Katrine Philp’s first film, “Book of Miri,” was awarded the President’s Award at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, nominated at IDFA, and won the European Young CIVIS Media Prize in Germany. In 2014, she won the Audience Award at the American Documentary Film Festival for her debut feature-length documentary, “Dance For Me,” which was also nominated for an Emmy Award in 2015. Her film “Home Sweet Home” (2016) won a Danish Academy Award, and “False Confessions” (2018) had its U.S. premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival, where it won the special jury prize. Criterion named it the most important film at DOC NYC 2018.
“Beautiful Something Left Behind” is screening at the 2020 DOC NYC film festival, which is taking place online from November 11-19.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
KP: Experiencing the brutal reality of life after a parent has died can be very confusing for the child. At Good Grief in New Jersey they help children process their loss and express their emotions. [The bereaved children] meet with other children who have also lost a parent or a sibling, and through play and group sessions, they learn how to cope with the pain and to live with grief. Here, they are not afraid to talk about death, and they help the children so that their loss is not an isolating experience.
“Beautiful Something Left Behind” looks at grief from children’s perspective. But it is not only a film about grief — it is a film about life and existence, and a film where we celebrate childhood.
Over the course of a year we get close to Kimmy, Nicky, Peter, Nolan, Nora, and Mikayla, both in their homes and while attending the meetings at Good Grief. It is sometimes heartbreaking, but also humorous, to experience the questions about life and death through their open and curious minds.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
KP: My producer heard an episode of “This American Life” about a similar place in Utah and I was immediately drawn drawn to the children’s openness and natural way of speaking about death.
But I think the idea for the film started some years ago, when I was painfully close to losing my sister-in-law. I saw how my brother and their three children were struggling with everyday life while their mom was fighting for her life. She miraculously lived, but it left marks — and I started getting interested in making a film about how children experience grief.
W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?
KP: I hope that the audience will have a personal experience and they will reflect on the big questions in life. Some will hopefully go back in their memory of their own childhood, some may think of someone they have lost, and maybe some will even reflect on how they talk about our feelings in general.
One of the worst things after my dad died was the silence of people not knowing what to say — avoiding me, maybe struck with fear of how to talk about death and grief. I hope this film will make us all braver when we encounter people who have experienced loss, and I think the children in the film can help us with that. They are so amazing, brave, and sincere, and I think we, as adults, can learn a lot from them.
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
KP: I am based in Copenhagen, Denmark, and making a film — especially with children — on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean was a bit challenging. Grief affects the whole family, and having a film crew around when you suffer is not always easy. Therefore, I decided to move to Morristown, NJ, with my husband, who is also the cinematographer of the film, and our two kids. I wanted to be close to the families and available when they were ready to be filmed.
Another challenge was that my dad became sick during the production and died before I finished the film. I was very close to my dad, and losing him was really hard, but I decided to continue my work on the film.
Experiencing grief myself while making this film was really intense, but it helped me understand what the families were going through. I felt very fortunate to have the film to lean on after my loss, and I believe that it made me even more aware and dedicated to shedding a light on this topic.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
KP: We are fortunate to have a Film Institute in Denmark, and they have been very generous. We pre-sold the film to the Danish broadcaster DR, which is still a strong supporter of creative documentaries, and have additional support from two other funds: the Danish Arts Foundation and the Actors Association’s Production Fund.
Good Company Pictures is our own production company, and has been a strong support for the film as well.
W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
KP: I have always been behind the camera. I grew up in a community where my parents, my siblings, and I lived together with 15 other families. When we as children played circus or organized dance performances, plays, and so on, I was always the one “directing” the performance. Nobody wanted my role because everyone wanted to be onstage and perform in front of the eager parents.
When I was old enough, I studied production design for film at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, but I realized after a couple of years that working with scripts and nonfiction did not really inspire me much, and I decided to study documentary directing at the National Film School of Denmark. I was sold. I loved working with real people, and I loved the unpredictable days.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
KP: The best: Always make films that are close to your heart — films that you can relate to and feel connected to. I believe that this is true.
Luckily, I have forgotten all the bad advice.
W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?
KP: Do what you are best at. Do what you like. Be creative. Trust yourself and the film that you are working on. Be respectful to your participants.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
KP: It is difficult to choose just one, but a film that stuck with me is “Lost in Translation” by Sofia Coppola. It is beautifully made, sensitive, and portrays loneliness in this crazy world in a very delicate way. I feel that Coppola is occupied with the many small, strange, and wonderful moments that life is full of, and that I am constantly trying to capture in my documentary films. A film like that really inspires me.
W&H: What differences have you noticed in the industry since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements launched?
KP: I feel a strong community among female directors, and having a peer-support network is really needed in a field still dominated by men. Standing together and raising awareness of equality and rights makes everyone think of old standards and how to change them. I also think that we as women can inspire each other to not be afraid to go after our dreams, and to say no to oppressive behavior and to shed a light on the reality we live in.
We need to challenge the entire culture to really make a difference. More and more strong women are coming forward and they are telling the public about their own experiences. These are the stories needed in our society. When one woman takes the first step, a lot will follow. We see this all over the world. Brave women are leading the way and changing the culture, both now and for the future.
W&H: How are you adjusting to life during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are you keeping creative, and if so, how?
KP: It has been a tough year. A couple of days before our flight to Austin they cancelled SXSW. It was a huge disappointment, but of course the right thing to do. After SXSW other festivals were canceled too or went online and now we have almost gotten used to our new virtual life.
What I miss the most is meeting the audience in real life, sharing the film with them and feeling the energy and atmosphere in the theater. I also feel really sad that we have not yet had a proper premiere with our amazing families in the film and the entire community of Good Grief.
When the pandemic hit I was just in the early development of my next documentary, which also takes place in the U.S. Everything was postponed. I feel quite stuck in my own country, but everyone is in the same boat and you just have to keep on rowing.
I feel like I am holding my breath and soon I really need to take a big breath and get out there and start filming again. I really miss interacting with people, getting away from my desk and on the road again. Documentary films are created in meeting with other people and hopefully we will soon be able to squeeze and hug each other again.
