Baltic Pitching Forum alumna Ieva Šakalytė (she/her) was gracious enough to share two of her short films BECOMING ANIMAL (2018) and SPA (2024) with us, so we caught up with the Lithuanian filmmaker to chat about the production process, the benefits of pitching, and going with the flow.
Hi Ieva, could you introduce yourself in a few lines?
I’m Ieva, film director from Vilnius, Lithuania. Probably I can say that I started becoming a filmmaker in 2010 (it was a year when I started studying film directing at Lithuanian Academy of Music And Theatre). I made some short films during the study years. After finishing my studies I made four short films.
What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
When I was a teenager, I started watching a lot of films, tried to film and edit some videos for school projects. I really enjoyed it and decided that I really want to learn more and become a filmmaker.
How did you first start working on the two shorts you have on T-Port? What was the process like and what first sparked the idea to make it?
Both BECOMING ANIMAL and SPA started from things I noticed in my environment. When I was a teenager, I noticed a group of young people who were behaving really not nice on public transportation, everyone saw it, but no one did anything about it. This memory stuck in my mind. Years passed and I noticed that nothing changed. There are many situations in which someone does something bad, everyone sees it, but does nothing. This is how I came up with the BECOMING ANIMAL film idea.
And with SPA – I came up with it when one winter evening I went to SPA centre to relax, but saw very unhappy people there. I thought that many times we expect that short escape will solve our problems, but mostly it doesn’t.
And then when you began the practical side, how did the production process pan out for you?
When I had the scripts, I participated in several pitching forums including Baltic Pitching Forum. After participating there everything went smoothly, we got funding from the Lithuanian Film Centre, made films and entered the festival circuit.
What were the biggest challenges you encountered during making your films?
There weren’t any challenges I can call big. Most of them were very natural and common. For example, BECOMING ANIMAL was filmed in a forest. So, we had a lot of rain: we needed to wait till it stopped, but it didn’t make us out of schedule.
What was it like for you working with the actors you cast? Do you have a technique for directing actors you can tell us about?
Working with actors both on BECOMING ANIMAL and SPA was amazing. I think for each film you find different techniques. Sometimes you rehearse some scenes, sometimes discussion is enough, sometimes it’s best to simply work on the set (if it’s very specific). But for sure good preparation like reading and discussion is always needed to be on the same page.
If you could go back in time to pre-production and give yourself one piece of advice, what would it be?
Relax, everything will be okay.
How has the process of distributing the film been for you so far? What have you learned?
I’m happy that both films were or are travelling to film festivals, also some events. I learned that no matter what, every film finds its audience and a place to be screened.
What do you wish you’d known before you began the distribution process?
That I shouldn’t be so shy and need to talk way more about my films, and in general about what I do.
What are your plans and dreams for the future?
Right now I’m working on my first feature film project, so my dream now is to make it.
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