I want my films to be very tactile, visually and sonically.

Panos Cosmatos

Categorized in : Very Films Tactile Want

My goal from the very beginning was to make very visually lush, juicy films that you can really sink your teeth into. That's always been part of my modus operandi.

your beginning you always

I've always liked the idea of merging esoteric art cinema with down-and-dirty exploitation films.

always exploitation cinema art

I was, like, 'I really wanna see an Eric Rohmer movie take place in a Bert I. Gordon universe.' Where there's a story going on that's about, you know, loss and desire, but with a giganticized-animal element.

place you universe loss

I'd been drifting and in a very self-destructive bent ever since my mother died and as soon as I dealt with the grief, for the first time in 10 years, I had clarity and I realized: 'I need to make a movie, now, cause if I don't make it now, I might never do it.' That's what pushed me forward, and I immediately moved to Vancouver.

me grief mother time

The thing I do miss about the way some sequels were in the past was that each film felt like its own unique, complete tone. Now, sequels are tonal facsimiles of the ones before them, like a television series, whereas back in the past sequels would often be radically different from the ones before.

unique television way past

Just making 'Black Rainbow' was like my minimum requirement before death, so that I could die with some honour and not in total shame.

die rainbow black death

In the night there's sometimes a sort of cursed quality to the Pacific Northwest.

cursed quality sometimes night

I feel like I thrive in the red light.

feel like red light

There was a time in my life when I would literally go see every single film that came out in the theaters. No matter what. I just became obsessed with movies, and wound up getting drawn to the pulsating grain of film and the flickering of the light.

my-life light time life

I'm too neurotic to ever feel good. If I ever felt good, I think something horrible would happen.

feel good think feel-good

Well, when I was really young and we lived in Sweden, the only films that were around at that point were... We had this collection of these super-8 highlight reels that they used to sell; like, they sold these super-8 reels that only had the best parts from a movie. So early on that's what I was seeing.

well best like young

A huge part of my writing process is listening to music as I write, almost creating an unofficial soundtrack to the film I'm working on, a sort of playlist. But the specific songs change rapidly as I write.

music change listening writing

The idea of creating a quote-unquote 'retro' world isn't all that appealing to me by itself.

me retro creating world

I guess a little bit of delusion can go a long way.

go long-way long way

Mandy' came from grief and depression. I wanted this to be an outward volcanic expulsion of the emotion of my first film.

first emotion grief depression

Being compared to 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' is a huge compliment.

picture being horror compliment

A lot of films mistake convolutedness for complexity. To me, a simple story can be a powerful spine to build around.

story me simple mistake

My mother died in 1997 and I spiralled into this self-destructive vortex of trying to annihilate my consciousness. I was afraid to face the grief of losing her, because she was somebody I loved more than anybody else in the world.

face losing mother world

Mythologies are violent things, and to be true to them, you have to go to primal territory.

true things go you

I don't know anybody who goes horseback riding at sunset, but everybody watches TV and eats.

know riding sunset watches