TIFF 2018 Interview: Sophy Romvari
“Once I had even a small taste of directing I knew it was the right path for me and I have not looked back since.”
While his owner spends the night watching news coverage about Barbra Streisand cloning her dog and probing the internet for more details, 16-year-old Shih Tzu Norman nestles next to her, completely indifferent to the idea. That’s just the surface though — Norman Norman is so much more. This is a film that explores themes of morality, mortality, and grief, all while letting us fawn over the incredible titular blepping pupper for the majority of its run-time. And while it’s a deeply personal film for director Sophy Romvari, Norman Norman has room for everyone’s experience.
Originating from Victoria, British Columbia, Sophy Romvari is a now a Toronto-based filmmaker. She earned a Bachelor of Motion Picture Arts from Capilano University in Vancouver in 2014 before moving to Toronto in 2016, where she currently studies Film Production at York University and is working to complete her Masters thesis.
Earlier this year, CBC named Sophy as one of Canada’s “most exciting up-and-coming women in the industry,” and notes that she has been “turning heads on the festival circuit with her impressive oeuvre of short film work.”
Her previous films Pumpkin Movie (2017), It’s Him (2017) Let Your Heart Be Light (2016), and Nine Behind (2015) have screened at festivals around the world, including Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, True/False Film Festival, Sheffield Doc/Fest, Maryland Film Festival, and more.
You can see the World Premiere of Norman Norman at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, screening as part of Short Cuts Programme 03 on September 8th at 7:30PM and September 14th at 6:30PM. GET YOUR TICKETS HERE.
By the way, we made sure to ask the question we know you’re thinking and… YES! Norman will absolutely be attending the premiere!
Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got involved with filmmaking.
Sophy Romvari: I always had an interest in the arts, but it took a long time to find myself behind a camera. I only went to film school because all the theatre schools I auditioned for turned me down — turns out that was a lucky thing (for all involved) and I ended up getting my Bachelors in filmmaking in Vancouver. Once I had even a small taste of directing I knew it was the right path for me and I have not looked back since. There is a German term, Gesamtkunstwerk, which means “total work of art” — essentially an art form that makes use of many other art forms, and I consider filmmaking to be exactly that. So all my years of dabbling has come to be of use.
Tell us about NORMAN NORMAN. Where did the idea come from?
SR: My films are always about something I personally am trying to process, in a very literal sense. I got my dog Norman, the star of the film, when I was 11 years old, almost 17 years ago. I have a strong attachment to him, as any pet owner does to their pet, but as I have grown up I have realized how much of my anxiety is reflected in that relationship. I suffer from complicated grief which lead to severe anxiety about mortality around the age of 20. Norman has been a constant symbol of love and support in my life, so from that moment onwards I have feared the day he would pass. So, naturally, when the New York Times article about Barbra Streisand came out about her cloning her dog, I had about a dozen people forward it to me — I have a bit of a reputation for my love of Norman it would appear. It only made sense for me to make a film about this conflict I am going through. I know many people suffer similarly, but most of all I wanted to juxtapose the human desperation to keep an animal alive with the disinterest the animal may have in continuing to walk this earth.
Can you talk about your choice to stay silent/anonymous in the film?
SR: Although my films are always personal, I like to leave enough blank space for people to impart their own experiences into the film.
Can you tell us about some/all of the other amazing women who worked on this film?
SR: In this case I cannot, as my crew was only two people, myself and my DP Devan Scott — who despite being a man is absolutely wonderful. I have found a collaborator who trusts me, respects me and absolutely is a feminist himself. I am so proud to work with him.
Tell us about why you are a feminist and why it’s important to your filmmaking.
SR: I am a feminist because women are wicked, they fucking rule, why wouldn’t I be?
Who are your favourite women working in the film industry?
SR: I am exceptionally lucky that some of my biggest inspirations are people I get to see in real life quite often; it’s pretty unreal. To name a few: Sofia Bohdanowicz, Deragh Campbell, Jessica Johnson, Rebeccah Love, and Joële Walinga. To name one I don’t get to cross paths with every day, Kristen Johnson.
What’s the best advice about filmmaking you’ve ever received?
SR: Make films that only you could make.
If you could body swap with Norman for a day, would you do it?
SR: If it meant he could live longer, yes.
What are you working on now/next?
SR: I am currently working toward my MFA at York University where I will soon be shooting a thesis film that has been in development for the last year or so.
Finally, recommend one #MUFFApproved film for our blog readers!
SR: Cameraperson (dir. Kirsten Johnson)
