Sundae
A mother and her young son drive around an unfamiliar neighborhood, until she bribes him with ice cream in exchange for crucial information.
Interview with Writer/Director Sonya Goddy
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
A friend of mine told me an anecdote about his childhood and it made me think about the theme of trust, specifically trust between family members. I wanted to explore alliances between parents, and also between parents and children. How do parents negotiate the gap between adult responsibility and being a flawed/emotional human? And in terms of children -- they seem powerless, yet they are thrust into an evolving relationship with a caregiver and they adapt accordingly. They want and need to be taken care of, but they also seek agency wherever they can find it.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
It will make you laugh, or at least chuckle. And you'll go on a weird journey.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The way trust is predicated upon the handling of information-- and the way we violate each others' trust at times, through conscious behaviors like lying or unconscious ones like emotional manipulation -- that's something that fascinates me personally. I also think it's universally important to all human interactions.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?
Again, the script was inspired by a real story, but I had to transform it and change it, and then decide to give it a kind of conventionally satisfying ending. I wrote the script quickly, though, because I work very fast in general. I find that as long as I keep moving along quickly, it keeps the material fresh. I pretty much shot what I had planned. I worked with a talented DP who came up with a few really fun compositions and color ideas. Otherwise we sort of followed my plan, and then I assembled it with my editor in much the same way. I knew clearly what the film was asking to be.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The critical response has been positive. One critic at the NYFF even singled it out as a festival highlight, which was huge. Of course, the film is not to everyone's tastes. In fact, it's not necessarily the most indicative of my taste in narrative; it has kind of a classic ending, an homage to an age-old joke, which some people find slightly predictable. I don't mind that. I am still at the very beginning of learning how to craft narrative and I try to approach filmmaking with a lot of humility, because it's a sort of complex, high wire act to make stories work the way we want.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Nothing has greatly surprised me because I kind of knew what kind of film I had made, but at one festival, which was a very cool but small festival nobody has heard of, a well-regarded director attacked me directly in a Q&A to demand why I made the choices I did. She implied that I had taken interesting potential and squandered it by creating a narrative that was conventional. That surprised me a little bit, just because of her aggression, but I also understood where she was coming from. One thing I have learned -- reactions to films are visceral and wildly subjective, because of the accessibility of the medium. I can't even agree on films with my best friends, so I can't expect any two people to react to my films the same way.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I'm happy to have the opportunity to talk about my work on this platform and contribute to the other voices on here. I also just finished my first feature film and I'm looking to continue to connect with other filmmakers and content-makers as I move forward in my career.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I would say that this applies a bit more to my feature, HOLY NEW YORK, than to my short that I've been referring to, SUNDAE. We are applying to festivals and will be seeking distribution in the coming year.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I hope that this film brings up questions about classical storytelling devices and also sparks questions about family, parental love, and trust.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Again, the mother-son relationship is something to explore.
Would you like to add anything else?
Of course I'm very aware of the obstacles that we know face female directors -- just from looking at the dismal numbers. Lots of women directors make smaller films, like my first feature, but then there's a drop-off even at the $1-$5million mark. And the numbers are even worse for non-white female directors. Although drastic change is difficult and tends to ruffle feathers in an industry that's already soaked in anxiety and madness, change has to happen there. It's ridiculous. So that's on my mind a lot but at the same time I try not to dwell on it. We are out here doing our thing. There are a lot of films I want to make.
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
My producer and I just finished my first feature, HOLY NEW YORK and I am working on my second feature, a psychological thriller called STRANGERS. We are at the very beginning of development with STRANGERS, I'm still re-writing the script and we are just starting to look at funding options.
Interview: September 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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SUNDAE
A mother and her young son drive around an unfamiliar neighborhood, until she bribes him with ice cream in exchange for crucial information.
Length:
6 minutes
Director:
Sonya Goddy
Producer:
Kristin Frost
Co Producer:
Birgit Gernbock
Writer:
Sonya Goddy
About the writer, director:
I was born in 1984 in Manhattan, was raised in Flatbush, Brooklyn and graduated a year ago from Columbia’s MFA Film Program. I'm interested in making both small and large films, and no matter the genre, I find that I'm fascinated by the same themes and topics: broken intimacy, the interaction of emotions and sex, comedy that comes from expectations vs. reality. I am currently in post-production on my first feature film, HOLY NEW YORK, starring Victor Rasuk, Gillian Zinser, Io Tillett Wright and Ione Skye.
Key cast:
Finnerty Steeves, Julian de Leon
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):
All of the above -- holler at me.
Where can I watch it in the next month?
It's still touring festivals but eventually it'll go online!