Director hopes to help others through work as filmmaker

Tiffany Harding enjoyed helping people through her work in the mental-health field, but she wanted to do more.

So the North Side resident quit her job to make movies.

"I felt like I wasn’t doing enough," she said. "Film is a way for me to tell my story and change people's lives without draining my own emotions, too."

Harding’s first featurelength movie, "Krushin," will make its debut on Sunday at the Gateway Film Center as part of the Ohio Grown Film series. Harding and cast members will attend the screening.

The movie tells the story of Teflon (Yung Ace), a womanizing man who falls in love with Amber (Amara Washington).

“She’s a little unstable,” What: "Krushin" Where: Gateway Film Center, 1550 N. High St. Contact: 614-247-4433, www. gatewayfilmcenter.org Showtime: 4:30 p.m. Sunday Admission: $10

said Harding, 31. “She has anger problems, among other things.”

Harding wrote the film, a process that feels natural to her, she said.

“Ever since I was little, I was able to tell a story,” she said. “I’m an introvert, so I’m better at writing than actually having a conversation with people. So (through movies), I can tell a story and impact my community in a positive way.”

Four years ago, Harding was performing as a rapper and making music videos when a friend asked for help in turning a book into a movie. The project fell apart because of creative differences, but it motivated Harding to try filmmaking.

Her first attempt lacked enough material for a feature-length film, so she turned it into a web series, “Breathe the Hustle.” The series’ two seasons can be seen at www.breathe thehustlemovie.com; a feature-length movie based on the series is nearing completion, Harding said.

She began working on “Krushin” (the title reflects Amber’s crush on Teflon) about a year ago, filming in Columbus and Atlanta.

“It’s based on real-life events in my life and other people’s lives around me,” she said. “I took a piece of everybody’s lives that I knew.”

Finding a cast was easier than she had feared.

“Locally, I didn’t have a casting call because I was afraid people wouldn’t come, so I reached out to people I knew personally,” she said. “The more I pursued it, the easier it was to find my cast, so I never needed a casting call.”

The film, which Harding plans to release on Amazon and hopes to eventually land on Netflix, encompasses a lesson for viewers: “When you love someone, you shouldn’t hurt them. You should be mindful of how to treat loved ones and friends and family.”

Harding looks forward to the Gateway screening, she said.

“It’s going to be real exciting. It gives me a great feeling to know my movie is going to be on a big screen, where people can relax and really enjoy it.”