Sundance
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“We Wanted to Find Moments That Celebrated Women Reclaiming Birth”: DP Jenni Morello on Aftershock
With Aftershock, Paula Eiselt and Tonya Lewis Lee turn their camera toward the crisis of the maternal mortality as it affects Black women in the United States. The film focuses on two widowers whose partners died preventable deaths during childbirth as they build support and rally for justice. Below, cinematographer Jenni Morello discusses the challenges of shooting a vérité when everyone is masked and the search for something unusual in every shot. 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 […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 23, 2022 -
“It Was Hard to Find Settings That Really Evoked the 1990s”: DP George Geddes on My Old School
In My Old School, director Jono McLeod returns to his past and reassembles his classmates to tell the strange story of a former classmate, an awkward but fiercely intelligent protector who harbored a secret. Below, cinematographer George Geddes talks about the film’s journey from a documentary with dramatized sequences and then to a heavily rotoscoped feature before settling into a mix of live-action and animation. 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? Geddes: Jono, the director, and I […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 23, 2022 -
“We Viewed Every Opportunity to Film in Person as a Fleeting Gift” | Paula Eiselt, Aftershock
The last two years have prompted much contemplation and reconsideration of the reasons why we make our films as well as the ways in which we make them. What aspect of your filmmaking—whether in your creative process, the way you finance your films, your production methodology or the way you relate to your audience—did you have to reinvent in order to make and complete the film you are bringing to the festival this year? This new way of living over the past two years forced me to reinvent both production and post production processes for Aftershock. The limits inherent in this […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 23, 2022 -
“I Really Experienced the Idea That None of This Is Guaranteed” | Julian Higgins, God’s Country
The last two years have prompted much contemplation and reconsideration of the reasons why we make our films as well as the ways in which we make them. What aspect of your filmmaking—whether in your creative process, the way you finance your films, your production methodology or the way you relate to your audience—did you have to reinvent in order to make and complete the film you are bringing to the festival this year? Our film was somewhat unique in that we were halfway through our shoot when the pandemic hit. We had to shut down in the middle of […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 23, 2022 -
“He Knew Exactly What Movie He Wanted to Make”: Editor Henry Hayes on Cha Cha Real Smooth
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“My Process was Much Like Design Brainstorming”: Editor Anisha Acharya on Neptune Frost
Although its distinct color palette is more immediately noticeable, Neptune Frost, a directorial collaboration by slam poet Saul Williams and actress-cinematographer Anisia Uzeyman, also weaves a complex Afrofuturist narrative into a musical that brings pressing political questions about colonialism, environmentalism, and more to the forefront. Editor Anisha Acharya explains how a plethora of narrative interpretations informed the final product, and how the filmmakers struck a balance between complexity and accessibility. 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? Acharya: […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 23, 2022 -
“It Definitely Makes You Ask Yourself Why You’re Making a Movie” | Cooper Raiff, Cha Cha Real Smooth
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“The Camera Movements Were Almost Choreographed to Amplify the Ensemble Feeling, the Dances and the Musicality of That Universe”: DP Anisia Uzeyman on Neptune Frost
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“The Movie’s Beauty Comes From What Reminds People of Their Own Life”: DP Cristina Dunlap on Cha Cha Real Smooth
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“If They Are Not Progressive Leaders in What They Gate-Keep, Green Light and Support, Then They Fall Short” | Saul Williams & Anisia Uzeyman, Neptune Frost
