Meet Cailan Sandusky | Filmmaker (Director and Screenwriter/Writer)

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cailan Sandusky and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cailan, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
The idea behind my business which is a start-up production company, GoodfruitsProductions came to me when I was in college. Growing up I was always interested in film/media, and I wanted to produce content that aligned with my spiritual beliefs and promote positivity. GoodFruits mission is to show media content that produces the seven fruits of the spirit which is Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-control. I hope that the content I produce will plant good seeds into the minds of those who watch it. I want the content to be relatable and transparent that will hopefully inspire others to grow.

I have always been impacted by content that made me want to be a better person such as shows like “A Different World”, and one of my favorite movies, “War Room”. A quote that has always stuck out to me is “Whoever controls the media, controls the mind.” –Jim Morrison Currently Goodfruits Productions first project is a web series titled Risen8TheSeries. Risen8 is about a group of college students who grew up in Christian households and are now all on a journey to seek a relationship with God for themselves.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I got to where I was professionally by taking a leap of faith and not allowing fear to hold me back from accomplishing my dreams. It was not easy, and to be honest, it is still not easy but I was able to overcome some of the challenges by keeping God at the center of my life. Since I started on my web series I have dealt with depression twice and each time I would stand strong in my faith and not give up. I started to realize fear would always try to hold me back, each time after I would get out of my depression I would start working on a new goal with my web series or I would be given an opportunity to showcase my work. I would always tell myself “ it will get better and as long as you have breath in your lungs you have a purpose on this earth”.

Some of the lessons I have learned along the way have been to 1. Never compare your story to others because everyone’s journey is different. 2.Just start and don’t think about it being “perfect” because as long as you try your best and produce a message that you believe will inspire others you have done your job. 3. Never allow fear to stop you because someone needs to see, hear, or read what is on the inside of you.

As I mentioned earlier getting where I am professionally has not always been easy and I am still striving to be the best that I can be. But what has always kept me going is choosing Faith over Fear even when my circumstances around me seemed impossible to do so. As far as my brand, I plan to have GoodFruits productions to produce movies, TV shows, and other media-related services such as writing/screenwriting, graphic design, and screenwriting workshops. My hope is that when people see me they see my brand within my production company GoodFruits.

I believe you are your brand no matter what type of business you have. Everything I do is a representation of my work, personal and professionally. But overall, I want people to know that as long as you stick to your God-given purpose, success and money will follow.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Being that I am vegan I would take them to this restaurant called Life’s Bistro. They have great food and most non-vegans enjoy their food. I would also take them to The Wing Bar, they have food for vegans and non-vegans and amazing wings. We would later go to Lenox mall, since that is a staple shopping center most people who travel to Atlanta attend, after that I would take them to Cascade Skating rank. I would choose Cascades because it’s known for being in the movie ATL. I would also go to the botanical gardens, I have never actually been there myself but I heard its definitely worth attending. For our second day, I would take them to the Atlanta University Center. As a Clark Atlanta University Alumna, I would be excited to show them around to my school and known areas that were used to film on amongst Clark, Morehouse, and Spelman campus. To wrap up my best friend’s visit I would take them to Tyler Perry’s studios because it is one of the largest newest production companies. Tyler Perry has an amazing testimony on how he started from writing scripts in his car to having one of the biggest film production companies. I would also take them to my church to finish it off.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would first like to dedicate my shoutout to God who has always been faithful throughout my life. As far as people I would like to dedicate my shoutout to my family, friends, mentors, my cast and crew, and people who have genuinely helped me along the way. Growing up, my family has always been supportive of the goals that I wanted to achieve. At a young age, I always knew I had a passion for film, acting, and overall media. In 2013 during my senior year of college, my dream was to attend Clark Atlanta University, which I now call my Alma Mater, Class of 2017.

In the beginning, I got accepted however, it was difficult for me to financially afford the tuition. At times I wanted to give up but because of their prayers and some financial help, I was able to attend Clark Atlanta University. In 2018 my mom drove from Lexington, Kentucky, which is my hometown, and helped me out with my very first audition for my web series, Risen8TheSeries. Aside from my family, I have been encouraged to keep pushing and not give up from my cast and crew, friends, mentors, and strangers I may encounter.

Instagram: @Cailan_tacha :https://instagram.com/cailan_tacha?igshid=pxqw5xk4gf4a @Risen8TheSeries : https://instagram.com/risen8theseries?igshid=1lwcokxj2m6x9
Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/risen8theseries/?ref=bookmarks
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeh_UmfEop3FBDtE_DfZQJA

Image Credits
Marques Womack Keson Graham Logo Design by : Tia Mack