THIRSTY is an intimate peek behind the curtain at what it takes for female politicians to endure. The film follows the journey of Audrey Allen, a woman striving to become the mayor of Oakland with her complicated family in tow. Driven by her rough upbringing and dogged idealism, this is a woman who fights to win.
During THIRSTY’s development, I had the honor of interviewing 18 women politicians who entrusted me with their most personal experiences on and off the campaign trail. Among these women was my own mother who ran for office twice during my childhood. What I enjoyed most about the intimate stories I heard from these women leaders was the humanity within them. I found their missteps fascinating and their resilience inspiring. I began thinking about how powerful it would be to see an imperfect, middle class woman like Audrey run for office. For as Congresswoman Lauren Underwood says “Our country would be a much different place if more nurses and teachers ran for office.”
Women politicians in America have made great progress in recent years but still hold less than 20% of elected positions nationwide and make up only one-quarter of congress. Despite strong attempts by Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris, we also haven't been able to capture the American presidency. Many pundits believe that to succeed at the top, aspiring women politicians must first crack the code on holding office at the city and state level. Many factors hold women back at this early stage of their political careers - gender bias, difficulty raising campaign funds and lack of community support to name a few - but the real problem is that not enough women actually want to be politicians. Women with children are especially unlikely to run for office and a study of college students found that even politically active young women don't see themselves as future politicians. I believe fear of failure and perfectionism are key ingredients in this phenomenon. I hope watching Audrey, flaws and all, as she strives to win will inspire more women to say “why not me?” and run for office themselves.
But THIRSTY is much more than a campaign film. It is also a deeply honest portrayal of a woman who is unapologetically ambitious, maternal and sexual. How women uplift each other, and when they choose not to, is also an important story element in THIRSTY. Because our characters reflect the diversity of Oakland, the complexity of modern day race relations is another key theme. And at the heart of our story is an interracial marriage under great pressure that ultimately endures.
As a female filmmaker, I share many experiences with women in politics. We are both engaged in a daily struggle for leadership positions – one in the artistic arena, one in the political. As a working mother that is striving for success in a highly competitive and male-dominated field, Audrey’s journey is very much my own.
