On March 11th 2011 I started a blog. I started it initially to chronicle the making of my final year film, Space Detective and then my dissertation on violence and its meaning in the Coen Brothers’ films. One of my favourite post titles, Operation Dissertation Hibernation, which was very accurate. I kept in my room writing, editing and then printing for 3 days, making an extra-large thermos of hot water so that I could make multiple cups of tea without going to the kitchen. Back then, I was still able to drink black tea. I would switch to green tea in the evenings and during the night if I decided to write later. On the fourth day I went and printed extra copies at the University (as far as I can remember) and then submitted it. It was an intense few day but the dissertation was complete. My film was complete. University was almost over. Little did I know that my blog would my constant companion, source and outlet for my writing and ultimately my gateway to other ventures.
The original name for my blog was an inside joke between me and a friend and I had no intention of taking my blog any further than just writing a few silly stories, anecdotes and sharing my thoughts on films. Ever So Ethnically Confused was a place for fiction, film and reality (oh my). Through the blog and the blogging community I met other film bloggers, writers and critics. I was part of the female geek bloggers, taking part in Fandom Fridays. I was part of the Thursday Movie Picks group for a time, but couldn’t keep up with commenting and reading, there were a lot of us. I drifted away from the more fun side of blogging and tried to become more focused on writing about film. Stream lining to reviews, feature length (sometimes) posts and listicles of my own. I created my Afternoon Movie reoccurring posts as well as the VS posts and finally moved towards film festivals. But by 2016 I decided that I needed a name change and a slight redesign. I was now writing regularly for Vulturehound and an active member of the Park Circus Ambassadors Network, attending events and screenings so I needed to streamline my writing even more. She Likes Movies was my new identity.
Since 2016, my blog and hopefully my writing has improved. I’ve written for more places, I’ve gained accreditation at festivals and I’ve covered countless films, either for myself and blog or other outlets, mainly Filmhounds (used to be Vulturehound). I’ve also expanded my knowledge, attending a film critics workshop, a film programmers’ course, going to more film festivals, big and small and stretching outside my comfort zone covering films in genres I wouldn’t have touched 6 years ago. I’ve also collaborated on a few pieces, done a few interviews and introduced a few films at special screenings, a particular highlight was getting to introduce The Big Lebowski at Cinema Rediscovered. On top of all this, I’ve also got to create my own zines!
I said I was planning something special, ideally it would have been a screening or at least I would have tried to make than happen if it hadn’t been for the pandemic. So, instead, I created a book to commemorate 10 years of writing on my blog, 10 years of She Likes Movies.
This blog has been a big part of my writing journey, as cliché as it sounds, this blog is what got me love film again and find a pathway into what I really want to create. Although I set out to become a filmmaker back in 2011, I can return to the craft one day but at heart, I’ll always be a film critic and this blog is part of it. It’s been 10 years so here’s to the next decade of film!