Metaxu: In which artist field are you active?

T. S. M.: Well, you know, don’t you? [Laughter] In Cinema. I’m a filmmaker. I make films.

 

Metaxu: Could you tell us a bit more about your creative process?

T. S. M.: Wow, it could take me days. For me, the cinema is just another form of expression, another artistic form of expression. So, if I was not a filmmaker, I would have been a painter, or maybe a contemporary artist, or a writer, or maybe a circus performer. I guess we are all predisposed to certain fields. And me… I actually tried many different things. I started as an actress when I was little, I was a child actor. I did a lot of radio drama at that moment, a lot of television. This was in the time of ex-Yugoslavia. Then I started doing painting, I went to art school. Then I did photography, then commercial art, meaning advertising. I worked in this field a few years as an art director, and then I decided that, actually, cinema was the thing for me to do. My road is peculiar. Peculiar in a way that I probably wanted to do cinema right away. But being a woman and coming from the Balkans, I did not dare. So, it took me a long time to have the courage and to say to myself that “Well, I'm ready to throw myself what I believe I can excel most and to basically give myself the right to be a filmmaker. My first film was 17/18 years ago but when I decided this, I was 26 (so 20 years ago) to go to graduate school and to study cinema…So, yes, it took me, I would say, about 8 years to have the courage.

 

Metaxu: Why do you find it peculiar?

T. S. M.: When I say it's “peculiar” because…What I think is that I hope that girls today don't have the same troubles that my generation had, and I think this is important. You should never underestimate your value or what you're capable of, and, unfortunately, at one moment of my life, that was the case. Having in mind that I come from an artistic family, very encouraging, they are the most open people you can think of…But still, we are creatures of our society and of our surroundings, and growing up in a patriarchal structure that is still surrounding us, it was the case.

 

Metaxu: You come from Macedonia, but you studied in the United States, didn’t you?

T. S. M.: Yes, actually, I did all of my studies in the United States. I did the last year of high school, I did university in Philadelphia and graduate school in New York.

 

Metaxu: But then you started directing in Macedonia?

T. S. M.: Actually, I did not start it. When I was in my second year at NYU grad, where I studied cinema, I made a film called Veta, which went to Berlinale and won a prize. So, suddenly, I was the hot new talent on the New York independent scene. So, I was called by all these producers asking me, “Okay, what is your feature film? Do you have a script?” And I had a script. So, I had few producers read it and they said to me, “It's great but it's happening in Macedonia. Could we make it here?” And I had this same type of talk with a few of them, and at that moment, I realized that, actually, I had to return home and make my film. Because cinema is so specific. You can't shoot a Macedonian story in English. And, of course, our attitudes, and the attitudes of the industry, have changed over the years. Today, nobody would dare to say that. 18 years ago, that was sort of the issue. So, yes, this is when I went back to Macedonia and made my first feature film.

 

Metaxu: Could you tell us more about your academic path?

T. S. M.: I went to NYU Grad to School of Art - it's graduate school for cinema. It's a 3-year program and they only accept people who have all already finished university in something and also have some career experience. So, basically, they are looking for maturity. When I went there, I knew what I wanted to do and what I wanted to be. There was no question in my mind. When I came out of there, I was 28, so 29, so there was no doubt in my mind in which direction I wanted to go. So, yeah, that is a question of maturity, and as I said, I tried so many different aspects of art, different art forms, different forms of expression, and I came upon cinema as something that I found can complete me almost entirely. And why? Because, actually, cinema involves everything. Cinema is painting, painting with light. Cinema is music, sound: how you do the sound design, how you do a mise en scène, cinema is dance, cinema is acting. So many aspects… I find this combination of all these elements so challenging!

 

Metaxu: Do you think being a woman or talking about “feminine topics” had some sort of impact on your path?

T. S. M.: Of course, now we live in a very exciting time. Now, doors are being more and more opened for females in the field. More and more glass ceilings are being broken - although we are not there yet. When I started it was a disaster, disaster, disaster,… I had to…I mean, I had to be a truck driver on the set, I had to yell, I had to be masculine. When I reflect on that time, I would spend much more time to show off - to show that I'm capable - than on directing my actors and doing the mise en scène. It took me a lot of energy and at one moment after the second film, I said, “Why am I spending all this energy on showing to these - I’m sorry - stupid macho men that I'm just as good as them?” But the thing is that everything was set up like that. Me and my sister, two young women of 30 against a group of men of 50, we were just not taken seriously. And, for example, the main reason why we created our production company Sisters and Brother Mitevsky was exactly for this reason. When I made Veta, my first short film, first, producers said, “Macedonia”? They didn't want to make the film. I said, “Listen, I'm going to one of the best film schools in the world you know! It's not easy to get in! I must possess something!” They were totally not interested. For them, women on a set, it's hysterical. Hysterical? “Excuse me bitch!” And women on the set can do makeup and costume. They were all these people with old notions. That's how the industry, the machinery was set up. So, of course, we had to fight through that; you have to deal with this sort of… climbing mountains daily. And then we created our production company, exactly for this: to have control over what we do and, maybe, to be taken more seriously. Because the moment you have the production company, my sister came as a producer. Well, you're the one distributing the money, and the money talks. So, all these things, all these games we had to play in order to exist and in order not to be taken as imposters. It was what it was. And it was very unfair. I have had a lot of discussions about 50-50 and about this affirmative action. And people are saying “Yes, but many, many bad films of women are getting out, maybe we are not doing them a disservice.” And, actually, you know what? So what?! How many men have done bad films? And after that, they have done many more bad films. You can't reach equality until you give an equal chance to each and every one. It is as simple as that. So, I don't want to hear about this kind of interpretation of what is happening at this moment because what is happening at this moment is extremely important and extremely positive. Because, also, you learn making films by practice, by being given a chance, a possibility, a space where you can express yourself. So, girls, go for it. And I always say, I fought very hard. My road has been very bumpy. I have fought very hard to be where I am and to create the creative freedom and the space that I have created for myself. And I think it is very important once you reach that, once you have created this creative space for yourself to open doors to others, to help, other women in this case, or minorities – do not to forget - to help them create space for themselves. It is about solidarity, and this must not cease. And it is the only way forward, I think. It is even more important to share and create space for others. It is the minimum each of us can do. I think that's the point. Because why do we make art? Cinema? To create a more just world for all. So, creating space and helping others and other women express themselves is also part of this whole notion.

 

Metaxu: The distribution of God exists, her name is Petrunya has a beautiful beginning story, could you tell us a bit more about it?

T. S. M.: I think what you are referring to is the way we distributed the film in Macedonia. Because we don't have a really a great network, we don't have so many cinemas. But what has been left from the time of socialism/communism are these cultural centres that are all over the country. So, basically, we’ve opened up the film in Skopje, in the capital, and then the “bad cop” actor, the vet cap or in the film Brad Pitt, he came to me and he said to me, “You know, Teona, this film must be seen! Must be seen by people around the country!” He has an event company, he organizes events. He said, “Give me the film and I will go to each and every town and make a projection.” So, basically, what he did every weekend, he would set up a cinema in the cultural centre of a small village or a town and have 3/4 projections per day at a very low price because really the standard of living is very low. And he defended and fought for the film like crazy, with such passion and zest! He was so, so beautiful. I don't know… When things are right, forces get together. And in a way… What he did, by creating this sort of, like, alternative kind of distribution, he started a trend in the country that was followed by other filmmakers to distribute the film differently. If you don't have a cinema, you create the cinema. And, yes, maybe the sound will not be perfect, but, you know, you will deliver a certain type of experience and a certain type of story that is important to be seen by the rest of the population for a normal very low price because usually in the capital the prices of the tickets are so high that not many people can afford to go and see your film. So, yes, that was that was quite an experience!

 

Metaxu: Did you encounter people that helped you, “supporters” along your path?

T. S. M.: I have had many, of course! You come and you cross the paths of wonderful women and men. But from the beginning, I developed a very deep relationship with Berlinale, with the Berlin Film Festival, Wieland Speck who was the director of Panorama for many years. I think in a way, Panorama was my biggest supporter. They saved my skin many times because it was not always easy to make a film. I always had to fight with our Minister of Culture, with our film fund for my project to be passed. So, every time I put a reference of co-production…Actually, the festivals but also my co-producers. I have developed sort of a team through the years that is actually quite a European team of professionals, called “field technicians”, which are creatives. D.O.P.’s, sound, makeup, etc. ….And producers who have really supported me along the way. When I needed a push in order to get money in Macedonia, my Slovenian producer, Daniel, would talk to the film funders in Slovenia, and they would approve my project before our Macedonian film fund. So, then the Macedonian film fund sort of has to. So, I have been lucky to have been able to create a sort of family of film professionals that really are a complete product of Europe. That means Belgium, France, Croatia, Slovenia… It has been quite a journey. So yes many, many, many people. For example, we made our first film How I killed a Saint, for 200,000 euro and we didn't have money to finish it. My sister who is an actress, a few years before, she made a film with Michael Winterbottom called I want you. So, when we finished the film, we called Andrew, the producer of Michael Winterbottom, and said can you help us find money to finish a film? Which is the worst thing to do! You don't make a film and then dismiss post-production, because it's the most difficult to find money to finish a film. Andrew called the producer in France and this producer became our producer and helped us finish our film. So, we have had along the way many people that have come to the rescue.

 

Metaxu: If you had 3 pieces of advice to give to young cinema or art students, what would they be?

T. S. M.: Never accept the status quo. Always, always, always question everything, even when you're sure or somebody is sure, question. Be brave. I think it's very important to be brave, and I think it is essential as an artist to go before time. It means ask the difficult questions, ask the uncomfortable questions, and attack taboos. And I guess to the girls I would say don't ever think you are less than any boy out there.

 

Metaxu: You co-wrote the script of Petrunya with Elma Tataragic and then directed it. How did this continuing workflow take place?

So basically, I'm not a writer. I have good ideas, but I have not a great understanding of dramaturgical structure. It's not something I studied. I studied directing. So, for a long time, I was looking for a collaborator, a co-writer, and it's very, very difficult. Creative collaborators, it is something that happens, or it doesn't happen. It is like a relationship, you fall in love with somebody or you don't. And sometimes you can't, you can't help it. This higher-ground understanding of the soul of your partner or collaborator is something that really you cannot control. So, after many years of looking for a collaborator, by my producer, my sister suggested that I try to work with Elma. She's Bosnian and we were friends before, we knew each other, not very big friends, but we know knew of each other. And then, we started working together and right away it was a great marriage. So, this process of collaborating together has made my films better because…What is essential to a good film at the end? It is the story. The story you are trying to tell, the point you're trying to make and how you deliver it. So, really the base of every good film is a good story. So, with her, suddenly, we went into better structuring, etc, etc. What is good about our collaborative experience is that - I have no idea why or how - right away, we took our egos aside. And I think that's the only way. Basically, when you are collaborating, it's not about ego. Actually, it never should be about ego, but it is about what is best for the project. So then, selflessly, by selflessly collaborating to create the best possible piece out of the elements, we have managed to make the films we have made so far. It is a very enriching process because once you trust one another, you actually dare to take higher risks in terms of how you deliver a structural film, etc. I've been lucky to found Elma to be my partner in crime. Petrunya is our second feature film that we co-wrote together. When the Day Had No Name, we wrote before together, and now our new film, The Happiest Man in the World is also a collaboration.

 

Metaxu: Which freedoms allow you to pass from screenplay to shooting?

T. S. M.: Author cinema is always written by the director or in collaboration. Of course, there is this cinema that is called command cinema, somebody gives you a script and you do it and yes, wonderful, why not? Nobody has given me a script that is produced yet, so I don't know what the experience is. But when you are an author filmmaker, then you have to have a deeper connection to the story. You must be there during the process of creation of the story, even if you don't write it. I think it is very important to be involved on a deeper level, as early as possible. Because during the screenwriting, you are basically shaping the characters and that is a very delicate job. It is like, sort of, molding something made of silk. So, very easily, you can destroy something, but very easily, you can make something more beautiful with very fine touches. Creating a good piece of art is not made overnight. To create a meaningful piece of art, to have a meaningful thought, I think a lot of reflection is needed. And by reflection, I also mean going really deep into the meta, into the character, into the act. Cinema, it is like…I don't know…Like building a pyramid or a cathedral. It is such a complex process. So, if you don't have the base, which is the script, and you don't understand all the tiny little bit of intricacies of the story you're about to tell I think you might miss things and you might make something that is shallow and this is how bad cinema gets made.