67. An In-Depth Conversation with Producer and Actor Aletha Shepherd!

Jess and Jenn dive in with the extremely talented and resilient Producer, Aletha Shepherd. Aletha is the founder of the production company Shot of Tea.

Aletha is a dedicated producer renowned for her inclusive storytelling and stands as the winner of the prestigious Women of The Future Award 2023 for Arts & Culture. Her commitment to crafting compelling narratives extends to amplifying undiscovered voices and talents, nurturing stories that foster diverse and driven teams to create top-tier entertainment experiences.

This year, Aletha delivered her first TEDx talk, titled *‘Why Diverse Creators Are Better for Film,’* (linked below) where she highlighted the critical role of diverse perspectives in shaping the future of cinema. Transitioning to producing after a tenure at United Talent Agency (UTA), where she shadowed leading Directors and Producers, Aletha wrote and produced her acclaimed short film *'Safe Bet,'* honored with the Best Short Short award at the LA Indie Film Festival.

Her debut feature film *'Everything & The Universe,'* a queer Rom-Com featuring talents like EJ Bonilla, Nicolette Pearse, Chelsea Gilligan, and Luke Roberts was recently picked up by Brick Lane Entertainment and is poised to make waves in the film markets. Building on this momentum, Aletha and Jenn are now set to begin shooting her next feature, *'Into the Deep Blue,'* starring India Amarteifio and Damian Hardung.

In this episode we dive into:

• Jess recaps her first Emmy after party experience!
• How Aletha started her career modeling and in pageants and transitioned into acting.
• She talks about her experience moving to LA and what the positives and negatives she faced in her 3 years there
• Moving back to London and re-engaging in the acting scene in the UK.
• Auditioning for LAMDA and RADA
• And ultimately starting her production company and making the bold move to start producing.
• Jenn and Aletha dive into their project "Into The Deep Blue" That they are producing together and what is on the horizon for Aletha and their company!
• Aletha shares her experience of having casting on her side when creating and pitching films and their invaluable input

Resources:

Shot of Tea/ Aletha's Instagram

Shot of Tea X

Shot of Tea Website

Ted Talk- Why Diverse Creators are Better for Film (2024)

Into The Deep Blue - Press Release

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