Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake)
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Sundance 2025: Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake), Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo)
Reflecting in 1983 on her early years at a literary agency, novelist Isabel Colegate ruefully recalled writing reader reports that involved ”mostly explaining in detail why the typescripts concerned were quite unpublishable, falling as they did so very far below the standards set by the world’s greatest literature, which in my ignorance of there being any other standards I was applying to them. My reports must have been deeply disheartening.” There are two tones at work here: one a rueful regret at her past self’s lack of charity, the other a reminder that if we’re not striving for greatness on […]
by Vadim Rizov on Jan 28, 2025 -
“I Wanted to Make Sure the Energy of the Place Was Preserved”: Editor Chelsi Johnston on Sunfish
In Sierra Falconer’s debut feature Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake), the lives of strangers intertwine at the Northern Michigan location, a place where time seems to move more slowly. Sunfish is editor Chelsi Johnston first editor credit on a fiction feature after working further below the line on productions including Karyn Kusama’s The Invitation and Aaron Sorkin’s Being the Ricardos. Below, she discusses the importance of preserving the film’s location in the edit and finessing the beginning of the film. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2025 -
“That Call Was Almost as Exciting as the Good News Call from Sundance” | Sierra Falconer, Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake)
Films are made over many days, but some days are more memorable, and important, than others. Imagine yourself in ten years looking back on this production. What day from your film’s development, production or post do you think you’ll view as the most significant and why? We shot Sunfish on location in rural Northern Michigan. Our basecamp and primary shooting location—a cottage on Green Lake belonging to my grandmother—was chosen for story over logistics. Getting our crew, cast and gear to location was a logistical nightmare that included planes, buses and shuttles (and my dad, who graciously drove to Chicago […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2025 -
“Anything That Does a Good Job Everywhere Can’t Do a Great Job Anywhere”: DP Marcus Patterson on Sunfish
In Sundance U.S. Dramatic Competition premiere Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake), the lives of a girl learning to sail, a musician, two sisters running a bed-and-breakfast and a fisherman intersect in the eponymous Northern Michigan locale. The film, the debut feature by Sierra Falconer was shot largely on location. Below, cinematographer Marcus Patterson (Soukoon) discusses his influences for the film’s look and how he plans around budget limitations without compromising his ambitions. 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 […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2025 -
“We Prioritized Story Over Logistics”: Producer Grant Ellison on Sunfish
Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake) follows a group of characters as their paths begin to cross on Northern Michigan’s Green Lake. Besides being the debut feature of director Sierra Falconer, Sunfish is also Grant Ellison’s first credit as a producer. Below, Ellison talks about becoming a producer as someone whose day job is in policy research and how he was able to learn on the fly. See all responses to our annual Sundance first-time producer interviews here. Filmmaker: How did you connect with this filmmaker and wind up producing the film? Ellison: Sierra and I are high school sweethearts. We […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 26, 2025
