Mallory Maybin’s “There Is a Table” has an ambitious an opening as you’re likely to find in an indie short film: It chronicles a family coming together, then coming apart, and new families emerging from the parents’ splintered marriage.
Through divorce, remarriages, and new babies, we hear Graham Nash and Joni Mitchell’s tentative, figuring-it-out, absolutely gorgeous demo of “Our House,” complete with Nash’s curse when he thinks he’s messed something up. It’s like parenthood condensed into song.
The opening sequence was inspired in part by Maybin’s own home movies of her childhood, which she shares at the end of her lovely film. But a lot happens between that opening and the ending: Maybin plays a young woman who has moved to a new town and struggles, along with her brother, to keep track of whether they’re going to mom or dad’s for the holidays, and how long they can stay.
Maybin also drew from her own experience moving away from her central Texas hometown to the Panhandle city of Amarillo, where much of her family feels far away, but she’s found a community of filmmakers. They include Aidan Corona, one of her fellow executive producers of the film, and also its editor. Maybin wrote and directed as well as producing and starring.
The film premieres Saturday at the Amarillo Film Festival. In our Q&A with Maybin and Corona, they talk about “quasi-nostalgia,” the Amarillo film scene, and how they’re helping it grow.
Mallory Maybin and Aidan Corona on ‘There Is a Table’
MovieMaker: The opening of this film is so impressive — it could be a short in itself. It very emotionally shows the breaking up of the parents in a family, and how they find new spouses, and what happens to the kids. It must have been a huge challenge in terms of writing and directing for Mallory, and editing for Aidan.
Mallory Maybin: Thank you so much! When I heard Graham Nash and Joni Mitchell’s demo of “Our House,” I saw the opening segment so clearly in my head. I was so moved by how the song encapsulated a key theme of our film — the importance of homes and who fills them — and I knew we had to include it, no matter the cost.
Directing the couple was great fun, as they are married in real life, and the children had no trouble taking my direction to eat pasta, jump on trampolines, and paint. Though this story is largely inspired by my own family, I have no memories of my parents’ marriage or subsequent separation.
I couldn’t help but wonder, as our shoot continued, if the scenes we were capturing bore any resemblance to my own upbringing. It brought on an odd, somber, quasi-nostalgia within me, and it strengthened my resolve to bring to life all the love and pain that fills so many families, divorced or not.
Aidan Corona: This is our favorite piece of the film! We wanted a strong introduction that captured the feel of old home movies and the flowy nostalgia of childhood memories. We knew we wanted the song as the centerpiece of the sequence, so we built the edit around that. There were a few planned scenes that didn’t make the final cut for this sequence, but Mallory’s vision for this piece was so strong from the beginning that it was kind of an easy edit!
MovieMaker: What was the inspiration for this story? I loved the specific details like the trampoline where the brother and sister can escape from the world.
Mallory Maybin: As a creator, there are values and interests that will always circulate in the orbit of stories you wish to tell. The mystifying workings of a family will always be in mine. I have a very close relationship with all eight of my siblings, but when I got married and moved to a different city, I grieved how our relationships would inevitably change. I endeavored to make this film a love note to them all, especially the ones who felt “left behind.”
MovieMaker: I don’t see many films about brother-sister relationships. Are there any touchstones you looked to?
Mallory Maybin: There is a rousing catalogue of fond memories and home videos that I pulled from to help bring the story of Jessie and Sam to life, though I also found inspiration in press tour interviews from various actors! The playful, knowing bond that forms between actors who’ve long worked together can sometimes mirror the special connection one has with one’s siblings. Both were certainly entertaining sources.
MovieMaker: Mallory, you started as an actor, and I believe this is your directorial debut. Was this a case of making the kind of film you’ve always wanted to be cast in?
Mallory Maybin: My playwriting professor remarked that there are two stories a writer can tell: one the world needs to hear, and one the writer simply must get off their chest. “There is a Table” is the latter, for me. Capturing the layers of love and frustration that surround a family during the holidays was my main goal as a writer and director. Getting the opportunity to help tell my own story in front of the camera was just the icing on the cake!
MovieMaker: You both live in the Panhandle — what’s your connection to Amarillo? How do you like the film scene?
Aidan Corona: I’ve lived in Amarillo much of my life, so it’s been a natural place for me to learn and grow creatively. People definitely don’t think of Amarillo when they think of film hotspots, but I’ve continued to meet more and more new people here eager to tell compelling visual stories in creative and exciting ways.
There is certainly less opportunity in Amarillo than a place like Austin or Dallas, but that also has its advantages. There’s a lot less competition in creative fields in this area, and a lot more collaboration between creative people. There’s a rich unity among the creative people here in Amarillo. Filmmakers especially are quick to share gear and help crew one another’s projects, leading to a more diverse landscape of high quality work.
I’ve seen the lines blur between directors and grips and PAs and actors, and the joy they all have of making something great together — no matter whose film or project they’re working on — has been so cool to see.
Mallory Maybin: This micro-politan city is a microcosm for every good thing; you get out of it what you put into it! It’s not the hottest tourist destination, but the people you find here are the kindest in the world. The more I have connected with the artists around me, the more amazed and inspired I am to keep creating. The community of brilliant individuals boldly making things is alive and well in the Panhandle—moreso than I anticipated when I first moved here, much to my delight!
Our film is premiering at AIFF! We are so pleased that our film can find a sort of closure and the excitement of new opportunities right where we started. I’ll attach some stills as well,
“There Is a Table” is in the Narratives Shorts #6 block at the Amarillo Film Festival on Saturday. You can read more of our film festival coverage here.
Main image: “There Is a Table.” Courtesy of the filmmakers
