Nothing
seems special anymore. It’s the day and age where
manufacturing is at its best. Where most filmmaker’s rely on visual effects and
where films depend on opening day earnings. Everything is about getting things
done fast and making tons of money off of it. Is there anything wrong with getting
projects done quickly? No. Is there anything wrong with making a lot of money
for something you created? No. However, it is sad that our entertainment
industry has changed its tune so quickly, within the span of a little more than
a century. Instead of making a film to entertain, the goal of a modern- day
filmmaker is to make a major blockbuster. Comes to show how much we change as
people. Films today just aren’t what they used to be, are they?
So it’s no surprise with the rise of technology and
software, essentially anyone can make a film that will visually surpass those
made in the 1980’s. Independent filmmakers take matters in their own hands
daily but the problem with that is most of them get lost in buying great
equipment to mimic blockbuster films than in the editing room or more importantly,
writing a really good story.
Monroe
Hayden, 27, grew up within the entertainment industry. Her mother
is a costume artist and her father was a prop master. Although her father
wouldn’t play a big part in her life, her uncle’s helped introduce her to the
world that is filmmaking. She is the niece of Andy Soria, an animator who has worked on films like, Behind Enemy Lines, Spider- Man 2 and The Punisher. However, it would be his
little brother, filmmaker Steven A.
Soria (Beautiful Fools; WATCH HERE), who
would use a young Monroe Hayden in his films. She would assist him by “acting”
in his homemade movies, making parodies of Star
Wars, The Matrix and Fight Club
with her cousins. Hey, every filmmaker starts off that way!
Although she hopes those films never see the light of
day, they did open her eyes to visual storytelling. I suppose it’s safe to say
that this is in her blood. So when a tiny web- series known as Fox
started to turn heads, it was not surprising that she created it with the help
of photographer, Adriana Escandon, 26.
The first season of
Fox was created by a team of that included: Xavier Haven, 27, Brandon
Teague, Thomas Galashiels, 32, Martin Hernandez, 27, Allyson Moyer, 20, Michael Lozano, 28, Johnny
Weber, 23, Hunter Tabiendo, 23, Simone Aguilar, 22, Serena Diaz, 27, Coleman H., 21, Adriana
Morena, 29, Marcus Wayne, 27, Josiah Gerrund, 25, Jay Tutherford, 27 and many more. The team was assembled by Hayden, herself
led by her vision and pioneered by her determination to make a series that was
simply good.
Fox’s
first season tells the story of Mina Abrams who comes to discover who she is
while trying to solve the mystery that is Fox, her best friend. Sounds simple
enough, right? Not when Monroe Hayden and Xavier Haven write the story. The
simple structure became layered with depth as the show ventured the past of Fox
and Mina’s fallen friendship. The season offered emotional story arcs about
self- acceptance, often starring Mina. “She’s at a stage in life where her
reality is starting to take a sharp turn. Everything is on the verge of
changing for her as she becomes a young adult. As she evolves, she begins to
realize she isn’t who she thought she was going to be. She’s actually someone
different but she’s starting to accept that different can be good, it depends
how you decide to handle it,” says Hayden.
But the show also highlights chosen pain presented in the
show’s villain, Xander. Chosen Pain is Xavier Haven’s term for, “choosing to
hold onto something that causes you pain and torment for the sake of pride and
revenge. Xander was hurt when Fox broke up with him but instead of moving on,
he chose to hold onto his pain by seeking his revenge not because he’s a bad
guy but because he felt he was a good guy who sacrificed so much to make her
happy, only to realize he simply can’t. His pride gets the best of him. How can
a good guy, like himself, sacrifice so much and not get rewarded in the end? He
gave her his dreams and she turned them into nightmares. His issue isn’t really
with Fox, though, it’s more so with himself. He feels like a failure and that
can turn someone into a negative person and a negative person is capable of
very dangerous things.”
Fox
isn’t just a show about solving a mystery, the distinct underline is how these
character’s handle the situations they’re in. Each character is faced with a
choice, to do right or to do wrong. In the end, all the characters chose to do
wrong things. Fox decided to deceive Mina while both Xander and Mina decided to
seek their revenge after being hurt by her. Remarkably, Mina began with
innocence and light but eventually followed the same dark path as Xander who
served as the story’s foreshadowing of Mina’s future. Xander ended up being
taken in the Dream World by Dream Demons then transferred into another phase of
the universe, Limbo. Limbo is another term for the inability to escape. In all
matters of art, Xander will live forever in the self- tormented bed he made for
himself- or, he will live with his demons despite cheating the system, he still
is out for revenge. Perhaps Limbo sends you back to reality because there is no
hope for you? Mina, however, still has hope, if she chooses to.
The important thing to remember here is that this is a
series and a series is like a bunch of little movies to make one gigantic movie
and a movie is a story. These characters have all chosen the wrong paths but
their story isn’t over. There is still hope for them to turn it all around. The
interesting part is will they and if so, how?
It’s all part of that movie magic we all know and love.
Although, movie magic is most commonly referred to special effects and camera
tricks, it’s also referred to a film’s ability to emotionally connect with a
viewer. Magic. Fox was able to make
us blush when the titular character would physically pull Mina closer to her or
push her down to fall on top of her. It made our eyebrows rise every time Fox
growled sexually. It made us smile and hold our breath every time Fox and Mina
almost kissed! It made us lean back, away from the screen when Mina’s sweet dream
took a sharp turn towards nightmare alley. It made our jaws drop when Fox
accidently hit Mina. It made us laugh when the girls got drunk in the back of a
car. Or when Mina explained the real likelihood of Jurassic Park actually happening, which is very unlikely, by the
way. It made us cry when Mina finally admitted she was gay and how scary that
could be returning to the real world. It made us angry when we found out Fox
was actually deceiving Mina about their memories together. It made us sad when
we saw how Mina decided to handle it. It made us gush when we found out the
reason Fox did what she did; because she chose Daisy over Mina and wanted to
protect her. The show made us feel things. That, my friends, is what movie
magic is about.
Next year, a new season will air continuing Fox's story.
Watch the full first season for FREE here: www.foxwebseries.com
