Interviews
Interviews
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“We Wanted To Get Creative With Negative Space”: DP Dan Adlerstein on Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls
Director Andrew Bowser brings one of his most well-known comedy characters to the big screen in Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls. Onyx the Fortuitous (Bowser) is a struggling amateur occultist who believes he’s made it to the big leagues when he’s invited to a demonic seance by his idol Bartok the Great. When they manage to rouse the ancient spirit, however, he must fight to save his life—and his soul. DP Dan Adlerstein discusses his longtime collaboration with Bowser, bringing the film’s specific brand of horror-comedy to life and more. See all responses to our annual Sundance […]
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“Weaving a Texture of Human Behavior”: DP Manuel Billeter on Cat Person
Cat Person, the viral short story by Kristen Roupenian that first appeared in The New Yorker, can stoke the flames of discourse anew with the film adaptation from director Susanna Fogel. The premise remains the same: College student Margot (Emilia Jones) develops a mutual crush on 33-year-old townie Robert (Nicholas Braun). Yet when Margot’s attraction for him fizzles out, she becomes the target of Robert’s misogynistic rejection-fueled ire. Cinematographer Manuel Billeter tells Filmmaker about his experience working with Fogel and shooting the anticipated short story adaptation. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did […]
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“I Had an Overwhelming Reaction to the Script”: DP Matt Henley on Bad Behavior
Alice Englert’s feature debut Bad Behavior follows Lucy (Jennifer Connelly) as she embarks on a silent retreat under the guidance of her guru (Ben Wishaw). As the film’s title suggests, Lucy is no stranger to behaving badly—and during this so-called “spiritual” getaway, she will sink to shocking new lows. DP Matt Henley tells Filmmaker about working on the film, including the various media influences he and Englert looked to in order to heighten the film’s “emotion, thematics or story.” See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of […]
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“I Drew From My Love of Heightened Naturalism”: DP Mia Cioffi Henry on Invisible Beauty
The documentary Invisible Beauty offers insight into the life and long-spanning career of fashion model and activist Bethann Hardison. In fact, the film’s subject also serves as co-director alongside Frédéric Tcheng, speaking candidly about walking runways as a Black model in the ’70s to participating in roundtables about racism in the fashion industry in the aughts. Mia Cioffi Henry, the film’s cinematographer, talks about her existing admiration for Hardison and how she approaching shooting the fashion icon and her home. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer […]
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“The Opposite To Many Depictions of Glasgow”: DP Tasha Back on Girl
In Girl, the feature debut from writer-director Adura Onashile, 11-year-old Ama (Le’Shantey Bonsu) begins to pull away from the co-dependent relationship fostered by her loving 24-year-old mother Grace (Déborah Lukumuena). This instantly drives a wedge between them, one that will only pull them further apart if Grace doesn’t come to terms with a traumatizing incident that occurred before her daughter’s birth. DP Tasha Back discusses the important of color in the film and how she achieved the film’s distinctly un-drab look. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the […]
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“A Transition That Happens When the Kid Becomes the Adult in the Relationship”: DP Greta Zozula on Fairyland
Based on Alysia Abbott’s 2013 memoir of the same name, Andrew Durham’s feature debut Fairyland chronicles Alysia’s (Emilia Jones) coming of age after the death of her mother. More specifically, Fairyland explores the complicated relationship between Alysia and her father Steve (Scoot McNairy), who relocates with her to San Francisco in the ’70s and begins to openly date men and adopt a distinctly bohemian lifestyle. DP Greta Zozula tells Filmmaker about the various aesthetic choices made to capture this touching true story. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being […]
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“I Knew It Would Be an Amazing Journey To Go On”: DP Annemarie Lean-Vercoe on Is There Anybody Out There?
Filmmaker Ella Glendining has always wanted to meet someone who shares the same rare disability that she was born with. The problem is, she’s not sure such an individual even exists. This quest is the basis of Is There Anybody Out There? her intimate documentary that incorporates personal video diaries alongside interviews with people she meets with bodies similar to her own. UK-based DP Annemarie Lean-Vercoe shares the female cinematography collective that connected her with the director, how the shoot adapted to COVID complications and the documentary touchstones her and Glendining used as references. See all responses to our annual […]
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“Our Process Revolved Around Letting the Kids Be Kids”: DP Molly Manning Walker on Scrapper
Ever since her mother’s death, 12-year-old Georgie (Lola Campbell) has been living all on her own in director Charlotte Regan’s film Scrapper. She scrapes by with the help of her friend Ali (Alin Uzun) and their bike-stealing hustle, staving off social workers by pretending to live with a non-existent uncle. Just when she thinks she’s got it all figured out, a man named Jason (Harris Dickenson) appears, who claims to be her father. Though she barely recognizes him due to his prolonged absence from her life, she nonetheless falls under his care—but not without a fair amount of pushback. Cinematographer […]
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“Rules Are Perhaps the Most Useful Ally in Creativity”: Editor Meredith Perry on PLAN C
During a period of horrifying restrictions on women’s reproductive rights, Francine Coeytaux’s grassroots organization Plan C is actively fighting back by aiding individuals across the country gain access to vital abortion medication. Documentary filmmaker Tracy Droz Tragos follows the plight of Coeytaux and her allies in the aptly titled PLAN C, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Editor Meredith Perry tells Filmmaker about how her experience working on PLAN C ultimately solidified her understanding of reproductive justice as a whole, and much more. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you […]
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“Funnier Is Almost Always Better in My Book”: Editor Robert Nassau on Shortcomings
Ben (Justin H. Min) is a movie theater manager and struggling filmmaker whose life is thrown into tumult when his best friend Alice (Sherry Cola) relocates to New York City for an internship. Adapted from Adrian Tomine’s graphic novel of the same name, actor Randall Park makes his directorial debut with Shortcomings, a film about the complexity of Asian-American identity. Editor Robert Nassau talks about his love of Tomine’s original graphic novel, the religious childhood experience of watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind and how each project he works on teaches him something new. See all responses to our […]
