We recently connected with Haley Mellon and have shared our conversation below.
Haley, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
Since I was a child, I have always known 2 things: I was made to create and to love. Maybe you believe in a higher power or maybe you don’t, but I believe this was a gift chosen for me to help the world flourish. As I grew older, I fell in love with filmmaking as a way to get out my creative angst and passions out. I struggled in college to find a niche because I liked everything and I was really decent in everything. It was then where I asked myself, “What do I want to do?” My whole life I felt like I was caught up in trying to be good at everything, but that ended up blocking me when it was time to hone in and strive for a career. After weeks of contemplation, I decided to go back to my beginning…what I had always felt like my given gifts were, to create and to love. Suddenly, it clicked. I was going to make films that add a light back into this world. That is how I feel I can best show love to mankind. In the days we live in, we consume so much media, and yet most of it is negative and harbors anxiety and confusion. My purpose (God-given and self-driven) is to create films that add positive content back into this distracted world.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Towards the end of my college days, I felt the most lifeless and uninspired I’d ever been. I had pretty much given up before I even started in the film industry. Being stuck in a loop of the same ole routine is probably the most unimpressive and hopeless place someone can be in, and I was definitely there. I started to get restless, and I mean RESTLESS! I got the urge to leave all my film connections in my college town and relocate to a tiny mountain town where my mother’s side of the family was rooted. I quickly became fascinated with deep Appalachian culture, and it was all over my feed of which I truly could not get enough. I started dreaming of all the hidden gems of Appalachian personalities hiding in the hills, completely unbothered by the media and pressures of the modern cycle. I needed it. I needed to be around people who valued the basics of life…that in and of itself felt free to me. Two months later, I packed up my stuff and took the biggest leap of faith I ever had. I moved to make a documentary involving an Appalachian personality, but I didn’t quite know who that would be yet. As the months went by, I was looking for a subject for my film, but I hit a lot of dead ends. Lots of people with amazing stories who didn’t want to be filmed. A name, however, kept coming up in the community that had a ring to it. Ann Rose. After about the fourth time hearing it, I took that as my sign to find her contact information and reach out. The stars aligned, the greek gods danced, and my heart was beating again. Ann Rose is an off-grid farmer who is taking a kayaking trip from the creek in her small town in Lansing, NC all the way to the Gulf of Mexico, all in hopes of raising water awareness. I was thrilled! She was the most honest, inspiring, gritty, go-getter kind of a woman, and she wanted a platform to share her story. I had found my piece of Appalachian gold! And now, we set sail July 7th 2024.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1. Put yourself in positions of hope.
2. Spend time with people who want to help you.
3. Help others!
Nothing will stunt your creative growth more than keeping uninspired company. Inspiration is contagious and so is being uninspired.
That leads into the next point: Choose good company! You get the ability to choose the people who are rooting for you. Don’t stumble over the people who don’t notice your talents…when they are ready to see you, they will. At least, that’s what I’ve been telling myself.
And yet again, number 3 is also community based. Don’t gate keep! Invite others to collaborate along with you! That way you don’t get blinded by jealousy and self-isolation, but rather you learn from each other and cheer each other along. Human connection truly is everything!
How would you spend the next decade if you somehow knew that it was your last?
I tend to go all in really quick as I am an all-or-nothing person. When I want something, I will stop at nothing until I get it. Yes, I am aware this could be my best and worst trait. I decided to direct a feature-length film knowing I had never made one before. I’ve never really directed (I’m more behind the camera), and I haven’t been exposed to many documentary filmmakers. But I had the urge, and I followed it. I am learning at the most rapid pace, and most days, it doesn’t seem humanly possible. I am overwhelmed, but I am grateful that I get to feel that emotion!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @haleyisamellon @riverwarrior2024
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haley-mellon-412472234/
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