Taylor Swift wants to try directing full-length movies
MANILA, Philippines — Even with dozens of awards already under her belt for her music, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift is eager to tread deeper waters of the entertainment industry by dabbling further behind the camera.
Swift was at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to screen her "All Too Well: The Short Film," the adaptation of her song "All Too Well (10 Minute Version)," which she directed, wrote, and briefly appeared in as part of its promotional run a year after its release.
The singer was asked by the festival's Chief Executive Officer Cameron Bailey if she would be interested in continuing directing, this time for feature-length films, and Swift responded in the affirmative.
“I’d love to keep taking baby steps forward. And I think that I’m at a place now where the next baby step is not a baby step. It would be committing to making a film," Swift said, adding she is only waiting for the right opportunity to continue telling stories.
Swift elaborated further on the kind of films she would focus on, given as she views directing as a privilege and an honor, and takes influence from prominent female filmmakers like Chloé Zhao and Greta Gerwig.
Related: Taylor Swift's 'All Too Well' eligible for Oscars, to begin campaign
"I think I will always want to tell human stories about human emotion... I don’t always see myself telling stories about extreme, guttural heartbreak at your most formative age that debilitates you emotionally for years and then you have to develop the scar tissue in order to move on with your life, and limp your way to your typewriter and write a novel about it."
She also did not shut the door on genre-specific movies like action, which if attempted, she'd consider "funny character growth," and even sees herself going in a more comedic, irreverent place.
On bringing 'All Too Well' to life
The TIFF screening of "All Too Well: The Short Film" betters Swift's chances of entering it at the 2023 Academy Awards for the Best Live-Action Short Film category, having achieved an Oscar-qualifying run in the last couple of months.
The short film — which runs for less than 15 minutes — stars "Stranger Things" actress Sadie Sink and "The Maze Runner" actor Dylan O'Brien as a couple who drift apart after issues in their relationship.
Related: Jake Gyllenhaal is 'All Too Well' for Taylor Swift's song allegedly about him
“For me, the song was so tough because it was about something that at that point was very current for me,” said Swift, sharing that she had difficulty performing the original song live since it was released in 2012.
"So there would there would be no world in which I could have made a visual element to that song at that time," she added, speaking of the gratitude that followed. "I needed 10 years of retrospect in order to know what I would even make to to tell a version of that story visually."
Swift praised the two actors for starring in her short film, particularly O'Brien whom despite his character's gaslighting tendencies, the singer finds herself rooting for him.
“I know it’s problematic, but I’m watching that, I’m like, ‘He is so charismatic’... I am still sort of rooting for them to work through this, because he makes some charming points,” she explained.
"All Too Well: The Short Film" won Swift three trophies at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards, where in accepting the award for Video of the Year she announced she will be releasing her new album "Midnights" on October 21.
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