Director’s Statement

Hatchlings uses fantasy, nature, and metaphor to spotlight a subject that is close to my heart. I had just started undergrad when I received a call that my close cousin, Akira passed away during childbirth. My mother adopted Akira’s daughter, and since then, she has been my little sister. As a teenager, my sister began to withdraw from the family.

2019 brought déjà vu. I received another call, this time as an MFA film student at UCLA. Akira’s sister, Kassie, had passed away during childbirth. They both had preeclampsia, a highly treatable common risk factor that is too often missed. In my search for answers, I learned about America's maternal health crisis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Medical Association (AMA), America has the highest maternal mortality rate of any industrialized country.  Black women are 3x more likely to die during childbirth than white women. Two high-profile examples were Beyoncé and Serena Williams, who survived harrowing childbirths.

During this time, images of sea turtles kept showing up everywhere I turned. I was surprised to learn that South Carolina, where my cousins and I grew up, was home to four endangered sea turtle species. The more I learned, the more inspired I became. They are magical and resilient creatures. I was also struck by how much their lives so poetically mirrored my cousins' and my adopted sister's experiences. A mother sea turtle lays her eggs and returns to the ocean. Hatchlings survive and thrive against all odds. Scientists refer to a sea turtle's adolescent years as the “lost years” because they withdraw and become unreachable for years (very teenager behaviour haha). With all of these things swimming around in my head, I began to write.

Set in 2007, Hatchlings blends genre with social impact to explore a tender subject matter without being trauma-forward. Told through children's eyes, Hatchlings spotlights a family that is forever changed but perseveres to find connection and hope.