At this year’s ninth edition of the Nevada Women’s Film Festival, writer-director Brenda Daly’s Rogue Angel stands out as the sole locally produced feature film from a Las Vegas filmmaker. The revenge thriller stars Jackie Gerhardy as a military veteran who returns to her rural hometown (set in Mt. Charles- ton) to confront dark family secrets and help her teenage sister (Sheila Krause) escape the cycle of abuse. Like Deborah Richards’ Move Me No Mountain, which premiered at last year’s NWFFest, Rogue Angel originated with the Lucky Sevens Film Challenge, a local initiative designed to support and motivate filmmakers to complete feature films in a short time. Daly spoke to Desert Companion about the challenge, the themes of her film, and the significance of NWFFest.
How did the movie come about?
I worked at Fiesta Henderson for 22 years, and I lost my job to COVID. I got cast in Night of the Tommyknockers, and when I was there, the guy who played the monster that kills me approached me with this challenge. It was to make a feature film in seven days for $7,000. I’d never made a feature before, and I just kind of got to work. I was three weeks into getting ready to film the movie, and my daughter told me, “You should really watch Promising Young Woman. It’ll give you an outline of what people are looking for right now.” I decided to make it more of a modern-day melodrama with an action-thriller backdrop. And obviously the female empowerment is there.
Did you stick to the parameters of the Lucky Sevens challenge?
I stuck within the parameters, but because I had so many years of making short films and helping other people on their projects, I had 43 cast members in my film. We did stunts, we got private locations. Being a bartender, I really had a big advantage. All those people, they came and saw me for 22 years, so I can still call them. It’s been three years, and I literally can call them, and they will do anything for me, and I have no idea why.
How do you balance your serious themes with a suspenseful, entertaining story?
That’s why I go back to the melodrama — it’s always about overly high drama. To do the action stuff, I really got lucky with Jackie Gerhardy because that’s what she does for a living. She’s such a badass in person. Even on set, if she didn’t agree with something, she would just tell you. ... I wanted it to be exciting, and I wanted to reflect the kind of movies that I always liked. The bar scene was my ode to Road House.
What was the biggest obstacle you faced?
Because it was a challenge, and it was my first feature film, there were a lot of opinions. As a director, I always listen to other people, because I work with the smartest people I know, and I try to make sure they’re smarter than I am and that they’re much better at things than I am in certain fields. I will listen, filter, and then I shoot a lot from the hip. I think “team” is the best way to describe how this movie got done, because I can’t do it by myself. And I don’t want to.
What does it mean to you to have the movie in the Nevada Women’s Film Festival?
The very first year of the Ne- vada Women’s Film Festival, I entered the first short film I wrote, produced, and directed, called Project 3000, not thinking I would get picked, and it did. So, I feel like I’m coming home and being part of something that I really respect. Being a woman filmmaker can be difficult, be- cause sometimes people don’t take you seriously. When I made the film, I wanted it to be very women-heavy, because it’s my point of view. It’s a woman’s point of view.
What do you value most about the local Las Vegas film community?
All my friends are here. I did all my films here. I’ve grown up in the film community here. Yes, I grew up much later than most of them. Just getting to know the Alberto Triana and the Jackie Gerhardys and learn- ing something from a younger generation. I see what they’re doing, and I’m just blown away. I hope I live long enough to get there.
The Nevada Women’s Film Festival is June 22-25 at the UNLV Department of Film. All-fest passes: $50 for general public and $30 for seniors and students. Visit nwffest.com for more information.