As filmmakers, I think a lot of us feel this pressure to say something important, to make an impact, to change people’s lives with our art. The pressure seems to increase when you come from a community that doesn’t see itself represented on screen very often. It can be paralyzing sometimes and it can make your art suffer. No one idea ever feels all-encompassing or important enough. No one story (or 10 minute film) manages to cover every issue that matters.
It took me a long time to get over that idea. With “Youth,” I realized the more I edited down, the more noise I got rid of, the clearer my story became. I tried to comment on too many things at once: gendered expectations, peer pressure, mother-daughter relationships, culture, class, etc. It wasn’t until I cut four of the scenes we shot and narrowed down the story to one pivotal moment that I was really able to create the impact I wanted. From there, it was easy to shape the rest of the film.
Decluttering allowed me to really explore my characters and theme with a lot more depth. I still get paranoid about my film not being “enough,” but I think it’s something we have to free ourselves from if we’re going to grow as filmmakers. There’s always the next film! —Farida Zahran, director
These 12 movie sequels better than the original disprove the notion that the first movie…
Ethan Hawke hopes he doesn't sound like the "old man yells at cloud" meme when…
Sean Baker is telling Joanna Arnow how her film The Feeling That the Time for…
Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles, released 50 years ago, is widely considered one of the funniest…
These shows with unlikable lead characters prove you don't need to like someone to love…
Let's look a the most shocking SNL moments in nearly 50 years of Saturday Night…