Still in Motion Interview

Jen sat down with Pamela Cohn from Still in Motion last week to talk about Billy. Here's an excerpt from the interview:


SIM: I keep flashing on Alice in Wonderland a lot as we talk—those two things [curiosity and intention] led her down that rabbit hole, that’s how she ended up at the Mad Hatter’s table. And nothing in her life really prepared her for that except this insatiable curiosity. That, of course, can get you into terrible trouble if you’re moving through with some twisted agenda. But you’ve said that Billy became and is a hero for you, and that’s how he’s portrayed—heroically. You didn’t really even use a traditional DP to shoot this—but Donald’s emotionalism and personal involvement with the subject is quite palpable. There’s no hiding behind the lens for him. It reminded me almost of a dad lovingly filming his kid. And Billy plays for that person behind the camera because he intuitively knows he’s admired and loved. That’s really beautiful to me.

What you have in common with Billy is how well defined your personal vision is about how you see the world and your place in it, proper ways of doing things be damned.

JV: Yeah, but unlike Billy when I was his age, I never was really speaking my truth—I did belong to the popular group, I was accepted and my wacky inner voice was suppressed in favor of that. I still struggle to do that today. I think we all do. And here’s this kid who’s wired in such a way, that that’s not even an option for him.


Be sure to check out the complete interview for Jen's thoughts on documentary filmmaking, the process of making Billy the Kid, and how she got her start in the industry.