Moviemaker in the Making

Rachel Hemsley ’13 was born to be in the film industry. All she needed was a little extra assurance.

And that assurance came in the form of an invitation.

Hemsley, 20, is a junior at Chapman and is studying screenwriting at the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts. Her dream career is to write novels and films, in addition to serving as a script supervisor and eventually, a movie director. And in April of this year, each of those goals were given a boost, when the short film "Add/Edit," on which Hemsley served as script supervisor, was selected for the “Short Film Corner” category of the Cannes Film Festival, one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world.

“It’s amazing to have this experience,” Hemsley said. “That was only my third time being on set at all. But this is where it really clicked for me. I realized I was good at this and saw myself doing it for a long time. Now that the movie is in Cannes, to have my name on something like this is God giving me confirmation that this is the path for me.”

While it is not rare for independent short films to be received into the France-based festival, it is rare for independent short films developed completely by college students to be received into Cannes.

"Add/Edit" is a piece about a young woman who is a film editor, and while editing clips for an upcoming movie, begins to reflect on her relationships in life and how she tends to edit her very own existence. A friend of Hemsley’s who attends Chapman created the film, and she was asked to serve as script supervisor.

Rachel Hemsley '13

“As script supervisor, you’re very involved with the director and the cinematographer, and your job is basically continuity,” Hemsley said. “With every shot, everything has to be the same. You have to know how actors might take sips of a drink, how a chair moves in a specific scene, and basically just be the editor on set. You have to know all the small details, so there is a lot of preparation and planning that goes into it.”

Preparation and planning are the two things that so far, have defined Hemsley’s young career. Her mother, Lauri, is a doctor, but her father, Matt, was a commercial and film actor, director, and stunt double. Following in her father’s footsteps became Hemsley’s plan at a young age.

“I was in my first commercial when I was a couple months old, so it’s been in my blood,” Hemsley said. “I always had that connection with my dad, but I liked the writing side of it.”

Hemsley put her future screenwriting aspirations into motion by writing a book at age 12. Emma of Winds was published in 2010, when Hemsley was 15, and it gave her a taste of what it’s like to make a story come to life in her mind.

“When you have the ability to tell a story and make people feel things and get messages across the globe through film or books, it’s such a ministry tool. And it doesn’t have to be a Christian movie. It could be an Oscar-winning film that just makes people think.”

Hemsley hopes to adapt Emma of Winds, which revolves around protagonist and female pirate Emma and her Robin Hood-like exploits, onto the silver screen in the future.

While at Orange Lutheran, Hemsley was in the Ambassadors Club, president of the Improv Club, participated in Missions, and acted in numerous plays and musicals. However, despite her involvement mainly with acting in high school, writing was her passion, one that she says is merely an extension of her relationship with God.

“Honestly, it’s all God. I write with God. He gives me whole scenes in my head and I just write it down. He gave me a voice at a young age. He gives me the words to say. I can hardly take any credit.”

As for her next ventures, Hemsley spent the summer and the fall working on two separate independent films, script supervising and assisting in screenwriting.

Upon her graduation from Chapman in fall of 2016, she is hoping to bring one of her own films to life with the help of her father and of course, God.

“Faith has been a huge part of my life and my entire family is extremely faith-based,” said Hemsley, whose brother, Luke, is a sophomore at Orange Lutheran. “I’ve had a very close walk with God. When I was home-schooled before high school, I had so much time alone and it became normal to talk to Him and pray and just expect Him in my life.

“When I came to Orange Lutheran, there was no question that this is where God wanted me. And today, he continues to open doors for me.”