By: Belle Doyle
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 02/24/22 – Directing, producing, acting, writing; there’s nothing Sabrina Lassegue doesn’t do. The Head of Yellow Rain Productions, a production company that strives for diversity on all sides of the camera, has become an immaculate force of nature in the film industry.
“Is there a project you’re working on that you’re the most excited to share?” asked Doyle.
“I just wrapped my film Blight, which is a film about sex trafficking, and I am super excited for that to debut later this year at festivals.” said filmmaker, Sabrina Lassegue.
“What was the driving force behind Blight?” asked Doyle.
“About three years ago, my friend, someone I knew from my childhood was trafficked and murdered. I started making a film called The Damaged and released it, sent it to festivals, and then, I decided to keep doing that each year… making a film about trafficking in order to raise awareness.” said Lassegue.
Lassegue’s short film, The Damaged is based on a teenage girl, Katie, whose ride home turns out to be a fatal. Blight is a short film based on The Damaged, where four girls, who are trapped in the modern sex trafficking system struggle to maintain elements of life that are most valued.
“What aspects of filmmaking have you found to be the most difficult during your creative process?” asked Doyle.
“I’m not too good at editing and I used to like cinematography but not so much anymore. I kind of learned to stay in my lane with directing and producing and acting and writing… many lanes. Also, just networking with people can be difficult because it’s hard to be taken seriously when you’re a young woman.” said Lassegue.
The filmmaker was only 19 years old when she opened her production company in 2020, since then, she has written, directed, produced, and starred in several of her own films as well as stepping up as the creative director of large campaigns and has started directing music videos where she takes her creative and innovative mind to display art.
“In regards to actors and crew members, who are the best people you look for to work with when you’re in that process of deciding who to help bring your visions to life?”
“I’m always looking for people who are ardent and prepared enough to take risks. I think today is the perfect example of that. We’re shooting Blake’s music video for his new song, and Michael Morrison (Blake Proehl’s manager) reached out to me at the last minute to do this and I got together with Kane and a crew. Everyone was willing to jump in, and those are the kind of people that I love to work with.” said Lassegue.
On the day in question, Lassegue was directing and choreographing a music video for musician and NFL player, Blake Proehl. His single, Falling Into You, starring dancer, Sophie Pittman from So You Think You Can Dance, will be released this year.
“I didn’t start singing until a year ago, as a kid, I was always into dancing and singing. I was obsessed with music but I grew up in a football family; my Dad played in the NFL, my brother plays in the NFL, I obviously play. I got injured this year and so I started taking music more seriously, people would always tell me I could sing. I was told to get on Tik Tok and see what happens. I had a Tik Tok video of my Grandma and I; I set up the camera and was like, “Do you mind if I play the piano?” She said, “Do you know how to?” I was like, “Yeah, it’s worth a shot.” I knew how to play some chords, so I started playing, it’s really simple. I woke up the next morning and the video had millions of views and I had hundreds of thousands of followers, the video is now at 24 million. It became really real and I didn’t know if I was ready for it but I feel like it just came over me. I’m a big believer in God so I feel that it was destined and right now, I am just taking it wherever it leads me. I signed with a manager and I am now going on my first single. It’s been crazy but I’m super excited. That’s where we are right now, we’re just riding the wave.” said Proehl.
“What is it about Sabrina’s technique that has stood out to you the most?” asked Doyle.
“How comfortable she makes everybody feel. I can be myself completely, and for me being completely new to this, that’s exactly what I need to be able to perform. If it was the opposite, it would be a lot harder for me to be fluid and be myself, so she makes it really easy.” said Proehl.
“What do you feel is the least recognized element of film and why should we be more aware of it?”
“Blake just asked, ‘if there is light outside, why do we need lights?’ There’s so much that goes into lighting, actually all aspects of film, one scene could have taken sixty takes. Filmmaking is a tedious process that takes a lot of hands on deck, many people fail to realize this.” said Lassegue.
“As a creative mind, does it require you to give back?”
“Yes, I started a mentorship program in 2021. We offered it to anyone who couldn’t afford to go to school, anyone who comes from a low-income household, anyone who’s LGBTQ or a woman or a person of color; if they wanted to apply to schools, we waived their college application fees. We pay those for them and then, we teach them about film and invite people who are already established in the industry to come talk to them and teach them about marketing and building your brand as a filmmaker: how to get PA jobs, and how to get on set. Since then, we’ve had three of them complete films, two of them actually got marketing internships and, one of them is now a PA full time at HBO Max. I think, for me, a big thing was being able to hire them. One of my PA’s started out in our mentorship program and now I hire him all the time. He is still learning but he’s killing it, it’s very refreshing to see. I think I attract people who are like, ‘I want to do it, I want to do it now. Let’s go make a movie. Let’s do something.’ And that’s what we have here today, is those people.” said Lassegue.
“Do you feel a responsibility to influence the industry to grow?”
“For me, being 20 years old and a black woman in a film, it’s definitely a completely different obstacle course. I think finding people who are willing to work with me and treat me the same as they treat anyone else and who respect me is extremely revitalizing, like Kane, who I’m working with today. Kane, what are you working on?” said Lassegue.
“My background is photography and I’ve been doing a lot of music videos recently. It’s great to be on this one. It’s a little last minute, think on your feet, kind of thing which is my favorite and it’s going great.” said director of photography, Kane Borchert.
“How do you think Sabrina differs from other filmmakers?” asked Doyle.
“Definitely age. I feel, especially in this industry, I’ve seen a lot of late twenties to mid-thirties so it’s nice to see a younger face in the crowd, especially with a different background and an ability to give a new perspective on things.” said Borchert.
Lassegue often hires youth on her set and gives them opportunities to show the industry a new aspect of the advantages of having young people working on films.
“You’ve worked with Sabrina a lot, is there a moment that stands out to you where her authenticity was shown the most?” asked Doyle.
“That’s a great question. One of the first things that comes to mind, when you think of a moment or a substantial point in working with Sabrina in the past, has been working on Blight which was really cool especially seeing her both direct and act in the project. I would say that comes through pretty consistently in my time there, so it’s hard to find a specific moment but just through the mentorship program, it’s nice to feel as though I’m actually getting to know her as opposed to some teachers, are more reserved and separated but it feels more like a real professional relationship that has also allowed us to become friends.” said production assistant, Jason-Dean Aldea.
Lassegue has taken her knowledge of the industry and has been educating people on Tik Tok. Her large array of followers have been and still are completely invested in her career.
“Your life has changed quite a bit the past year especially with your massive audience growth on social media, how do you remain in the moment with the world of social media rising?” asked Doyle.
“I try my best to focus on what I’m doing and what I want to do. I don’t love social media and I don’t want to necessarily be considered an influencer but if I woke up tomorrow with millions of followers and views from people who genuinely care about my work, I wouldn’t mind. I would rather be considered a person in entertainment sharing her journey. I’d prefer to be in the moment, making films. The brands are really cool! I got to work with Taco Bell which was amazing. Most filmmakers have Taco Bell commercials so that’s something that’s great, building those relationships and I hope to explore commercial directing further, but I don’t ever want to mix up my talent and my work ethic with followers, I think it’s silly that we’re in that era. I don’t think my end goal is to be on social media. I started it as a way to connect with filmmakers and somehow, my content found a larger audience than I planned for. I think this month I’ve been very laid-back from Tik Tok, the most I’ve ever been. I just have been on set every single week, I’ve been on eight different sets in the past two weeks and I’ve been directing all of them, and then I’ve been producing a ton of projects, and I’d rather be doing that. If I want to put something together, like BTS and capture moments for myself, I think that’s cool if it fits my brand on Tik-Tok. I love sharing knowledge on Tik Tok, but also, at the end of the day, I’m not the only resource, so I redirect people to those resources. I wrote and I am directing my feature later this year so my focus may drift away from the app. I like this, I enjoy the creation on set more than the reaction from others.” said Lassegue.
Along with Blight, Lassegue’s Season of the Girl Boss is set to premiere later this year. The series, filming throughout 2022, will revolve around Lassegue interviewing distinguished women in various fields and influencers doing an activity related to their craft and industry. The show aims to bridge the gap of women in male-dominated sectors, have open conversations about various industries and the journeys taken to get there, while inspiring young girls who want to pursue similar career paths. It is safe to say that Lassegue herself is a Girl Boss and her journey has inspired and will continue to inspire many.