Eccentric, fowl-mouthed, and a little grungy, writer and director Rachel Econ strives to bring powerful female centric action stories onto the screen. Born in Harrogate England, but raised in southern Arizona, Rachel has always found herself surrounded by history. A lover of adventure, the macabre, and a good gun fight, Rachel grew up on old Hollywood movies and 90’s action flicks. The scorching summers of her desert hometown of Tucson allowed for plenty of time for the movie binges and novel benders that fueled her love cinema and a good story eventually leading her to graduate from Loyola Marymount University with her BA in Film and Television Production. When she’s not writing or in production, Rachel is an avid crafter always looking for something to create.
Widow has been a project I’ve been developing for several years, not only as a short but as a feature as well. I wanted to create an action drama with strong female hero, someone with the strength and tenacity to take justice into her own hands. I’ve always been fascinated by human tenacity, strength, and desire. We often forget what strength and power we have in our own will. When put the test some of us can go above and beyond, do whatever it takes to fight for what they love. Since the early days of humanity we’ve admired the hero’s tale. We gained strength from their extraordinary feats and learned lessons from their ups and downs. We may not be fighting monsters or a gang of outlaws but we struggle in our own ways every day.
I’ve seen many western dramas with female leads, but never female heroes. I’m tired of the idea in these films that these women need a man to get their revenge, to teach them to hold a gun, and hold their hand through the journey. I wanted to create a female hero that I always wished I had to look up to as a young woman. A woman who at the end of the day doesn’t need someone to lead her story, because she writes every page herself.
Widow was a collaboration of many strong an powerful women, people from different states, and all walks of life. My producer Hazar is a muslim woman, and without her constant support and work this project would have never been possible. My editor Laura saved the day both in post-production but in production as well when she took the helm as Assistant Director when duty called, but yet none of this film would look the way it does without the brilliant work of my cis-male cinematographer. I believe working together to create films that inspire and entertain is what we need going forward to help foster a world where boundaries don’t define us but inspire us to unite and work together to defeat them.
Action/Adventure Film & Screenplay Festival 