Elizabeth Guest and Andrews Leeds talk A VERY MERRY BREAKUP, a romantic comedy that finds writer, director, and star Elizabeth Guest exploring the often absurd intersection of love, commitment, and emotional chaos.
What emerges from a conversation with Zachary Wigon is a filmmaker whose delight in the grotesque is matched by his commitment to precision.
For writer/director/editor Alex Goyette, the seeds of his deliciously disturbing thriller BREEDER were planted by two decidedly bizarre real-life experiences: an unexpected interrogation about his genetic history and an encounter with a dog breeder whose obsession with controlling her animals took a frightening turn.
“I think there is something very noble and very difficult in trying to figure out how to use image to communicate emotion and story.”
“It’s very rewarding to know…and useful just professionally to know that my gut instinct on things isn’t completely off base.”
“I think what I learned in this effort was the endurance that it takes to stay for those three segments of the process (pre-production/production/post-production), and to continue to hold on to that vision and let everybody else do their best work and add to that vision, but you still have to hold on to that throughout.”
For director Rebecca J. Matthews, “Magic happens if you can just creatively open yourself up to things and not stick too much to your original ideas. That’s when all the really cool stuff happens.”
“Everything, everything, everything pays off when you’re specific about all the elements,” Di Pace says.
“I actually think no matter the era that you’re living in, so much of our world is chaotic and confusing, and so to have a movie that reflects that chaos and confusion in a very specific way, I think is its own form of art, whether people want to call it that or not.”
With Jordan Downey serving as director, co-writer, and editor, THE CYCLE possesses an unusually unified creative perspective…He doesn’t simply ask audiences to watch THE CYCLE. He trusts them to experience it.
For Josh Pais, acting is not about repeating what has worked before. It’s about remaining curious enough, courageous enough, and open enough to discover something new. “I’m just always striving to get better at my craft. That’s what keeps me going, and it lights me up.”
Working with cinematographer and executive producer Chris Morsby, a compact cast, limited locations, and an equally lean crew, Gallant approached BACKPAY with an editor’s understanding of what could be accomplished within a tightly controlled production.
