Staff Pick Premiere: "Anna" by Or Sinai

While working on a farm in 2013, Meghan would come home, fill a mug with ice cream, and watch Vimeo videos until she fell asleep. She now gets paid to do that. Peep her Ladies With Lenses channel for A+ gals in film www.vimeo.com/channels/ladieswithlenses
Meghan Oretsky

As the winner of Cannes’ 19th Cinéfondation Selection, the highest-profile film school competition in the world, today’s Staff Pick Premiere is a film that highlights a rare but vital perspective. Starring renowned Israeli actress Evgenia Dodina, “Anna” ignites a conversation about the sexual desires of older women, centering on a mother whose obligations as a parent are suddenly lifted.

After a long day at work, Anna learns that her teenage son will be spending the weekend with his father. Unsure of what to do until he returns, Anna goes on a hunt to reclaim her womanhood. Following Anna through a sparsely populated Israeli town on her silent search for affection, the audience is asked to observe a vulnerable woman who knows her needs and seeks to fulfill them unapologetically. 

We had many questions for Or Sinai, the director of this poignant, empowering, and sexy film. Read on for excerpts from our conversation.

On inspiration: 

“A few years before making “Anna,” I met a very special woman who was an immigrant in Israel. She was raising her daughter by herself and facing a lot of challenges. She was a big inspiration for me, because although she was struggling on a daily basis, she was still of humor and imagination. We used to talk about the challenges of meeting men in Israel when you are a foreigner with no friends or family around. Her experience started my imagination. I had an image of a lonely woman in a small deserted town, and I knew I wanted her to do whatever she could to fight her loneliness.”

On telling Anna’s story: 

“I really thought that only women would relate to the film. It was my hope to give all women in the audience a little bit of solidarity. I wanted to express something about women’s desire and loneliness. At a certain point, men also started to express their identification with the character and that really moved me. I wanted to create a character who pushed aside her femininity because of her daily struggle to provide and to care for her child and now intuitively she wants to find it again. I wanted to show a woman who moves from being this practical, surviving mother to being a vivid, passionate woman.”

On questioning gender stereotypes about sexuality: 

“It is always important for me to tell female stories about female characters who deal with female problems. I really wanted to portray a character that would switch roles. We are used to seeing men looking for sex, but almost never a woman. I wanted to create this woman who takes the “male role” as we’re used to seeing it. She is the hunter, and all the men she meets are her victims in a way. This is something that we are not used to seeing in films.

Often when I showed it to people for test screenings, I would get feedback like “she is a beautiful woman, why doesn’t she just flirt so she will get what she wants instead of being so direct about it and embarrassing herself?” But that’s exactly what I wanted. I wanted people to be embarrassed when they see her because they are not used to seeing women act this way. I wanted the guys she meets to be embarrassed as well for the same reason. It was my goal to take male/female relationships outside of the obvious place we usually put them.”

On writing for men vs. women: 

“I have to admit, it is very challenging for me to write roles for men. I can really go into detail when I write women’s characters, but it’s very different with men. In this case, the actors helped me fill the gaps I had. It was very interesting to cast those roles, because each of them reflected the male’s point of view about this kind of woman that they don’t encounter often. It was important to me to not make them evil to let them be humans as well. I wanted each of them to represent something different in her life. The first two guys are the ‘easier choices’ for her, before she goes to confront the man she likes.”

On what she hopes audiences will take away from the film:

“I always thought that “Anna” would be a heavy film. What came as a surprise was that from our first screening, the audience was actually laughing throughout different parts of the film. I never thought that would happen. Of course it’s not a comedy, but now I know that there are very small specific moments that make people laugh because the film is realistic to them. I wanted to give Anna and the audience some hope and relief to let her be alive and to remember the beauty in life and in herself. It was important for me to let the audience experience her from a close intimate perspective.  I wanted them to really go through this weird and sad but also hopeful journey with her.”

On challenges faced:

“We didn’t have enough money, so I sponsored most of the production and many people on set volunteered. We had to shoot on the hottest day of summer, in the winter, and sometimes in rain. I auditioned so many actresses for the lead role until I had the guts to reach out to Evgenia Dodina. She’s a big actress in Israel, and I never thought she would want to take part in the film. 

But I think more than anything, the biggest challenge I encountered was me. At the time, I was still in film school and I really didn’t have enough confidence. I received advice from too many people, to the point that I strayed too far from my intentions. My goal was trying to make everyone happy, until I realized I just had to go back to my original ideas and forget about everything else. Only then did I feel the film was finished.”

On advice to aspiring filmmakers: 

“It’s a cliché, but after experiencing all of this back and forth with “Anna,” I really think that the best advice I can give is to always stay devoted to your own intentions and to your own heart. Many people help you make the film, but you are its only creator. Only you know what you want to say.”

On what’s next: 

“I am distributing a new short I made, called “Long Distance,” even though it’s not the best time for distribution. I’m also working on my first feature, “Home,” while participating in the Torino Film Lab. I wrote the main character for Evgenia Dodina, the same actress that plays Anna.”

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