Lowery has a few other projects coming along, including the highly anticipatedPeter Panremake.
That idea was so central to the concept of the movie that I never wavered from it.
It was all or nothing.
When did you know it was going to work?
Or did you feel that way all the way through to editing?
It took us a long time to figure out how to shoot the ghost properly.
The process of discovering how to make the ghost work was very stressful.
Weve seen actors being able to emote through heavy costumes in other movies, but this is very different.
It alternately is exactly what I wanted it to be.
There were very little surprises in the long run.
I did not expect this movie to be as moving an experience as it turned out to be.
So that was a wonderful surprise.
Thats one of the advantages of an independent movie, isnt it?
Do you think a big studio would have let you get away with that?
Would a big studio have taken a chance on that?
I dont think they would have ever taken a chance.
I dont think I could have justified it.
I certainly think thats true.
It was much easier to make.
I was really surprised by that.
And I want to be clear thats not necessarily a bad thing.
How hard is it to make the transition, or is there a transition at all?
It really comes down to the time commitment.
Once you get used to making a movie for more than $50,000, the differences go away.
Theyre all kind of the same.
They use the same equipment.
The designated roles on set are all the same.
The rules you have to follow are all the same.
The ways in which you break the rules are usually the same.
The only real difference is the amount of time it takes to make these films.
Once you accept that and are able to deal with that, the differences really are minimal.
Lets talk about how you manipulate time inA Ghost Story.
What were the challenges of making that work?
I wanted this film to play with time, to utilise time in a very pronounced fashion.
And I wanted that to be relative.
Some of that is in the script.
The structure is in the script.
There were scenes that had very long shots that did not need to be that long.
I would cut those scenes in half, or cut them out entirely.
That is not done through any mathematical science or anything as exact.
There is no scientific method to it.
I just sort of watch the movie and feel out that rhythm and trust my own internal chronometer.
I think its a common phenomenon.
I wanted this film to encompass both those types of time passage.
I wanted this movie to be reflective of both of those types of experiences.
With its aspect ratio, the movie is a square in the middle of a large rectangular screen.
Its almost as if were watching a home movie shot on Super 8.
There are a lot of things reminiscent of home moviesA Ghost Story.
Was that the desired effect?
There were a number of reasons why I went with that aspect ratio.
Largely, it just felt like the right aesthetic choice.
It felt like it would convey the right key in of feeling to the audience.
And certainly, Im a sucker for nostalgia.
It felt like home movies, it felt like photographs, it felt like slide projectors or View-Masters.
We wanted it to feel rich, and old and antiquated, in all of the best ways.
It may not seem so to some viewers, but you throw in some humour in there…
I burst out laughing at one point [details of exact moment redacted]
It definitely is there.
The very first version of this movie I saw in my head made me laugh.
Its an inherently funny idea.
Its an inherently funny image, the image of this bedsheet ghost in an empty house all by himself.
Its also a very sad and a very lonely image.
It was very, very funny to us.
Just as the ghost himself.
Its a strong image from our childhood.
It was the very first Halloween costume I ever wore…
It has all sorts of connotations.
And that is the route by which you get to these different emotional levels.
But from the onset, its funny, and its ok to laugh.
And Im glad that people laughed.
I should be working on it right now.
If there is something I should be working on, Ill be working on something else.
Im my own worse enemy when it comes to that.
The script is under way.
Weve written about a draft-and-a-half at this point.
And there are certain expectations as to what a Disney Peter Pan movie is to be.
And thats very different fromPetes Dragonwhere no one really cared I mean, some people cared.
Peter Pan is a beloved property.
I think we can do it, but we are being very careful.
If it has to be done, it has to be done right.
Until we have that version of it, well keep working on the script.
The viewers are left to wonder what was written on that note that gave closure to the ghost.
What made you decide to use that approach for the ending?
The truth is that there is nothing that I could put there that could be more satisfying than wondering.
I believe that this one unknown thing is more satisfying than actually finding out.
She wont tell me.
you might point to the briefcase inPulp Fictionor the whisper at the end ofLost In Translation.
Those are two things Im happier not knowing.
I certainly left the theatre wondering what those mysteries were.
I would rather not know.
Im happy going through my life letting that mystery hang over my head.
A Ghost Storyis in UK cinemas now.
