Now Streaming on Maryland Public Television
Meet The richards
Mom & M is a kindhearted yet raw intimate portrait of modern American parenthood. Meet Nikki, a writer and PhD student; Elise, a social media influencer; and Sansa, their adopted daughter who battles leukemia. Together, they navigate what happens when your partner comes out as transgender while caring for an ill child and learn that cancer remission is not the end to life’s challenges. The Richard family offers a deep-seated glimpse of love’s power in surviving extraordinary circumstances.
Nikki: is a self proclaimed “sensitive queer writer with moods and coping mechanisms.” She hails from conservative deep south Louisiana. She is working to publish her first YA queer dystopian novel, Demon in the Whitelands. She is determined for the health of her daughter and wears her heart on her sleeve for her wife. Throughout the film we live alongside Nikki as she faces rejection from her biological family in her transition from male to female and teaches us about what self-acceptance means in the process.
Elise: is the financial root, emotional constant and optimistic source within her family unit. She is vibrant, bubbly and fearless. She works tirelessly as a benefits coordinator for the NFL. She is a social media “influencer”, model and youtube channel host.
Elise is extroverted and energetic but must face her tendency to box up her emotions with the transition and growth in her family and marriage.
Sansa: is the 6 year old adopted daughter of Nikki and Elise. She has battled acute lymphoblastic leukemia since birth, which is a cancer that attacks the blood and bone marrow. She was born in Hungary where Nikki and Elise traveled to adopt her at 18 months of age. She is the thread that ties her family together. Sansa is in love with books and music and her spirit is infectious.
A new style of collaborative documentary:
This film celebrates the ideation of collaborative filmmaking by utilizing Nikki and Elise’s own smart phone “home movies.” The lens of Nikki & Elise is an important invitation into how they see the world with an emphasis on sharing their story as opposed to extracting it.
The culture of iPhone “life” capturing is very indicative of American Millennials and it adds a timestamp to the film that is culturally important. Watching their lives through this style of modern home movie making allows the audience to ask the question:
How do we make and store our own memories in this day and age?
All other aspects of Nikki, Elise and Sansa’s lives have been filmed observationally with a few interviews to clarify and lead us through their narrative. My intention is to balance the lens and invite the Richard’s to participate in co-authoring their narrative.
MEET THE TEAM
A film about choosing family over everything.
DIRECTOR:
Jena Burchick
Born and raised in Baltimore, Jena has always been passionate about empathetic, community driven stories. She is a documentary filmmaker, an Assistant Professor of film production at Towson University and an MFA graduate from VCFA as well as a proud IATSE 487 studio mechanic. The combination of these skills and interests has led Jena to focus her work on tying together all of her passions: to tell stories rooted in light and truth. She is enamored by the unique complexities of the human condition, particularly in the intricacies of family dynamics across cultures.
Co-Producer: Tyler C. Peterson
Tyler is a Baltimore-based writer, director, and producer. In 2015, he founded Lux Daze Media, an independent production company and film collective. Tyler created Lux Daze Media with the goal to produce projects that challenge industry ideologies, and create a safe, inclusive space for artists to tell stories. His latest work is the award winning short film "Summer Hill", which is available now to stream on Amazon Prime Video in the US and UK.
Co-Producer: Mei Lin Lau Man
Mei Lin is a Panamanian filmmaker currently based in Baltimore, Maryland. Mei graduated from Towson University with a degree in Electronic Media and Film and a minor in Business Administration. Mei also has a Master’s degree in Film and Video Production from AU. She has worked in several ads and commercials, feature films and well-known TV shows in the DMV area. Mei is currently Lux Daze Media's Producer and is constantly looking to produce new, challenging content. Mei is also the Associate Producer for Baltimore-based production company, Rock Shore.
Awards & Recognition
Emmy Winner, The National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Category: Documentary Cultural/Topical, 2023
Awarded “Best Short Film”, Virginia Queer Film Festival, VA, USA, 2023
Awarded “Best LGBTQIA Film”, Wine, Women & Film Festival, LA, USA, 2022
Docs Without Borders, Award of Excellence, DE, USA, 2021
Semi-Finalist, Lake Travis Film Festival, TX, USA, 2021
Award of Merit for LGBTQ content, IndieFest Film Awards, CA, USA, 2021
Film Festival Official Selections
Virginia Queer Film Festival, VA, USA, 2023
Wine, Women & Film Festival, LA, USA, 2022
Vancouver Queer Film Festival, Vancouver, Canada, 2022
Rainbow Visions Film Festival, Alberta, Canada, 2021
We Make Movies Film Festival, LA, USA, 2021
UFVA National Conference, Virtual, USA, 2021
Bentonville Film Festival, Documentary Competition, AK, USA, 2021
OUTSOUTH Queer Film Festival, SC, USA, 2021
Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival, VT, USA, 2021
Docs Without Borders, DE, USA, 2021
Maryland Film Festival, MD, USA, 2021
North Beach American Film Festival, MD, USA, 2021
Translations: Seattle Transgender Film Festival, Seattle, USA, 2021
Lake Travis Film Festival, TX, USA, 2021
Indy Film Fest, IN, USA, 2021
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR INQUIRY, PLEASE CONTACT US. WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU!
