I’m extremely proud to have worked as a producer on AVALANCHE, an official selection of several notable film festivals, including Cleveland International Film Festival 2021, Cordillera International Film Festival 2021, SCAD Savannah Film Festival 2020, Mill Valley Film Festival 2020, Calgary International Film Festival 2020, SOHO Film Festival 2020, Lower East Side Film Festival 2020, and rePRO Film Festival by mama.film 2020.

This film is important to me for many reasons, but most of all, because it’s a story that comes from the real-life experience, brain, and heart of one of my best friends, comedy writer Molly Anne Coogan (Fox’s Pivoting). In 2016, she suffered a miscarriage just as she was slated to premiere one of her films at a festival in Los Angeles. We had planned to meet there to celebrate her film and pregnancy before everything kicked off; instead, she shared with me the devastation of her recent loss. Over the next few days, I watched her grapple with the difficult decision to put on a professional, funny face despite the deep sadness and physical discomfort I knew she was experiencing.

As Molly’s friend, I was floored by her strength and bravery in making the decision she did. But I was deeply troubled by the fact that her decision was also made out of necessity. Molly is just one of many women — my own mother, friends, and family members among them — who’ve felt the need to navigate the aftermath of pregnancy loss in silence.

Told through Molly’s one-of-a-kind comedic lens, AVALANCHE reminds us that there are still stigmas around talking openly about pregnancy loss and the effects it has on women’s bodies, mental health, and relationships. Thankfully, that conversation has opened up in recent years, and our hope is to help keep that dialogue and education going. You can read more about Molly’s experience in MOTHER Magazine, in an essay for which I had the privilege of shooting photos.

We were blessed with a dream team to bring the story to life. The film was directed by Heather Jack (Search Party, Superstore, Atypical, Babysitter’s Club) and features the comedic genius of Lennon Parham (Minx, Veep, Bless This Mess), Vivian Bang (Always Be My Maybe, White Rabbit), Tara Karsian (The Morning Show, American Horror Story), and many others. In addition to writing and co-executive producing with me, Molly stars in the film — proving that women filmmakers really can do anything and everything.

You can follow along with AVALANCHE at avalanchethefilm.com and @avalanche_thefilm on Instagram.

• share this on