So to start off, please introduce yourself and share some of your career moments that you’re most proud of.
Luna: I came from the business/startup world. In the past, I successfully built and exited a few companies. Now, I have brought my business background to the entertainment world, helping independent filmmakers to make their dreams come true.
I strongly support women empowerment in business and entertainment. I set up a short film fund self-funded two years ago, supporting women and non-binary filmmakers with social consciousness/true storytelling that speaks for minorities.
So far, I have funded six short films all done by female and filmmakers from LGBTQA+ communities. One of the milestones is a short film I financed that was screened during the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, won the Culture award talking about Indigenous women gone missing at their native reservations (there have been more than 6,000 Indigenous women/men missing at native reservations since 2016). We are continuing with our festival circuit with this film, and just got selected by the Academy Award qualified Indy Short Film Festival.
I also do hands-on producing for passion projects. It has to be based on true story/events, speaking for minorities and women empowerment. Besides Lady Samurai, I am producing an Iranian woman’s journey, a filipino female with her special needs kids, and an anthology that tells the stories of how America changed through decades.
Now as it relates to Lady Samurai, what attracted you to this project and what excites you most about it?
Luna: She’s a badass woman. That’s what attracts me the most. She turned the impossible to possible, to reality. There is so much about her that needs to be told to the world.
Is there any aspect of Lady Samurai or the history around Tomoe Gozen that you can’t wait to see represented on screen?
Luna: Yes, there are historical records about her in Japanese history. There’s a statue of her standing next to Lord Kiso at Tokuonji temple in Japan.
Given your experience, what challenges or opportunities do you see when creating a film project about a historical figure?
Luna: Hollywood is so creative. But nowadays, audiences want more and more authentic storytelling. It’s very challenging to balance the authentic part of this project with creativity. But we are confident we can do it right.
When you were doing your due diligence on this film project, are there any fun facts or unique tidbits you discovered that made your decision to sign on easy?
Luna: Reading stories about her online has already been fascinating to me. I cannot wait to do location scouting and find out more about her.
Additionally, what attracted you to Mogul Productions and why are you excited about collaborating with Mogul to produce Lady Samurai?
Luna: We are super excited working with Mogul. Not only because they are the experts on NFT communities, they are professional, but also they are so supportive to this project. You always want to work with people who are like-minded and have synergies working together.
What are your hopes or aspirations for how Lady Samurai is received by audiences? Any lessons you hope they take from it?
Luna: I hope they will enjoy the movie. I hope Tomoe’s story can inspire them that no matter who you are at the beginning, you can dream big and make big things happen.
If there’s anything I missed or anything you’d like to add, please do so here:
Luna: I just want to express my gratitude to all of you supporting us. I cannot wait for the world to see this incredible project that we all work together to create.
