Sundance Film Festival 2023
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“A Collaboration of Kindred Expression”: Editor Mark Bukdahl on Twice Colonized
Greenlandic Inuit activist and lawyer Aaju Peter is the subject of Twice Colonized, a documentary by filmmaker Lin Alluna. Through her work, she forces colonizing forces Denmark and Canada to pay for their crimes, while also inspiring Westerners to grapple with the ways that they are also complicit in imperialist injustices. As she’s preparing for an Indigenous forum at the EU, however, her youngest son suddenly dies, bringing forth an extended period of intense grief and an eventual path toward healing. Editor Mark Bukdahl talks about cutting the film, including his non-cinematic inspirations and how “editing is an exercise in […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“Many Moments Are Raw and Shot on Intuition”: DP Iris Ng on Twice Colonized
Twice Colonized, the documentary from filmmaker Lin Alluna, focuses on the life and activism of Aaju Peter, a Greenlandic Inuit who advocates for the human rights of Arctic Indigenous people like herself. As a lawyer, she fights for accountability from Danish and Canadian colonizing forces, all while inspiring Westerners as a whole to confront their own colonial attitudes. As she’s preparing for an Indigenous forum at the European Union, she goes on a journey of personal healing and sudden loss when her youngest son tragically passes away. DP Iris Ng discusses how she came aboard the project, the third cinematographer […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“We Opened up the Film Again and Re-imagined the Entire Scene” | Lin Alluna, Twice Colonized
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? We had a moving scene in the film where Aaju had a conversation with some friends who were concerned for her well-being, but it was a very private conversation. After the film was approved and locked, Aaju had second thoughts about the scene, so we opened up the film again and re-imagined the entire scene. Working with editor Mark Bukdahl, […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“A Story That Plays With the Senses”: DP Lílis Soares on Mami Wata
A folkloric African water deity is the titular focus of Mami Wata, the Sundance-premiering film from writer-director C.J. “Fiery” Obasi. The revered Mama Efe (Rita Edochie) serves as the conduit between the inhabitants of the seaside village of Iyi and the sacred water spirit, but a brewing period of civil unrest threatens to throw the entire village into extended tumult. When a young boy dies of a virus, neither human nor spirit can intervene to stop more bloodshed. Cinematographer Lílis Soares discusses the influences and approaches she utilized while shooting the sumptuous black and white film. See all responses to […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“This Is Filmmaking as an Artistic and Cultural Necessity”: Editor Nathan Delannoy on Mami Wata
The seaside village of Iyi is the setting for C.J. “Fiery” Obasi’s mythical Mami Wata, which chronicles the fraught relationship between an all-powerful African water deity and the villagers who are currently embroiled in a period of unrest. The widely respected Mama Efe (Rita Edochie) acts as the intermediary between the titular water goddess Mami Wata and the villagers, but the death of a young boy further provokes the villagers toward an act of violence that no entity can control. Editor Nathan Delannoy discusses the process of cutting the gorgeous black and white film, including how he followed his gut […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“I Was Drawn to Harlem as a Character and How Gentrification Was Also an Antagonist”: DP Eric Yue on A Thousand and One
A.V. Rockwell’s feature debut A Thousand and One begins with Inez (Teyana Taylor) migrating between shelters during an intensely hot summer in ’90s-era New York City. Her 6-year-old son Terry is in foster care, and she makes the bold decision to kidnap him and discreetly live together again in Harlem. Years pass, and Terry (Josiah Cross) has grown into a shy but precocious teenager. However, the secret that the Inez has kept for a decade threatens to be revealed, meaning that the life she has built with her son could crumble at any moment. Cinematographer Eric Yue talks about how […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“From the Beginning I Knew This Film Was About Performance”: DP Frederic Van Zandycke on When It Melts
The feature film debut from actress Veerle Baetens, When It Melts follows Eva (Charlotte De Bruyne) as she returns to her hometown for a childhood friend’s funeral with an ice block stashed in the back of her car. As the bitter winter rages on (and the ice block slowly begins to shrink) Eva recalls via flashback a sweltering summer from her adolescence that forever altered her life and identity. Cinematographer Frederic Van Zandycke discusses his previous collaboration with Baetens, working with the young actors of When It Melts and the film’s most emotionally challenging scene to shoot. See all responses […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“Post-it Notes Always Are a Huge Help”: Editor Thomas Pooters on When It Melts
Actress Veerle Baetens’s feature debut When It Melts, adapted from Lize Spit’s novel The Melting, follows Eva (Charlotte De Bruyne) as she returns to her hometown for a funeral with an ice block packed in the back of her car. While she waits out this frigid winter (and as the ice block slowly shrinks), she recalls a scorching summer during her adolescence that forever altered the course of her life. Editor Thomas Pooters shares his experience cutting Baetens’s film, a process that entailed many Post-it notes and enlightening conversations about gender. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 2, 2023 -
“Choosing the Perfect Lens for Us Was the Bigger Challenge”: DP André Jäger on The Persian Version
When Leila’s (Layla Mohammadi) Iranian-American family gathers in New York City for her father’s heart transplant surgery, a secret that she’s been keeping is unceremoniously spilled. What she wasn’t expecting, however, is learning how much her own life parallels that of her mother Shireen (Niousha Noor) decades ago, causing Leila to further appreciate the nuances of her dual identity. Set between two distinct countries and eras, Maryam Keshavarz’s sophomore film The Persian Version comes from a deeply personal place. Cinematographer André Jäger discusses how he got involved in the shoot and the difficulty he and Keshavarz faced when it came […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 1, 2023 -
“Nothing Is Wasted in the Process of Documentary Editing”: Editor Jean Rheem on Bad Press
When the 2015 Free Press Act is repealed, Angel Ellis and her colleagues at Mvskoke Media in Okmulgee, Oklahoma begin a long battle to offer transparent journalism for Muscogee Nation readers. Bad Press, directed by Rebecca Landsberry-Baker and Joe Peeler, chronicles this quest for government accountability and the right to report honest news. Editor Jean Rheem discusses cutting the project, including how “incredibly difficult and humbling” documentary editing often is. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Feb 1, 2023
