Political Archives - Directors Notes

A Wrestler Grapples With His Desire to Speak Out in Amir Zargara’s Tense Political Drama ‘A Good Day Will

Amir Zargara talks through the difficult social implications of making his political film about a wrestler speaking out against the Iranian government.

Live Action

Sam & David Cutler-Kreutz’ Drama ‘A Lien’ Finds a Young Family Crushed by a Vicious Immigration Process

Sam & David Cutler-Kreutz explain how problem solving during pre-production led to a fruitful creative journey for their heartrending immigration short.

Live Action

A Couple Bear the Cost of the Contaminated Blood Scandal in Luke Shelley’s ‘What We Wished We Could Be’

Luke Shelley explains how he used grounded characterisation to frame the charged issues of an ongoing true life scandal within a humanistic perspective.

Documentary, Film Festival

Elahe Esmaili Documents the Reaction to the Woman, Life, Freedom Movement on a Familial Level in ‘A Move’

Elahe Esmaili explains the intimate, family-centric perspective of the Woman, Life, Freedom protest movement that she wanted to capture in her doc short.

Live Action, Premiere

A Dubious Pair With Ulterior Motives Spin an Unbelievable Yarn in Sean Lyons’ Political Satire ‘Smoking Dolphins’

Sean Lyons unpacks the on point comedic tone and tension-structured shooting style of his smoky comedy calling out the self-serving doublespeak of politicians.

Animation

An Iranian Schoolgirl Weaves Stories Into the Fabric of Her Clothes in Yegane Moghaddam’s Oscar Short ‘Our Uniform’

Yegane Moghaddam reveals the profound real-life anecdotes from Iranian schoolgirls that informed her film which began life as an animated documentary.

Live Action

An Unexpected Pregnancy Forces a Single Mother to Cross State Lines in Nazrin Choudhury’s ‘Red, White and Blue’

Nazrin Choudhury discusses crafting the pace of her Oscar nominated short to fully immerse the audience into the precarious life of a struggling young mother.

Live Action

Elham Ehsas Spotlights the Devastating Loss of Afghan Women’s Liberties in BAFTA Nominated Short ‘Yellow’

Elham Ehsas talks about placing the audience in his protagonist's shoes in his film shining a light on the loss of women's freedoms under Taliban rule.

Music, Premiere

Daria Geller’s ‘Everybody Knows’ Updates a Leonard Cohen Classic for Today’s Era of Russian Aggression

Daria Geller talks to us about counting the tragic cost of Russian complacency through warm 16mm, striking group scenes and a smart Leonard Cohen cover.

Live Action, Premiere

The Prime Minister’s Untimely Death Leads to an Acerbic Battle of Self-Interest in Isher Sahota’s ‘Goodnight Henry’

Isher Sahota explains how he struck the right tonal balance of comedy and skulduggery for his darkly comic period drama about self-interested backstabbing.

Film Festival, Live Action

Grief & Political Rage Converge in Musa Alderson-Clarke’s Searing Cannes Selected Thriller ‘Killing Boris Johnson’

Musa Alderson-Clarke takes DN through the challenge of baking white hot tension into the fabric of his Cannes premiering short about a young man in turmoil.

Animation

An Immigrant Battles Loss and Her Legal Status in Tsvetelina Zdraveva & Jerred North’s Drama ‘Yellowbird’

Co-Directors Tsvetelina Zdraveva & Jerred North break down the production roles they each occupied in order to craft their animated immigrant drama.

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