Despite the Gods (2012) d. Vozniak, Penny (USA)
A superb examination of the herculean task of making any feature film, coupled with the culture clash of seeing an American woman (in this case Jennifer Lynch) trying to direct a Bollywood fantasy/horror film called Hisss. Lynch is no shrinking violet in the face of adversity, and while she occasionally comes off a little coarse and ballsy, she’s never portrayed as an Ugly American or straight-up beyotch. She’s understandably frustrated by the lack of preproduction machinery in place (days before she is scheduled to start shooting), and with an angry producer breathing down her neck and a huge cast awaiting her signals, our heart goes out to her while she struggles to gain her footing. Vozniak isn’t afraid to show her subject as a vulnerable but strong female who is human in her mistakes and in her emotions, making the battles lost and won that much more compelling.
