SXSW - Tangles and Knots
A unique, intimate bond between mother and daughter becomes threatened when the mother helps her teenage daughter throw a party to impress new, more popular friends.
Interview with Writer/Director Renée Marie Petropoulos
Watch Tangles and Knots here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
From the very beginning, I wanted to make a personal film. The film’s core relationship was based on the unique bond I have with my own mother during my teenage years. Our relationship is intimate, very open, flawed and of course, very complex. Sometimes we were more like girlfriends than mother and child. She supported me in her own unique, loving way and honestly, I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without her.
With this complex relationship at the core of the film, I wanted to explore important themes of female sexuality, toxic masculinity and sexual assault. In Australia, these kind of topics are not often addressed, I wanted to write something true to my own memories of growing up as a teenager where horrifying stories like this happened and are often swept under the rug for various reasons.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
For many reasons I hope! The film is a roller coaster of little personal moments that ends with a gut-wrenching climax. All we can ask for is our audience to come in with an open mind!
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The themes of female sexuality, sexual violence and toxic masculinity are universal in every culture in different forms. The film explores the idea of the threat of sexual violence being felt at any age. The whole #metoo movement has helped illustrate this. I can’t think of any woman who hasn’t felt threatened, harassed or who has experienced assault in some form.
Beyond these key themes, everyone has their own unique relationship with their parents or parental figures. For women especially, the relationship between a mother and daughter is so specific and complicated. It is a kaleidoscope of emotions that is constantly in flux: from deep love one moment to seething hatred the next, from pride to jealousy, from adoration to shame.
Even though the film is set in a very specific part of Australian society, the themes are universal. I hope that everyone who watches can find something that they can connect to.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
It has truly been a tremendous journey with this project! I began writing the film in July 2015 while I was at Columbia University. The writing process was hard as I was drawing from a lot of personal memories but thankfully I had the support of many peers and professors in the Film Program. We shot in January 2016 in Sydney. it was a hectic 4-day shoot which involved a lot of rescheduling scenes due to unpredictable weather, a boisterous group of teenage extras and a supremely talented (and mostly female) crew!
The film changed the most during post-production, which took a year to complete due to a lack of funding. Here I was editing the film between jobs, classes and film shoots when I could. Here I collaborated with another editor, Chelsea Taylor and a few other Columbia peers to help get an objective view of the edit. When we locked the cut in early April 2017, a few scenes had been cut from the film, along with a lot of dialogue as well. Here the unspoken moments between Michelle and Laura ultimately exposed much more about their relationship.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
We have been very excited by the positive feedback so far! Audience members have often come up to us and told us how the film touched them personally with their own relationships with their parents, how the film made them very uncomfortable and how the ending affected them long afterwards. We have had tremendous reactions to the powerful performances of our leads Leeanna Walsman and Odessa Young. There is an unnerving emotional truth and subtlety to their performances that has really connected to viewers. This is exactly the kind of reaction we are looking for and have been very pleased so far!
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
It has been a very moving experience to hear this feedback. A lot of the time when you make something as a filmmaker, it can be such an insular process for so long that you forget about the most important people, the audience. It has been such a phenomenal experience to screen the film in the Berlinale and now in SXSW and to get such a strong reaction to something that was so personal and heartbreaking to write.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We are looking to create more interest in the project and to continue the present, evolving conversation about sexual assault and toxic masculinity. We hope that the film prompts the audience to reconsider their views on these ideas and that the conversation continues long after our film credits roll. We cannot thank the team at wearemovingstories enough for this opportunity!
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 to find buyers, distributors, film festival directors and journalists who can help get our film and our message out into the world. We want to screen the film to as many audiences as possible.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
The reaction and impact we want with this film is exactly what we have been getting so far. Our viewers have been really confronted by the film and rightly so. We have had a lot of conversation about how horrifying and moving the end of the film is and how viewers have gone home to get into heated debates about what happened - which is great! We are so happy to provoke discussion about such an important subject.
We have also had really great responses about the filmmaking craft which has been also very validating. I was very fortunate as a Director to work with a ridiculously talented creative team, including cinematographer, Zoë White, Production Designer, Diva Abrahamian and Costume Designer, Lucia Arias-Martinez. Together, they really pushed my aesthetic above and beyond, creating something truly beautiful and haunting.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
The key question from this film is really that of consent. The ending is purposefully ambiguous and has sparked a lot of debate and questions from viewers at our screenings at both Berlinale and at SXSW. Mainly, what is considered an ‘invitation’ for sex? In this film where the boundaries are blurred, it can emerge from any unintended gesture: sharing a cigarette, touching another’s arm, a compliment, a glance. For me, none of these gestures should be an open invitation but are often taken as such. With the #metoo movement and Times Up becoming ubiquitous in Hollywood, this question has become even more important.
Would you like to add anything else?
Come see the film if you are at SXSW! We have our final screening this Thursday March 15th, 4:00PM at Stateside Theatre.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am currently writing a feature version of this short. Here I am expanding the relationship, the world Laura and Michelle live in and exploring the aftermath of the climax of the short film. In conjunction with this project, I am also writing another feature set in contemporary Greece, a potential VR project and two other short films to be put into production this year.
Interview: March 2018
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTIAQ+, scifi, horror, world cinema. 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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Tangles and Knots
A unique, intimate bond between mother and daughter becomes threatened when the mother helps her teenage daughter throw a party to impress new, more popular friends.
Length: 16.20 Min
Director: Renée Marie Petropoulos
Producer: Janet Brown, Yingna Lu
Writer: Renée Marie Petropoulos
About the writer, director and producer:
Renée Marie Petropoulos is an award winning Greek-Australian filmmaker and recent MFA Columbia University graduate. She is currently working towards making her first feature film.
Yingna Lu is a film, television, digital content and experiential producer. She was the 2016 Ones to Watch Australian Producer and is excited about creating.
Key cast: Leeanna Walsman, Odessa Young, Mitzi Ruhlmann, Toby Wallace, Govinda Röser-Finch, Bryn Chapman Parish
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): Buyers, Distributors, Film Festival Directors, Journalists
Social media handles:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tanglesandknotsfilm/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/renee_marie_petropoulos/
Other: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6855476/reference
Funders: Indiegogo Campaign, Friends & Family and partially Self-Funded
Made in association with: Jars Productions, Paper Moose