Authors — Filmmaker Staff
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“Documentary Is All about Trying to Divine Order from Chaos”: Director Tim Wardle | Three Identical Strangers
As you made your film during the increasingly chaotic backdrop of the last year, how did you as a filmmaker control, ignore, give in to or, conversely, perhaps creatively exploit the wild and unpredictable? What roles did chaos and order play in your films? Documentary is all about trying to divine order from chaos – be it finding a coherent retrospective story within five conflicting accounts of the same event, or hoping that something (anything!) with emotional or narrative substance will happen on your vérité shoot. On this film the struggle between chaos and order was exacerbated by our physical […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 27, 2018 -
“The Chaos Grew into Something So Beautiful”: Director Crystal Moselle | The Skate Kitchen
As you made your film during the increasingly chaotic backdrop of the last year, how did you as a filmmaker control, ignore, give in to or, conversely, perhaps creatively exploit the wild and unpredictable? What roles did chaos and order play in your films? A year ago I was just trying to find the money to shoot this film. I had no script but a great idea. I knew the film had to be shot ASAP because my subjects were quickly growing up and that magical age from 17-19 was about to be lost. I was so determined to make […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 27, 2018 -
“I Was Aiming for a Stylized Naturalism”: DP Nanu Segal on An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn
EU-based cinematographer Nanu Segal has shot more than 30 shorts and features since 2001. She’s also DP’d commercial spots for UNICEF, Playstation and a host of other clients. Her latest project is An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn starring Aubrey Plaza and Emile Hirsch. The film marks a return to Sundance for director Jim Hosking, who premiered his debut film The Greasy Strangler at the festival in 2016. Below, Segal discusses lighting the film’s key locations and the influence of Ali: Fear Eats the Soul on the film. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 27, 2018 -
“I’m a Firm Believer in the Card Wall”: Viridiana Lieberman on Editing The Sentence
In 2017, Viridiana Lieberman had two documentaries premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival: I Am Evidence, a feature on police departments’ handling of sexual assault cases, and Love the Sinner, a short on the Orlando nightclub shooting of 2016. She begins 2018 having edited The Sentence, which premieres in competition at the Sundance Film Festival. The Sentence tells the story of director Rudy Valdez’s sister Cindy, a woman who received a draconian 15-year prison sentence for crimes committed by her deceased ex-boyfriend. Below, Lieberman speaks with Filmmaker about why editing “this film has become one of the most powerful experiences of my life.” Filmmaker: […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 27, 2018 -
“Are People Eating Popcorn or Using Their Mind?”: Editor Alex Kopit on Dead Pigs
Alex Kopit served as an assistant editor on past Sundance premieres Be Kind Rewind (2008) and The Messenger (2009). He returns to the festival in 2018 as the editor of Dead Pigs, the debut feature from writer/director Cathy Yan. The film is a mosaic of stories in modern-day Shanghai connected by a mysterious occurrence: a stream of floating pig carcasses. Below, Kopit discusses editing the film so that “the various stories could interweave and support each other.” Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2018 -
“Nothing Irritates Me More than When the Cinematography Steps on the Story of a Movie”: DP Kevin Atkinson on A Futile and Stupid Gesture
Comedy writer/director David Wain returns to the Sundance Film Festival for a fourth time with A Futile and Stupid Gesture, his feature on the rise and fall of the National Lampoon empire. The film stars Will Forte as Lampoon co-founder Doug Kenney and is based on a 2006 book by Josh Karp. Wain tapped Kevin Atkinson to shoot the film after the two worked together on Wain’s Childrens Hospital and the prequel and sequel to Wet Hot American Summer. Below, Atkinson discusses his experiences as DP on the project with Filmmaker. A Futile and Stupid Gesture hits Netflix on January […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2018 -
“We Would Have Welcomed Some Chaos As Relief”: Director Tolga Karaçelik | Butterflies
As you made your film during the increasingly chaotic backdrop of the last year, how did you as a filmmaker control, ignore, give in to or, conversely, perhaps creatively exploit the wild and unpredictable? What roles did chaos and order play in your films? “Chaos… I shot my film in 18 days, two different cities and two different countries. When I learned I was blacklisted in my home country and that I wouldn’t be getting any state funding, I didn’t realize it meant that I had to shoot this film – 90 something pages – in 18 days. So I […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2018 -
“Seeing the Seams Is a Part of the Art”: Editor Taryn Gould on Narcissister Organ Player
Narcissister is a Brooklyn-based performance artist who appeared on America’s Got Talent to, as her bio puts it, “trouble the popular entertainment and experimental art divide.” Her feature film debut, Narcissister Organ Player, is a hybrid of performance art film and personal documentary on her relationship with her family. Narcissister tapped filmmaker Taryn Gould to edit the film. Below, Gould discusses the importance of in-progress screenings, how editing the film has impacted how she thinks about her mother and the question of whether or not to show Narcissister’s face in the film. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2018 -
“It Was a Bit of a Scramble Chasing Them All Around the Convention Center”: DP Peter Alton on Science Fair
Documentary DP Peter Alton has shot non-fiction pieces on El Chapo, Tupac Shakur and the history of violence along the U.S.-Mexico border. Alton was hired by directors Cristina Costantini and Darren Foster to shoot Science Fair, which premieres at the Sundance Film Festival. The film follows nine students as they arrive at the 2017 International Science and Engineering Fair in Los Angeles. Alton spoke with Filmmaker about his intimate, unobtrusive approach to filming documentary interviews and action. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2018 -
“It Came to Symbolize a Whole Era”: Editor Andrea Lewis on Studio 54
Andrea Lewis served as a co-editor on Citizen Jane: Battle for the City, a 2016 documentary on urban activist Jane Jacobs. The film earned strong reviews for director Matt Tyrnauer, who would hire Lewis to edit his next documentary: Studio 54. The film tells the story of the rise and fall of the iconic ’70s nightclub through the lens of its founders: Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell. Lewis spoke with Filmmaker before the film’s premiere at Sundance about the task of giving shape to this archival-heavy project. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2018
