Meet the Makers Volume III: Caron Williams

October 29, 2015
Caron Williams

Our next edition of “Meet the Makers” is all about Caron Williams, a second-year Creative Producing concentrate from Queens. Caron is one of the coolest girls I’ve ever met, and—fun fact—she also happens to be a master floral designer. Prior to attending Columbia, she was a production coordinator at WE tv, acting as a liaison between the network and production companies. Though she was successful at WE tv, Caron decided to search for other ways to bring her passion for storytelling and writing to the forefront. Here at Columbia, she has found her screenwriting courses to be the most satisfying:

“So far, every semester, it's screenwriting class that excites me the most. I've been lucky to end up in sections with professors that push you. I'm a producer, but I don't find learning how to produce as fun as actually producing. I don't space out in screenwriting. This year there are only five people in my class, so it's even more intimate, but you have to be on and you have to be present.”

Caron is fearless in her filmmaking and not afraid to tackle a tough film challenge. Her most recent film highlighted the turmoil in Ferguson, Missouri, after the police shooting of unarmed teenager Michael Brown.

“It was ambitious, topical and emotionally draining. I was a nervous wreck leading up to it but then got to set and had the time of my life. I looked around and realized I was just making art with friends.”

To Caron, the ability to tell stories and influence what people are exposed to in the media are what matter most. She recognizes the holes in the system in terms of representation and portraying the world as it truly is rather than how Hollywood says it should be. Hearing her talk about these issues makes it clear she would be the ideal person to remedy a very broken system and bring a new bold perspective to the world of film. I asked Caron what her favorite quote was, and her response was a perfect reflection of her filmmaking goals:

"They tried to bury us but did not know that we were seeds."