5 Questions with Julian Turner

1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?

I for real fell in love with filmmaking in like seventh grade. My older brothers were always showing me DVDs for movies like 21 Grams and Amores Perros, which I thought were crazy at the time but they built my appetite for consuming films. I grew up in Tennessee and spent most of my time outside as a kid. In middle school, one of my buddies got a camcorder for Christmas and we just starting filming weird scenes in the woods and putting them on YouTube. You can maybe still find some of them. Ever since, it's been an obsession for sure. 

2) What’s the backstory here - what was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?

Honestly, it began with that closing image in the elevator. I was messing around with my friend one day and that specific image with those specific characters came forward in our banter. Then it just sort of lingered with me for a couple years, so I tried to figure out how those characters got there and what their stories were. 

3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And generally what part of the creative process do you enjoy the most, and the least?

Casting was the biggest hurdle. There are only two characters, so finding talented actors willing to work for very little was make or break. Ultimately, I really love being on set despite how stressful most shoots are. I work in post-production so it's always a real treat when I get to shoot something I've crafted. I'm always writing or trying to write, so for me it's a love-hate thing. I struggle with structure and stuff sometimes, but I do love those sparks that push you forward. 

4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?

I've been watching Hal Hartley for the first time thanks to the Metrograph. His dialogue and direction are so peculiar and forward thinking. The Unbelievable Truth is like the ultimate anti-John Hughes film in many ways, and the music cues in all his work I've seen so far is spot on. 

5) What’s next for you?

I finished a small short in the fall that I'm trying to figure out what to do with. It's sort of a distillation of a feature I've been writing for like four years now. Otherwise, you can catch me in New York doing editing work and re-drafting some scripts I'm trying to kick into development. 

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IG:  @realgauche