"Aftersun" Director Charlotte Wells Every work is personal to the person who directs it [Director's Interview Vol.315]

In recent years, there has been a remarkable rise in new female directors, and now another new talent has emerged. Aftersun, received high praise around the world and won the British Newcomer Award at the 2023 BAFTA. It was also nominated for Best British Film, Best Actor (Paul Mescal), and Best Casting at the same awards. Lead actor Mescal was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. The serious British film magazine Sight and Sound selected this film as the best film of 2022.

The film is set in a sunny resort in Turkey. 11-year-old Sophie (Frankie Corio) goes on a trip with her young father Callum (Paul Mescal). They usually live separately, and when she meets him for the first time in a long time, her father shows deep affection for his daughter. The two capture their trip on video camera and spend irreplaceable summer days together. Sophie, now an adult, looks back on the trip while watching the old video footage, and thinks about the pain her father felt that she had not noticed before...

At first, it seems like a straightforward movie about the bond between parent and child, but on closer inspection, it turns out to have a complex plot, and the bittersweet aftertaste never fades even after the movie is over. The use of existing songs by Queen & David Bowie, REM, and others is also vivid, and makes you want to think about the deeper meanings in the lyrics.

Welles, a promising newcomer who has directed and written a dense film, visited Japan for the first time in April. Born in 1987, she studied at Oxford University and New York University, and after receiving acclaim for her three short films, "Tuesday" (16), "Laps" (17), and "Blue Christmas" (17), she produced this feature film. She is currently based in New York, and Barry Jenkins, the director of " Moonlight " (16), is also listed as one of the producers of this film. She spoke about the film in a cheerful and calm manner, carefully choosing her words.

Index

• The inspiration for the film came from a trip to Türkiye with his father
• The power of Bowie and Queen's music
• The joy of collaborating with actors
• Creating a personal story

The inspiration for the film came from a trip to Türkiye with his father

Q: It was a very worthwhile film. I saw your three short films, and I can see some similarities between them and your new film. I was particularly impressed by "Blue Christmas," which depicts a debt collector's Christmas. Was it difficult to move on to a feature film after shooting a short film?

Wells: It certainly has something in common with "Blue Christmas." I shot this new film hoping to delve deeper into what was depicted in that film. I realized that short films and feature films are made in completely different ways. I wanted to first understand the difference in structure. Unlike short films, which can be shot in a few months, feature films take years and require stamina and concentration. The editing process was particularly difficult, as it required the energy to put the whole thing together. There were many corrections to be made, and they affected the entire film, so I had to think about how to connect them.

Q: I heard that the film is based on a trip you took to Turkey with your father as a child. How is that reflected in your life?

Wells: I didn't think of setting the story in Turkey at first, but I was wrong. Turkey has mud baths, diving and a very unique landscape. I had traveled there before, so these things kept coming back to me. Also, Turkey is in the middle between the East and the West, which is why it's so popular with British tourists. So that's where I ended up setting the story.

“Aftersun” © Turkish Riviera Run Club Limited, British Broadcasting Corporation, The British Film Institute & Tango 2022

Q: The structure of this film is quite complex, and I felt I was able to understand it more deeply when I watched it a second time.

Wells: I didn't make it with the intention that the audience would watch it again, so that kind of structure is a bit of a gamble. However, I like the type of work that you can understand more deeply when you watch it for the second time. I would be very happy if that were the case with this movie. I hope that when you watch it again, you can see it in a different way than the first time.

Q: It must have been quite difficult to look back on Sophie's childhood journey from her adult perspective and delve deeply into the character's consciousness...

Wells: I didn't intend to make such a complicated film at first. When I wrote the script, I had a more linear structure in mind. It's a story about a normal journey between father and daughter. However, as I was writing it, I realized that it would be boring. So I looked back on my own memories and restructured the whole thing. As a result, it became a film about memory. Sophie's perspective is at the center of the whole thing, and it somehow transcends time. I felt that the viewer could experience the work through that perspective.

The power of Bowie and Queen's music