Joe Swanberg’s first feature, Kissing on the Mouth, cost a mere $1,200 and his expectations for it were realistic. He thought a few people might kind of like his little movie. Joe didn’t expect his heart-wrenchingly realistic autopsy of male/female relationships to spawn a style that quickly evolved into a movement known as “Mumblecore.”
Mumblecore is indie films’ tastiest flavor and it’s about to emerge onto the shores of the mainstream. Swanberg’s latest, Alexander the Last, premieres at SXSW and, in a bold move by distributor IFC, will bypass theatrical distribution and debut as VOD (video-on-demand) for anyone with internet access to see.
Joe reminisces fondly about film, fun and South by…
What made you so passionate about film?
The first thing I can remember from my life is seeing Revenge of the Nerds when I was just shy of three years-old. My dad would reach around me and cover my eyes and ears anytime there was something inappropriate on the screen and it made movies seem exciting and dangerous. I have been in love with them ever since. I worked in a video store for my last two years of high school and fell asleep in class every day because I was up late watching movies. After film school I got a seasonal job working for the Chicago International Film Festival and I started to think about making a feature.
What led to your inspired approach for your first indie feature?
I was frustrated with a lot of films I was seeing about young people at the time. I didn’t feel that our lives were being accurately represented or that filmmakers were taking enough risks in the way they depicted adults. A lot of things seemed taboo, especially sex and nudity, and that seemed silly to me. I wanted to make a film that was natural and funny and truthful and didn’t shy away from anything that my friends and I talked about or did in our lives.
How did Kissing on the Mouth come about?
I made the film with my own money, for about $1,200. I never considered outside financing. It wasn’t necessary, but I also wanted total control over the project and I knew that meant using my own money. I was very realistic about the slim chances of the film finding distribution, and I knew the sexual aspect of the project would keep us out of mainstream theaters, so it didn’t make sense to me to try and approach anyone. We shot on DVCAM, with the Sony PD-150, which I already owned, and I edited on Final Cut Pro. The money went mostly to food, gas and tape stock. Because there were only four of us, we could move quickly and get a lot done. We probably shot for about 20 days, but it was spread out over several months. I didn’t make a budget ahead of time. I just spent money whenever it was necessary. I only had a few thousand dollars anyway, so it wasn’t like I had much of a choice.
Did you initially consider premiering the movie at a film festival?
Believe it or not, I never actually submitted the film to the festival where it premiered. Through an extremely lucky chain of events, it ended up in the hands of Matt Dentler at the SXSW Film Festival. While I was working on the film I was spending a lot of time on Roger Avary’s website, where there was a very active message board. At one point I posted a 10-minute clip from the film for people on the board to check out. I was at my parent’s house for Thanksgiving and I had forgotten about the whole thing. I was on the computer and I got an email from someone named Matt Dentler. The name sounded familiar, but it wasn’t until I opened it that I remembered who Matt was. My heart started beating really fast and I was afraid to read it. The email, dated 11/24/04 said:
Joe-
Hey. This is Matt Dentler with Austin’s SXSW Film Festival. Dan Brown passed along your DVD.
What are your plans for KISSING ON THE MOUTH? Festivals? Would you be interested in playing it at SXSW in March? Would it be a premiere?
Thanks for your time. I look forward to hearing from you.
all my best
Matt
I told him that we wanted to play festivals, and that the film hadn’t premiered. And then I didn’t hear back from him for five excruciating days. When his name showed up in my inbox again, my heart started beating really fast and I was afraid to read it. It was only a few sentences, but he invited the film.
What was your SXSW premiere like?
I was very nervous. I was pretty realistic about the fact that we weren’t going to have a bidding war or sell the film at the festival. It was fun for us to watch the film with an audience for the first time. To this day I have not had a better learning experience as a filmmaker than that first screening. I watched the film in a much more detached, critical way, and it was an important experience. It made me a better filmmaker and I have been able to see my own work more clearly since then. Making a film for no money with your friends is the perfect no-stress way to work and it allows you to enjoy the experience of festivals. There is plenty of time to be stressed out when you’ve made a film with someone else’s money and people are counting on a distribution deal.
How did the term “Mumblecore” come about?
This all started at SXSW in 2005. The term “mumblecore” was a joke that the sound mixer of “Mutual Appreciation” came up with to categorize that film, Kissing on the Mouth, The Puffy Chair and Four Eyed Monsters. People around the sestival were talking about the similarities between those four films and Andrew Bujalski made the mistake of using the word “Mumblecore” in an interview. For some reason that name stuck and none of us has been able to shake it since then. It has been really positive insofar as the films have all received more attention as a group than they would have individually, but it has also resulted in a backlash and a dismissive tone from a lot of critics.
The idea of a “movement” started to come into the picture a year or so later when we started to work on each other’s films, but I think it’s natural that because we like to work with friends, and because all of us had become friends through the festival circuit, that we would work with each other.
What was your best festival experience?
SXSW 2005 was my best festival experience. Everything seemed magical. We had nothing to lose and everything to gain. To this day I am still working with people who I met at that Festival. There was such a strong sense of community that year. We often joke about how it was all downhill from there.
Alexander the Last is your latest feature and it’s about to debut here at SXSW and online to a huge audience at the same time. So as you make more films and you see yourself grow as a filmmaker, what have you learned?
I’m only really happy when I’m making small projects with my friends that I have total control over. I was surprised to discover how easy it is for me to turn down money and larger projects, even when I’m struggling to pay rent. My wife teaches high school and makes ice cream and I make enough money from my films and web shows that we’re able to eek out a living. As long as that continues, I’m really uninterested in making films for a paycheck.
Without the SXSW premiere for Kissing on the Mouth, I think I would still be making websites for a living and doing film stuff on the side.
Get more at Alexander the Last’s official site. (http://www.alexanderthelast.com/)
by Chris Gore
