Maura Axelrod has been producing news and documentaries for 15 years. She started at ABC News in New York as a writer and producer, then lived and worked in the Middle East and the Caribbean, reporting bad news from Guantanamo, Haiti, Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel, Gaza and other stories around the world. Axelrod is now based in New York and Colorado, and has given up conflict reporting. She is currently focusing on the no less fascinating and only sightly less contentious world of contemporary art. (Press materials)
“Maurizio Cattelan: Be Right Back” will premiere at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival on April 24.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
MA “Be Right Back” is a film about contemporary artist Maurizio Cattelan, and within the story of his life and work is another story about art in general, and the way the art world works today.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
MA: Maurizio’s life and career are fascinating and ultimately worth documenting on their own merit. But I also wanted to talk about why I think art in general is important, and to illuminate some of the mysteries of contemporary art for a wider audience, which is often pretty dubious about this kind of work.
W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?
MA: I’d love it if people left the movie asking themselves the big questions — What is the nature of truth? Can anyone really be known? How can I live a less mundane life?
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
The biggest challenge was Maurizio’s reluctance to be on camera. Once I realized that he was not truly never going to talk about his work, I had to set about solving the problem of how to give life to him as a character. Maurizio and I went pretty far afield to make that work, as you can see if you watch the film.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
MA: The movie was funded first by supporters of the artist, and then by investors. I had to be very persistent and cast a wide net. It took a long time to put the money together bit by bit by enlisting the help of people I knew would believe in this project because they love Maurizio’s work.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
MA: The best advice: “Get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable.” Successful creative endeavors can be painful.
The worst advice: “You don’t know what you’re doing. Let me do it for you.” Any good adviser or mentor should be backing you up and supporting your ideas, not shutting you down.
W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?
MA: Ignore all the haters. Just smile and nod, and then go do exactly what you want to do.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
MA: Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker” was important to me. That was the moment I realized that I had never seen a woman make a big movie before, and that it could be done.
Originally published at blogs.indiewire.com on April 20, 2016.
