E47 • Preparation, Meet Adaptability • SARAH MIRO FISCHER, dir. of ‘The Good Sister’ at Berlinale

Sarah Miro Fischer is the director of “The Good Sister”, which just enjoyed its World premiere in the Panorama section at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. Past films discussed include Thomas Vinterburg’s “The Hunt”.

Sarah discusses her emotional journey of premiering at Berlin, sharing insights into her filmmaking process which includes a fruitful collaboration with co-writer Agnes Maagaard Petersen, and the challenges of addressing sensitive themes, which require trust and open communication. 

She emphasizes the importance of preparation and adaptability when making a film, how audience engagement is crucial to spark discussion and reflection, and that Filmmaking is a journey that often requires a leap of faith.

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Chapters

• 0:01 Past Present Feature, Hosted by Marcus Mizelle
• 0:20 Presented by Valerion Projectors
• 1:03 Sarah Miro Fischer, dir. of "The Good Sister" at Berlinale

Transcript

Marcus Mizelle (01:03)
Sarah Miro Fischer is the director of The Good Sister, which just enjoyed its world premiere in the panorama section at this year's Berlin Film Festival. Past films discussed include Thomas Venterberg's The Hunt.

Sarah discusses her emotional journey of premiering at Berlin, sharing insights into her filmmaking process, including a fruitful collaboration with co-writer Agnes McGard-Peterson.

and the challenges of addressing sensitive themes which require trust and open communication.

She emphasizes the importance of preparation and adaptability making a film, how audience engagement is crucial to spark discussion and reflection,

and that filmmaking is a journey that often requires a leap of faith.

Marcus Mizelle (01:44)
So you have made a film called The Good Sister and it's premiering at Berlin. I'm sure very excited. Yes, I'm very excited. Yeah, it's so nerve-racking, but it's also really exciting at the same time. It's really cool. it's like a good nerve, a good nervous? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. How do you do in those situations, you know, when you're a little nervous and you're premiering a film? I usually don't remember too much.

I think I get really calm.

But I'm very focused in the moment. it's hard for me afterwards to kind of recall the more than very specific impressions that I had, I think. I had that also. I used to do some acting on stage when I was smaller, and I used to have that experience there as well. That was just like, it would happen, it would be very intense in the moment, and afterwards I'd be like, OK, that was...

Is it almost like a, not a blackout, but like an outer body experience kind of? Or like very inside body experience, maybe. It's like whenever you, mean, it's always an interesting, fun thing when you're giving a speech or when you're doing Q and A or whatever, it's like this, this thing that comes over your physical being sometimes where like it does feel like an inner body experience. I've never heard that. It's like this weird thing that happens, right? And then you kind of get a hold of yourself and then you do your business, you take care of it. But yeah, and everybody's different.

And I think a lot of filmmakers can tend to be introverted. And so it's always, I like that question to see like, how are you doing Q and A's or what are you, you know, what are you like on the red carpet? Some filmmakers are so chill and some are just like nervous as shit. Some are somewhere in between. I find myself to be like the anticipation can work me up if I let it, but when it's in the moment and on the day, it's like relief. It's like, yes. Okay, give me the moment. I'm just tired of thinking about the moment.

And then of course it just goes back to like, just chill the hell out, stop worrying about everything. But that's interesting, don't you think like that there is this like, it's with all the fear or excitement, emotions, it's a bit the same, like the thing you dread coming, then when it's actually there, it always ends up being kind of okay. It's like this bigger thing that yeah, that you build up so much, it's so silly. And then the most important thing is just, you know, your film being seen and received, right? I mean,

How are you whenever you screen your films to an audience? Are you squirming in your seat or are you, you know, something else? No, I'm pretty nervous. I tend to project my emotions onto the room also. It's hard for me to read the room because I think when I'm nervous, like I had that in a rough cut session, like feedback session. I think it was the first edit that we showed to other people.

And I was watching it with the audience in the cinema. And I thought I heard people snoring because I thought like, my God, this is so boring. I don't know what did we do here? I'm like, I'm so sorry to waste everybody's time. And then the film was over or like it wasn't a finished film yet. And people weren't sleeping at all. Like they had such an engaged experience of watching the thing. And I was like, I'm sure they must have fallen asleep.

I feel like a lot of us are like this. There's only been one time where I've screened a film and I was totally chill and relaxed. It was my last one. But everything before that, it was terrible. And I don't know if it was just a one-off thing. Maybe it's just, I don't know what it is. Maybe it's like, I just had no insecurity about the film for the first time ever. And I remember going to a test screening for Adam McKay movie called Vice and just watching the Dick Cheney movie that he made. And

He was sitting there, was like a room full of like 25 people. It was like Will Ferrell and Judd Apatow in there and like some other people. And then somehow me. And anyways, Adam McKay was sitting beside me and behind me and he was squirming so hard. He was losing his mind. And I'm like, dude, you've made so many good movies. This movie's great. What are you up, what are you worried about? But it's like the filmmaker thing. I don't know what you would call it. the, you want your peers to respond and like it, I guess.

I want to know about you, the filmmaker. What is your origin story as a filmmaker? When was the first moment you realized you wanted to be a filmmaker? I think I of stumbled upon filmmaking. As far as I remember, I always liked different arts. I played the violin for when I was five years, and I used to paint a lot and later photograph and write.

I was feeling like that I'm interested in all these different aspects of creating stuff. And I couldn't really tie them together. So I was always thinking, what do I want to do with my life? It should go somewhere in this direction, but I don't know where. And then I started acting in school and then went on to some small theaters in my hometown and realized that I...

kind of had a lot of ideas of where my character should be placed on stage. And then I realized that that's kind of annoying also for the director. I kept saying like, hey, well, what about me going from there to there? And that was kind of the first idea of maybe exploring directing. And when I started, I started studying film in Columbia, because I lived there after school for three years. And

That was kind of more like by chance. I was like, okay, maybe I can tie all my interests together doing film. there I started studying film there. I remember after, like, I don't know, week or two, I started having really weird dreams, but like in the best way. Like it was like my mind started going like in all the different kinds of directions at the same time. And it was really a good feeling.

Were you on your way to being a filmmaker before you were conscious about it, you think? Or was there a moment where it's like, I'm gonna do this and then it came? I mean, it wasn't a conscious process before, think, but I kind of feel like it made sense when I started doing it. It was like, of course this makes sense. Okay, yeah, yeah. What about like your first short film or whatever where you were like, I'm like...

I feel there's a moment where you kind of deem yourself as a filmmaker, or at least you just see yourself as one more. So what's the first film that you made that you were proud of? So I would say probably Spit, which was my last short film, is a film that I'm proud of. And then The Good Sister I'm also pretty proud of, actually. Why are you proud? What makes you proud about it, besides the fact that you're, course?

premiering at Berlin now, it's gotta be good if you got into Berlin. I think the process, because I kind of like set a goal to myself in the beginning of the process that I wanted to be like an experience and kind of like, I really wanted to listen each step of the way of like what the project needed in that specific moment of the process. So I feel like...

I did that a lot, maybe not all the times, a lot of the times I did kind of listen back to, maybe this, because I didn't have this idea of the film wasn't finished when we were writing it. It wasn't the finished film in my head. I wanted to be open in each step of the way to see maybe there's something that...

I hadn't considered before or something that is presenting itself. And I want to incorporate that. And I want to be so, you know, open to listening to the project in that sense. And yeah. So it was always evolving like throughout each day. always evolving. Yeah. And when you say took your time, mean take you, really take your time with, all of the aspects of making the film, as opposed to kind of rushing through getting swept up with trying to get it done.

And that's a real thing that happens sometimes. Yeah, it did happen to us by the end a bit also. Because we took a lot of time, think, in writing. We took some time and then we did the prep and the shoot and the editing. was all very conscious, very present moments. then sound design and music mixing and all that. And then when it comes to tying all the things together.

it started to get a little bit rushed. I mean, there's also just a lot of organization around that that has to be done and like how to present it and you know, all these things that come up towards the end. Gotcha, yeah. I mean, a lot of that stuff at the end, you mean like kind of post sound, like sound design, sound mix, all this stuff, kind of finishing more or even more so like editing, like figuring out the edits still. No, no, even after the sound design and mixing, just like

How do we go out into the world with it? what is everything like the credits and the mastering of everything and you know, like. and then the releasing. Yeah. And you're, I mean, you're just sales, which you just, it looks like you just got your cell. What's, are they a distributor or a sales agent? New Europe film sales. Yeah. They're world sales. That's nice. That's really nice. And they're super nice.

How did you connect with them? We met them. They saw the film in San Sebastian when we were showcasing the work in progress in September last year. And they went to the screening and they really liked the film. We really liked them. Like we had been following the work from before. And then we had a really cool exchange about the project where it was just, I felt like the film was really been seen, had really been seen.

by the people involved in the agency. So yeah, that was really cool. When you're going and you're like doing and you're looking and considering films, like film sales company, know, whether it be a distributor or sales agents or whatever, like how many did you talk to and how do you know when you found the right one? So I think that probably depends also on each project and stage of where you're at in your career or like.

for lack of a better word, as a filmmaker. But for us, was really important that we met many in San Sebastian and around San Sebastian. I don't really remember the number, but it was quite a lot of world sales that we had talked to. And what was important for us was that we wanted, first of all, the world sales to understand what we were trying to say with the film so that

There was like this on a content level, we would speak the same language because that's going to be important later for all the decisions that are being done. Right. And then what for us was also really important was that we had the feeling that we're not being kind of played with or, know, like sometimes you have this in this sales game, there's a little bit of push and pull. I don't know. And yeah, and it, and I just feel like it's really nice when you can talk openly with.

with the people you work with and you really see it as a working relationship on either more than anything. And there's just like a vibe to it too. I mean, you kind of know when you know. And then of course, the whole contract, like the whole details of the contract as well. Right. It's like, wait. Or, okay. You're being fair. I just think back to like going to AFM years ago and meeting with like 20 different sales agents and half of them are just like saying yes, but offering nothing, you know, kind of thing.

And then there were the other 10 that were just seemed like they just really did somewhat care. And then there's five out of the, know, I was like, oh man, there's people, there's just all about just getting in where you fit in, I guess, you know? And then I've been with the same sales agent that sells my smaller films to the world since then, you know? So it was really a good investment. Those, those four days talking to those, you know, just international, just sales in general is like such an aspect that a lot of filmmakers, I don't think have allowed themselves to like,

Cultivate, you know, and it's a big part of your movie. Like, it's not just about the movie, it's about how does your movie scene, like where is it seen, you know, who's pushing it out, who's being real with you, you know, and who's, so yeah, anyways, it's always interesting to me to hear people's like life after the film, like what's, what do you have planned or what's going on, all that. And a lot of times I'm talking to people that have just had their premiere or about to have their premiere and I would say 70 % of the time they don't have the sales in line yet.

You know, so it's nice, it's cool to kind of hear that you've got it all lined up and it's just a huge thing that you don't have to worry about. Okay, so the film itself. Okay, let's talk about the film. So The Good Sister, you co-wrote it with, who'd you co-wrote it with? Her name is Anna Smargot-Petersen. And how did that, how did you guys meet? How did you guys decide to write this together? Also, like, why did you guys write this story?

So I maybe okay, honestly, had like, we had met in film school in the beginning, because we're in the same year, like we started film school together, and we did the documentary together. And then we were like, always supporting each other in our projects since.

So there was already like established working relationship between us and we were like constantly talking about like what's going on in on our minds and what we're thinking about and all that. had like the idea I had that like even a couple of years before without really knowing what to do with it. But I went to a demonstration. It was like some kind of 8th of March feminist demonstration.

And I saw like a banner that's that read, why do I know so many victims of sexual violence, but no perpetrator? And that question just really stuck with me because I was like, it's so true. do. I mean, I did have experiences myself, but I also do know so many people around me that with experiences like that, but I couldn't name, you know, the same amount of male counterparts.

And I was really wondering if there was an issue with this in our society that it's great that we started talking more openly about sexual violence from the victim's perspective. But I feel like an interesting next step could be looking at the perpetrator as someone amongst us and not like the other, the far away person. yeah, and then so we started talking about this, like the core question.

Within this core question, had something to do with who are we and who are the others? And this us versus them idea of we don't do things like that, my friends aren't like that, my family isn't like that. It can't happen to me. It's not me. It's not my people. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. And then from there, was like, the closest person to me, I think, in a way, is my

brother, have an older brother, otherwise doesn't have anything to do with the story. he is like, felt like it is an interesting relationship because you have the same parents, you're growing up in the same time in history, you're growing up in the same place in the world and kind of the socio-economic background is similar and then you know them your whole lives and you know, like,

there is this blind spot about sexuality with your siblings also. And I just felt like that was a pretty interesting starting point. Totally. I have a brother, but it's different. mean, I don't have a sister. I have no idea what that's like. You know, I really don't. I can kind of see the cliches from afar as far as brother protecting the sister and the sister, you know, appreciating the brother. You see that quite a bit, but I don't know what the actual dynamics were like. But it does seem like a fresh, brave approach.

that you took? Yeah, it was really, I feel like we also, I mean, it was good that we already trusted each other a lot because it's such a sensitive topic that it really helps when you can speak your mind openly in the writing process. We did bounce back and forth a lot and we wrote, like we took a long time constructing the story and like the architecture of the story. Can you talk about that?

the architecture of the story. How did you come to where you landed? What was fascinating to you? What was getting you going as far as the architecture of the story? Because there's so many ways you can go. It's like, what do you do? And one more thing I was going to say real quick. It makes complete sense that you would pull from your real life and your little bit of an autobiographical element as far as you can relate to the brother aspect. Such a big

practical deal when we do that, feel like, when we do, you know, write what you know, in a way. But yeah, just tell me about how you developed a script. Like, how did it come to be and how do you kind of know, like, how to go about it? Did you have a structure in mind from the beginning or how did that work? Yeah, we, I think we were looking for perspective for a long time. That was kind of a first big mark, I think, in the construction of it when we settled on Rose's perspective, like on the sisters'

and only her perspective, like us looking through her eyes throughout the whole story. And then kind of building this net of people around her. it's very much a character study in a way. So we're putting her in different situations and see how she reacts. And then we needed kind of like an external influence that kind of

connected her to the real world and kind of externalize also the conflict a little bit. Let's move into production of your film, Good Sister. What did production look like? How long did you shoot for and any interesting kind of notable things that come to mind as far as production? So we had 28 shooting days. We were shooting with quite a small team in Berlin and around Berlin.

I had rehearsed with the two main actors for around two weeks, which was great because we could improvise a lot around the characters and make them build a relationship and have them experience these zibling dynamics where, know, each of them is playing a role in a certain way and it's been like that forever and they expect it to be like that forever.

So, okay, so the value of rehearsing, it's something that I wish I could always get more of. It's such a valuable thing, right, to rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. What are the obvious benefits? Or maybe less obvious. What are any benefits to the rehearsing process? And I think, you probably just said it, where they have, it's like a muscle memory that gets built up so that you kind of know the assignments so well when you're on the day filming, and then you can kind of play from there. Would that be correct?

Yes, definitely. You build also a ground construction for the characters that they can try out without the pressure of the set also, where there's not really this time issue of like, if I go in the wrong direction, then maybe I don't have the chance to get the right take anymore or something. So they're just really free to try out different things and we can discuss later and see what feels right for them, what feels right for me.

how that kind of translates and it's an approaching process, right? So the experience of the actors and my experience kind of get closer intertwined over the time of the rehearsing. I get to know them also. I get to understand how they work and think and process information as well because every actor is different. And I think it's really important to look at each of them

individually and speak to them individually, find out what works for them and what doesn't. Is there any danger to over-rehearsing in your mind? Definitely. Like, I think we didn't really rehearse scenes from the script. There was like, there were some scenes where I was insecure about the dialogue, for example, or where I thought maybe there's, it's counterintuitive how the scene is structured. And then we

quickly went through those scenes, but it wasn't many and it was a long time before the shoot. And I think you can definitely over-rehearse scenes if you're rehearsing the exact same scenes from the shoot. And everybody is different. You got different philosophies. Some people don't even like to rehearse at all, which is like, hey, that's what floats your boat, I guess. So what is it like filming in Berlin? People film a lot here. So there's, it's...

I mean, it's a big city, so you can find many different spaces. You can find many different contexts if you're looking for them. And there is a bit the danger of overusing the same images over and over again, I guess. Kind like New York, probably. Yeah, I feel like in this bubble here that happens a lot also. And then there is some stereotypes attached to the city that, you know, like

There's this brilliant techno thing and the Berlin, I don't know, party free life. don't know.

Yeah. And sometimes you want that and sometimes you don't want that and then you need to work around. Is the film industry pretty friendly in Berlin as far as does it support independent filmmaking or how does it look? mean, Berlin is just as old as Hollywood as far as film history is concerned, you know? It's a very fascinating place. Yeah. I mean, we don't have a system like you have in Hollywood and I think it's... That's probably for the best if you're a filmmaker.

the system. Sorry to cut you off, but the business rules everything here. The studio system, So I guess it's very different. It's also difficult, I guess, like everywhere. This funding system is a little bit complicated sometimes. So we have public fundings that we can apply for.

but we also usually have to work with TV stations and it's just a very complicated net to get to the funding to make a film happen. We, in our case, we had state funding, but for like a graduation film. So was pretty little state funding that we got, which was great that we got the chance to do it. Still, we had to work a lot around the budget in order to make it work.

But then you can still make a film, you know, and that's really great. guess it sounds nice. And I'm sure, you know, to have like a state funded, you know, people's tax money is going to the arts, I guess, which man, I'd be great if America did that. But I guess you still have to deal with trying to get into the same door a lot of other people are getting in, right? It's not like it's just readily available for anybody that wants to make a film. No, no, no. It's very competitive. It's huge. Like it's

Really hard. it's right now in Berlin, it doesn't look so good for cultural politics. There was like a cut in the funding for culture. It's everywhere, seems like. Damn, sorry to hear that. Post-production of your film, editing, know, putting it together. How did you feel? Like, did you ever have any doubts? And I like to talk about struggle on this podcast because it does seem like all the good stuff comes right after like the hardest part, whatever that might have been.

So I guess my specific question is, was there a moment for you that felt like the hardest moment while making this film? I think there was a tough period in pre-production when you have, like the thing that we were talking about also the premiere before where this shooting date comes closer and there's so much in the air, but also so much not yet confirmed. you have a lot of...

maybes and you have a of options, but you're not really sure in the end, is it going to be this location? Is it going to be that day? Is it going to be working as we want to turn out? gosh. Yeah. And I find that very nerve wracking. And then on set, I love it. But before I'm really like, I want things to be clear in a way. I find it hard for them to be up in the air. It's amazing. it's like this uncertainty can lead to like some beautiful moments.

to like, and there's something about like being too comfortable that can can make things stale, right? You want a little bit of nervous is good. Maybe you don't want to be out of control, but like you want to be in control of yourself and also a little bit of nervous, a little bit of excitement. Like that's a good thing, I think if you can channel it, I guess it's all about channeling it properly. Yeah. Yeah. I think there is a, there is like, maybe that's also come, it also comes with experience, but for me it felt like

there is this stage in the pre-production where you can always work more, like where there is no end to preparing, you know, like you can always do more of preparing and more preparing. I was really insecure how to like when to stop, when to rest, when to, you know, like do other things to get my mind clear again. And then when you get to on set, you really like, you just work with what's there. And I find that very freeing. I feel like

When you work with what's there, you're like really free to listen and to receive and to, you know, but in this moment before I still, maybe I haven't figured it out yet, but it's hard for me to navigate. It sounds like you were prepared too, like you rehearsed for two weeks and you're probably concerned about things maybe not going a certain way. So you prepare more in turn. mean, preparation is key. Yeah. It's like, it'll save your butt. Cause there are going to be things that happen during production where it's like, didn't see this coming.

There's maybe a story where it was raining. we had, you know, like it was summer in Berlin. We had quite some outside locations and we were shooting a birthday scene over two days. And the first day was fine. The second day it was raining just like the whole day. the comp, like really out, like, I don't know how you say that in English, but it was raining really a lot. And soon type rain, just like windy and type thing.

Yeah, and we just couldn't do anything about it. So it was like, OK, what do we do? Then we kind of like rewrote the script on on set. It was so cool because like I was putting in ideas, the actors were giving back ideas and the camera person, you know, everybody was like, OK, brainstorming, how do we solve this issue? Because we can't afford to reshoot another day. We have to we have to get this done now. We found a solution.

We shot it and then we fast forward into the editing room. We saw the scene and we're like, oh yeah, this could actually work. We put it in the film, the scene, the second half of the scene that is with the, with the rain. We showed it in a test screening and the comment of people was like, we don't believe it's actually raining. It doesn't look like it's really raining. That is so funny. What do you even take away from that? You're just like, okay.

I don't know what to tell you. It's real. It's so weird. Yeah, we took it out. Did it ultimately just naturally, organically just present itself as distracting to the audience for whatever reason? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, we had to take it out again. It's like this great area or something. Was it hard for you to take out? No, it was. I mean, it was sad because it was kind of, you know, but it was okay.

The scene still worked without it also. Nice. Is it hard for you to edit out things that you might have been excited about or stuck with, that you were passionate about keeping or you thought, or even a moment where it's like, this was really tough to film that day. And it's like, you almost want to keep it in because you had to earn capturing it, which has nothing to do with the viewer's experience, of course. But do you find yourself having a tough time killing your darlings in the edit room?

I feel like there's different stages to it. I think in the beginning, because I forget bad things so easily, like I don't remember most of the time how hard things were while doing them. Such a good quote. So in the beginning, it's really not hard for me because I feel like I'm very open to play around and I'm like, yeah, why not? Let's see how that works without this. And then we can maybe find something here and something there. And then we go back to it and stuff like that. But over time,

The closer the picture log approaches, I get a little nervous about like, okay, we really, like, shouldn't we try one more time? Maybe this time in a different context, it could work in a different way and then it comes back a little bit, this pressure of.

Just being in love with the scene and trying to make it fit somewhere. I think ultimately I have a really good relationship also with the editor and really trust her as well. We sometimes sit down seriously and do like a very difficult talk about, okay, dividing emotions and story and, you know, where is the attachment? Where is the, what are we trying to convey and find a way to solve it.

the bigger kind of themes and items that you're after as a director. How much allowance do you give your editor beyond that, beyond that discussion? Do you let them kind of do their thing beyond that or what is your method? Or at least like what was your method with this film? How did it work? Yeah, with this film, I am, so we approached it separately. Like I was editing some in my house and she was getting familiar with the material in her.

way. And then we met and then we spoke about the material, we spoke about the scenes. She said how she wanted to start, like what scene made her feel the most excited to start building the film around. And from there, we kind of went in a very constant conversation of her judgment and my judgment. So it was pretty, we had like, we had pretty, sometimes we had pretty different opinions.

but we always gave each other the benefit of the doubt that there was something reasonable in the other person's opinion and then took the time and tried it out and then tested it and then came back to discussing if it still didn't work. Because if you had somebody editing that has the exact same opinions as you, then what's the point of having them kind of in a way, right? Yeah, yeah, definitely. You want them to have the same sensibilities but also like see your blind spots sometimes?

Definitely, definitely. Like what I think is really important is that there is an understanding in the acting that you know, like they see the acting in the way that you can also understand acting. feel like if there's this baseline, then you can really play on top and challenge each other with story and emotions and everything. So exciting whenever you get a cutback from your editor and they just found something that you didn't even know was there.

Sometimes it's like, oh my God, you elevated my material. And it's like, I I love you forever. You know what I mean? Even if it's something simple, you know? So anyways, how do you know when to picture lock it? Were you trying to like meet a deadline for a festival or were you just like, you felt like you've done everything. You've tried everything you could for the film. Like what was it for you? How do you know when you're done? It was a little bit a mix of both. Like we tried many things.

And we felt confident in the picture log version. We worked really hard the last weeks up to picture log. And I kind of also feel like sometimes we really need a deadline. Like we set ourselves a deadline, but we extended it for a month and then we couldn't extend it any longer. We needed this one month longer, but then we also needed the deadline because

I feel like sometimes you get to a point where you, you can go in circles, you know, like you start up opening questions that you had already answered, but there's so long ago that you forgot. kind of, it's a never ending loop. It reminds me, it makes me think of just like ever how big your garage is. That's how much stuff you're going to have in it. You know what I mean? Definitely. Yeah. That's like, that's what it is. feel like it's a challenge. you just like, where's the, what do you actually need? And time pressure does help you.

get your act together quicker, right? Yeah, if it's not too much. also feel like sometimes in creative processes, it can be really hard if there's a lot of time pressure, then it can block you also. it's always, with everything in life, it's a balance, right? I mean, that's what I'm seeing more and more and more clearly every day, you know? It's like there is no left or right or yes or no, or black and white. It's like the balance of all.

What do you hope to have happen with this film? What's kind of like a, maybe if you have a specific kind of vision for like a rollout of the film, what are you hoping for? So I would love for the film to travel. I would love to travel with the film and I would love to hear different perspectives on it because I think it's a film that is made to have a discussion after. Like, I don't think it's a film or like in my opinion, it would be beautiful if

the film would be given the space to afterwards really discuss and be like, everybody put in their feelings and opinions and you know, and I think there is space for them to be contradictory and like, to kind of be curious about each other and what we feel and think. So I think that will be really cool to get a little glimpse of that if that's possible, but I would love for that to happen with the film. I am curious just about the story itself. Like I'm wondering if he did it or not, you know, that's like the big kind of

question. Did he do it? You're not going to tell me. you ever know that? I mean, that's isn't that always like I think that's such an interesting part about this construction is if you're not there, you will not 100 % surely know you will have to choose who you believe. And I think that's a very interesting task. Well, I feel like it's like a it's like a it's like a story engine. In a way, it's a device that really keeps the story going.

It's like almost like a who done it. You stick around to find out who done it or if he did it or not, you know, or whatever. And it's like the whole story is built. haven't seen, I haven't seen your film, but you know, this kind of like the hunt was like that where it's like, did he do it? Did he not do it? Damn. my God. Either way, these people are being presumptuous, you know, and it's just like the reaction of the other characters and the interaction of each character. Like it's like this simple story engine kind of.

It's this device that just keeps it going. anyways, yeah, reading your log line, and I didn't read your log line. I want to read your log line. The Good Sister. Rose is very close to her older brother, Sam. When he is accused of rape, Rose is asked to testify against him as part of the investigation. This tests both their relationship and Rose's moral integrity. Director Sarah Mirro Fisher explores an intimate sibling relationship and how it is that the closer we are to another person, the harder it might be to see them clearly. What kind of events have the power to destroy even the closest of bonds?

When working on her film with the actor, she placed particular emphasis on physical expression in order to be able to tell stories beyond the spoken word. One last question. What would you tell your younger filmmaking self if you could go back in time now? I think don't think about it too much because if you think about it too much, wouldn't like, you know, with knowing what I know now, I'm not sure if I would have done it, but I'm glad I did. So I think it's good that sometimes you don't know what's coming at you, but you still just like.

take the step there and then just be kind of awake and maybe get a little bit better with money. Oh yeah, that stuff. You know, like find a stable side income that still allows you to do what you need to do.