being shown to us is

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somehow the truth or the only depiction.

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Right.

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There's no bias included because there is.

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And so exactly.

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And so this leads me to, but I have to, we have to tweak it a little bit.

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Why inclusion matters in

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who's making media and who's telling the story?

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And so what's been the most rewarding

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in figuring out, well, having you behind the

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lens, pointing at a

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very varied things in front of the lens.

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Why does it matter that somebody like you is doing this?

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It

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matters to have more women

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in particular behind the camera because What

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I ask for is 50-50, right?

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If we're 50% of the population, we need to be behind

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the camera 50% of the time.

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And that is not even close to what we're dealing with, right?

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I sincerely hope that by the time this

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podcast comes out, Autumn Arkapaw will

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have won, the Oscar for best

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cinematography, making her the 1st woman to ever win

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in that category, which is, again, insane

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actually win this category, right?

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So, Fighting for this inclusion is

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so essential because we

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are depriving ourselves and audiences

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of really talented creative people.

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when we don't have as

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much diversity behind the camera as

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in front of it and as reflects our country.

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Yeah.

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And so, you know, you're speaking about,

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you know, the sort of thing and I'm wondering, you know, in your career.

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Um, if you've heard, like I've heard,

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um, You know, women aren't funny.

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Um, and nobody cares about, Such and such a story.

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And for us, it was, you know, looking for representation.

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For me, it was about representation, looking for, you know,

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where are the Latinos on TV?

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Where are, uh, the,

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you know, the, the LGBTQ

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folks that are, you know, living their best life

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and not just a punchline or a joke.

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And so growing up, that that was like, where

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I was and what I heard, and so it

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makes me wonder, it's like, you're a

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different generation, and things have definitely changed.

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But even now, I mean, you're, we're

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still looking for our 1st cinematography win and

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as, as a woman.

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And, You know, we're

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still looking for the right representation, not right.

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A different representation on screen because even when

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I see uh, new shows on on big TV fan.

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New shows with multiple cast members.

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I'm always thinking, are they gonna have casta Latino this time?

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And I'm often disappointed.

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Um, not that they aren't great shows and, you know,

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funny, whatever, have different perspectives, but, um,

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I'm wondering where you are in your, uh, career

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and your experience about,

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What you've encountered

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in your pursuit to be the one behind the lens.

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I

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got into filmmaking because I love people

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and I love stories and I really sincerely

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believe in narrative change.

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I was not the kid who watched

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a ton of movies and obsessed over lighting design

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or studied Scorsese.

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I've actually never seen the Godfather.

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I need to watch it.

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But like, that is not what brought me into filmmaking.

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I got into filmmaking because I took a class

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in college and was

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lucky enough to have another person to give

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flowers to as my beloved, Documentary

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film teacher Purcell Carson.

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who referred me to the White House job and was

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the 1st person to, you know, teach me about filmmaking.

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And uh, just a quick side note about her.

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She's an academy award winner, just an incredible, incredible

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documentary film editor, uh, and director.

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And when I was a senior in college, I was applying all these jobs.

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And I wasn't getting call backs

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or video producing anything like that and I was so

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nervous about it.

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So I go to her and I thought maybe my resume is off.

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Can you take a look at my resume?

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And I had,

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I showed her my resume, and at the top of the resume,

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it said, Azza Cohen aspiring filmmaker.

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And she didn't even read the rest of it.

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She looked me dead in the eye and said, don't put aspiring.

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You are a filmmaker.

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If you've made one film, you are a filmmaker.

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Why are you underestimating yourself?

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And I think about that so

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often, I tell this to interns

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and PAs and people who we

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are lucky enough to work with because it's

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so often that women especially,

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just are the last people to,

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not even brag, but just literally acknowledge

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the work that they that we have done.

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And so I think that's a really important part of

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representation too, is getting comfortable with

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saying, I did this, I did this, I

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did this, and I deserve to be here.

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I am the qualified candidate to be here and

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not worry about what others

606

may be saying to you or doubting you or underestimating you.

607

Um, and so I think

608

also to your question.

609

Literally 100%

610

of U.S. presidents have been a man.

611

So when Americans close

612

their eyes and picture the president of the United

613

States, they picture a man.

614

And it's for, it goes deeper than

615

just politics.

616

It's our entire culture, right?

617

TV shows.

618

For the most part, if there is a

619

TV show that concerns American politics, the president is

620

very likely a man, right?

621

Not 100% of the time, but almost, almost

622

100% of the time.

623

And so,

624

If we don't, show,

625

women in leadership positions, even fictionally.

626

We cannot, as viewers,

627

get comfortable with the idea that this is possible, right?

628

Gina Davis, the iconic, incredible

629

actor, producer,

630

She started an organization, and research

631

organization that tracks various

632

representation in media.

633

And she has a slogan, if she can see it, she can be it.

634

Right?

635

And if you can't see it, what

636

are, how do little girls think that their

637

future in, you know, politics or

638

other types of representation is possible, right?

639

Famously, there was a Barbie astronaut

640

before Sally Ride, right?

641

We have to imagine that these things are possible before

642

they actually are possible.

643

And so I just think it's

644

not just, again, robbing Americans of

645

a woman leader to not take

646

women in politics or other leadership positions seriously.

647

It's robbing us of qualified.

648

Incredible candidates because

649

we are wired in our brains to not take them

650

as seriously as the male candidate.

651

Right.

652

Amen.

653

So, you know, we get,

654

you know, this whole, you know, having that representation, having

655

those road models and, you know, we're very familiar with the Genia

656

Davis Institute's work, um, we follow, uh,

657

it's, it's progression.

658

We're all fans here.

659

we're all friends.

660

We love.

661

We love.

662

We love that, you know, that there's,

663

somebody actually counting the numbers and then showing, you know,

664

Hollywood itself.

665

like look, do better.

666

You know, we're showing you, you can.

667

There's room.

668

Um, and there's data that says, you can

669

670

So, uh, and so, those

671

are all the amazing things that we have.

672

In your own career.

673

What?

674

What's been the most rewarding or

675

challenging weaving in this idea of

676

fully who you are authentically?

677

What's been the most rewarding part of that?

678

In your career.

679

To

680

me, The best part about working

681

for Vice President Harris was,

682

Obviously it was very cool

683

to get to travel the world.

684

Obviously, it was very cool to get to see

685

world leaders and be in

686

rooms that Obviously, I otherwise wouldn't be in.

687

But really, the thing that got me out of bed every

688

morning was, without a doubt

689

when I would see a young girl, especially

690

a young black girl in the in the crowd.

691

And when I would see a young black girl

692

in the crowd looking at Kamala Harris, I would always.

693

Remain composed, but internally

694

sobbing because thinking about

695

what that little girl got to see that

696

Kamala Harris didn't get to see that

697

none of us got to see, right?

698

A woman in that role.

699

It's just, you never know how

700

that's going to change the trajectory of that kid's life.

701

And further, Also, Little

702

kids of all genders and especially little boys, seeing,

703

again, a woman in this role and getting

704

comfortable with a woman being

705

the executive leader.

706

And I think that's I just think about that so often.

707

And every time that I'm lensing someone,

708

I just think about what kind of visual

709

world are we showing to this

710

current generation and the next generations after,

711

and how can we make sure that that

712

leadership is fair and representative?

713

I love this.

714

It reminds me, you know, just sort of having that representation

715

that, you know, the WNBA has these little boy

716

fans out there like wearing

717

jerseys.

718

I know, right?

719

And so, you know, this happens because, you know, the TV...

720

The little boys with the Caitlin Clark jerseys.

721

Yeah, these fanboys, which I love because,

722

and I think directly due to the fact that there's

723

greater coverage, the more people fill the

724

in-person space, filling arenas, means

725

the broadcasters are looking to put eyeballs on the screen.

726

So they're willing to also put that out there.

727

And so we can prove we can, you know,

728

be at the highest levels of

729

politics, or of leadership and

730

nonprofit and leadership of, you know, human

731

rights, and leadership in sports.

732

And I think that in

733

general is one of the things that I'm going to give flowers to

734

you about because you were able to lend some

735

of this and really be part of that flywheel

736

of getting representation in front of the camera in a meaningful way.

737

So thank you for that.

738

I mean, and there's also this huge thing of starting

739

off in the industry of being a sound person.

740

And, you know, I didn't think about it.

741

I was just like, oh, I know sound.

742

I'm going to go do it.

743

And then there, if there was a little girl on set, and

744

her staring at me.

745

And I can't even imagine.

746

I mean, like, It's, it's 1st I'm

747

going, oh, I'm, I'm working and I'm being watched.

748

And I know why I'm being watched, you

749

know, and having people come up and go, I've never been on

750

a set before with a female sound person.

751

I've never been on a set before.

752

I watch it with a female, uh,

753

camera op or a DP, and it's like

754

all of a sudden when that conversation starts,

755

like there's a 2nd reason you're there.

756

It's like, oh, I have a 2nd job now.

757

And I mean, even in just

758

small productions.

759

Here you are at the White House.

760

And so you're also on display.

761

I can't even imagine.

762

I mean, you helped us see

763

history in a different way.

764

I mean, that is huge, and to wear that.

765

Wait.

766

So effortlessly

767

in going, okay, this is my job.

768

I mean, yeah, I guess I guess I'm giving flowers to you too.

769

It's like, It's a big deal.

770

It is, it's a big deal.

771

really is.

772

You were just doing your job, but I just want you to know, I mean, it's

773

a big deal because, you know, when I read

774

the article on slate and I thought, I could have done this.

775

But I'm so glad that you had

776

done it and then spoke out about what you saw and spoke out about it.

777

Behind the lens, you saw what you saw.

778

You saw it in a way that was about

779

sex and misogyny.

780

The idea that people or how they treat people

781

can be a little racist.

782

You're bringing your biased.

783

And so like having you put those into,

784

put that into words and to actually consciously,

785

And with thought.

786

Break through that and

787

and, Call it for what it is and

788

actually work against those things of bias.

789

It's big for what I see culturally and

790

what is what should be out in the world in

791

general as far as uh, people knowing about.

792

So that's one of the reasons why I reached out after that and

793

I wanted to have this conversation.

794

Now, I miss Kathleen because I would love to get to know her too.

795

So maybe in the future, we can do.

796

We will have to get her as well.

797

I just, I also wanted to share.

798

I mentioned it in my slate article, but on the power of representation.

799

So we were in a photo line.

800

And this little girl, 7 year old Ellie.

801

She, Met the vice president.

802

Was so excited and she shared that

803

she loves to write.

804

And What

805

was so powerful and feminist about and continues

806

to be about Kamala Harris is instead of saying, oh,

807

that's so cute, you know, good for you, she

808

says, oh, you should write a book.

809

If you want to be a writer, you should write a book.

810

And Who

811

knew that the 7 year old would actually go and write

812

a book and she did?

813

Uh, she wrote a book called The Girl with the Loudest

814

Voice about a little girl speaking up.

815

And I just,

816

Listen, Ellie is very impressive and

817

she probably would have written this book anyway, but That

818

is so important because when you have a

819

woman in that leadership position.

820

And I mean, people of all genders do this, right?

821

You see a little girl and you say, you're so cute.

822

Oh, I like your dress, right?

823

And you never say that.

824

To little boys, right?

825

And I just think seeing someone.

826

in that position and

827

hearing from the vice president of the United States telling you

828

to write a book and encouraging your dreams.

829

You know, what a transformational

830

thing that was.

831

And that's also one of those moments that I just think back to a lot and it.

832

Keeps me going.

833

Yeah, I mean, it is,

834

it is all the things, right?

835

You have just like a lot of energy and a lot of different experiences

836

in this one short amount of time.

837

I mean, I'm sure it felt like a very long time to you.

838

Uh, but you know, you'll look back on

839

your life and and just be so full of,

840

of appreciation and, um, Your

841

gratitude for the experience in general.

842

And I know you've spoken on this, but how has media

843

and storytelling helped you amplify your voice or

844

connect with your audience in a way that feels authentic to you.

845

Well,

846

I also want to say, Piper, to

847

you, that sound is such an intimate

848

role on set, and I am

849

so glad that you have been that trailblazer

850

for little girls on set

851

for actresses of any age, really, because

852

sound is so you have to get so close to the person,

853

you have to fix the right place for the love, like it's

854

very, it's really

855

one of the most intimate jobs that

856

occur on a film set, and this

857

has been my experience as well, where when we

858

hire, um, female

859

sound people, We just get

860

great feedback, especially from women

861

who've been in situations where, you know, you

862

just feel like a museum exhibit where people are just touching

863

you and putting something down your shirt and it's very

864

uncomfortable and they

865

really appreciate how,

866

You know, it's not so clean

867

along a gender binary, of course, but 9

868

times out of 10, if you hire a

869

sound girl, you're going to get an

870

experience where that person takes the extra time to make you feel comfortable.

871

So I also think representation and sound is really, really important.

872

And it's so cool that you have been

873

able to be that representation.

874

In terms of like telling my story,

875

To the world, I was.

876

A little nervous about the

877

slate article, but I also was mostly just so full

878

of rage that I thought.

879

Maybe like a couple of Kamala-Stan

880

girlies will read this article and feel

881

something on inauguration day that I'm feeling.

882

And the reception completely shocked me.

883

But also,

884

Once I thought about it more, did

885

not shock me because clearly, there

886

are so many people who, around

887

the world, were devastated by the election, not

888

necessarily because of some kind of political alignment.

889

But seeing a really qualified,

890

excellent woman be torn down in such a merciless,

891

clearly biased, clearly

892

unfair fashion, right?

893

And what it meant, so viscerally, so

894

emotionally, so profoundly to, Again,

895

to so many types of people, but especially to women

896

and girls, especially to women and girls of color.

897

I think it's so important to not overlook that

898

that was extremely emotional and very difficult to think.

899

and witness that and then experience

900

what we experience.

901

So, I was nervous, you know,

902

I worked with an incredible editor at Slate, Natalie

903

Shetler, shout out to Natalie, you are brilliant.

904

And shout out to my writing agent, Bridget Matsy,

905

another absolutely brilliant editor who helped me.

906

get that piece across the finish line, but since then,

907

I've just realized that.

908

A lot of people don't know what goes on behind the camera.

909

They don't know how the sausage gets made and that I

910

have this interesting different perspective,

911

different angle, different lens.

912

Um, is

913

really a part should be a part of the conversation because

914

I think so many people.

915

are aware that media literacy generally

916

is important, that understanding a biased headline

917

or a biased quote is something that folks

918

should pay attention to, but, For the

919

most part, if you're not a camera person or really steeped

920

in like photo editing or the picking of a

921

newspaper cover page, like, you

922

don't necessarily know or assume

923

that images are biased.

924

Every image has a subjective take,

925

and that's okay.

926

But the problem is when we don't analyze

927

it and have skepticism around it.

928

And clearly, now with AI,

929

with fake news, with misinformation and

930

disinformation, it's really such an important time

931

for all of us as camera folks to

932

raise our voices to tell our stories because people

933

really are interested.

934

I've had so many people reach out and say, 0 my gosh, I

935

had no idea.

936

I didn't even think about a high angle versus a low angle.

937

I didn't even think about, you know, a single shot or

938

a really wide shot with more context, how

939

that affects your understanding of the situation.

940

And so,

941

I'm just out here telling my truth, and

942

of course, the hater's gonna hate,

943

but the internet, and, you know, I've

944

had my fair share of existential moments

945

thinking, okay, the internet is so big and it's such a swamp

946

and it's so racist and sexist and awful.

947

How can I possibly think that my little substack

948

articles are somehow like chipping away at it?

949

But then I also say, For every

950

person that you provide a new perspective to that.

951

is change.

952

And that changes the real, that it totally changes the real.

953

I love having a chance to introduce our

954

audience to amazing change makers that are

955

showing up authentically and are actively trying

956

to change the real for people that look like us, right?

957

If folks want to know more about your work, how

958

can they work with you, get to know you better?

959

How do they how do they interact with you?

960

Thank you so much.

961

I, my DMs are open.

962

Follow me on Instagram at Azza Cohen,

963

um, A-Z-Z-A, C-O-H-E-N, same with my

964

substack, substack.com slash Azza Cohen.

965

I love to hear from people.

966

I love to get tips, especially on substock from readers

967

of people saying, 0 my gosh, this image is so crazy.

968

Can you analyze it?

969

Or, you know, somebody wrote in to

970

tell me somebody in Boston said, oh, Mayor

971

of Boston, Michelle Wu is pregnant and

972

there's really sexist coverage of what's going on.

973

Can you look at it?

974

And I said, 0 my god, I would love to.

975

I mean, that was one of my favorite pieces that I've written.

976

So, Please follow me on Instagram,

977

get in touch on Instagram or substock,

978

and we would be really thrilled to

979

collaborate, my wife and

980

I, our company, is based in DC, but we go all around

981

the country, all around the world.

982

And so we'd be happy to hear from you and

983

something that we're hoping to launch soon.

984

is on our website, we want to put a directory of

985

baddies who we want to recommend that you work with.

986

So, you know, again, our amazing diverse

987

crew of people, you know, camera people, sound people,

988

lighting, editing, all sorts of people.

989

So, um, if you're interested in being included in this

990

directory, again, just like DM me or message me on Substack,

991

I'd be happy to read about your work and um, potentially uplift it.

992

So get in touch and I think it's really important for

993

all of us to uplift each other.

994

Yeah, absolutely.

995

I think those are great ideas and like doing the

996

things to help uplift others.

997

Thank you, Asa.

998

We had so much fun and it was so interesting.

999

I'm glad we got this conversation.

1000

Yes.

1001

It was perfect.

1002

It was.

1003

It was.

1004

And for our audience, we'll see you next time.

1005

That's it for this episode of Change the Reel.

1006

If you're enjoyed it, share the episode or leave a review wherever

1007

you listen, connect with us or any of our guests on

1008

LinkedIn, check the show notes for links.

1009

And if you're done with DIY and ready to record something that

1010

matters in a safe, inclusive space,

1011

check out our studio at Velasquezmedia.com.

8

Remember, representation starts here.

1012

Hasta pronto.

1013

See you soon.