Sundance 2024
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“We Tried to Take Advantage of What We Found on Site”: DP Nicolas Canniccioni on How to Have Sex
How to Have Sex, the breakout debut feature of Molly Manning Walker that played at Cannes in 2023, will screen at Sundance this year as part of the Spotlight section. The film chronicles the rite-of-passage holiday of three British teens as they navigate the complexities of sex and self-discovery. Below, cinematographer Nicolas Canniccioni (Gerontophilia) exalts the value of abundant prep work and details the film’s varied approach to lighting. 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 led […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“I Feel Like We Made an Image That I Have Never Seen Before”: DP Eric Yue on I Saw the TV Glow
Jane Schoenbrun’s follow-up to the 2021 Sundance hit We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is I Saw the TV Glow, about a teenager whose friend introduces him to a late-night TV show that grants access to a supernatural world. The film will play as part of the Midnight section at the 2024 Sundance. Eric Yue, who shot one of last year’s breakout Sundance hits (A Thousand and One) serves as DP on I Saw the TV Glow. Below, he shares the film’s eclectic reference points and explains how he and Schoenbrun found a visual aesthetic befitting the film’s strangeness. See all […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“Anyone That Watched the Early Cuts Had the Same Reaction”: Editors Dashya Broadway and Jon Higgins on Your Monster
In Caroline Lindy’s debut feature, an actress’s life quickly bottoms out, only to be rebuilt with the help of a monster living in her closet. Premiering in Sundance’s Midnight section, Your Monster, an adaptation of Lindy’s own 2020 short, nevertheless finds itself frequently in the vein of a rom-com. Below, editors Dashya Broadway and Jon Higgins talk about finding the right tone for a story that has a little bit of everything and making sure they didn’t leave the audience waiting for too long. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor questionnaire here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“Treat People Well and They’ll Treat You Well”: Producer Chris Kaye on Thelma
Thelma spins a real-life experience of director Josh Margolin’s grandmother into a comedic action film. The eponymous character, played by veteran character actor June Squibb (The Age of Innocence, Scent of a Woman, Far from Heaven) falls victim to a phone scammer claiming to be her grandson and begins a literal quest for justice. The film also marks the first producing credit for Chris Kaye, who recounts his long road to the gig, which began in earnest just as he was ready to throw in the towel and embark on a new career. See all responses to our annual Sundance first-time […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“Creating a Mood and Tone Is the Most Impactful Element of Cinematography”: David Bolen on Thelma
In a modestly scaled riff on action movies, Thelma follows a 93-year-old grandmother on a quest for justice after falling victim to a phone scammer claiming to be her grandson. The film, which is inspired by director Josh Margolin’s own grandmother, stars June Squibb in the lead role. Below, cinematographer David Bolen (Some Kind of Heaven, Untold) discusses his inspirations for the look of the film’s San Fernando Valley setting and how the crew pulled off one particularly difficult scene. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“It Was an Interesting Challenge to Take a Real Place and Mold It” | Josh Margolin, Thelma
Films are made of and from places: the locations they are filmed in, the settings they are meant to evoke, the geographies where they are imagined and worked on. What place tells its own story about your film, whether a particularly challenging location that required production ingenuity or a map reference that inspired you personally, politically or creatively? We shot a portion of the movie in my real grandma Thelma’s condo. That space is incredibly meaningful to me. Growing up, it always felt like a second home. I wanted to utilize it for the movie because it feels so connected to […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“It’s Surprisingly Difficult to Find a Closet That is Spacious Enough” | Caroline Lindy, Your Monster
Films are made of and from places: the locations they are filmed in, the settings they are meant to evoke, the geographies where they are imagined and worked on. What place tells its own story about your film, whether a particularly challenging location that required production ingenuity or a map reference that inspired you personally, politically or creatively? For Your Monster, a magical and spooky love story between a young woman and the monster in her closet, finding the right closet was critical to the mission of the film. It’s surprisingly difficult to find a closet that is spacious enough to […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“Each Day Was a White-Knuckle Ride”: DP Ryan Kernaghan on Kneecap
In Kneecap, Rich Peppiatt depicts the rise of the eponymous Belfast-based rap trio, who have become unlikely leaders of a movement to save the Irish language. The 2024 Sundance premiere is the festival’s first ever Irish language film, as well as the first film from outside the United States to screen in the NEXT section. Below, cinematographer Rich Kernaghan explains how he found a visual language for the film and how the crew managed such an ambitious location shoot on such a tight schedule. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
“I Knew Right Then the Filmmaking Gods Were Looking Down on Us” | Rich Peppiatt, Kneecap
Films are made of and from places: the locations they are filmed in, the settings they are meant to evoke, the geographies where they are imagined and worked on. What place tells its own story about your film, whether a particularly challenging location that required production ingenuity or a map reference that inspired you personally, politically or creatively? Belfast is more than just a setting of my film Kneecap—it is almost a character itself. It is a city that wears its heart both on its sleeve and on its walls. Colorful graffiti, often politically charged, is everywhere. And for a […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024 -
The 2024 Sundance Question: What Place Tells Its Own Story About Your Film?
Each year, Filmmaker asks all the incoming feature directors at Sundance one question. (To see last year’s question and responses, click here.) We also send out cinematographer, editor and first-time producer questionnaires. This year’s question: Films are made of and from places: the locations they are filmed in, the settings they are meant to evoke, the geographies where they are imagined and worked on. What place tells its own story about your film, whether a particularly challenging location that required production ingenuity or a map reference that inspired you personally, politically or creatively? Below, find links to each director’s individual response […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 18, 2024
