It’s an odd era that we live in, not just from a subject matter point of view as internet culture is fundamentally reshaping how humans interact with each other on a basic communication level, but also in terms of how we tell stories, and—more specifically—documentaries.Making its world premiere at the 2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival, Jenny Carchman’s latest documentary feature Whatever it Takes (after directing previous films and series like The Fourth Estate, Gossip, and Sex Diaries for HBO) explores an odd, yet timely, tale of cyberstalking threats and bizarre deliveries at the hands of a Silicon Valley giant.We chatted with Carchman to explore how she was able to bring this convoluted story to life, as well as her thoughts on how the documentary form itself is changing—plus what we can expect for the future.NFS: What was your first connection or inspiration to tell this documentary feature?Jenny Carchman: My husband shared an article with me in 2020 about this case—before anyone had pleaded guilty— and it was so insane and so startling, I immediately was interested. The detail of Baugh showing film clips to motivate his staff really set me in motion to make this into a film.NFS: What was your approach to visually tell a story that featured a lot of online correspondence? Jenny Carchman: We’ve been seeing texts and emails and websites in films so much these days and I knew this had to feel a little eerie and a little off—not so straightforward. I wanted the...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Wednesday, 20 March