–Who is Alicia Fall?
A woman who built herself up. I began my career more than twenty years ago in journalism and French television. Today, I have chosen cinema as another way to express myself and tell the stories that are close to my heart.
–Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?
Yes, it was while watching Steven Spielberg’s E.T. That film is a masterpiece ! It was released in 1982, I was one year old, and its direction remains, even today, an incredible cinematic achievement. I admire its ability, at the time, to make us believe in the impossible while speaking about deeply human feelings. I actually watched it with my 10-year-old twins, who act in my short film, they loved it, laughed, and cried, just like the rest of us.
–Tell us about your project “Hopscotch”.
Hopscotch is an autobiographical short film that addresses the domestic violence experienced by children. I want to open a dialogue, encourage those who carry trauma from childhood and/or adulthood to speak out, and invite us to pay closer attention to the people around us. Sometimes, an outstretched hand can save a life. Thanks to its festival journey, more than 21 official selections around the world, from New York to Los Angeles and Miami, through London, Cannes, Paris, Barcelona, Verona and Montreal, including an official selection at the Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival, which is Oscar-qualifying, I am able to open up these discussions, and that is what matters most.
–Which director inspires you the most?
It’s difficult to choose just one! I love the sensitivity and commitment of Ava DuVernay and Alice Diop. Christopher Nolan inspires me with his boldness and vision. I like Ryan Murphy’s aesthetic, his ability to give horror a disturbing beauty is as fascinating as it is unsettling. It’s a real achievement ! A little nod to the French Alice Guy, the first woman director in the history of cinema worldwide, and her very first work, “La fée des choux”, a 51-second short film made in 1896 ! Each of them, in their own way, reminds me that it is possible to create a distinctive cinematic world while saying something about our society. Tyler Perry, who tackles important subjects with genuine dramatic depth while still making room for humor. In my view, this ability to bring the two together is one of the qualities that makes him a great filmmaker.
–What do you dislike about the world, and what would you change?
Our inability to live together as brothers, because we are in the process of dying together as fools. For those who don’t recognize the reference: Martin Luther King Jr.
If I could change one thing, I would erase ego from the palette of human emotions. That would solve a lot of problems.
–How do you imagine cinema in a hundred years?
I wonder whether it will still exist in the form we know today. Perhaps audiences will want to live stories rather than watch them on a screen, through immersive experiences like those in the series Westworld, featuring, among others, Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Thandiwe Newton and Tessa Thompson. That is obviously not what I wish for, but artificial intelligence is already transforming our professions at a dizzying pace. Forms of entertainment will evolve too. I simply hope that the desire to tell stories and share emotions between filmmakers and audiences will remain at the heart of that evolution.
–What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?
It is a media outlet that gives independent filmmakers a space to talk about their work and share their vision of the world, whether artistic, personal or socially engaged. Thank you to you Michele Diomà for giving us that freedom to speak!
