NYWIFT Blog

By Tammy Reese

The 25th anniversary of the Tribeca Festival is shining a spotlight on bold storytelling, unforgettable voices, and films that capture the spirit of New York City — and Lucy Shulman is doing exactly that.

Premiering as part of the festival’s prestigious U.S. Narrative Competition, the sharply funny and deeply heartfelt feature follows a young woman navigating heartbreak, family dynamics, bad dates, and the complicated journey of finding herself again. Written, directed by, and starring filmmaker Ellie Sachs, the film blends humor with emotional honesty in a way that feels both intimate and universally relatable.

Behind the scenes, NYWIFT member Katherine Filaseta played a vital role as Second Assistant Director, helping keep the ambitious production moving while supporting the creative vision that brought the story to life.

In this exclusive conversation, Ellie Sachs and Katherine Filaseta open up about collaboration, creative trust, independent filmmaking, the realities of balancing multiple roles on set, and what it means to premiere a deeply personal New York story at one of the city’s most celebrated film festivals.

NYWIFT Member 2nd AD Katherine Filaseta

Lucy Schulman is having its World Premiere at the Tribeca Festival as part of the U.S. Narrative Competition. What did it mean to you personally and professionally to be part of a project premiering there?

Katherine: Tribeca is such an iconic festival that really encapsulates the best of NYC film, and especially with a film like Lucy Schulman that tells a truly “New York” story, it does feel like I can claim I’m truly a part of the NYC film community now on, like, a whole new level that I couldn’t claim before.

As a Second Assistant Director on Lucy Schulman, what were your day-to-day responsibilities on set, and how did your work support the director’s vision?

Katherine: A huge part of the 2nd AD’s job is paperwork; making sure the plans for tomorrow are communicated on the Call Sheet while summarizing how we accomplished today’s work on the Production Report — which is super important to keep everyone on the same page and working towards the same goals, even if it doesn’t sound “creative” in the same way as other jobs. But on Lucy Schulman, since our director, Ellie, was also our lead actress, another really fun and important part of my job was keeping the positive vibes strong in basecamp, making sure Ellie was allowing herself enough prep time as an actress and not just as a director for each scene, and communicating with and keeping things running with our absolutely brilliant star cast that was supporting her.

As a member of New York Women in Film & Television, what inspired you to join, and how has it impacted your career?

Katherine: My very first film industry job was as a NYWIFT intern in 2014, followed by coming on board as an employee as bookkeeper and organizer of the Immigrant Women’s Screening Series for a bit back in 2016, so NYWIFT has been absolutely fundamental in building my connections and career in the film & TV industry in NYC.

Prior to shifting gears to work in film, I was working in the non-profit sector, so NYWIFT was the perfect way for me to transition from the world I was comfortable working in, to eventually finding my place on set as an Assistant Director. And now later in my career, working at the Muse Awards as a volunteer and going to other NYWIFT events honestly just keeps me motivated and sane as a woman in a male-dominated industry. It’s just nice to come home to a room full of women sometimes after spending all day on your feet with a bunch of men!

What role do film festivals like Tribeca play in elevating stories like Lucy Schulman?

Katherine: Giving films like Lucy Schulman an audience — especially giving New York films like this one a New York audience — is so important, and Tribeca always brings an audience. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a screening at Tribeca that wasn’t at least very close to being sold out.

And getting stories to actually be seen is the first step, right? The more people who see a film, the more people get to be affected and feel represented and moved by it. I’m no Tribeca or distribution expert, as an AD that just is not my area of expertise, but I can say I definitely want people to see our movie, and premiering at Tribeca is an exciting first step.

What advice would you give to emerging filmmakers or aspiring ADs looking to enter the industry?

Katherine: It is so easy to sacrifice your body, mind, and soul for this art form, because we love stories and are living our dreams — but don’t let yourself! Movies, TV, storytelling are all SO IMPORTANT, but your body is more important. If you don’t take care of yourself first and foremost, you won’t be around to keep telling stories.

This is going to be controversial, though it shouldn’t be — but find time on set when it’s okay for you to sit down. Stay alert, stay focused, but rest your feet. If you don’t sit every once in a while, your body will literally break and force you to sit for three months straight — and impressing the AD’s and UPM’s with your ability to withstand foot pain is not worth that. Ask me how I know.

Filmmaker Ellie Sachs

Congratulations on making your feature film debut in a major way at the 25th annual Tribeca Festival. What emotions have surfaced for you seeing this deeply personal project premiere as part of the U.S. Narrative Competition?

Ellie: I’m humbled, extremely grateful, and excited to celebrate with all the incredible artists who I got to make the movie with!

You wrote, directed, and starred in Lucy Schulman — three incredibly demanding creative roles. How did balancing all of those responsibilities shape the storytelling process and your connection to the character?

Ellie: It shaped the storytelling process, I think, in making it all feel very connected. It forced me to think about the movie in a very 360-degree way. For example, knowing the blocking for a scene way ahead of time allowed me, perhaps, to be more free in a scene. It was also quite liberating, too, that if something wasn’t working on set, I could change it. It was an amazing creative challenge, and I really loved getting to do all three roles.

Your earlier projects, including Proof of Concept and Ad World, showcased a sharp comedic voice. What drew you toward the world and emotional layers explored in Lucy Schulman, and what conversations do you hope audiences leave the theater having?

Ellie: I love comedy — and I’ll always keep doing it, but Lucy certainly has a strong emotional core. It felt like a new and exciting challenge, and I really enjoyed flexing this muscle.

Re: conversations after seeing the film… I love that question 🙂 I hope the film gets people talking about relationships. Their relationships with their friends, family, romantic partners… but most importantly, the relationship they have with themselves.

New York City has clearly been a part of your creative DNA. In what ways has growing up in New York influenced your storytelling style, artistic perspective, and the kinds of characters you feel compelled to bring to life on screen?

Ellie: I love New York City so much, I find it endlessly inspiring. It’s hard to think about writing something that doesn’t take place here. I guess growing up here really helped solidify that — since it’s home for me. In my work, I love improv, happy accidents, surprises… leaving room for a little magic…and if that’s not a metaphor for what NYC is….

As someone who has steadily built momentum from short films and digital projects to a feature film world premiere, what has this journey taught you about persistence, creative trust, and finding your voice in independent filmmaking?

Ellie: Persistence is key! You have to give yourself permission to be audacious and bold and go for it!!! Creative trust is also paramount — I’m nothing without the fabulous team we assembled for this movie. We got very lucky with the incredible artists who worked on this movie — and since this is for New York Women in Film & Television — I would love to shout out some of the amazing women who worked on the movie… we had the good fortune of having Talia Brody-Barre design the most amazing, idiosyncratic and truly memorable costumes (for our 27 characters, I believe!!!), Anna Murphy who designed our incredible, intricate sets and props — even building some by hand. It was a joy, particularly in these two departments, to see how much more the storytelling got to come alive when Talia and Anna would bring in new and unexpected ideas and run with them.

For me, that’s really the biggest joy of collaboration… seeing how they might interpret or play with an idea…and having it end up heightening and elevating things in a brand-new way, is so special. I really treasured my collaboration with both of them. On the producer side of things, Lily Weisberg who served as an associate producer, and was an incredibly valuable voice on set, is also making a Tribeca debut this year with her fantastic short film, Rare Birds.

And lastly, having my long-time collaborator, dear friend, and the deeply talented filmmaker Sam Evoy on set was major for me. Sam served as Script Supervisor and Executive Producer on the film. Her contributions were vital. Being surrounded by people you trust, and who care about the film is invaluable and so, so important. In short, women rock and I love being surrounded by talented, amazing female filmmakers!!!!

Still from Lucy Schulman (courtesy of Tribeca)

Connect with Katherine Filasta on Instagram at @kay_fil and Ellie Sachs at @esachsy.

See Lucy Schulman at the 2026 Tribeca Festival, running June 3-14. 

And check out all the other NYWIFT member projects at the 2026 Tribeca Festival. 

More About Katherine Filaseta:

Katherine Filaseta (she/her) is a queer female filmmaker based in NYC. While most of her work has been as an assistant director, when she is in the director’s chair herself, Katherine enjoys exploring the way every different type of art combines via film to tell stories — especially stories from marginalized points of view.

Katherine has directed three episodes of Black Panties, a web series celebrating the beauty and intuition of Black women in all their forms, as well as a PSA about street harassment reappropriating Gnarls Barkley’s Crazy from the point of view of a woman walking down the street. She is also in post-production on two music videos with singer/songwriter Megn for her post-Trump-era album about community struggles and women’s empowerment, and is in post-production on a documentary, Carol and I, about the way the loss of control brought about by dementia transformed her grandmother’s relationship with both her family and herself.

Other than directing, Katherine also works regularly as an Assistant Director, where she uses her scheduling and leadership skills to help underrepresented creators of varying backgrounds tell their own stories. Her credits as a 1st AD include Bounce TV’s Who Is Christmas Eve? starring Paige Hurd and Romeo Miller; Pulse Film’s Hip Hop Treasures, a reality show starring LL Cool J and Darryl DMC McDaniels; and commercials for clients such as GrubHub and Facebook/Meta. She has also worked in the AD department on sets for Hulu, AppleTV+, and HBOmax.

Outside of film, Katherine spends her time reading, tweeting (@kay_fil), dancing to Bollywood music & kpop, and snuggling her pet bunny.

More About Ellie Sachs:

Ellie Sachs is an actor, writer, and director from New York City. Sachs makes her feature debut with Lucy Schulman, which she wrote, directed, and stars in as the title character. She previously co-wrote, co-directed, and starred in the short film Proof of Concept, which premiered at the Tribeca Festival and was later acquired by The New Yorker. She previously co-wrote, co-directed and starred in the original comedy series Ad World for Sam Grey’s Stapleview. Sachs previously sold a web series she co-created and starred in as a half-hour comedy to FX.

Website | Instagram

(All images courtesy of the subjects except otherwise specified)