The film was accepted to Cannes at the time. Were you aware of how such a big deal it was?
Yeah, because I grew up going to Cannes so it was a big deal for me. I mean, it was not in competition, just the Director’s Fortnight, but still my first film in Cannes was really scary and nerve-wracking. Thankfully the French embraced it and I feel like I owe my career to them. The first time I ever showed it to an audience was in Cannes and I remember what a relief it was that people responded to it positively.
You’re only the third female director to be nominated for an Academy Award, the second to ever win the Best Director prize. Things are starting to change a little now, but I imagine you felt like the sole woman out there.
Yeah, it really felt like a boys’ club, but my dad always really encouraged me so I had his support and I just felt I went out and made my thing doing the best I could. I was with Spike Jonze at the time and hanging out with a lot of guy directors and it was all guys around. I remember I met, “Boys Don’t Cry” director Kimberly Pierce at that time on the festival circuit. We both made our first movies and I remember talking to her, but for the most part it was just men. At the same time I grew up in a world of male directors, so I didn’t really think twice about it. But it was really because my dad talked to me and taught me as much as my brothers and considered me the same, so I felt like I could put my work out there.
Do you feel like things have changed at all?
There’s still such a small percentage of female directors and people are just now talking about it, but a lot of fields are like that. I felt like I wanted to get my point of view across and sometimes it was hard when guys had a certain attitude about it. But I didn’t let anyone bother me. I just thought I’m going to make my thing too.
It was kind of a family affair this film. Your brother Roman worked on it, your mom was there, your dad was there for a bit. Did he offer much advice?
My dad wasn’t there for long. He came for two days and then, I shooed him away [laughs]. Because he commands so much attention and it was my first movie. I just felt like it was too distracting for the crew. So he came and tried to stay on the sidelines. But he was very proud and he was really behind it and I talked to him a lot about it before I made it and he was very supportive and encouraging. It was funny, I remember, I think it’s in the behind-the-scenes footage, where he told me I need to say “action!” louder because the crew has to respect me. And I was not my style to yell, so I just had to do it my way. It was great, but he was anxious for me that it would go well.
I wanted to talk “Lost In Translation” for a second. A couple years back there were Internet stories that said some Redditors or someone had figured out what Bill Murray has said to Scarlett Johansson at the time and I just had to steer clear of all of it. Did they actually figure out what was said?
Yeah, they “finally revealed what it was!” and no, they didn’t get it. What he said to Scarlett was different on different takes, but what’s actually said is not the point, so. Yeah, I don’t know what to say about that, but it wasn’t like oh, “there was some big reveal” of what was actually said.
I’m just curious. I remember thinking “okay, I am not clicking on that because I don’t want to know.”
I can’t even remember what the lines were. It was something very uneventful. Stuff like that can be intrusive though, that they turned up the audio trying to figure it out. There were different takes, so I don’t even know. You can just forget that, you didn’t miss anything [laughs].
Do you know what you’re doing next?
I don’t. I’m writing right now, but it’s too early to tell. I just came from, I was at Harvard last night showing “Beguiled” there and talking to some students, but I’m still in the writing stages, so we’ll see.
Speaking of the “Beguiled.” I’m curious what your perspective is on the controversy around it given that you have some distance from it now.
You know, that is a whole other conversation. I felt like that journalist that was promoting her book who started that, I felt like it was inaccurate. I wrote a whole statement about it. I based my movie on research. The original book had some artistic license, which I didn’t use, and I felt like I did an authentic, respectful version.
It’s a tricky climate now.
It’s our climate now and with the internet that someone can label you and then without real facts can really be damaging to someone’s career. It was terrible being called that.
I’m curious what you think about being called a feminist filmmaker.
That label’s not offensive to me. I remember some journalist asking me are you a feminist? What does that mean? That I believe in equal rights between people? I don’t call myself a feminist filmmaker. I don’t want to label myself that, but if somebody wants to they can. I never want to be political, I just wanted to make my work and I feel like action speaks louder than words, personally for me. I’d rather make something and put my point of view in that than sit around and talk about it. I’ll leave that for other people because I don’t want to analyze my work, but, yes.
Are we going to see more Criterion editions of your work?
We don’t have any plans for anything else right now. but I’m so happy to have a Criterion DVD. I love working with them, so we’ll see.
“The Virgin Suicides” is available now on the Criterion Collection. All photos courtesy of Sofia Coppola.
