Cin utero: Rebecca Addelman directed her first feature while she was six months pregnant
Paper Year actor Grace Glowicki: 'This woman's creating two things at the same time'
Rebecca Addelman waited years to direct her first feature film. By the time production of Paper Year was underway, she was already six months pregnant.
Actor Grace Glowicki, who plays the main character's best friend in Paper Year, says that Addelman kept a calm energy going on set.
"She knows how to hold a safe space," says Glowicki.
"In the past, I don't think a pregnant woman would've been provided an opportunity to direct a feature film."
Watch the panel:
Producer Christina Piovesan had Addelman's back every step of the way. She says she appreciated working with the former TV writer because how Addelman's experience writing for series like New Girl and Love meant that she was quick and adaptable to rewrites.
"Rebecca's voice is very funny and sophisticated," Piosevan says in The Filmmakers panel discussion.
Paper Year has been called the "anti-romantic comedy" because it begins after a happily-ever-after honeymoon has faded for a young couple. For Glowicki, the story stands out because she mentions that most millennials wait to get married later in life. It's rare to see a marriage start off so young — and it's rare to see the aftermath that follows it.
After getting married on an impulse, the main character Franny starts a new job as the only female writer on a ridiculous game show. It reflects the experience Addelman had in her early 20s starting out in L.A.
Glowicki mentions in the panel discussion how relatable Franny's experience is starting off as a young woman in a television career. "[As a young woman in media], you're so excited to get any kind of work...your intuition is not as loud about predators."
Stream the whole film and check out the full interview and panel discussion about Paper Year in the full episode of The Filmmakers.
Season 2 of The Filmmakers airs Saturdays at 8:30pm ET/CT/MT, 9:30pm AT, 10PM NT and 11pm PT on CBC TV. Stream it at cbc.ca/watch.