Womb for one more?

Interview with Writer/Director
Claudia Fitzgerald

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Foetal Position was my Victorian College of the Arts Graduate film, so technically I made this film to graduate! But really I made Foetal Position because I wanted to make a funny film about women, identity and the unpredictability of life, and I wanted it to make people laugh and reflect on their own lives.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

It’s relatable, you may not be a women in your 40’s whose just found out she is pregnant, but you will have experienced surprises in life that have forced you to question who you are and what you should do. It’s also a feel-good film, it makes fun of the little irritants of life and shows how unimportant they really are. (I’ve also been told that it makes people laugh!)

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

Foetal Position talks about family, relationships, Identity, women and motherhood. Family is one of my favourite themes to explore, it allows for so much fun to be had. I have decades of experience being part of a family and hence have plenty to draw from. I also love how other people can relate to the content, they can put themselves in place of certain characters in the film and really see their own family dynamic. It makes the film a more rounded experience if people feel as though their own experiences are interacting with the film in a way.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?

Foetal Position was always destined to be a film about family - focusing mainly on the mother daughter relationship. There were many, many scripts before I settled on the idea of Foetal Position. Originally the daughter was going to be pregnant and the film would explore how the mother and daughter’s rocky relationship withstood this pressure. Overtime I was itching to turn the tables and have the mother fall pregnant- a concept that has be studied much less than the typical Teen Pregnancy storyline. Often Women of a certain age aren’t considered sexual beings - so how could they possibly get pregnant!

Foetal Position - Harriet sits and chews on a pickle covered in peanut butter (Her craving food).

What type of feedback have you received so far?

We’ve had very positive feedback from the film. We have won a few awards such as Best Production and People’s Choice Awards, which we have been very grateful for. I find that a great thing about Comedy is that you can really see the audience react during the screenings - it always fills me with excitement when I hear people laughing at words that used to just live in my head - It’s quite Magical!

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

I didn’t expect many people to have experienced the situation of being pregnant later in life - but I was pleasantly surprised when I had people come up to me and say, “This is me! This is my story”. I loved that I had created something genuine, that people really connected with. During the Byron Bay Film Festival when I was on stage talking about my film’s premise, I saw two women nudge each other when I mentioned the unplanned pregnancy, during the screening the two women were in screaming fits of laughter. It was one of the best reactions I’ve ever had for a film and I felt overwhelmed in that moment.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

I hope that Foetal Position will stand out as the type of film that your readers would enjoy watching. The main reason I make films is to make people laugh and have a good time, and I think Foetal Position does a pretty good job at doing that! I would also love other film festivals to get wind of our funny little film and see if it is something that would suit their programs.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

We would love film festival directors, journalists and distributors to come on board and help spread the message of resilience, good mental health and the importance of a good support system in everyone’s lives.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

I would love people to watch this film for its quirky sense of humour and outlook on life. I want people to leave the screening feeling as though they have just spent time with an old friend and had a real laugh. I also hope that the film would encourage people to look into their own lives, and start questioning how they react to certain things.

Foetal Position - The dream of Travelling the world child-less isn’t looking very realistic anymore.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

The film is a homage to family and the imperfect nature of life, so I hope that the audience can leave questioning how they themselves deal with the uncomfortable surprises life has in store, and whether or not they have a strong support network, there to lift them up when they need it. So if I had to squish it down into one question I would ask…

“How do you handle the difficulties of life and the people around you?”

Ok let me slide in another little one question to add onto the end…

“and are you ever as alone as you feel?”

Would you like to add anything else?

We really hope that people enjoy this film and have a bit of a giggle. If you do enjoy it please let us know! In fact even if you don’t like it we’d love to know!

What are the key creatives developing or working on now?

I am currently in the postproduction stage of a 4-part web-series called The F*ck It List. This web-series follows similar themes to Foetal Position, such as women, identity and relationships. The F*ck It List follows the story of a mother and daughter completing an insane bucket list together after the mother finds out her husband has been cheating on her. It’s Funny, sad and a little crazy. We are aiming to have the web-series live early of next year. The Producer of Foetal Position, Gabrielle McLeod, is finishing up her Masters in Producing at VCA and is currently working on several short films and a web-series all at different stages of production. Her most recent works will be screened at ACMI this month as part of the VCA Graduate screenings- Check them out!

Interview: December 2016

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

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Foetal Position

Womb for one more?

Length:
7.58 mins

Director:

Claudia Fitzgerald

Producer:
Gabrielle McLeod

Writer:
Claudia Fitzgerald

About the writer, director and producer:

Claudia Fitzgerald- Writer/Director of Foetal Position

Claudia is an award-winning VCA graduate who now works for Channel Ten. Claudia is currently editing her 4-part web-series, “The F*ck It List”.

Gabrielle McLeod- Producer of Foetal Position

Gabrielle is a VCA Masters of Producing Student who has produced various award-winning short films. Two of her films are currently screening at ACMI.

Key cast:

Carolyn Bock

Andrew Blackman

Izaak Marrinan

Hannah Thiesz

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):
film festival directors, journalists

Funders:
Self-funded/Pozible.

Made in association with:
University of Melbourne- The Victorian College of the Arts

Release date:

December 2016

Where will it screen in the next month?

Closing Night Shorts

8:30pm, Sunday December 11th

The Backlot Studios

65 Haig St, South Melbourne