Shasta Stories

An Interview with filmmaker Autie Carlisle

Cate Clother: What was your motivation in creating the Shasta Stories series? Did you have a personal interest or question you were seeking to have answered when you began this series?  

Autie Carlisle: If you’ve lived or heard of Mount Shasta, you are probably aware that the mountain has a way of drawing people to live at its base. And many of those people have incredible stories about how that happened. But I was just born here, it could have been another town, but it was this town. I was grateful for a beautiful place to grow up, but I never felt I was called here, I just entered here from day one. That carried on for nineteen years and then I returned last year, at age 32, feeling that the universe said, “You gotta go back and understand your roots,” after wishing I was European and failing to achieve a residence in Ireland.

Seeking to start a project locally that spoke to my heart, I became friends with a man named Mark Appleman, who carries a deep love for Mount Shasta. And he had been trying to encourage someone for years to tell stories about the locals, with the cornerstone question, “What brought you to Mount Shasta?” And I said, “Okay, I’ll do that with video.’” And I ran with it, using his title—Shasta Stories. 

Cate: How did you get into filmmaking? What drew you to the documentary format?

Autie: Reality is fascinating. I’m a natural responder and lover of stories. I feel that to create a film from scratch, be that writing the script, casting actors, choosing set designs, comes with a great pressure to know all the answers. One really has to be confident about the message they are putting into the world and asking so many other people to put effort into also. My friend’s great-uncle was a classic Catholic Italian painter, painting angels descending from heaven, Napoleon like portraits, the whole bit. The way he was taught was that you study anatomy, lighting, paint mixtures, perspective, and then after years of working on those skills, sitting with them, honing, maybe, just maybe, you will have something to say. And right now, I feel I am a conduit for sharing what others have to say. I am a listener and reflector right now, knowing I have more questions than answers. So until reality stops being a constant feral piece of inspiration of telling stories and connecting with humanity, I’m hooked with this format.

I had a career as a fashion designer for over a decade before switching into being a filmmaker, I’m completely self taught at film. At times that is very empowering, and at times very humbling. A combo I value. I loved making 3D products that came alive on the body, and can make a person feel magical, but most of the time I didn’t connect with the customer, the product, or the process. I was not allowed to interface with what was going on on the sales floor at times because I was too raw and unconventional. I wasn’t in line with the brand image. 

I think because I saw so much of the fashion work and world being fake, I leaned into everything real and raw.  Sometimes there are moments when I want to film an imperfection in someone, and if they notice me capturing that, most make a standard excuse, ‘Oh my house normally is cleaner than this!’ but if I can use those things that I see as beautiful, that I see as human, the person often will see themselves  slightly different, as a whole, when they watch their finished episode. I often find those are what feed a connection to the viewer, universal truths, that they can see these powerful remarkable individuals as a whole but still highlight the peculiars, the dynamic details that  acknowledge they also have ‘flaws.’ Even my film style has to sit with that truth. It’s more important for me to capture the feeling and story than to have a smooth panning shot.

Cate: These films are absolutely beautiful and moving. I can see how much compassion you have for each of your subjects in the way that you capture them. How did you connect with the subjects of these films?  

Autie: Thank you for saying that! Compassion. Something I’m learning about deeper every day. What I find very interesting is the types of people in the Mount Shasta area. I grew up very involved in the church community and was homeschooled. But I was always comfortable exploring other worlds in the area that the church family were less versed in—the Eurythmists, the gypsies, the crystal shops, the drum circles, the I AMers, the Lemurians.  But the more that I lean into one community or the other,  seeking the  genuine people of all of those communities, I see such beautiful overlapping truths. And during a time when politics, health, and media are trying their best to turn us against each other, I want to show through other people’s lives that we have similar goals and values. 

The Latin roots of the word compassion means ‘to suffer with,’ it can be the act of relaxing and moving closer into something you don’t understand. As you can see I’m pretty chatty, so it’s a valuable practice for me to be a listener. If I am asking them to be vulnerable and open, I must be as well. I must hold that space for them. Show them I will represent them honestly, and unless someone hasn’t spoken up, I believe I end up showing a beautiful side to themselves they couldn’t quite see on their own. 

Cate: What does it take to prepare for this sort of in-depth dive into the life story of another person? What is necessary to make these films successful?

Autie: Following my instinct number one. I like to film a combo of what I call action and reflection. I find it essential to create a good flow for the film of play and concentration, of b-roll and interview. The more time I can spend in someone’s space with them, the more they become used to me in their space, the more honest and in depth the outcome.

One of the most important elements of my filming is who I bring to help interview. Because I don’t prefer the subject to look directly at the camera, and because I have to operate the camera and audio, I always desire to bring along someone to help interview because I believe greatly in eye-contact and reaction. Laughing, sighing, exclaiming, and helping share that space in a more human way and it gives me the ability to zoom out cognitively and guide the big picture. 

Also, it’s one more way to encourage connection and community beyond myself. Though the psychology of it is something I would like to  study more, because it’s such a huge part of my work being successful or challenged. Some subjects are very capable of telling the same story three times and keeping the same energy, others, if they know I know the story, they can’t retell it the same way, so I need to bring someone who hasn’t heard the story to keep the storytelling fresh and alive. Some subjects only want to talk to someone they know, some men like talking to women, some women like talking to women. Some elderly people can relate better if I bring my dad, feeling understood by a similar generation. All of this is a huge part of the dynamic. Filmmakers should study psychology more than filmmaking. 

Maybe it is a bit therapeutic for both parties, as it can leave a void of confusion in its wake. They often enjoy the company I bring, the laser focus on their own inner reflection and recollection through the value I place on that, then when the time comes to stop filming, there can be withdrawal as I enter the editing phase. People want to be heard. I keep hanging out with them in digital form, but time keeps moving on, and they don’t see me. It’s a weird disillusionment I’m trying to balance. Because time is not considerate of our feelings.

Cate: The people you interview in Shasta Stories represent a dynamic group full of characters and unexpected life-stories. In finding subjects, were you trying to express your personal experience of the region, or were you wanting to discover something new?

Autie: Well, naturally I started with those folks who interested me, often who I had already interacted with. Then, desiring to discover and expand, it grew. One thing leads to the other and I’m meeting and engaging with people and regions that are completely new to me. I don’t have a personal experience I’m trying to express, but I try to only feature people who I believe have good hearts… but of course they also have to be dynamic, good story tellers, and willing to be filmed!

Cate: How would you characterize what makes Mount Shasta and its surrounding community unique and distinct? Are Shasta Stories expressive of small town America generally, or are they meant to be singularly specific of the Mount Shasta environs?

Autie: Well, I don’t know. The area holds a unique place in my life, because I grew up here, and am working from such a rich base of knowledge and contacts, that to gain that in another town would not be so easy. 

The last short documentary I made was called Eight Countries, it was a fly-on-the-wall journey around eight countries (eponymously named, of course) in a sort of dream-like syntax. And although it was nowhere near as in depth as Shasta Stories, I was affected by how similar we all are, no matter what language, no matter what beach we live near, or what we are eating; humans are similar. So although I do feel Mount Shasta is a special area, I would need to try this in another area to really speak with authority on that. And I plan to—I hope to be able to show this oeuvre to another town and figure out a grant or residency to live there for a year and bring celebration and connection to their town. So if anyone is good at that kind of work, please help me! 

I wanted to fall in love with this area of Shasta, but it is not my first reaction. Why do people say it’s so special? I’ve never had the mountain speak to me. The curse of familiarity can also be a gift, it just takes more work to see through it. But I felt a shift when I started filming the drum circles in the City Park and seeing the travelers who desire to sleep under the stars in nature here, I felt like I found my own gypsies to film and I didn’t have to go far. After watching remarkable films about gypsies by Tony Gatlif, it’s very easy to sink into that mind-frame of ‘Ugh, 90s films had such nice skin tone color. Or everyone is so visually fascinating in the 70s.’ The allure of strange languages and being foreign again gripping me and causing discontent.

But there in the City park, being accepted by a community to help document a sliver of their life, I thought, “Yes, I have earned this privilege and what a gift! We have gypsies in our own backyard, guys! Come play!” We have movie stars reading tarot cards. We have brave homemakers and hard workers and wild stories of outdoorsmanship and adventure. We have women who survived WWII and can teach us how to be grateful and empowered. We have a mayor who makes really delicious sushi for his town most nights of the week. We even have our own video store! 

Cate: What was a moment in your filming of these interviews that surprised you the most? What was a moment that moved you the most?

Autie: Surprised and meaningful. Had a few, yes. We were interviewing John ‘Scruff’ Case, asking him how he ended up in the area he told a story about his buddy asking him to go on a road trip up north. After telling it, he paused and said, ‘Do you want to hear the real story? Is it okay if I incriminate myself?’ and proceeded to tell how he really got here. It’s in the episode, go watch it.

Other moments surprise me in a deeper tone, of deeper purpose.  Those that serve as real stories to concepts I’ve been struggling with or pondering in my personal life. Freshly on my mind, I was trying to understand what it means to be enough for myself, how that relates to spending more time alone with myself, and then the next day I interviewed 29 year old Trevor who has spent the last 11 years walking all over the country, mostly by himself. 

This kind of thing happens nearly every time I interview someone, which is usually a good indication that I’m on the nose. I hope that resonation happens when someone watches an episode of mine. I try to put in things that ring true for me, because that’s my job, and it’s up to someone else to pick up the other end. 

Some of my favorite moments and people are the ones I can’t film, which used to drive me mad! Be that I missed the moment in time, or they prefer to not be filmed, but now I see it as my own private showing behind my eyelids, the blessing I get for myself doing all this work, the real director’s cut. That teaches me to not view everything as something I can ‘capture,’ which is important in my personal life too. 

Cate: Can you tell us a bit about the values set you operate from when shooting these films/conducting these interviews?

Autie: Well I’ve spoken already about the value of being honest and raw, and how I want to only spend time with heart-centered people. Sometimes I’m more successful at that than others, some people have a more complicated stand in the community, but I don’t get into that. I show them what I am able to see and that’s it. 

One value I’ve been sitting with more is this idea of discomfort and trust, professionally and personally. It is key to build trust with the individuals I am filming, and for us to be comfortable around each other. However, I’m learning to hold the camera when things get uncomfortable. Sitting with discomfort for a greater good. If someone starts to cry, or you can see they forget they are on camera and start being super vulnerable, I have the reaction to move this electronic item between us to connect eye to eye, to fill in the word they are forgetting in the sentence, but at that moment, it’s not about me. It’s often about them realising something profoundly or just being free to be themselves. We’ve made the agreement to be in this relationship of documentor and subject. To sit through those awkward moments, and not try to make someone feel more comfortable. A bit of growth and exposure needs to happen for both of us. But it’s hard to hold it. 

Cate: The majority of your subjects for these films in the first series are community elders. Are you primarily concerned with articulating the history of the Mount Shasta region, or were you attempting to see into the present as well? What do you hope for these films to achieve?

Autie: I like stories of time past, told in the age old style of pure storytelling by mouth.  So I do find great pleasure sitting at the feet of these elders and letting them paint a picture of what it was like here, when they used to sled on the dirt roads by the graffiti bridge for example. Reading a story can be remarkable, but I’m so visual, that to show the character while telling the story lights me up. I am featuring some of the younger individuals around Siskiyou County, but extra selectively. 

I don’t aim to be a historian in any way, my films do not often feature the chronology of historical events, except through the person who may have lived it. I want to present humans, because history is mostly about humans in my opinion. So by focusing on the center, history is told. I don’t think I can disconnect those. 

What do I hope to achieve? Opening people’s minds, sharing stories that can bring excitement or encouragement or knowledge and laughter. Allowing someone to take an intimate seat with a part of a local area that they know nothing about, and have no reason to interact with. The more we can understand and hear each other’s perspectives, the more we can have empathy and compassion and common ground. 

Of course, I’d be fooling anyone gullible to imply that I don’t have a part of shaping what stories you hear. So in a way, you are getting to know me through all the stories.

Cate: What do you imagine for the future of a place like Mount Shasta? Are you optimistic/pessimistic, worried/excited? Why?

Autie: Hm. Mixed. Because I choose to spend time with the good hearted, I’d have to say I find great encouragement. But it’s confusing at times, and I realise, every person has a choice, even if they don’t feel they do. There is this idea of Quantum Entanglement, my friend summarized it as, ‘you draw near to you what you focus on.’ The floatiness of that idea seems lazy or embodying a false sense of optimism but I think there is a truth to it. The people who I’ve spent time with who choose to love, who choose to be courageous, who acknowledge the impact of their choices and keep moving forward in an honest way, those people give me hope. People need to be responsible, which is hard to actualize when we have such terrible examples in government and corporate companies… but I have been so refreshed by being in this area at this stage of the world. There are fearful people here, but a very large number of brave people who think for themselves. Who choose love and communication even if they are misunderstood. There are not a lot of other places I’d like to be right now, I’m very grateful.

Cate: What’s coming up next for Shasta Stories? Any other exciting projects coming down the pike?

Autie: Yes. I am entering what I am loosely referring to as Season II of Shasta Stories. I will be featuring thematic episodes, that still focus on profiling individuals but under the umbrella of a theme, such as Skizers (discussing Snowman’s Hill/Ski Bowl/Ski Park), The Travellers and their vehicles and drums, German woman who survived WWII, individuals who have been walking all over the United States for the last decade or more, and diving into the Native Americans stories as well as continuing individual profiles. 

I’m looking to host screenings of Shasta Stories at the theater in Mount Shasta, as it is for the community and I want to share it as much as possible, and especially in a physical format. Also showing at the Flixx Fest when they are able to confirm a date after postponing the festival due to wildfires. 

“Simultaneously,” (she said with quotes, because not much has happened) I'm in post production of a short documentary called Ebullient about a Texan cowboy who broke his neck twice riding bulls, cowboys for a living, and then picked up cold water surfing on the west coast of Ireland. His story is about overcoming substance abuse, and how to be a cowboy in a digital era, as well as a good father. 

All the while, I’ll be trying to craft the type of films I want to make and maybe figure out how to make a living on that. I am more excited about how wonderful it is that my career reflects lessons I’m learning in my inner life. That’s what I wanted and want. That confirms I made the right choice leaving fashion. That’s why money doesn’t matter as much as the heart. Always remember that.