JAMIE BABBIT

JPR—That’s so true! How did you transition from that into directing TV?

J—Well, after a lot of research, I realized that the best thing to do was to make an independent film and if it gets into a big festival and gets studio distribution, then you can get an agent and get TV work. I made my first short and co-directed it with my boyfriend and it went to Sundance, I didn’t have a script ready and the film was too diluted. I realized I wasn’t going to get an agent off of it. I was like, “Fuck, I have to make another short film,” which is really expensive and just takes so much time and energy. But I was like, “I need to make it and I have to have a feature ready to go as soon as the short is done,” ‘cause when you’re at Sundance as a short filmmaker, you have that one week where people care about you and after that week no one cares anymore. So, I had this idea for a feature film called But I’m a Cheerleader. I went for coffee with this guy someone recommended to me and gave him my treatment and research for the script. I explained my situation and asked if he could have this script finished in three months when I’d hopefully have my next short in the festival. He agreed and he Fedex-ed me the first draft of But I’m A Cheerleader when I was at Sundance and I happened to meet an investment banker that liked the short and liked the feature idea. After he read it at Sundance, he was like, “I’ll give you half million dollars to make it.”

JPR—Amazing. Gotta like that.

J—So then, once we got the cast together and he had already invested some money, I said, “Okay, actually, we need 1.2 million,” and he was like, “Alright, that’s fine. The ball’s rolling, it’s a good cast, I’m willing to do that…”

JPR—…the whole battle is to get that first chunk of money.

J—Yeah, I do think it’s good to say you need less, and then just try and make it for as little as possible. Of course, if your financier has deeper pockets, then try and get more…

JPR—…and the three short films that you directed all made it into Sundance, then?  That’s pretty amazing… I also really respect how you have managed to balance making your independent features and staying very prolific in the TV world.

J—I have two kids and I’m a single mom, so I gotta have the cash… but if I could I would just make my heart all the time, so, for me, I’m always trying to balance the two.

JPR—What would be your advice to young filmmakers that are trying to make a career out of it?

J—Basically, the only festivals that really matter and can get you noticed are Sundance, Toronto and Cannes… You have to make a really good short, which usually means practice and usually means making a bunch of shorts, which sucks, ‘cause it’s totally expensive and a pain in the ass to keep making things. But, you only get better by doing it and also, just ask. Like honestly, don’t be afraid to ask people for things. I’m always really happy when filmmakers ask me for things, like, “Can I do this?  Can I do that?”  And I’m like, “Totally,” because I want to help people, you know? I’m super busy and I would never think of it, but if someone’s in my face and has something really specific that they need from me, I’ll probably do it.

JPR—So true. Do you see yourself in the future staying in TV Land, and still doing what you’re doing, like an independent feature every couple of years?

J—Yeah, that’s what I would like to do. I guess the dream is that you just make studio features that are as creative as what you do in independent film… But I think the problem with me is that my taste and what I get interested in is not what’s necessarily the mass culture’s idea of what’s interesting.  So, the kind of studio features that I go up for, I’m not that interested in, and it’s such a big chunk of time. It’s like two years of your life. I’d rather sell out and do a short project like a commercial. I have to say that was the other thing I really learned from David Fincher, ‘cause he still does things like battery commercials while he’s editing Benjamin Button you know? Just to pay the bills, ‘cause you really just don’t make that much money as a director.

JPR—Films are such a big risk, too. It’s like two to five years of your life and if something goes wrong…

J—…Yeah, I remember on The Game, Fincher got paid, like, four million dollars and Michael Douglas got twenty million and he’s the director who’s been on it for years, you know? Obviously, I’d love to get paid four million dollars for a movie, but you divide that by, like, five years, it’s actually not that much?

JPR—I remember reading that he gave up like, a million dollars of his wage for the last shot of Fight Club, I don’t know if that was true…

J—…I’m sure it is, but that’s the thing about him. He’s like, “I don’t want to sell out on my films, I’d rather sell out doing commercials.” So, that was a really good lesson for me as well. I say that to young filmmakers all the time, “Don’t be above making money, ‘cause everyone does it. You’ve got to find a way.”

JPR— No, definitely. I think it’s the same with a lot of people in the arts. They think that if you’re not crazy passionate about it or if you’re making money doing it then you’re selling out… it’s like, what the hell?

J—Yeah and you can also learn. Like, I’m doing a Barbie commercial, I’m totally into it, I’ll learn something. I’d rather have someone pay me and I get to learn… That’s awesome. [laughs]

JPR—No doubt! And do you think being a female director helps or hinders your chances of getting jobs in the TV world?

J—I think it totally hurts me. I think it’s like any job; there is sexism across the board. It’s always harder if you’re a woman, people get jobs based on their friends and if you play golf with someone… Pretty much all the people who run shows are guys, so it’s hard like that.  Also, you’re like, more judged as a woman…

JPR—…like if you’re a stubborn guy or whatever, people…

J—…They’re like, “Oh, he’s really good.”

JPR—“He’s passionate,” [laughs]

J—…and for a girl, it’s like, “Oh, she sucks,” or like, “She takes too long.”

JPR—You almost have to do twice as good, just to prove yourself. Are there any tricks you’ve used to try and get around hurdles like that?

J—I mean, for me, I try to make guys my mentors, which helps, you know? Maybe I can’t play golf with them or be in their basketball league, but I can just be like, “Hey, can I have coffee with you, I really admire you, can you help me?” Putting them in a mentor role, I think, really helps.

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