S I SAT in the packed
auditorium, with my family
and my partner Jason to
one side, and my co-writer
Katie Silberman to the
other, I could barely
breathe. I was having an
out-of-body experience.
The movie playing on screen sounded
slightly out of sync. The theatre we were
in — the Paramount at SXSW — wasn’t
designed for films: the seats start 50 feet
back from the screen and aren’t stadium-
tiered. There was a slight delay in the audio
that was driving me insane. Why? It was
my film. In the place I had always dreamed
of for premiering my debut. I almost
stopped the screening three times, but
somehow forced myself not to move. And of
course, literally no-one else noticed. Instead,
I watched 1,100 people cheer for my film.
When I set out to make Booksmart
15 months before, there was no guarantee
of success. It was my first time directing
a feature film; we didn’t have any big
movie stars involved. I just set out to make
this movie that made me laugh and made
me happy. There was never any promise
that anyone else on the planet would
actually enjoy it.
So honestly, I don’t know if I’ll ever
feel that level of fulfilment again.AS TOLD TO BETH WEBB❯