Behind The Click: Katrina Miles, Chief Strategy Officer at Roscoe Labs - Page 2

KM: I really enjoyed Tallahassee. I had some of the greatest adventures of my life there. Student murdered outside my dorm room. State witness in a capital murder case. One on one interviews with the local grand dragon of the KKK on the steps of the Capitol during one of their rallies. Getting to work on media campaigns to convince President George H. Walker Bush to jump out of an airplane to convince Florida’s retirees to become FULLY ENGAGED in their golden years while working for Gov. Bush. Creating heritage trails and getting to interview DES survivors. There was the excitement of working for the Gov during the 2000 elections. And the strangeness of coming face to face with fellow students while working for that same Gov during a major sit-in in response to the dissolution of Affirmative Action. And then there was the Carl Hiaasen like happenings of living in town – like hanging with tech media giant Merlin Mann – who at the time would dress up like a gorilla and play the piano at the local watering hole called WaterWorks. Or the time Mann’s Gorilla wrestled a man dressed as a giant carrot in a public park in a feats of strength during a Festivus celebration.  Good times.

KM:  In fact, I didn’t really intend to do anything film related at all. So, I moved to New York and had every intention of pursuing a masters at NYU – creative non-fiction in the Creative Writing department. And then I took a screenwriting class – just for fun. And I loved it! Got the bug. And I knocked and banged on any and every opportunity until someone gave me a shot. What I discovered is that producing a film is a lot like putting together a news package. And you really do need every skill you learn along the way; fundraising, networking, governmental affairs – reporting.

KM: I worked on feature length documentaries and short narrative fiction. I think one of the biggest heartbreaks for me was working on director Melinda Janko’s excellent documentary Broken Trust: Cobell v. United States. It was a $50 billion, 25 year class action lawsuit against the United States by a group of Native Americans who were demanding their legal land rights back. The United States had entered into a lease agreement with them. And the US broke it. So, they rightfully asked for it back. And could do so legally. But, now we have timber lands, factories, oil fields, etc. on the land so the US basically said they’d have to sue. So they did. Seriously amazing filmmaking. Incredibly important topic. And, I never cried and prayed so much. I think I beat on every door I could to get the finishing funds. And Melinda practically went broke. And it never got released. Melinda is still out there banging on doors to get it seen. When you win, it’s way more fun. I think the most fun I had was working on the short film that won at the Emiriates Film Festival – Petra 2025 AD. With a budget of $100 dollars we made an incredible short Orwellian film about what happens when you lose your basic right to information.

KM: Just do it!  Presently, I work with and advise The Smallest Seed and international NGO with projects in Africa, Central Asia, China —  among the many projects they have. I am a strategic consultant and adviser for the Board. This past year I went to Kenya to meet some of the girls we house and educate – most of whom had risked their lives to escape the female genital mutilation and early forced marriages. These girls are so young and so precious. Some middle school and high school girls. Some who came to us when they were as young as 8 years old. It’s so humbling to realize that there is more out there in the world than yourself. I spent sometime in Afghanistan, which is part of the inspiration behind Roscoe.tv for me, and I just remember being in the most remote parts of the mountains in the north and the locals had mobile phones. My gosh – what if they had access to information? What if they could self-report? What if the NG’s could tell their stories? What if the women could really tell their stories – in their own words? Just do it!  I think where we get it wrong is that we think that we have to go all over the world.

The best time I ever had was teaching Sunday School to a bunch of teenage girls in an immigrant Arab neighborhood in Newark, NJ. It was way out of the way. And I needed translation help. I took and organized Arabic classes. I wanted to do it. So, I did what I needed to make it happen. They’re my girls and they’re in college now. I love that! I love that the biggest impact and influence I may ever have in this lifetime are with the girls I am honored and privileged to call little sisters.