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Kavita Parekh, 25, is from Victoria, whose film “Two Tickets to Mars” premieres at the Austin Film Festival on Friday at 1 pm and on Wednesday at 9 pm at the Rollins Theater, 701 W. Riverside Drive in Austin.
A crew of around 25, including the post-production team, helped create the 17-minute film that explores the inner mania of a young woman, Asia, who sets out to solicit the ultimate engagement in pre-apocalyptic New York City. She wins two tickets to an exclusive colony on Mars and asks her former lover Chester to join her – to live with her on another planet forever. Chester is nihilistic, believes that life has no meaning, and admits that he is happy to die on earth. He has no intention of going to Mars with Asia.
“The movie is mostly set in his apartment (Chesters) and they talk about it,” Parekh said. “You research existentialism and nihilism.”
Emily Sullivan, 26, a New York actress who also works in social media marketing, plays Asia in the film. With a background in theater, she looked for more film work, answered a call for actors, and did two rounds of auditions to secure the role. Sullivan said she was immediately drawn to Parekh’s letter.
“I loved the subject of dealing with the horror and stress of suddenly having to deal with an existential crisis. She thinks she will die with the rest of the planet and then she has to decide who to take to an alien planet, ”Sullivan said of the film. “The stress and the longing to be loved and to survive – that is what she deals with throughout the film.”
Sullivan also valued Parekh’s ability to put together a thoughtful and well-constructed script as well as a group of “brilliant” artists.
“She is generous, kind, and able to clearly communicate her mission,” said Sullivan. “The script is brilliantly written. It takes a certain kind of person to think about the end of the world, to deal with it. “
Ranya Aloui, 24, the camerawoman for the film, met Parekh when the two freshmen were on New York University’s film and television program.
From the camera perspective, Aloui said that her biggest challenge in making the film was keeping a small New York apartment, the main location for the film, fresh and different while watching the emotional progression of the film.
“Kavita is very trusting as a director. She really puts the greatest trust in the people she works with and makes them do their best, ”said Aloui. “She has a strong ability to act according to her particular vision, and trusting that the director is getting you and your visual interpretation right is very important.”
Aloui said she could present Parekh with five good images that would work in the film, and Parekh could always emotionally choose the one that ended up just being perfect.
“She treats you like you’re the best at your job and she gets the most out of people who want to do a good job for her,” Aloui said. “It’s friendly and fun on set. It creates an inviting environment. “
Born and raised in Victoria, Parekh is the daughter of Dr. Meena Parekh, a pediatrician, and Pradip Parekh, an engineer. She lived in Woodway with her parents and two older sisters who are now married to families in Houston and Florida.
Parekh attended a number of Victoria elementary schools, but Dudley Elementary was her favorite. She started theater in fifth grade when she played one of the lead roles in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing at her school.
She then attended Howell Middle School and moved to Cade Middle School in eighth grade. She graduated from West High School in 2015. While in high school, she assisted a teacher who was directing a school play and attended a month-long summer film workshop at New York University.
Like her parents, Parekh was good at math, so she considered getting an aerospace engineering degree from the University of Texas at Austin. Ultimately, however, she decided to attend New York University, where she graduated with a degree in film and television production. She did “Two Tickets to Mars” during her senior year production course at NYU.
“I love everything there is in filmmaking – the opportunity to learn all your life, to have new experiences and not be in the same place,” she said. “I’m interested in so many things, so here is an area where I can continue to learn about all of the things that interest me and research different stories to tell.”
Parekh credits her “amazing” teachers at Dudley Elementary with their ability to think outside the box and ultimately pursue writing and a degree in film and television. Additionally, she hopes the Victoria School District will continue to nurture and nurture the arts as well as the teachers who seek to create that spark in their students.
“Education is very important to me, and when the administration supports passionate teachers, life really changes,” she said. “I couldn’t celebrate my first success without at least thanking these teachers.”
Two months after the pandemic lockdown, Parekh moved from New York City to Portland, Ore with a couple of her friends. They didn’t feel comfortable where they were.
She is currently a freelance filmmaker. She started a production company with her friends, and they recently produced an educational series on mental health for Houston-based Healthy Gamer. She plans to move back to NYC this spring to delve deeper into filmmaking. She has previously held script supervisor roles on film sets, so she intends to return to that role as a freelancer. Her goal for five years is to make another short film, and her long-term goal is to direct feature films.
“It’s very rewarding to see ideas that have been on my mind for so long come to life, to work with actors, to bring characters close to you to life, and moreover, to put the actors in their own place to go, ”said Parekh. “Writing is a lonely process, so it’s like nothing else to leave the writing zone to work together in an artistic space. Bringing a group of people together to tell a story and make art is super rewarding. “
Elena Anita Watts is the feature editor for the Victoria attorney. she covers faith, art, culture and entertainment and can be reached at 361-580-6585 or ewatts@vicad.com.
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