Shannon Walsh has written and directed four award-winning feature documentaries, as well as multiple shorts and 360 VR projects. Her work has been released theatrically in Canada, the UK, and South Africa, and broadcast on Al-Jazeera, CBC, Discovery Channel, Netflix, and other stations internationally.
“Illusions of Control” will premiere at the 2019 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival on April 28.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
SW: “Illusions of Control” follows five stories of women in very different parts of the world faced with unbearable crises. Each finds ways to reimagine her life and to form new communities in the wake of these intense experiences.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
SW: I was struck by how our illusions of control over the world and ourselves had led us into deeper and deeper crises, especially around climate change. Faced with a future enormously impacted by climate change and political upheaval, I was drawn to people who were already living through these crises—not in an imagined future, but in the present.
W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?
SW: I want people to think about what it means to flourish, not only survive. I hope viewers will draw inspiration from the people in the film and also support the struggles we document in the film in whatever ways they can.
On a larger level, I want viewers to consider the folly of our ideas about controlling the future, whether it is the fantasy that toxic legacies will somehow be solved by future technologies, or that we can predict what will happen next in our lives.
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
SW: This was a really challenging film to make on every level, from financing to tracking stories to working in different languages and places and structuring such an epic journey around the world.
I think getting it finished felt like one of the biggest challenges, and the whole process took over five years.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
SW: It took a long time to get funded. We were supported by some academic funders, including the Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of British Columbia, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. We were also lucky enough to get support from Telefilm Canada’s Theatrical Documentary Fund.
W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
SW: I’ve always loved telling stories, creating experiential worlds for viewers, and learning about the world and people in it. Working with moving visual images began when I was in high school, and it has been a passion ever since.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
SW: Best advice: Choose the things you love to do, and create a career that combines them.
Worst advice: Follow the rules.
W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?
SW: Choose to surround yourself with people who take you seriously as a person and an artist. Meet in person or get recommendations for crew from other women directors.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
SW: I don’t like to choose favorites, as films are all so different, but Alanis Obomsawin’s “Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance” is a film that really moved me and changed my ways of understanding Indigenous struggles and Canadian colonialism in the present. Her whole body of work is incredible.
W&H: It’s been a little over a year since the reckoning in Hollywood and the global film industry began. What differences have you noticed since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements launched?
SW: I think women are talking about their experiences much more openly, and I think we are in general less tolerant of bad behavior. I think men are starting to realize they may not always know where the boundaries are, and they are asking questions, and some are more cautious about looking at their behavior. This is certainly a welcome change.
