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The Contradictions of Love: Inside 9 Temples to Heaven
Having honed his craft as a documentarian and assistant director to master filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Sompot Chidgasornpongse marks his fiction debut with the hypnotically layered 9 Temples to Heaven. Here, he discusses scouting 70 different temples and explains how unexpressed family tensions steer his characters through a high-pressure spiritual race. The film follows a family…
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The Shark in the Supermarket: Zhong Kaifeng on the Real-Life Absurdity Behind Atlantic Rhapsody
Bringing a surreal tapestry of memory to the screen is an exercise in unearthing the ghosts of shared urban spaces. In this deep-dive conversation, Atlantic Rhapsody director Zhong Kaifeng untangles the film’s dream-like architecture, reflecting on everything from real-world supermarket absurdities to the gritty, chaotic realities of independent co-writing. 第一问：Ding Mao回到沈阳，但电影从不把它当作简单的“回家”。沈阳在你写作时意味着什么？你想让丁茂在那里找到什么？ Q: Ding Mao returns…
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From Shandong to the Screen: How Arnaldo Stafa Forged a New Path in British Indie Film
After swapping an Albanian childhood for three gruelling years of kung fu mastery at a Chinese temple, London-based actor-producer Arnaldo Stafa didn’t wait around for the industry to notice him. Instead, he founded Aki Studio London, bringing his lethal martial arts skills and razor-sharp discipline straight to the international festival circuit. You went to a…
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Director Suzi Yoonessi on Reuiniting with Melissa Leo for Mother Wolf
More than twenty years after debuting her very first short film at the Woodstock Film Festival, Emmy-nominated director Suzi Yoonessi sat down with Close-Up Culture ahead of a triumphant world premiere for her new feature, Mother Wolf. Shot directly inside the soul-filled, handcrafted home of Academy Award winner Melissa Leo, this independent film dives into…
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Meet The Mind Behind Hit Short Film The Intimacy Coordinator
Close-Up Culture’s Senior Writer Genevieve Dammery sat down with Writer/director/actress Louisa Connolly-Burnham to discuss her latest short film The Intimacy Coordinator, her career, and what it is like to evolve a career from acting into filmmaking. Genevieve: Could you tell me a little bit about the initial idea that became The Intimacy Coordinator, and if there was a particular conversation or experience or observation that sparked…
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Close-Up: An Interview With Unabomber actor David Webster
Meet David Webster, the rising Canadian talent starring alongside Russell Crowe and Jacob Tremblay in Netflix’s Unabomber. Following standout roles in Hallmark’s The Way Home and Netflix’s Luckiest Girl Alive, this dynamic actor-screenwriter is quickly becoming one of the industry’s most versatile names to watch. You’ve been working professionally since you were 12. What’s something…
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How a Grandmother’s Secret Poetry Inspired Untitled Woman
When filmmaker Camille Summers-Valli cleared out her late grandmother’s house, she discovered a stash of beautiful, hidden poems that changed everything. In this interview with Close-Up Culture’s James Prestridge, she explains how those secret depths inspired Untitled Woman, her striking debut narrative short. James: You spent years working in fashion, including with brands like Burberry,…
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Why Director Rodolphe Populus Turned Climate Change Into a Ski Lift Nightmare
What happens when nature decides to fight back against our artificial winters? In this interview with Close-Up Culture, director Rodolphe Populus reveals how he turned a familiar holiday pastime into an eco-horror survival story. Getting stuck on a ski lift is something most skiers have probably imagined at some point. I certainly have. What made…
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Östlund Meets Aster: Shir Ariya and Charlie Stockdale on The Sorrows of Young Charlotte
What happens when you cross the painful awkwardness of a Ruben Östlund film with the pitch-black dread of Ari Aster? Close-Up Culture caught up with director Shir Ariya and writer Charlie Stockdale to unpack their new short The Sorrows of Young Charlotte, a masterclass in anti-romance screening at the BFI London Film Festival. The film…
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Luka Galle on The Catcher, Oscar Buzz, & the Invisible Bird
Following a string of 11 festival awards and a coveted Oscar qualification, Flemish filmmaker Luka Galle makes a stunning leap from music videos to narrative fiction with his surreal short, The Catcher. In this chat with Close-Up Culture, the director opens up about turning a bizarre government job into a deeply personal, visual exploration of…
