THE GRADUATE
AS I SAT in the packed auditorium, with my family and my partner Jason to one side, and my co-writer Katie Silberman to the other, I could barely breathe. I was having an out-of-body experience.
The movie playing on screen sounded slightly out of sync. The theatre we were in — the Paramount at SXSW — wasn’t designed for films: the seats start 50 feet back from the screen and aren’t stadium-tiered. There was a slight delay in the audio that was driving me insane. Why? It was my film. In the place I had always dreamed of for premiering my debut. I almost stopped the screening three times, but somehow forced myself not to move. And of course, literally no-one else noticed. Instead, I watched 1,100 people cheer for my film.
When I set out to make Booksmart 15 months before, there was no guarantee of success. It was my first time directing a feature film; we didn’t have any big movie stars involved. I just set out to make this movie that made me laugh and made me happy. There was never any promise that anyone else on the planet would actually enjoy it.
So honestly, I don’t know if I’ll ever feel that level of fulfilment again.
MY LOVE OF was my favourite. I loved and . was another important one for me; I was drawn to the energy of that big ensemble. It was so different from my life and my environment, and the music was great.
