Authors — Filmmaker Staff
-
“We Had To Shoot the African Scenes in Greece” | Anthony Chen, Drift
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? For Drift, we had several key scenes in the film that were set in Liberia, Africa. I always imagined shooting those scenes on the African continent, possibly in Nigeria. But as we made the film during the pandemic, it became impossible for the scheduling and logistics to work, especially on our budget. There were too many unknown factors and risks that […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 22, 2023 -
“Getting Out of My Own Way Was the Objective” | Bethann Hardison and Frédéric Tcheng, Invisible Beauty
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? Bethann Hardison: I’m not sure if it was an obstacle…but getting out of my own way was the objective. Wanting to tell the story and being the story required letting go and allowing total exposure when you were maybe not in the mood. For me, being the co-director and subject was a challenge to allow my directing partner to capture […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 21, 2023 -
“Judy’s Books Allowed Us to Travel Back to Our Own Childhoods” | Leah Wolchok and Davina Pardo, Judy Blume Forever
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? We first started talking to Judy Blume about the idea of this documentary in June 2018, but it wasn’t until the end of February 2020 that we received an email from her saying, “Yes, let’s do it.” That “yes” was a dream come true, but we all know what happens next: just a few short weeks later, we were in […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 21, 2023 -
“Offering Participants the Option to Request Changes or Even Remove Themselves Entirely” | Luke Lorentzen, A Still Small Voice
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? I started this project interested in further developing my ability to connect and build trust with the people I film. But it became clear that the depth, connection and intimacy that I felt would be central to this story could only happen if participants (chaplains and patients alike) felt safe and comfortable sharing deeply personal moments in front of the […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 21, 2023 -
“COVID Hit and the Movie Fell Apart” | Laurel Parmet, The Starling Girl
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? I’m sure I am echoing many filmmakers in saying that COVID was 100% the largest unforeseen obstacle in getting this film made. We were gearing up to shoot in 2020, and then COVID hit and the movie fell apart. Those were some very dark times for me (and for many others), and I didn’t know if I’d ever get to […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 21, 2023 -
“The Arrival of a Massive Pod of Dolphins Mid-Shot” | Robert Connolly, Blueback
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? Blueback filmed in remote Western Australia at the height of the pandemic. Quarantine requirements for cast and crew were significant and the border was closed many times. Once in the extraordinary Bremer Bay where we filmed though, the local community were so supportive and appreciate of the lengths we had gone to to protect their community. Filming with young children […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 21, 2023 -
“Little Editorial Magic Tricks Happen in the Cutting Room” | Elijah Bynum, Magazine Dreams
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? It’s tricky to pick a single moment because when you’re making a movie these unexpected obstacles happen—for better or worse— every day. Some days it was a piece of equipment that broke, other days it was losing a location at the last minute. Sometimes an actor doesn’t feel well or decides they no longer like their dialogue, or there’s some […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 20, 2023 -
“The Need for More Available and Affordable Editors” | Michèle Stephenson and Joe Brewster, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? There were many unforeseen obstacles in the making of Going To Mars, too many to recount. However, the most pressing and disturbing obstacle we encountered was the need for more available and affordable editors. We responded with a very effective strategy that may change our work in the future. We collaborated with multiple editors (in Canada and the USA) who possess […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 20, 2023 -
“The Real Violence and Danger Women Sometimes Go Through When Giving Birth”: DP Chananun Chotrungroj on birth/rebirth
A modern-day, female-focused retelling of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Laura Moss’s birth/rebirth refuses to flinch when it comes to portraying the bloody viscera of the birthing process. The film follows a maternity nurse Celie (Judy Reyes) who experiences a life-shattering personal loss. Soon after, she forms an unlikely relationship with pathologist Rose (Marin Ireland), an aloof genius who’s covertly working on a medical process that can reanimate the dead. DP Chananun Chotrungroj told Filmmaker about her and Moss simultaneously attending the NYU Grad Film program, the iconic film that served as birth/rebirth‘s visual touchstone and how her own experience in the […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 20, 2023 -
“We Had To Have All Hands on Deck To Finish the Film in Time for the Festival” | Laura Moss, birth/rebirth
Every production faces unexpected obstructions that require creative solutions and conceptual rethinking. What was an unforeseen obstacle, crisis, or simply unpredictable event you had to respond to, and how did this event impact or cause you to rethink your film? Getting into Sundance was tremendously exciting, but we had to have all hands on deck to finish the film in time for the festival. We wrapped principal photography in New Jersey in September, and once we got accepted into Sundance, learned we had to turn in our print on January 13th. With so many holidays falling in that time period, our […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 20, 2023
