Taylor Swift Feels “More Free to Create” Amid News of Her Directorial Debut

Taylor Swift recently, in an interview, claimed that songwriting is comforting to her, and it became more so since she shifted to an independent process. She said she found it easier to approach new ideas with this independence that comes with taking charge of her songs. In an interview with an acclaimed British filmmaker and playwright, Martin McDonagh for Variety’s annual ‘Directors on Directors’ series, she spoke at length about her short film ‘All Too Well’, a cinematic accompaniment to her re-recorded album ‘Red (Taylor’s Version)’. 

Taylor Swift, in context with her ‘All Too Well’ video, stated that her primary aim was “to treat it differently than I’d ever treated a music video.” She claimed that she wanted a fresh perspective, and for that she wanted to go for a director of photography that she had never used before, hence Rina Yang, along with the lead actors, Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien. 

Taylor Swift has been a part of movies before, whether it is for a short cameo or a full fledged role, and that she claimed has had a major impact on her directing process. One of the key features, she stated, was to include all people working on the project in the narrative; they should know why it matters and what exactly is the motive of putting out the narrative in question. This, she believes, is important to make everyone feel more comfortable with the process.

When enquired about her songwriting process, she stated that she really just goes with the flow because she believes “the more art you create, the less pressure you put on yourself.” So, her process includes building on any melody or phrases she comes up with and finds interesting, and recording it to see how it sounds. Other than that, she also writes down lines she feels she might need in the future.

Taylor has recently been in the news for directing her first feature length film, which she has also written herself, and has been greenlit for production by Searchlight pictures. Along with this, she has also been in the talks recently for the album she released in October, and the music videos for ‘Bejeweled’ and ‘Anti-hero’, which she directed and featured in.

–Riya Sohini