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During my time here, I’ve managed to do a few hands on Director exercises.  In one instance, Anita asked me to come up with Northern back stories for teenagers that described who they are and how they relate to the main characters.  In another instance, I helped keep the leads in character during a photoshoot.  I’d like to learn more of how to evaluate performance, but for Anita it comes from experience and instinct.

It’s also been instructive to watch how a Director interacts with the other key people on set, such as theCinematographer, Producer and the First Assistant Director.  These moments can be tense given the agendas of the other roles, and bring about rapid problem solving.  What I like about Anita is that she knows what she wants, and always makes sure she gets it.  She delivers direction through a soft voice, and expresses a beautiful sly smile when she is happy with what is coming through the monitors.  Anita is a fascinating person shaped from a different world, full of the magic and mystery reflected in her work.  In her own words:

“The day I was born, my father went to register me at the office of citizens, where he was told Anita was not Soviet enough and was sent home to come up with a less imperialistic name. When he returned, the bureaucrat was intoxicated after a wedding and decided to register me as Anita anyway. From that moment, my life’s been shaped by magical adventures of fate. I grew up in the land of abandoned castles, Gypsy cures and stores filled with nothing but tuna canned in tomato sauce. My mother rejected the official truth handed down by the government and my father refused the reality accepted by the middle class, leading me to seek and witness alternative truths from an early age.”

One of the most impressive things about Anita is that along with directing an independent feature, and being a TED fellow, is that she is the mother of a six month old.  Both the director and producer have babies, and I am floored that these women are leading the team. In a male dominated industry, it is inspiring to watch women work in positions of power and creative control.