Set during World War II, Shadow in the Cloud follows Captain Maude Garrett as she's forced to join an all-male crew on a B-17 bomber with a top-secret package in her possession. To call them misogynistic would be an understatement, and that instantly gives proceedings an uncomfortable feel. However, the story takes a much darker turn from there with the presence of a, let's say "gremlin," in the plane causing intense paranoia among the crew, a whole hell of a lot of fear, and big twists.
The movie's writer and director, Roseanne Liang, broke on to the filmmaking scene with her autobiographical feature My Wedding and Other Secrets. That was the highest-grossing New Zealand-made movie the year it was released, while she has plenty of other award-winning credits, including Take 3, Flat3/Friday Night Bites, and Sundance/SXSW breakout action short Do No Harm.
Shadow in the Cloud marks her action feature debut, and as we noted in our review, it's an awesome, must-see movie. Starring Chloë Grace Moretz, it effortlessly mixes action with horror, and wraps those genres up in a World War II pulpy feel that makes this project feel entirely original.
Roseanne was kind enough to talk to us earlier this week about making Shadow in the Cloud, the possibility of a sequel, and whether she has any interest in joining the Marvel or DC Universes as a filmmaker. Needless to say, we want to extend a huge thank you to her for taking the time to chat!
Shadow in the Cloud arrives in Select Theaters and on VOD and Digital on January 1, 2021.
I went into Shadow in the Cloud having not even watched the trailer as things were so busy leading up to Christmas, and it blew me away. What has it been like for you having this film to promote and put something out there unlike anything we’ve really seen before?
The fact that you say it’s unlike anything you’ve seen before makes my heart jump. That’s the highest praise I can possibly think of [Laughs], so thank you so much. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. That’s what attracted me to this project in the first place. It’s so unpredictable and is a genre mash-up unlike any other that I’ve seen before. I had a huge amount of fun with it.
When the film begins, the way the crew talk to and about Maude is both disturbing and unsettling; why was creating that sense of discomfort early on important for you before even getting into the introduction of the creature?
To me, it’s the point of the movie in a way. I think we all have that type of strength that’s unlocked by adversity, and with Maude, it’s the horrible flight she’s on. It was about making sure that was, I guess, kind of truthful to things that happened to people when they’re in unsafe spaces. I don’t want to make that too much about gender, but certainly as a woman, making sure we lean into the uncomfortable-ness and don’t shy away from the way men talk when they’re in a wolf pack and trying to one up each other in a situation like that, in a place they see as their own with the woman being an interloper, I really wanted to go there and lean into how uncomfortable that can be. I think it’s a situation that’s familiar not just to women, but to anyone who has been in a space where they feel they’re not wanted.
Such a large chunk of the film takes place just with Chloe, and the crew's voices, in that ball turret - did you ever have any reservations about having the story spend so much time in that claustrophobic space or would you have perhaps liked to stay there even longer before moving the story along?
One of the things that attracted me to the script was that it started a certain way and then finished a certain way. We’ve seen movies where we stay in that space for the entirety of the film. Like Buried or Locke. Locke was a movie I watched a couple of times while I was thinking about how a director creates tension on one person and just through their experience of a situation in one space. I love those movies, but I also love action. I love a sense of genre. In a way, I got to have my cake and eat it. I got to get into the psychology of a single space, and then I got to have the fun of a genre film at the end of the movie. The challenge of making sure it was cohesive film was fun. Some will say it isn’t [Laughs], but I don’t agree. Everything that’s in the film is thought about. The genre hopping is what attracted me to it.
It must have been a lot of fun mixing those pulpy World War II elements with horror, but as you were making the film, did it become quite a difficult thing to pull off?
It was definitely challenging. It was something producers questioned at the script stage. They were like, ‘Are you sure you don’t want to cut away to the other men upstairs?’ It’s just Chloe by herself, and I think there was a worry it might be boring. We don’t get bored in Locke or Buried, but there’s a way to do it, and I guess I definitely took on that challenge as a filmmaker. I was like, ‘Don’t tell me I can’t do it because I’m going to enjoy the process of trying.’ Certainly, I had such great team members, not only the producers, but our editor, Tom Eagles, who had just completed Jojo Rabbit. Like that, this film is a genre hybrid, and so Tom and I worked very hard on making sure that we gave it a cohesion that was not usual. It’s a pretty out of the box movie, and that’s something we discovered when we did feedback screenings. Those were a torturous process for myself as a filmmaker. They’re certainly very valuable, though, in trying to figure out why things aren’t working or why something doesn’t feel right. That was definitely challenging.
When the film moves more into action territory, Maude does some crazy stuff in and around the plane, but what was most challenging for you as a director in making sure those moments remained grounded, to some extent, while also leaning into the crazier side of a story like this?
I think again we just leaned into it. As you say, there are some crazy visuals, and they were always in the script. To do them in the right way, we couldn’t do anything by halves. We had to lean into the risk and make sure we never pulled our punches. We just had to go for it. I guess the challenges were the usual ones. This is an Indie budgeted movie, but going for a blockbuster feel. Leaning into the pulpiness of it allowed us to signal to the audience that our tongue is firmly in our cheek. We aren’t trying to pass this off as the perfect, physics bound, logical thing, but the meaning is true. The story, plot, and characters are true. We can have big, ridiculous action set pieces for fun and entertainment, but the heart and meaning are unsullied at the core. I’m pleased with what we were able to pull off. People have responded in a really positive way.
Do you see Shadow in the Cloud as a property with franchise potential or do you feel you've told the story you set out to do in its entirety?
For me, it’s a one-off project. I’m not necessarily interested in taking the story further. I think we’ve said what we needed to say. It’s a lovely, contained story. There’s something beautiful about one flight, one storm, and one woman’s mission. It is what it is. I don’t think it needs another movie, but never say never, right? An amazing idea might come along, and kick off another film. I’m not going to say never, but for now, it’s quite nice to have just the one film to enjoy.
Another big female led movie that's come out this week is Wonder Woman 1984, but are superhero movies something that interest you as a filmmaker?
I think every filmmaker who wants to be an action director dreams of making Marvel and DC movies. I certainly do. I would not turn them down [Laughs]. A Black Panther or Shang-Chi with the right team...a Joker or Wonder Woman...I wouldn’t say no to those things. I think what I love is action with meaning and heart. Sometimes, there’s so much money in these projects that it comes down to numbers and marketing and making sure that people get their money’s worth can be at odds with simply telling a good story and defining a great character. I’ll go with where a story or great genre takes me whether it’s $10 million or $100 million and beyond. I dream of making well resourced movies in future [Laughs] and ideally, I’d love more of them, but sometimes too much of them can break and bloat a movie. I’m interested in finding the sweet story where resources and good storytelling come together. There’s no fat, just efficiency and passion for the storytelling.