Cannes Short Film Corner 2018 - Giltrude’s Dwelling
Giltrude, an interdimensional shut-in, has waited fifteen years for her parents to come home. When a life-or-death dilemma comes knocking, Giltrude must learn to look beyond her front door.
Interview with Writer/Producer Marcy Waughtal
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I wanted to challenge some perceptions about science fiction and fantasy films in Canada. The Canadian film world tends to discourage genre stories and write them off as low-brow. While I pursued art and writing in any way I could, I grew up in Northern British Columbia and don't come from a background where fine art is all that accessible. Popular genres like science fiction and fantasy were, however, always accessible, and there are some creators out there who are doing powerful, moving work in that arena (works like Arrival, The Shape of Water, Handmaid's Tale). I believe the more accessible a work of art is, the higher potential it has to connect people and foster humanity in the world, if you can hit on universal themes and hit them well.
When I met the director of Giltrude's Dwelling, Jeremy Lutter, we instantly clicked over our love for genre films. Jeremy's international success with his films (Joanna Makes a Friend, Reset, The Hollow Child) were inspiring and I realized "ok, this can be done and it can be done well - and here is someone who has accomplished that right in front of me". What felt like a roadblock became a challenge to make a script that was the best genre story I could possibly tell, and that's where Giltrude's Dwelling came from. Together, Jeremy and I pitched Bell Media's Bravo Foundation To Assist Canadian Talent (BravoFACT) with my script and myself attached as producer, and we actually won! (Reality hit soon after that we were now making this movie - something I had never done before.)
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
To travel with Giltrude in her magic house is one good reason! Our creative and post-production teams were fully on board and excited by the idea of creating a never-before-seen fantasy world. Their hard work and enthusiasm really comes through. We ended up with a beautiful and unique look for the short.
The performances bring you fully into Giltrude's journey. Kacey Rohl, who plays Giltrude, has had recurring roles in NBC's Hannibal and SyFy's The Magicians. We were so excited to have her on board. Liam Hughes, the young actor who plays Oscard, has had recurring roles on CW's The Flash and Hallmark's When Calls the Heart. He was a force on set and they each brought that same thoughtfulness and professionalism to set as our creative keys. If Liam and Kacey aren't on your Canadian Talent Radar yet, then, trust me - they really should be.
How do personal and universal themes work in this project?
I wrote this film at a time when things were up in the air in my life. In 2015, I was laid off from my office job and ended an engagement within months of each other. I wasn't sure whether I would even stay in Vancouver. Like Giltrude, I had to re-learn my concept of home. I did some travelling from Haida Gwaii to Prince George, British Columbia, where I grew up, and all the way to Europe. It felt like I was my own travelling house, but eventually it was time to let go of the past and follow a new calling. Screenwriting was that calling for me. I hope others can relate to Giltrude and her struggle with loss in their own personal way.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The biggest challenge with the script was taking a robust fantasy world and condensing it to 10-15 pages. It was a fine line to make sure the film was both immersive and interesting and required many revisions before we felt it was good enough to pitch for funding. I once read a script for Travis Beacham's A Killing on Carnival Row. He's an exposition genius who made a 90-page fantasy noir script feel as immersive as an epic fantasy series. I tried to emulate that with Giltrude's Dwelling.
When we won the award, it was an extremely busy time for the industry in Vancouver. It took some time to crew up and to schedule with the cast. We also needed the perfect house for Giltrude and that took several weekends of location scouting to find. In the mean time we were able to make some small changes to help improve the story. Miraculously, we never had to sacrifice on any of our ambitious VFX shots from the original script.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
A lot of people have said they become invested in the fantasy world of Giltrude very fast and we've received positive feedback. The most common thing we hear is “will there be a series?” And "what comes next?"
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
We hadn't set out to make a proof of concept pilot. Part of me wonders if I really should be pursuing a career in episodic writing, and the more insecure part wonders what I can do better to wrap things up neatly for the audience next time.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We hope this platform helps to generate interest in the film. This is also my debut short and I am thankful for the opportunity to introduce myself, the film, and what we're trying to accomplish with Giltrude's Dwelling.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Telefilm Canada is showcasing Giltrude's Dwelling as part of Not Short on Talent, a catalogue of 22 Canadian short films presented at the Cannes Marche Du Film. We are currently looking for our film festival premiere. Jeremy and I are travelling to Cannes to meet film festival programmers who may be interested in presenting our short in 2018/2019.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
We hope to prove to more people that fantasy films with universal themes can be made in Canada, and that the talent to do so is already here in our own beautiful back yard. The process was still tough, but because everyone brought so many thoughtful and creative ideas to the table, it wasn't an impossible project to execute. We hope the film is able to resonate with a diverse and wide range of people, to reinforce that there is an appetite for Canadian-made genre films.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
How long would you wait for your family to come home? How do you let go of the past?
Would you like to add anything else?
I don't mean to sound like a broken record - but really, everyone who worked on this film is amazing! Witnessing the excitement around Giltrude's Dwelling has cured me of any discouragement I felt about writing genre movies and producing them in Canada.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Jeremy is promoting his horror feature film, The Hollow Child, while also developing a new thriller feature called We Came From The Sea with writer Ryan Bright.
In 2017, I was selected to participate in the inaugural Tricksters and Writers, a Feature Film Writing Program for Indigenous Women that's presented by Women in Film and TV Vancouver. I'm developing a horror script for that program called Burden and Blood. It's meant to be an empowering subversion of a well-known fairy tale - but that's all I can say for now.
Interview: May 2018
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, 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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Giltrude’s Dwelling
Giltrude, an interdimensional shut-in, has waited fifteen years for her parents to come home. When a life-or-death dilemma comes knocking, Giltrude must learn to look beyond her front door.
Length: 14 minutes
Director: Jeremy Lutter
Producer: Marcy Waughtal and Manpreet Babra
Writer: Marcy Waughtal
Key cast: Kacey Rohl, Liam Hughes, Priscilla Faia, Jesse Hutch, Kennedi Clements
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): Festival directors, journalists, buyers
Social media handles:
Facebook: GiltrudesMovie
Twitter: @GiltrudesMovie
Funders: Bell Media BravoFACT Award, CreativeBC
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? We're currently working on a festival run. In the mean time, festival programmers can contact us for a private screener.