Filmmaker & Content Creator Juanita Butler Just Might Be the Next James Bond
Being a funny female is almost an act of rebellion. Rebelling against the “boys club” that has become a known part of navigating the comedy world. For women like Juanita Butler, creating hilarious content in this day and age is no easy task, but it’s one that they do well and with a hell of a lot of conviction.
Juanita knows all too well what it takes to “make it” in a industry that is constantly telling her not to. From creating her own YouTube channel, Juani Begood, that focuses on hilarious videos with an underlying message of female empowerment to moving to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a successful filmmaker, this lady is here to stay, and you may not like it, but you’re gonna damn well laugh about it.
“I was working in Austin as a producer trying to do reality documentary stuff,” Juanita said about her desire to move to the West Coast. “So it’s not a hobby to me. I wanted to be creating more.” For anyone who isn’t a believer that a small YouTube page could launch a career, Juanita’s video “A Guy Jacking Off at You” has wracked in more than thousands of views and was even featured on WhoHaHa.com.
A video that at the time may have seemed like an absurd exaggeration of sexual harassment, but has become all too relevant with news about major industry players like Lewis C.K. and Harvey Weinstein being ousted for doing just that to fellow female colleagues. That’s just one of the many examples of Juanita testing the limits and making commentary about the things that no one wants to talk about.
As with any trailblazer, her path hasn’t been forged with support from people on the internet. In fact, she has faced backlash and major harassment from different Men’s Rights “activists” who have targeted her content specifically.
“There is this whole segment of society that think feminism is oppressing men…They’re f--king really hard to deal with,” Juanita shared about her experiences with internet trolls. “Every time I see I get a comment on something my pulse goes up a little bit. Just on anything when I get a little notification, I’m like, ‘What did they say?’ and no one even sees my stuff. [laughs]”
So what does a woman dead-set on creating amazingly hilarious content do when she’s faced with opposition? Create more! Juanita is currently working on a documentary she filmed in Hawaii and also getting her finished screenplays made. “It’s like a weird compulsion. Something gets in my mind and starts tickling it and I have to write it,” Juanita revealed about her creative process. “I am working on longer screenplays… these little sketches come and they’re in my mind and I’m like how do I make this? It bothers me if I can’t.”
Juanita is on the cusp of greatness and for her it’s just the beginning. Her hope is to be like Jill Soloway or James Bond. Yep, James Bond. “I think it’s interesting that women can identify with the protagonist in the story because we’re human. So people don’t really understand that I’m James Bond when I’m watching James Bond, but I’m also the Bond girl,” Juanita shares. “It’s just interesting to be in the tension of that. What does it look like when I am the protagonist?” The world is about to find out.