Authors — Filmmaker Staff
-
“A Continuing Lesson to Be Patient with Myself”: Director Kate Tsang | Marvelous and the Black Hole
How did events of 2020—any of them—change your film, either in the way you approached it, produced it, post-produced it, or are now thinking about it? Marvelous and The Black Hole is about trying to find light in dark times. My producer and I were in the middle of rushing to finish post for a festival deadline when everything shut down in March. Working on this joyful film during a national crisis and pandemic was a continuing lesson to be patient with myself, keep going, and to really celebrate each win. I hope it brings the audience some hope during difficult times. (Check […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“It Is Always Tempting in Animation to Show More Than You Need to”: Art Director Jess Nicholls on Flee
Deftly merging animation and documentary, Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s Flee tells the true story of a gay Afghan refugee living in Copenhagen since being granted asylum. Art director Jess Nicholls shares how they protected their subject, Amin’s (a pseudonym), identity through the unbounded use of animation, and how to tell a true story through unique mediums. 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 for this job? Nicholls: Just to clarify, I’m not a cinematographer but an art director as Flee is an animated […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“At Times Calm, at Times Violent”: DPs Salomé Jashi and Goga Devdariani on Taming the Garden
Trees represent so much in Salomé Jashi’s scintillating documentary Taming the Garden. On the surface its an exploration of a former Georgian prime minister’s obsession with uprooting ancient trees and transporting them to his estate across the Black Sea. Digging deeper, it explores the immense class disparity and infringements of small communities and their local histories. Jashi and her co-cinematographer Goga Devdariani walk us through how they framed trees as the “protagonist” of their film and the multilayered impact of their subjects as images. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“Everyone Started Living a Kind of Extended Groundhog Day”: Director Nicole Beckwith | Together Together
How did events of 2020—any of them—change your film, either in the way you approached it, produced it, post-produced it, or are now thinking about it? Everyone started living a kind of extended Groundhog Day when lockdown began, and that feeling was heightened for me as I was watching the same movie, sometimes the same scene or moment over and over and over and over whether I was finishing the edit or working on post. I felt very grateful that the film was kind and hopeful and bittersweet—as the world outside was becoming less and less of those things I […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“The DNA of the Film Becomes Second Nature”: DP Frank Barrera on Together Together
Nikole Beckwith’s surprising romantic comedy Together Together lacks an actual romance. Matt (Ed Helms) decides to have a child despite being single, so he seeks the help of gestational surrogate Anna (Patti Harrison). The two strike up an unlikely friendship, a purely platonic relationship between two self-described loners who gradually learn a thing or two about love. DP Frank Barrera details how his team made difficult seems look effortless and how to film realistic drama. 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 31, 2021 -
“Technology Hasn’t Taken Away the Longing to Hug”: Director Natalia Almada | Users
How did events of 2020—any of them—change your film, either in the way you approached it, produced it, post-produced it, or are now thinking about it? One of many of the long lasting repercussions of COVID is that it radically and fundamentally changed our relationship to technology. Whether to Zoom with grandma or have business meetings, order groceries or clothes, take an exercise class or attend school. We’ve all become dependent not only on the technology in our homes but on the invisible infrastructure that sustains it—by which I mean everything from the fiber optic cables that carry our digital […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“It’s Kind of a Love Story but Not a Romantic Love Story”: Editor Annette Davey on Together Together
Nikole Beckwith’s surprising romantic comedy Together Together lacks an actual romance. Matt (Ed Helms) decides to have a child despite being single, so he seeks the help of gestational surrogate Anna (Patti Harrison). The two strike up an unlikely friendship, a purely platonic relationship between two self-described loners who gradually learn a thing or two about love. Editor Annette Davey tells us about crafting a unique story using tried and true genre conventions and how to stay authentic amid the editing process. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“Last Year Made Me Want to Find Other Ways of Processing Their Meaning”: Director Theo Anthony | All Light Everywhere
How did events of 2020—any of them—change your film, either in the way you approached it, produced it, post-produced it, or are now thinking about it? The events of last year made me want to find other ways of processing their meaning—through getting to know my neighborhood, through local political action, through the satisfaction of hobbies that have nothing to do with film. (Check back daily during the festival — new answers are uploaded on the day of each film’s premiere. Read all the responses here.)
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“Firework Explosions Went Off During So Many Sleepless Nights Just as They Do in Our Film”: Director Karen Cinorre | Mayday
How did events of 2020—any of them—change your film, either in the way you approached it, produced it, post-produced it, or are now thinking about it? As I worked remotely with editor Nick Ramirez and composers Colin Stetson and Caroline Shaw, so much erupted around us. When the horrible COVID surge overtook New York City, we heard endless ambulance sirens while banging pots and pans every night at 7 p.m. to honor our frontline and essential workers. We were simultaneously swept up in the mobilization of Black Lives Matter. We marched, masks on, proud of our own city’s electrifying reaction […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
“The Maltese Sun Was My First Lighting Tool”: DP Léo Lefèvre on Luzzu
Alex Camilleri’s Luzzu touts itself as one of the first 100% Maltese films. Starring fisherman Camilleri met during his time in Malta, the movie features non-actors in what could be mistaken for a documentary on Malta’s fishing industry and the ecological concerns therein. DP Léo Lefèvre tells us about his approach to filming inexperienced actors and what it was like filming on the water. 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 for this job? Lefèvre: First, I was approached by the […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021
