“Past Lives” writer-director Celine Song is crediting the “thriving” independent film community for the success of her directorial debut.
The filmmaker told IndieWire at the 2024 Golden Globes that the decades-spanning romantic drama couldn’t “exist” without her indie film producers and lead actress Greta Lee. “Past Lives” was nominated at the Golden Globes for Best Picture, Drama and Best Picture, Non-English Language, with Song up for Best Director and star Lee recognized in the Best Actress in a Drama category.
“It’s an independent film; I did it independently,” Song said. “That’s hard, and part of that is I get to make it exactly the way I wanted, and I got to really be true to myself often and right away, even though I’m a first-time filmmaker. I think that’s something only really possible in independent film.”
She continued, “I think in that way, I don’t think ‘Past Lives’ could exist without a thriving independent film industry. I just feel so lucky and happy to make a movie the way exactly that I wanted to. I feel really connected to it, being independent cinema and an indie film, because I made it with producers who really contributed hugely to independent cinema and also independent cinema in New York City.”
As for Lee’s performance, Song sang the praises of “The Morning Show” actress.
“The movie doesn’t exist without the faces of the actors. It really is the sunrise and the sunset of these special moments that are happening with the actors. That’s the story and that’s everything,” Song said. “In that way, there is no movie without [Lee’s character] Nora, and there is nobody who could play Nora except for Greta, who is not only an incredible actress but has this amazing power at the center of her that gets to be in this movie. If you love ‘Past Lives,’ you can’t take that away. You love her performance: That’s the center of it, that’s the core of it. It was such a special experience, and I feel so intimately connected to her. She and I are very much in-yun.”
“Past Lives” topped the National Society of Film Critics list as Best Picture and previously won the Best Feature award at the Gothams.
