Kristen Steward Talks at Breaking Through The Lens Event
THE EVENT, HELD AT HYDE BEACH AT CAMPARI, FEATURED A CONVERSATION BETWEEN KRISTEN STEWART AND KIM GORDON AHEAD OF THE WORLD DEBUT OF “THE CHRONOLOGY OF WATER”
Breaking Through the Lens (BTTL), a global nonprofit dedicated to creating pathways to financing for marginalised filmmakers working in-front of and behind the camera, hosted their annual event at Hyde Beach by Campari during the Cannes Film Festival. The event featured an intimate conversation between globally renowned actress and first-time director Kristen Stewart and actor-producer Kim Gordon ahead of the world premiere of “The Chronology of Water,” as well as the announcement of a brand-new female-focused filmmaker grant.
Founder & Executive Director of BTTL Daphne Schmon kicked off the event by welcoming guests and reiterating the importance of supporting women and LGBTQ+ filmmakers through financial access. Founder of Simbelle Productions, Lauren Melinda, then announced the Simbelle Impact Award, a new partnership with BTTL in the form of a $10,000 unrestricted grant, which will be given to one finalist of the next BTTL Action Grant cycle whose project exemplifies social impact and artistic clarity.
“As a filmmaker and a mother, I understand how powerful it is for women and girls to see themselves authentically represented on screen. These stories open up new possibilities and inspire the next generation to envision a future where their voices and experiences are valued,” said Melinda.
Following the announcement, actor-director Kristen Stewart and actor-producer Kim Gordon joined Variety’s Angelique Jackson for a fireside conversation, which took place just ahead of the world premiere of Stewart’s directorial debut of “The Chronology of Water.”
The intimate conversation between Stewart and Gordon, icons of both film and music, explored how the two seamlessly move between artistic worlds, consistently redefining the framework of creative expression. This dialogue offered a rare look into the journeys of two visionary artists, as they discussed their collaboration on “The Chronology of Water,” and the cross-disciplinary instincts that drive their work.
Back in 2018 at the Cannes Film Festival, Stewart first announced her intention to make her first feature film. “It’s interesting that I was talking about it in 2018 and probably shouldn’t have been, because most movies are a decade in the making,” Stewart said. “Thank god I stamped my feet because if I didn’t, it wouldn’t have happened. I did have to throw a public temper tantrum in order to get this done.” She added, in jest, “very aptly, we had to leave the US to make this possible.”
Stewart continued, “I think process is everything. You must bespoke your process and if you accept a standardised series of events, you’re going to make something that’s been seen before. And in this case, it wasn’t a slug line that was marketable or commercial. It’s quite difficult material… it’s full of secrets because women have been forced to hide everything that hurts and everything that feels good.”
On her decision to shoot on 16mm, Stewart stated, “I wanted to choose a few moments in [the character’s] life and to make them feel like an externalized internal experience, which is kaleidoscopic and unruly. It’s an amalgamation of your subconscious… I didn’t want to record my movie, I wanted to take pictures, and then I wanted to slice them up. It’s the way your life flashes before your eyes sometimes.” She added, “It has this texture that feels like a dream, and what better place to talk about cinema related to dreams than in France.”
Stewart went on to describe how Gordon was integral to the film. Imogen’s character “needs to find her family… when Kim tells her ‘I’m proud of you,’ it kills me. I needed someone that I wanted to hear that from say it.”
When Gordon saw the film for the first time, she “couldn’t breathe for the first 45 mins” as she was “so on edge from the sound and the intercutting of the images.” She added, “it really builds up, this incredible ride. [Kristen] really knew what [she] wanted.”
Stewart has been inspired by many other female filmmakers, even making the decision to include them in the film. About this, she said, “You have to reach out. I had the same experience that my composer had when she reached out to me having never composed music for a film…. I wrote a letter to Lidia. It happened fast and really impulsively. I wrote Fiona [Apple] a letter. She wrote me back…” She added, “you grow towards each other and if you question it, you limit the work. They listened when it was really hard to get people to listen.”
The conversation ended on the subject of self-discovery in making this film, which Stewart responded to by saying, “I am such an actor. I love to be an actor. It’s so physical. But there’s this fallacy that you need to have experience or technical adeptness [to direct]…It’s safeguarding the business. It’s a real male perspective.” She added, “If I’ve learned anything, it’s just that I don’t need anything more. Of course we’re going to grow and get better at what we do [in the process], but I’ve always had it [in me]… I can’t wait for the next one.”
Additional attendees at the event included representatives from Women in Film, BAFTA, BBC Films, Topic Studios, Ramo, MGM Studios, Tigerlily Productions, and other key industry members from around the world.
This weekend, on Sunday, May 18, Breaking Through the Lens is holding their annual investor pitch session for their 2025 BTTL Action Grant Finalists at the Campari Lounge. These five finalists will have the opportunity to present their projects to top-tier financiers, producers, and sales agents. To make their attendance at the festival possible, each of the finalist teams has received a travel stipend supported by NeoGen.
With three of the five finalists identifying as queer, this year’s selection affirms BTTL’s deep commitment to uplifting stories from women and the LGBTQIA+ community. The finalists include:
- Dir. Emily Thomas – THE DEAD ZONE (USA, Documentary)- A piercing exposé on America’s broken pretrial detention system, following four reformers fighting to rewrite the rules of justice.
- Dir. Olivia Peace – IN CASE OF APOCALYPSE (USA, Sci-Fi/Fantasy)- In a queer, technicolor Detroit, myth and rave collide in a creation story for the end of the world.
- Dirs. Erin Sayder & Rita Baghdadi – SIDELINES (Working Title) (UK, Documentary)- As a legal battle unfolds in Paris, a group of young Muslim women fight for the right to play football in hijabs — and for the right to be seen.
- Dir. Damiana Acuña – LUX NOCTIS (Mexico, Drama/Horror/Magical Realism)- A teenage girl dares to disrupt the violent rituals of her matriarchal society, igniting a rebellion with love at its center.
- Dir. Isabelle Mecattaf – MAY YOU OUTLIVE US (Lebanon/France/Belgium, Drama)- Four women. One house. Six days in Beirut. A poetic meditation on grief, resilience, and Reinvention.
Started in 2023 at the Cannes Film Festival, the annual BTTL Action Grant program is open to any filmmaker who experiences marginalization due to their gender, including those who identify as women, non-binary and trans, who have a feature film in late-stage development. Finalists enter a year-round fellowship, receiving industry mentorship, curated financier meetings, and support to attend key festival markets.
Editor in Chief of Ikon London Magazine, journalist, film producer and founder of The DAFTA Film Awards (The DAFTAs).
