Jodie Foster names the only “blessed” movies of her career: “It almost never happens”
The chances of making anything these days are increasingly slim, with a barrage of obstacles that now prevent filmmakers from making movies and making the creative process borderline impossible.
Unless your dad is Daniel Day-Lewis and you’re allowed to make a feature film with no previous experience, or you’re already an established name in the business, your chances of success are incredibly low. Getting a film off the ground has always been an uphill battle, but now it’s become a cruel marathon with hundreds of obstacles you have to overcome before even getting close to sharing your story.
The golden era of independent filmmaking now seems like a dream (even though it was never devoid of its challenges), with many cinematic masterpieces coming together in ways that we couldn’t dream of now. After being a seasoned veteran of the Hollywood world and starring in many independent projects throughout her career, this struggle is not unfamiliar to Jodie Foster, with the actor describing one film that somehow defied the odds and fell perfectly into place.
From the beginning of her career, Foster became known for her daring creative choices and inability to play it safe, with her breakout role in Taxi Driver proving her as an unabashed risk-taker and even sparking the attempted assassination of an American president. But this is just another day at the office for Foster, and after her work with Martin Scorsese, she cemented herself as a clear staple within the realm of subversive filmmaking. However, it’s a line of work that isn’t for the faint-hearted, with many ups and downs that come with trying to coordinate lower-budget productions and step outside of the box.
However, while there are many projects that crash and burn during the pre-production stage, there are others that miraculously fall into place, with Foster describing the serendipitous magic of two films that almost felt destined to be released into the world.
When discussing this, Foster said, “Sometimes you get something that’s blessed. I feel like Silence of the Lambs had that and maybe Little Man Tate, but it’s pretty rare. You meet the director and you’re like, ‘Love her!’ And you see a costar where you’re like, ‘I hope she says yes!’ And then everybody ends up doing their best work. Maybe they’ll never be as good again, right? Because it’s part of a tapestry of blessedness or something. I mean, it almost never happens”.
In this line of work, it can often feel like all the odds are stacked against you, with constant battles as you fight for the right actors, locations and HOD’s to complete your vision. The director might know exactly what they want, but that doesn’t always mean that it will be an easy road to make this a reality, with studio executives and producers sometimes have differing ideas that they think will be more cost effective or generate more revenue after the film’s release.
But for Foster, she was graced with a relatively smooth sailing experience for two films, something that seems to translate when watching the films and the sense of ease that washes over you in how effortlessly it communicates a story. The Silence of the Lambs is one of those rare masterpieces where all the cogs align perfectly, and perhaps an emblem of a lost era of filmmaking.
