[Emmanuelle Pickett](https://www.emmypickett.com) has built a career embracing sexuality, sensuality and overall sensibilities of intimacy. Having work presented on Nowness as well as headlining and receiving acclaim at Outfest, she also recently sold an hour long drama series to Sony pictures and is a frequent collaborator a Flaunt friend Caroline Vreeland.
Amidst all the Corona content of #TBT and Lo-Fi images of peoples’ interior life, It was striking when I saw a portrait of creatives around LA shot by the Director/photographer. Pickett framed her subjects behind gates, borders, and the barrier of glass windows. It was a stunning suggestion that took a simple concept and expanded in the decontextualization that it would have taken on in this new normal. Speaking further with Pickett, she mentioned a very troubling fact that some film companies were shutting down and the vital chemicals needed to process film was running low, making her sheer act of creative boredom on the potential brink of extinction.
Emmy Pickett
**How did you come up with this particular project, why do you think it is important to document this particular time?**
There are moments in life that are etched into our collective consciousness forever. Here we are, locking ourselves in our homes (if we’re lucky enough to have a home) in one of the greatest acts of love and solidarity we’ve ever known. We’re a social species and we can’t deny it. Social distancing is shining a light on this vital piece of who we are, we’re lovers, we’re friends and we go crazy without touch and intimacy. Acts of intimacy and love always will be the only way I know how to avoid falling prey to despair. I decided that I needed to stop giving myself anxiety attacks with the news, counted my rolls of 35mm film, swapped sweats for jeans and my favorite Ganni jacket, slipped on my black latex gloves and purple bandana face mask, and decided to visit a lonely friend.
That first shoot during wide-scale “stay at home” orders felt rebellious. But what is love if not an act of rebellion?
The first few portraits I took were featured in @quarantinegallery, a quarantine-safe gallery curating exhibitions addressing the current crisis. Every 72 hours, they curate a new show theme to promote artist-for-artist support. I'm still shooting new portraits nearly every day and want to put together a book when I'm finished.
**How did you decide on using the medium of film rather than digital?**
Since this portrait series was born out of a deep desire for intimacy, it was always going to be film. The experience of shooting on film always provokes a more authentic and profound relationship between me and the subject. I’m obsessed with the feeling of being completely present and undistracted by a big digital camera and the more natural and intuitive both me and the model are during a shoot, the more powerful the images.
There was only a brief moment where I thought that I may have to shoot digitally because all of the film labs had to shut down shop when the government orders took effect. Many of the film factories, like the one that makes the iconic Ilford black and white film, also announced that they were going dark for the foreseeable future. So there I was with a couple rolls of portra 400 left in my bag, a growing list of subjects and I now needed to find someone with the skills, equipment and chemicals to develop my rolls.
I asked around to my other analog photographer / cinematographer friends and finally found @vixxion, an amazing photographer that has been developing his own film for years. With all his shoots cancelled, he started offering bootleg film developing services from his house to help other photographers out. I sent him a DM on instagram and was given his home address where I dropped my film off in his mailbox. A couple days later, I received an email with high res scans and sent him payment via Venmo. Seeing his payment activity on Venmo was oddly a kind of emotional moment for me. There I could see all the comments from other grateful film photographers that had no idea where they were going to get their film developed until they found him.
I truly believe film saves lives. The film community has grown so much over the past couple years and I’m really rooting for these small labs to stay alive. Every time I drop off my film at Gold 1 Hour Photo in K-Town I’m filled with pure joy knowing that #filmsnotdead .
**Having worked with Playboy and shooting a lot of sensually forward figures like Caroline Vreeland, how do you think that the future of sexuality and the photo medium will be post Corona’s cultural impact?**
I think I’ve always looked at things very sensually. Ever since I was a kid, I was drawing nude women… I take pride in owning my female gaze. I’m a romantic and it’s no surprise as a filmmaker, I’m also a bit of a voyeur. I love the idea of getting to shoot nude portraits during this time of iconic women like Caroline Vreeland through their windows. But, I also think there could be a resurgence of amateur at home photography maybe similar to the rise and love of the low-fi sounds from musicians’ early at home recording projects like two of my favorites: John Maus and Ariel Pink’s Haunted Grafitti. That type of rawness has always been really refreshing.
My friends at Playboy actually launched their latest creative campaign “Stay In. Get Off.” with images from my latest shoot. That was pretty wild to see my images be used and marketed in that way, but hey if masturbating can save lives, count me in. In times of distress, humans seek distractions to keep their minds off tragedy. It makes a lot of sense then that Porn seems to be one of the only businesses thriving during this crisis. Perhaps we’re both in the wrong industry BJ?!
In terms of relationships, I think this is an interesting opportunity for people to discover the true meaning of connection and hone those intimacy skills. I think people will take more time to connect emotionally and intellectually before getting physical out of respect for themselves and their partners.
**This project has kept you safe and active in a very uncertain time, what else have you been working on to cope and boost your immune and mental health?**
This series fills my heart with a sense of purpose. Every day that I pick up my camera, I not only discover more about the world, but I also discover myself on a deeper level — and wow, what a time for self-exploration.
Creatively, I’m kind of hitting a stride right now. In the first week of quarantine, I was offered a directing deal for my first feature film! So, I’m currently developing the script with my creative partner and husband, Anthony Ragnone. We wake up every morning and have coffee on our porch with our dog and talk about the scenes, then I’ll leave to shoot portraits and when I come home I get to read what he’s written. I’m pretty lucky as a director to be quarantined with my in-house screenwriter. : ) I’m hoping we can get back on set sooner than later, but in the meantime, I’m trying to keep calm and stay present. The most peaceful place for me has always been the ocean and since the beaches are closed, the next best thing is my bath tub. So you’ll find me there 3 times a day, every day until I’m back on set.
