The new indie miniseries
“SPLIT,” written by and starring
Astoria resident Yael Shavitt, explores
this butterfly effect. The
web series, which available to
stream now on Amazon Prime,
consists of six episodes that are
each 10 minutes or less, so it’s easy to
binge watch in a single sitting.
Shavitt woke up one morning with the
seed for the idea of the plot. After jotting
down the concept, she left it alone
for a few months, then revisited it to explore
the idea.
“I'm interested in knowing how our decisions
affect our lives,” Shavitt said. “A
decision or event that might have been
something that was a negative actually
turned out to be a positive.”
Not only did Shavitt write and create
the six-episode series, but she
also stars as the lead character, Sam/
Samantha. Without giving away too
much, the series opens with a young
girl named Sammy auditioning for
10 MAY 2 0 2 0
her dream school to pursue acting.
Flashing forward to the protagonist’s
adult years, the audience goes on
two journeys: one with Sam and one
with Samantha. While Sam is a semisuccessful
actress with self-centered
tendencies, Samantha is a responsible
assistant director who wants to break
free from being on the sidelines and
fulfill her dream to act.
“We’re proud that it’s a series that
is positive and uplifting,” said “SPLIT”
director Molly McGaughey. “It’s
cool to see that people are hungry
for something sweeter and lighter,
and it helps people think how their
choices affect their lives and what
their agency is in their life. There is
a lot out there that is so heavy, so
we wanted “SPLIT” to be thoughtprovoking
and uplifting.”
Shavitt has lived in Astoria for six years,
so it’s only natural that she used some
western Queens locations in her series.
“SPLIT” filmed at the local businesses
Gibaldi Salon and Spa and NYC Bagel
and Coffee House in Astoria; HANAC
Astoria Beacon and Spacewords in Long
Island City; and Always Sunny Deli and
Grocery in Sunnyside.
“Shooting in Queens is nice because
it’s more wide open, but you still get
the NYC feel. You get the streets without
a lot of people in it," McGaughey
said. "Queens is good for space in order
to shoot logistically. You can get
a suburban or city feel. It’s versatile.
There are so many choices."
While shooting in Always Sunny Deli
and Grocery, the team was able to get
one of the most beautiful and symbolic
shots in the series. It shows Shavitt’s reflection
in the bodega’s glass door as
she is walking in, displaying two selves
at once.
“We ended up at that bodega because
it was close to Space Works. That
turnover had to be really quick. I just
went in there one day and asked if we
could film for an hour. Our cinematographer,
Samantha Pyra, and Molly just
created a beautiful frame. She walks up
to the bodega and gets a great reflection.
We got a beautiful shot in a place
where we couldn't control the lighting,”
Shavitt said.
As Shavitt put together her team,
she had a vision for an all-female crew.
Her vision turned into a reality, and she
found a team with 28 crew members
who are female or non-binary.
Working with an all-female and non-binary
crew was "awesome," McGaughey
said. "I felt like we communicated often.
We were respectful and on the same
page. Everyone was so creative and bril-
SPLIT
SCREEN BY ALLISON KRIDLE
Have you ever thought
about how different your
life would be if you’d
made just one different
decision? Where you’d be
if you attended another
school or didn’t go out
on the night you met your
SO or best friend?
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