Miranda July on releasing a feature film in a pandemic

Miranda July is an artist ahead of her time: a prolific filmmaker, writer, musician, actor and more. Her work deliberately leads us into discomfort – and then hugs us from behind. Her third feature film, Kajillionaire, now on US and UK general release, is an exploration of loneliness and love that feels especially prescient now. Miranda and Lilah discuss what it’s like to release a film during a pandemic, how to make art when we don’t know what we’ll want in the future, and how a weirder world has made her film a lot less weird. Plus: FT writer Harriet Fitch-Little joins Lilah to debrief on the interview and discuss why we all stopped going to digital events.

The coronavirus pandemic has broken so much open. And that gives us a very unique chance to reimagine. Welcome to the first of a six-part season. From now to the end of 2020, Lilah will be posing the question “what’s possible now?” to different creators and thinkers, to FT Life & Arts journalists, and to you.

What do you think is possible now, that seemed impossible before? Email us at culturecall@ft.com. You can message Lilah on Instagram or Twitter @lilahrap, and find the podcast on Twitter @ftculturecall. We love voice notes – so send those, too.

Links from the episode: 

Our Next Gen virtual festival, hosted by the FT’s young editors, is on October 22! Buy tickets here, and use our discount code, NextGen2020

Anthem, by Leonard Cohen

A deep dive on the line, “There is a crack in everything – that’s how the light gets in”

Lilah’s piece about living through history

Harriet Fitch-Little’s profile of Miranda July

FT’s Kajillionaire review by Danny Leigh (paywall)

Jenny Odell interviews Miranda July

Behind the scenes of Jopie, Miranda’s crowdsourced film 

An excerpt of John Giorno’s memoir, Great Demon Kings 

@newyorknico on Instagram

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