'Behind the Lens' | Filmmaker Interview Archive

Writer and director Rohan Kanawade joins Borrowing Tape to discuss his film Cactus Pears [Sabar Bonda]. Rohan shares how personal grief inspired a story centered on hope, positive queer representation, and authentic intimacy over tragedy. IN THIS EPISODE: • Narrative Shift: Transforming personal grief into a story of joy and hope • Stereotypes in Indian Cinema: Why Rohan rejects trauma-centric coming-out tropes • Crafting Intimacy: Using silence and authentic locations • Production Challenges: Sourcing real cactus pears and filming on location in Gujarat Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa WATCH / CONNECT: • Streaming: Available on VOD, Digital & Criterion Channel (US) ABOUT BORROWING TAPE Est. 2014, BorrowingTape.com is an online film publication for cinephiles. Filmmaker interviews, spoiler-free reviews, and features.

In this interview, Palestinian writer and director Annemarie Jacir talks to Borrowing Tape about the challenges of recreating 1930s-era Palestine, tackling Israeli censorship around her film, and working with a stacked Palestinian and British cast. Available on rent on Prime Video and Letterboxd Video Store. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa

Creature features aren’t new to Hollywood, even though we’re yet to get a definitive film on the mysterious snow giant called “Yeti”. Writers and directors Gene Gallerano and William Pisciotta are trying to fill that gap with their aptly titled period adventure horror The Yeti. Available on VOD and digital. Physical Media (DVD/Blu-ray): May 19, 2026 Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa

With the Artemis II crew’s historic return to Earth this week making headlines, there is no better time to look at The Astronaut : a space traveler gets existential in Jess Varley's sci-fi drama. In this interview, the writer and director talks about consulting real-life astronauts, her love for Spielbergian space films, and scouting for an "Ex Machina" house. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa

On the surface, Late Shift comes across as an anxiety-inducing medical drama as we follow a nurse on a graveyard shift at an understaffed hospital. But as Swiss filmmaker Petra Volpe breaks down her research, interactions with healthcare workers, and concerns for an understaffed medical future, Late Shift becomes much more than just a riveting human drama. In this conversation, the director reveals how she set out to undo cliched nurse tropes in medical dramas, how they filmed it all in an abandoned Zurich hospital, and how Late Shift doubles as a “cry to arms” for better care for those who care for us. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature interview

Akinola Davies Jr. premiered his debut feature film My Father’s Shadow last year at Cannes, making it the first Nigerian film to be a part of the festival’s Official Selection. Since then, the moving father-son drama has gone on to earn rave reviews and even the possibility of a BAFTA win for Davies. But the overwhelming success is rooted in a personal story from 1993-era Nigeria, one penned by his own brother. Talking to Borrowing Tape, Davies breaks down his tender and intimate debut, capturing the city of Lagos on 16mm film, and representing Nigerian cinema on a global stage. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa

In Chaperone, director Zoe Eisenmberg makes it quite easy for her audience to sympathize with her protagonist, Misha. Misha is a struggling 29-year-old who can’t seem to figure out where she fits. She lacks ambition in her professional and personal life and faces constant judgment and double standards from the people closest to her. However, just as we begin to put ourselves in her shoes, she makes a drastic choice. She meets a charismatic teenage boy and, rather than disclose her real age, allows him to believe she is his age, sparking a romance. At times funny, tragic, and uncomfortable, director Zoe Eisenberg’s debut film asks big questions of her characters and audiences. Eisenberg, the innovative writer-director behind this Hawaii-set drama, sat down with Borrowing Tape to discuss complex characters, May-December romances, and tragedy. Streaming on Prime Video. Available on VOD and digital. Interviewer: Sofia Sheehan

Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis’s family drama, All That’s Left of You, traces three generations of a Palestinian family over a 75-year period. With the film garnering buzz as Jordan’s Oscars submission for Best International Feature, Dabis breaks down her exploration of intergenerational trauma, balancing acting with directing, and the importance of global distribution for Palestinian cinema. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature article / transcript Trailer

In Camera is a 2024 British drama film that was written and directed by Naqqash Khalid in his directorial debut. The film follows the daily affairs of struggling actor Aden (Nabhaan Rizwan) as he moves from one eccentric audition to the other. Khalid breaks down his new release, how he got inspired by "the angry young men" of British cinema, and the racial and moral ambiguity of his "alien" protagonist Aden. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature interview with transcript

After delivering the Shudder hit MadS last Halloween, French filmmaker David Moreau is back with another haunting nightmare called Other. In this interview, the writer and director breaks down his penchant for atmospheric horror, why he doesn’t bother much about “referencing” other films, and how he went for a “faceless” approach this time, filming only the face of heroine Olga Kurylenko. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Read transcript Review

In this interview, director-editor-cinematographer Pierre Tsigaridis and his co-writer, co-producer Maxime Rancon break down the challenges of filming low-budget supernatural horror film Traumatika, their nods to classics like The Exorcist and The Omen, and the amusing audience reactions since Traumatika premiered at the 2024 FrightFest. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature / Transcript Review

Bury Me When I'm Dead is a 2025 supernatural thriller/horror written and directed by American filmmaker Seabold Krebs. The following interview explores the inspirations behind the film's central concept and the personal and creative choices that shaped its story. The conversation also touches on the film's visual and sonic design, Krebs' cinematic influences, and concludes with a glimpse into what he's working on next. Interviewer: Connor Winterton Transcript Review

The documentary film follows several women from Artsakh who share their stories, plans, and dreams of a better life as they rebuild themselves in the aftermath of war. A year later, their trajectory is forever changed when war is declared once more, forcing them to adapt to a new, harrowing reality as Azerbaijan commits genocide on the indigenous people. Interviewer: Rachael Sampson Review Interview Feature / Transcript

The Cut is not your ordinary boxing drama as Orlando Bloom plays a washed-out puncher who endures eating disorders and flashbacks from the era of the Irish Troubles, as he gives his all to make the required weight category cut. In this interview, director Sean Ellis breaks down his genre-bending film, Bloom's intense transformation, and his own history with combat sports. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Review Interview Feature / Transcript

British ventriloquist Nina Conti trades her hand puppets for the director’s chair in her filmmaking debut Sunlight. In the following interview, Nina Conti and Shenoah Allen discuss improvising the film’s funnier moments, filming inside costumes in American deserts, using music by Radiohead and the Pixies, and trusting your filmmaking intuitions. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature /Transcript Review

Vera Drew has gotten a mountain of praise and several awards, including one for Breakthrough Director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards. The People’s Joker is a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story and a superhero parody movie that brings life and personality to an overdone genre. Drew sat down with Borrowing Tape to discuss her inspirations and advice for aspiring filmmakers. Interviewer: Sofia Sheehan Feature / Transcript Review

Psycho Therapy is a 2025 dark comedy feature film that stars Steve Buscemi as a retired serial killer who becomes an unlikely mentor to a struggling novelist. In this interview, writer-director Tolga Karaçelik delves into the absurdity of his new film (and his mind), adjusting to a llama's shooting schedule (yes, the animal llama), and creating his own imaginary worlds. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature / Transcript Review

Eli Craig, the director behind cult horror comedy Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, returns with the new slasher Clown in a Cornfield. In a pre-release chat, the director and co-writer breaks down his latest film, reveals how his teen son helped shape his Gen-Z characters, and explains why he might never make a horror comedy like Tucker and Dale again. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature / Transcript Review

DIE ALONE is the post-apocalyptic horror film from Lowell Dean (“WolfCop”) starring Carrie-Anne Moss, Douglas Smith and Frank Grillo. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature / Transcript Review

OLD GUY is the latest action comedy by the experienced director of the genre, Simon West ('Con Air', 'The Mechanic'), about an aging contract killer starring Christoph Waltz, Lucy Liu, and Cooper Hoffman. Borrowing Tape had the opportunity to speak with West about making the movie, such as filming on location in Belfast, working with Christoph Waltz, and the method used to cast the lead action stars in his movies. Interviewer: Shaurya Thapa Feature / Transcript Review