Janicza Bravo wrote and directed “Gregory Go Boom,” a Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning short film. Her other credits include “Man Rots from the Head,” “Woman in Deep,” and an episode of “Atlanta.” “Lemon” is her debut feature. The film stars Brett Gelman (“Another Period”), Michael Cera (“Arrested Development”), Judy Greer (“Grandma”), Nia Long (“Keanu”), Martin Starr (“Silicon Valley”), and Gillian Jacobs (“Love”).
“Lemon” will premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival on January 22.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
JB: “Lemon” is the story of a man who watches his life unravel after he is left by his blind girlfriend.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
JB: Fear of failure.
W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?
JB: You are visible.
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
JB: The balance between being a boss and being a nurturer.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
JB: “Lemon” was funded by Burn Later Productions, independent financiers. It’s a pretty unsexy story. My co-writer, Brett Gelman, and I were introduced to them by my sales agent at UTA, Mikey Schwartz-Wright.
We’d been trying to make “Lemon” for five years. We started talking to them at the top of last year, and voilà, we shot “Lemon” in 18 days over the summer.
W&H: What does it mean for you to have your film play at Sundance?
JB: It means that I’m on the right path. That I’ve been on the right path. That all the heartbreak and sweat was worth it. It means that how long it took to get here was the exact amount of time I needed to be ready for this moment.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
JB: The best advice came from my best friend, Brian: “Always say yes even if the answer is no. You will figure it out later.”
The worst advice I’ve received is hard to put into words, but it’s something along the lines of settling and not standing up for yourself so as to not cause distress to others.
W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?
JB: Being likable and/or being liked shouldn’t factor into how you get your work done. I’m not saying to be a tyrant, but the work is first. Your vision and your voice. If it fails, it’s on you. If it does well, then everybody is gonna take some of your shine.
People are going to say and think whatever they want no matter how well you behave.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
JB: “Paris is Burning” by Jennie Livingston. It’s the best. It’s a time capsule of a New York I never knew but have always romanticized. It gives voice to issues surrounding black, Latino, gay, and trans communities. It’s sensational. It touches on race and privilege, and the backdrop is the 1980s drag ball scene. Truly, what is better than this?
W&H: Have you seen opportunities for women filmmakers increase over the last year due to the increased attention paid to the issue? If someone asked you what you thought needed to be done to get women more opportunities to direct, what would be your answer?
JB: That it’s in the zeitgeist means it’s so? I guess? I can really only speak to myself. I don’t have a particularly wide net of filmmaker friends that are women. I’ve been presented with more opportunities but I’ve also made more work with each passing year, which should generally yield more chances.
If someone asked me what I thought needed to be done to get women more opportunities to direct, what would my answer be? Ufff. I think something like a mentorship program. Think the Boys and Girls Club. An aspiring director is paired with a working director and they shadow them for a certain period of time. I think something like this could really work on a TV show. Maybe it could lead to directing an episode, even. I’m certain there are already a few programs like this at some of the networks.
I think what the landscape is mostly lacking in is color. Female filmmaker feels synonymous with white woman director, so what I’d like to see most is an initiative to include more women of color.
