Elling Lien profile image Elling Lien

Q&A: Secret Handshakes

Q&A: Secret Handshakes
With Jenna Marks

How did this film come together?
It's a music video. I started follow the musicians, Moira and Claire, on Instagram and then they started to follow me. I guess we kind of became fans of each other's work. When they got a grant to make a music video for their new song, they asked me and I obviously and enthusiastically said yes!

Did anything unexpected happen as you were making this film?
Oh yes, well at first we wanted to do 3D stop-motion puppets, proper stop-motion style, but we just didn't have enough money. We decided on a more simplified flat version of stop-motion.

What's the best filmmaking advice you've ever received?
I don't know if anyone ever said this to me, but it's just something I remind myself, something I need to notice, is that people can create art at any age, and that not every film, or thing that we make has to be the greatest thing ever. We are always growing and learning, by the time we finish our films we will have learned how we would do it differently. It's important to remind ourselves that that's normal because I think a lot of folks are afraid of making work, because they worry it won't be good, but knowing and accepting right of the bat, that it won't be perfect is like a licence to just make something, with out the self criticism.

CYCLES OF CHANGE • visually striking shorts about love & renewal
Thursday, June 19 • 6:30pm