“The Summer Book” , interview with director Charles McDowell

FRED Film Radio - English Channel

“The Summer Book” by Charles McDowell was presented, out of competition, at the 42° Torino Film Festival.

The film, starring Glenn Close, is the big screen adaptation of Tove Jansson’s novel and sees the actress in the role of a very affectionate grandmother to Sophia, a nine-year-old girl played by newcomer Emily Matthews.

As the book it was based on, the film is full of silences, looks, gestures more than words. McDowell describes his directing process according to these elements: “a big part of making this film was to slow people down and remind them of a simpler time with meditative shots”.

“The Summer Book” is McDowell’s 4th feature film. He previously directed Windfall (2022), distributed by Netflix, starring his wife Lily Collins, with whom he founded the production company Case Study Film, also with the participation of Alex Orlovsky.

Charles McDowell also comments on the film being an ode to nature and embracing themes like getting old, processing grief. The director talks about a specific comment Glenn Close’s character makes in the film, looking back at her life: “The things I did when I was young that were fun ad meant something they don’t seem to mean anything anymore”

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