Sarah Magness had been saying she wanted to make a film for years. As Director of Narrative Production at Revery in Portland, she was surrounded by masters of their craft daily—directors, writers, stylists who showed up with process and preparation. But when it came to her own creative vision, she kept putting it off.
Then she reached a crossroads. “I’ve been saying I want to do this thing, and I haven’t been doing it, and clearly, like, I’m just afraid of failing,” Sarah reflects. “And if I don’t try it, like, if I try it and I fail so much better when I’m on my deathbed, to feel that way.”
So she made “Angel Hair”—a short film about two houseless children living on the edge of a flea market in The Dalles, Oregon. What started as personal creative oxygen became something that fundamentally changed how she approaches her professional work.
The story that demanded to be told
“Angel Hair” explores childhood survival and moral judgment through the eyes of children who are pickpocketing. The film examines how adults influence children’s reality while the kids exist in their own world of play and imitation.
The inspiration came from multiple sources. Sarah’s own son, who played one of the leads, was being judged for acting his age—being playful and experimental—because he’s physically larger than other kids his age. She was also grappling with her own relationship to capitalism and objects, watching her kids mimic her phone obsession while judging them for their screen time.
“We judge kids for being playful and experimenting,” Sarah explains. “I can’t say that I haven’t wanted to throw food in someone’s face at a certain point. Like, it’s just, you know, we, we judge kids for being playful and experimenting, and he’s a victim of that.”
Why The Dalles became the perfect backdrop
For those unfamiliar, The Dalles sits in the Columbia River Gorge, a working-class community that feels like a forgotten place. It’s not curated or catering to upper-middle-class weekend getaways—it just is who it is.
“There’s something really special about The Dalles,” Sarah notes. “You cross through Hood River, and it suddenly becomes like you’re in the Old West. There’s this weird feeling of like cowboys and like kind of dust that emerges.”
The location provided both practical and emotional benefits. A local man named “Scott” (with a very interesting spelling) let them use his warehouse and lot, complete with abandoned cars and props that saved thousands of dollars. “He was so giving, and he gave us, I mean, he saved us thousands and thousands of dollars just by being a generous human.”
When commercial production meets personal vision
Sarah’s background in advertising and marketing prepared her for filmmaking in ways she didn’t initially realize. “Being in the world of marketing and advertising really just you get to be around real professionals,” she explains. “I’ve just learned from the process and witnessing those people throughout my career.”
The quick decision-making required in commercial production translated perfectly to directing. “In my job, I have to make quick decisions. There’s sometimes not a great one decision that is the right and best decision. It’s really just going with your instincts, but using all of the things you’ve learned up until now.”
The creative oxygen effect
Making “Angel Hair” wasn’t just about fulfilling a personal dream—it transformed Sarah’s approach to her day job. “Just making something that you have complete control over is really cathartic, and it makes you better at your job, because you are a more whole person,” she reflects.
The contrast with client work is stark. While commercial projects can feel creative, there’s always the frustration of “why did that client make that decision? We could have, if only we could have made this other decision, and it’s just not up to you.”
Having that creative control, even on a personal project, fills a cup that can’t be filled by client work alone. “If you want to be a happy person, you have to do the things you love, right? And that just permeates into everything you do.”
Why creative oxygen beats hustle culture
This isn’t about side hustles or building another revenue stream. It’s about creative oxygen—work that allows you to breathe creatively and return to your professional role as a more complete person.
“Advertising tends to pull in a lot of artists,” Sarah observes. “It takes a lot of artistry to do everything that we do, and it feels creative. But I think just making something that you have complete control over is really cathartic.”
The film had its screening at Portland’s Clinton Street Theater, representing not just a personal milestone but proof that creative oxygen projects can reach audiences and create real impact.
For Sarah, “Angel Hair” represents the power of finally doing the thing you’ve been talking about doing. It’s creative oxygen that made her better at her day job, more fulfilled as a person and proved that sometimes the best professional development happens outside the office entirely.
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Contact sarah@revery.is
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Doug Zanger is the founder and editor-in-chief of Indie Agency News. He is also the founder of the Creative Bohemian consultancy, lives in the Pacific Northwest and is insufferable about it.
