5 Questions with Anne Hollowday
Anne Hollowday (right) with Bill Kirstein, cinematographer (left)
1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?
My background is in writing and photography. Filmmaking is the sweet spot where those two converge for me. It's this transportive, all encompassing medium where you can move people in such an emotional way. My approach is combine the best of both narrative and documentary techniques when directing; trying to find the space for films to elevate beyond just words and images into something that is greater than the sum of its parts.
2) What was the initial idea for this project and how did it evolve from there?
I met Georgia (the dancer and choreographer) via a mutual friend. She's also originally from the UK so we hit it off and kept in touch. Several months later she had a dramatic injury and was forced to stay homebound and do almost nothing for about 4 months. For a dancer, their body is their whole life. It's how they make a living but also their medium of creative expression. I was fascinated about how an enforced period of stillness would change her relationship to movement.
3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And the easiest part?
It's the same answer for both! The narration. A lot of my films are very audio driven and with Physical Thoughts, we recorded the interview while Georgia was injured and had to wait for her to recover to shoot the visuals. It's a huge challenge to craft a film with just one side of the process complete but it's also really easy because you don't have any visual constraints yet because none of the footage exists! I love that interplay.
4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?
During lockdown I went back and rewatched all of Yasujirō Ozu's movies set in post war Japan. Those films are about the most enduring of themes: time, family, love and he treats them with such reverence. Every shot is so carefully crafted, I'm in awe of his meticulous attention to detail and the way he animates even the most mundane of interactions with such depth. Late Spring, in particular, lingered with me for a while.
5) What’s next for you?
I'm developing a feature narrative that I'm keen to shoot next year. And I'm still directing commercials and branded content too.
—
https://www.instagram.com/anneholiday/
https://twitter.com/anneholiday