One of the things we love about Rachel Tunnard’s “Adult Life Skills” is how it rejects the notion of a “strong female character” in favor of an interesting one that is allowed to mess up, lose her way, and has to figure it all out. And now, Tunnard has released a new video exclusively to Women and Hollywood that features hilarious thumb characters (with voices provided by Tunnard) discussing what women face in the industry. Tunnard also sent W&H a note explaining her inspiration behind the funny thumb vid.
Over the past few years I’ve been making a comedy feature film called “Adult Life Skills” and I am being asked a lot in the press about being a “woman in film.”
Sometimes, it’s hard to talk about being a “female filmmaker” without sounding like you have a massive chip on your shoulder (I do have a chip but it is about my mum not letting me have a shell suit in the late 1980s because she thought I would set fire to myself).
I don’t want to rant about how sexism is about undermining your power and authority not just saying “your tits look nice in that top” so lets just say — some of the things in this video actually happened — and not the bit stopping the filming to go to the toilet and gossip with my Director of Photography. (I’m not saying we didn’t gossip on the loo — I’m saying we just waited until someone shouted “CUT!”)
-Rachel Tunnard
“Adult Life Skills” stars Jodie Whittaker (“Broadchurch”) as Anna, who is described as, “approaching 30 and has just moved back to her rural home-town, and into a shed in her mother’s backyard. She spends her time working a menial job at a local boating center and hides in the depths of her imagination, making movies with her thumbs. Irritated by her childish behavior, Anna’s mother insists that she move out of her shed and on with her life. When a troubled young boy starts hanging around, the two form an unlikely bond. Through their strange yet mutually beneficial friendship, Anna slowly begins to confront her perpetual state of arrested development.”
In an interview with Women and Hollywood, Tunnard summarized the film as “a story about being lost and finding yourself, making peace with who you are and regaining self-confidence and dignity.” She added, “I always say it is basically the same themes as ‘Rocky,’ if you think about it. But with a shed. And a cowboy. And no boxing.”
The film did extremely well at Tribeca earlier this year, where Tunnard won the Nora Ephron prize. You can catch “Adult Life Skills” in the UK June 24.
