It's been a good year for director and screenwriter Mike Cahill (pictured below). His low-budget debut feature film, Another Earth, made waves at Sundance, picked up a distribution deal and is out in cinemas worldwide. The former Economics student talks to Bren Sritharan about budgets, technology and film school...
How did you go about keeping your shooting costs down on Another Earth?
I went back to where I grew up [New Haven, Connecticut] and I called in a lot of favours. We shot it in my mum’s house; I asked a friend of mine who’s now a police officer to close down four lanes on the highway which would’ve cost me like $100,000, but I was able to get that for free. We used friends’ houses for shooting locations; my mother’s a high school teacher so we used her school for Rhoda’s school. I think everyone recognised that we were trying to make something that we all believed in, and so while no one felt that they were going to bank roll off of this, they were attracted by the idea of creating art, creating something worthwhile.
Do you think film school is necessary?
For some people it can be, structure is really important, but for me, I like to create my own structure, in a way, I think learning is important but I went to my own film school that consisted of reading, consuming and eating up every piece of material possible. But I have friends who have gone to film school that are amazingly talented and have learned a great deal so it can be useful but it obviously depends, person to person.
You’re also a video artist, how does that inform your narrative work?
I think my background allows me the freedom to do things that are a little unusual, at times. There are certain films that are shot very much in a television style, so a predictable “master-shot-reverse-shot” kind of way that doesn’t interest me at all.
This film tackles a challenging subject – a planet that looks just like earth is approaching our world (see above). How confident were you that a wider audience would perceive it the way you wanted?
Personally, I was trying to make something that moved me, and we can only be our own barometer. I don’t know what anyone else is going to think, but if I’m trying to stay as authentic and pure as possible, and trying to approach something that is human and authentic then hopefully it’ll cross over. We thought we’d show this to our best friends, have some beers and that would be that. But the fact that it got into Sundance, was picked up by Fox Searchlight and is being screened all over the world is like a dream beyond a dream. We didn’t even allow ourselves to think that.
Do you think the technology available to young filmmakers today has oversaturated the market?
I think there’s something really cool going on in this generation, because these tools are so readily available. Back in the day, you had to train for years just to learn how to operate a camera or an editing machine and now the tools are in everyone’s hands. This started a while ago, and at first I think the scene was just blasted with work, and not necessarily good work; but I think it’s starting to come to an interesting point in the culture. The stories are sharper, they’re different, and they’re more thoughtful and rigorous than they were before.
IN FOCUS: CHOOSING A CAMERA
I shot on a Sony EX-3, an HD camcorder. I didn’t use a 35mm converter lenses, though a friend of mine had a kit of beautiful, expensive prime lenses that he offered to lend to me for free. I attached these lenses to a Letus adaptor and the thing was incredibly heavy, and I wanted to create an aesthetic and have a certain amount of freedom when I was shooting. The freedom that it allowed, and the aesthetic of a certain lo-fi, sci-fi verité doc vibe, created a unique look that I loved.
Another Earth is out in cinemas today.