For the past few years Zoe Lister-Jones has been delighting us with her hilarious recurring performances in TV’s Life in Pieces and Friends with Better Lives.
Lister-Jones has now crossed over the other side of the camera and is not only directing but also writing and staring in her new indie comedy, Band Aid.
For her directorial debut Lister-Jones has chosen to remain in witty territory and to explore the ups and downs or more to the point the very downs of the middle age married couple. Anna and Ben have been married for a couple of years and have now entered, as it happens more often than not, the phase of the everlasting trivial fights. In a last effort to save their marriage, they decide to turn their disputes into songs and form a band.
Band Aid, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival early this year has been surprising critiques.
“The film is a true dramedy that wrestles with the darker, sadder elements of life in a frank, funny and deeply relatable way” (Los Angeles Times).
But what makes Band Aid so peculiar is what was happening behind camera. Lister-Jones has appeared in more than 40 TV shows, films and shorts and yet only three of them had female cinematographers. For her own film, Lister-Jones was determined to take a stand and hired an all-female crew from the drivers (yes even female truck drivers!) to the production assistants.
Hillary Spera was in charge of the cinematography, known for her work on Wildlike (2014) and Maidentrip (2013). Libby Cuenin edited while Natalia Anderson, who works with Lister-Jones on Life in Pieces, co-produced. The 34 years old director went as far as banning her male financial backers and executive producers from the set.
“I just felt like it would be too muddy if some days a man would be at the monitor”.
Gender equality on set is still a tricky and sensitive topic. If an all female effort achieves negative reviews, gender is sadly still first to be blamed. Fortunately women have not called it quick and Lister-Jones follows a line of female directors who demanded an all female crew. Jill Solway hired a mostly female crew for her latest series, I Love Dick as did Ava DuVernay for Queen Sugar.
Some creators may prefer to have a female centric crew when dealing with sensitive issues such as gender identity or sexual assault but for Lister-Jones it was really about giving creative gender equality.
“I wanted to see what it would feel like if a community of women exclusively created a piece of art together”.
Lister-Jones is still busy filming her TV series, Life in Pieces but has shared her interest in directing, writing and staring future projects.
Band Aid, which also stares Adam Pally, SNL‘s Fred Armisen and Hannah Simone, was released worldwide on June 2nd.
#Peace.Love.BandAid
