[Watch the video interview on YouTube here]
Film Courage: Can you tell us the story of how you went from second AD to first AD on the Matrix?
James McTeigue, Filmmaker: On that film, I’d been working with an assistant director called Colin Fletcher.
He was a first AD that I had worked with a lot on a bunch of Australian movies up until that point.
I was a second ad on a bunch of Australian films.
And then during the Matrix, I was a second AD.
I knew The Wachowskis pretty well at that point, just through prep and Colin was the first AD.
Colin had a health issue at the time.
Instead of us getting another assistant director, there was some pressure from the studio to get an American first assistant director to come out to Australia.
The Wachowskis, rightly or wrongly, I guess, threw their lot in with me and said, “James can do it. He knows everything about the movie and let’s get him to do it.”
So that was that instance.
I had up until that point done a couple of movies as a first assistant director on Australian movies, much smaller budget, because at the time I was working as a second assistant director on larger American movies that had started to come to Australia because the tax break was good, the currency exchange was really good.
You could drive your money a long way in America, much the same way you can do now with the tax breaks in Hungary or the UK or Spain or wherever they are.
Australia is still one of those places.
Then when larger American films would come, I’d go back to being a second.
This was only like a two…(Watch the video interview on YouTube here).
Freedom! Forever! Tickets are on sale for V for Vendetta 20th Anniversary, returning to theaters nationwide November 1 & 5. Stand with V & get tickets now at https://hubs.la/Q04yXwMW0
SPECIAL THANKS TO PANAVISION
Thank you to the good people at Panavision who provided us this beautiful theater as our filming location! – Panavision.com
About:
James McTeigue is a visionary filmmaker whose distinctive blend of striking imagery, provocative ideas and visceral storytelling has made a lasting mark on contemporary cinema. His directorial debut, V for Vendetta, became a global cultural touchstone, establishing a bold cinematic voice that runs through Ninja Assassin, The Raven and Breaking In. His work spans the ambitious television series Sense8, Messiah and Marco Polo, alongside his role as co-director and producer of The Matrix Resurrections. With experience across landmark productions including The Matrix, Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Moulin Rouge!, McTeigue brings exceptional craft, scale and creative conviction to every project.
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