Sundance Responses
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“I Promised I Wouldn’t Cut My Hair”: Director Amalia Ulman | El Planeta
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? In October 2019 Chen Zhou came over to Gijón to act but also help me shoot El Planeta. Back then I promised I wouldn’t cut my hair until I visited Shanghai again, because I was supposed to spend a month in China during March 2020. Of course, all those plans got cancelled. Now my hair is much longer than I expected and I truly miss my friend and collaborator Chen Zhou. But I also […]
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“The Studios Where We Edited Had to Close All of a Sudden”: Director Blerta Basholli | Hive
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? It mostly affected the post-production process. I was in Prague locking the film with editor Enis Saraci when the lockdown in March happened, so it was surreal. The studios where we edited had to close all of a sudden, we had to find a private studio which would not cost a lot and continue editing. My kids and my husband were in Kosova. I had 4 more days of editing to lock the picture […]
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“I Knew This Film Was Going to Be a Little Out There”: Editor James Crouch on The Blazing World
Carlson Young’s feature debut The Blazing World features the director as her own lead. Margaret has recurring nightmares hearkening back to the drowning of her sister when she was a child. On the brink of suicide, Margaret finds herself in an alternate world where her sister may yet live. Editor James Crouch discusses relying on simplicity on an otherwise complex movie and the editing choice that made Young cry. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Crouch: I met […]
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“There Is an Appropriate Numbness and Bareness to It”: DP Lauren Guiteras on Ma Belle, My Beauty
Marion Hill tackles uncharted territory with their polyamorous drama Ma Belle, My Beauty. After moving to rural France, Bertie (Idella Johnson) runs into her ex Lane (Hannah Pepper-Cunningham) who she was previously in a three person relationship with alongside Bertie’s husband Fred (Lucien Guignard). DP Lauren Guiteras walks us through how she captured naturalistic sensuality, the beauty of imperfect lighting, and how she grounded Ma Belle, My Beauty in the tangible world. 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? Guiteras: I had […]
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“Maintaining a Respectful Distance”: DPs Sushmit Ghosh and Karan Thapliyal on Writing With Fire
Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh’s feature debut Writing With Fire painstakingly follows Khabar Lahariya, India’s only all-female news network, as they transition from print to digital and challenge the caste system every step of the way. Ghosh acts as co-DP alongside Karan Thlapliyal on the film. The two discuss maintaining a respectul distance from their subjects and the inclement climate conditions of their filming. 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? Ghosh: When my codirector Rintu and I decided […]
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“Film as a Prayer”: Editors Jeanne Applegate and Dustin Waldman on Faya Dayi
Jessica Beshir’s feature debut Faya Dayi is all about khat, a plant native to Ethiopia harvested and known for its euphoric properties when chewed. On another level, the film is about khat’s cultural significance as a major cash crop, analyzing its role both economically, socially, and generationally. Editors Jeanne Applegate and Dustin Waldman share the fine line between crafting a visual drug trip and spiritual resonance, extracting meaning from beautiful images, and the liberatory aspect of editing a conceptual film. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led […]
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“Dalit Women as Colleagues, Bosses, Leaders and Risktakers”: Editors Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh on Writing With Fire
Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh’s feature debut Writing With Fire painstakingly follows Khabar Lahariya, India’s only all-female news network, as they transition from print to digital and challenge the caste system every step of the way. As a director duo, Thomas and Ghosh also took the massive undertaking of editing and producing their film, with Ghosh also acting as one of two cinematographers. The duo share their editing process, what it was like to respectfully but intimately capture the lives of the women of Khabar Lahariya, and reframing the image of Dalit women through editing. Filmmaker: How and why did you […]
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“The Most Cruel Form of Social Distancing”: Directors Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh | Writing With Fire
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? We had set up an edit studio at a friends’ place in the mountains and were busy working through the post-production when the lockdown was declared in India. That’s when it dawned that we couldn’t head back to Delhi, where our home is, nearly 600 kilometers away. Our consultant editor, the amazing Anne Fabini, was supposed to join us for two weeks. Just a few days before she was scheduled to travel, the travel […]
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“Online Dating Operates Through a Skein of Lenses”: DPs Martin DiCicco and Daniel Claridge on Searchers
Dating’s complicated arc during the pandemic has been lovingly captured in Pacho Velez’s documentary Searchers. Whether on Grindr, Tinder, or any other app, the question “what are you looking for?” varies from person to person amid the chaos of mid-COVID New York City. DPs Martin DiCicco and Daniel Claridge tell us how they framed Velez as one of the film’s most vital subjects as well as the parallels between film and dating profiles. 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 […]
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“A Portrait So Specific and Singular in Time”: Editors Katharine McQuerrey and Anthony Valdez on El Planeta
Amalia Ulman’s El Planeta is a modern day picaresque, following a young fashion student and her mother as they grift their way into small riches amid the backdrop of post-financial crisis Spain. The film explores consumerism, gendered expectations, and class with devilish humor. Editors Katharine McQuerrey and Anthony Valdez discuss bringing the city of Gijón to life and the difficulty of making a Skype call feel urgent and real. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? McQuerrey: I […]
