The rise of Taylor Swift, filmmaker, has been on the horizon for a while now—at first starting out as a director on a number of music videos, before transitioning to her first short, All Too Well: The Short Film. Though she’s certainly not new to the world of directing—going so far as to land a coveted spot in Variety’s 2022 Directors on Directors series—Swift dropped a bombshell earlier this week that shocked both Swfities and film buffs alike: she’s directing her first feature-length film.
Though the announcement may seem unexpected, this is hardly the first time we’ve heard about Swift’s interest in feature-length direction: at a special presentation screening of All Too Well: The Short Film at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this year, Swift not-so-subtly hinted in a Q&A that her next ambition following the success of ATW would be setting her sights on a feature.
It’s safe to say, though, that hardly anyone expected an announcement so soon—especially considering Swift is set to embark on a 52-show world tour next year and is anticipated to re-record her remains albums Speak Now, Reputation, 1989, and Taylor Swift. Still, for those keeping an ear to the ground in the film industry, it’s understandable why Swift might choose to announce a foray into feature directing this week: she’s faced backlash from some film circles for her inclusion in the aforementioned Variety Directors on Directors series.
Regardless of the rationale behind the timing of the announcement, though, fans now have an entirely new medium of Taylor Swift content to look forward to. All eyes now turn to what we know so far about the film which (spoiler alert) isn’t much. We’re not entirely without details though—the most significant being that Taylor’s film will be produced by Searchlight Pictures, the prestige studio that’s cranked out a number of best picture winners, including Nomadland and The Shape of Water.
Considering it’s safe to say virtually any studio on the planet would’ve jumped at the chance to produce a Taylor-directed film, it’s interesting that Swift would opt for a studio with a reputation for delivering offbeat auteur films, as opposed to one that might garner broader appeal, like Warner Bros., Universal, or Columbia. From her intense industry campaigning for All Too Well, it’s clear that she wants the respect and acclaim of a ‘serious'”‘ director, and is hoping to land an Oscar in her near future—and by landing her directorial debut at Searchlight, this is another significant step towards Taylor looking foster the respect of the film industry.
Other than the inference that she wants to direct a ‘prestige’ film because of the choice towards Searchlight, the plot and other details of the film itself are entirely unknown. Although, knowing Taylor’s songwriting style and considering her directorial choices in All Too Well, it’s safe to say that whatever she delivers will be a deeply emotional and personal film.
(featured image: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
