A Doll's Life

Audrey Calhoun with her American Girl doll.

Audrey Calhoun's journey to Artists For Humanity (AFH) was long but inevitable, and it started in true 2000s kid’s fashion: with American Girl dolls. Born in Brunswick, Maine, Audrey's family moved around New England before they ended up in Chapel Hill, North Carolina when she was in third grade. Despite growing up in the South for the majority of her childhood, Audrey always maintained an attachment to New England.

As a child, Audrey found a deep adoration for her American Girl dolls. While some may think of it as a frivolous childhood pastime, for a young Audrey Calhoun this was serious work. She would spend hours photographing them, creating stop-motion videos, and filming skits, all for YouTube and Instagram. After six years of dedication and amassing thousands of followers from her work, pressures of growing up made her leave the American Girls behind—never forgetting the stories they told together.

In high school Audrey divided her time between theater and soccer, but she decided to stop theater when it seemed like soccer would provide more opportunities in her future. Not engaged by traditional academics, Audrey devoted all of her time to the soccer recruitment process, that is until she took the history class Great American Conflicts with Mr. Malega. Audrey recalls how Mr. Malega captivated her attention in class just by telling stories.

“[Mr. Malega] was just the coolest, he could tell a story like no one could ever tell a story…I hated school so much, but I would get 100% on all his tests [because] he was a great storyteller. That's my only [time] before college that I was ever really inspired by school.”

Since sophomore year of high school, Audrey planned to play soccer at a college in Pennsylvania, but at the last minute a conversation with her dad about her love of filmmaking changed her mind. Although her dolls were boxed up out of sight, her passion for creating stories couldn’t be hidden. Audrey credits the direction of her career path to her parents and their unending support. Whenever she had an idea, she said, “They had my back 100%…even if it was a stupid idea they'd tell me it was a stupid idea, but they'd let me do it.”

Audrey studied digital filmmaking at Lesley University in Cambridge, returning to New England which had been calling her home. With all of their time completely dedicated to film, Audrey had the opportunity to hone their craft, particularly with screenwriting. She had always enjoyed narrative writing, but quickly discovered a passion for creating ensemble comedies and workplace sitcoms. Audrey's focus on personal relationships and connections in her writing reflected her belief in the beauty of everyday moments and small, contained stories.

After graduating in 2023, Audrey found herself creatively unfulfilled between working at a film store and showing exhibits at a museum. While balancing work and creating a short film, she continued to look for opportunities that could help develop her identity as an artist. Whether it was personal projects or applying to artists fellowships, Audrey refused to give up on her dream.

It was during this time that she discovered the AFH Artists Fellowship program through a Facebook post in the Women in Film and Video New England group. After previous attempts to apply for artist fellowships with no results, Audrey was pessimistic about her chances of acceptance. Despite the initial self-doubt, her immediate connection with AFH’s Fellowship and Alumni Program Manager Nicole Dubov gave her all the reassurance she would need to believe in herself—not only did she want this Fellowship, but she deserved it.

After being accepted as a 2024 AFH Artist Fellow, Audrey decided she needed to make the most of her experience. As part of her ambitious personal project for the Fellowship, Audrey chose to write and produce the pilot episode of an original sitcom entitled “Cityline Theaters,” based on her personal experience working at a movie theater in college. Her passion for portraying the small moments in life translates well in the sitcom, following each of the employees throughout their shift at work. With a limited budget and full directorial control, Audrey started the process of writing, hiring, scouting locations, and eventually began directing. What started as a childhood pastime of creating stories for her dolls had become a reality.

Audrey on shoot location with Fellowship and Alumni Program Manager, Nicole Dubov.

Throughout her experience learning to be an independent filmmaker, Audrey has relied on support from mentors and now, her AFH Fellows. From table reads to acting cameos to help with the technicality of filming, Audrey describes her deep appreciation for the collaborative nature of the Fellowship. Having the resources and connections from AFH has allowed Audrey to create the stories she has been wanting to tell for so long, and she no longer feels alone on her journey.

Audrey's basics!

You can tell when talking to Audrey that comedy comes easy to her—quick to pick up a joke or add a witty comment. As she continues to complete her project and look to the future, she has become certain that making people laugh through storytelling is what they are meant to do. From the dolls she grew up with to the sitcom she is creating during the Fellowship, Audrey has been driven to share the humor and humanity found in the small moments of life, proving to us all that the stories worth telling are the ones we may overlook.

Audrey looks forward to sharing her project during the Fellowship’s culminating exhibition. It starts with a sneak peek of Password***** at AFH’s Artopia on October 5, a Pre-Screening on October 25, and the full feature at AFH’s Open Studio on October 29.

If you want to follow Audrey’s story more closely, you can follow her @audreycalhounfilm and check out her website.