By Alexandra Heller-Nicholas. I find that there is an emotional energy in a theater piece [the basis for The Mafu Cage] and that the relationships are so much stronger and more connected. I always use the concept that you have to see in film and so therefore I took the […]
Beauty Surrounding Us: Elene Naveriani on Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry
By Yun-hua Chen. I believe that all characters possess innate sensibility, which surfaces when given a chance.” —Elene Naveriani “Do you realize how much beauty surrounds us? I wish to be alone, to do what I want, how I like, and when I like,” declares Etero, a 48-year-old woman from […]
On an “Interior” Documentary: Filmmaker Rachel Elizabeth Seed on A Photographic Memory
By M. Sellers Johnson. I loved the idea that I could convey the interior of my imagination in my documentary and that it could be anything, like a narrative film, because no one can argue with your imagination. And yet, it’s really my story, and these are real people.” Documentarian […]
It’s Alive (and Horny)! Zelda Williams’ Lisa Frankenstein (2024)
By Thomas M. Puhr. Newton really shines and has a funny swagger about her. It’s too bad the surrounding film never quite matches this winning performance.” Lisa is lonely. Her widower father, who has promptly remarried and moved in with Lisa’s new stepmother and stepsister out in the candy-colored suburbs, […]
Outsiders on the Frontier: Kitty Green on The Royal Hotel
By Ali Moosavi. I knew that I didn’t want to see violence. I feel like I’ve seen enough sexual violence in cinema…. I was like how can we make a movie about the threat of that. And the threat of that should be enough to feel scared.” The young Australian […]
Never Change: Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla (2023)
By Thomas M. Puhr. A portrait of how the celebrity machine thrives on packaging and preserving its subjects as doll-like children who are denied the luxury of developing discernible inner selves.” The opening chords from Alice Coltrane’s “Going Home” accompany an overhead shot of two pristinely pedicured feet creeping along […]
Falling in Love with Myself: Signe Baume’s My Love Affair with Marriage (2022)
By Jenny Paola Ortega Castillo. The film uses animation to delve deep into the complex tapestry of women’s roles in marriage and the harrowing loss of identity that often accompanies this timeless practice.” I felt like an inflated balloon trying to fit into a shoe box that couldn’t accommodate its […]
She Has Overcome: Joan Baez I Am a Noise
By Elias Savada. A lovely curtain call, offering time for Joan to frame how she ultimately crushed her life-long demons. It’s a heartbreaking journey into the horrifying past and a heartwarming walk into a future of forgiveness.” I always envisioned this legendary folk musician and activist as the Baby Boomer […]
Ukraine, Pre-Invasion: Maryna Vroda on Stepne
By Yun-hua Chen. The shooting took place before the full invasion by Russia and just before the pandemic started. When we arrived in Kiev, we had to go through special pandemic control measures. Everything was shut down. We were lucky to be able to finish the shooting, but then for […]
Rescuing Girls from the Taliban: Marie Margolius on Ayenda (Future)
By Ali Moosavi. For these girls it was such an intense month of failed attempts, sleepless nights, terrifying moments that at the end was sort of a blur. While they have memories of how they felt in those moments, it was on me to figure out the timeline. I had […]