Sundance
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“Do Everything You Can and Then Trust What Happens” | Alice Englert, Bad Behavior
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 spent close to three years alone with my story, researching, imagining it, and writing it and I loved that. I treasured that it was a secret that was mostly just interesting to me. It’s freeing but I longed for companionship too. It’s a strange thing when something that feels so inside you, so private becomes something that belongs to […]
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“One of Our Biggest Obstacles Was Time” | Andrew Durham, Fairyland
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 think one of our biggest obstacles was time. We had a very tight budget and could only afford 23 shooting days (21 in the SF Bay Area, two in France). When I found out how few hours our child actor—Nessa Dougherty, who plays young Alysia—could work each day, I had to completely rethink how to shoot the movie. With […]
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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 […]
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Sundance 2023: 5 Seasons of Revolution, My Animal, Selected Shorts, The Tuba Thieves and Milisuthando
Before it started, one question about this year’s Sundance concerned attendance: what happens when a more-expensive-to-attend-than-most festival, held in a cold place during winter’s peak at a high altitude, offers the option to stream the bulk of its titles online days later? Brand presence on Main Street appeared to be down (one out of five awnings rather than every single one), and P&I attendance seemed to be as well—but, for many there, the answer was jamming out endless viewings on their tablet or laptop between venturing out for select IRL screenings. Whatever those combined, not-yet-disclosed industry-plus-public streaming numbers were, they […]
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“Rendering American Urban Landscapes as a Character”: DP Derek Howard on PLAN C
When a marked increase in abortion restrictions and bans began unfolding across the country, Francine Coeytaux knew she had to step up and do something. As a result, she formed the grassroots organization Plan C, which lends its name to Tracy Droz Tragos’s documentary about Coeytaux’s fight for everyone’s right to abortion medication and broader reproductive health services. Cinematographer Derek Howard tells Filmmaker all about his experience shooting PLAN C. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that […]
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“Intently Listening to ‘Mmmbop’ on Repeat”: Editor Reynolds Barney on Jamojaya
Writer-director Justin Chon returns to Sundance with Jamojaya, a film about a father-son relationship that’s made fraught by recent losses and financial difficulties. James (Brian Imanuel) is an up-and-coming Indonesian rapper who’s visiting Hawai‘i to cut his debut album, which is set to premiere on a major record label in the US. His travel companion is his dad and former manager (Yayu A.W. Unru), who can see that James is drowning in debt due to this major label acquisition. While he’s still mourning the loss of his other son, James’s father becomes his de facto assistant, micro-managing his every move—and […]
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“I Studied Experimental Filmmaking, Not Editing”: Editor Nico Leunen on The Eight Mountains
When Pietro’s (Lupo Barbiero) father passes away and leaves him a plot of land in the small Alpine village of Grana, he decides to return to the mountainous locale to build a house. Upon his return, he bonds anew with Bruno (Cristiano Sassella), who he first met when he visited with his mother as an 11-year-old boy many years ago. The winner of the Jury Prize at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, The Eight Mountains from directors Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch is an engrossing look at a friendship that transcends time and distance. Editor Nico Leunen tells Filmmaker […]
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“A Joyful Film About a Complicated, Well-Lived Life”: Editor Tal Ben-David on Judy Blume Forever
Directors Davina Pardo and Leah Wolchok examine a YA literary icon in their documentary Judy Blume Forever. The author of coming-of-age touchstones like Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Forever and Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Blume has amassed quite a legacy during a career than has spanned more than 60 years and 25 novels. Editor Tal Ben-David discusses the process of cutting Judy Blume Forever, touching on her appreciation for the author’s work and how she charted her life and career through the decades. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why […]
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“I Don’t Think I’ve Ever Cried So Much in the Edit”: Editor Michelle Mizner on 20 Days in Mariupol
War correspondent Mstyslav Chernov found himself and a team of fellow Ukrainian journalists under siege in the eastern port city of Mariupol, their most valuable weapon against the encroaching Russian forces being the camera they used to document the atrocities of the invasion. The resulting footage became 20 Days in Mariupol, Chernov’s feature debut that chronicles the strife of Ukrainian citizens and the journalists trying to ensure that their story is told. Editor Michelle Mizner shares with Filmmaker her insights on cutting Mstyslav Chernov footage from the frontline. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and […]
