Q&A: 'Karma Is A Witch' Director Madison Blair
Growing up, filmmaker and director Madison Blair was immersed in the world of theatre, quite literally. Blair's mother was heavily involved in all things theatre and performance for work, while his aunt was a filmmaker by trade. This connection has cultivated Blair's own love for visual storytelling, going on to inform his future pathway into the creative industries. His latest fashion film, Karma Is A Witch, chronicles Blair's appreciation for narrative-driven filmmaking, as illustrated through its haunting and unique fashion by designer Lena Meier. SHOWstudio spoke to Blair over email about his path into storytelling and the photographer who's always at the back of his mind when creating.
Christina Donoghue: How did you get into filmmaking?
Madison Blair: I owe much of my introduction to the world of filmmaking to my family. Growing up, my mother was involved in the theatre, and my aunt was a filmmaker. While initially, as a child, I resisted their insistence on many cultural experiences, over time, it was these experiences that cultivated my profound love for storytelling and, more specifically, visual storytelling.
MB: As young as I can remember, I was experimenting with cameras and film. I found an immediate fascination looking through the viewfinder and its ability to create stories by putting a box around your focus. However, my true love for filmmaking came a little later on when I began making skate films. I became completely entranced - the culture, the music, the architecture of the city, this newfound way of visually communicating a story without words… and, of course, the style that came along with skateboarding during the '90s.
CD: How did you come up with the concept for this film?
MB: When the fashion designer Lena Meier came to me with this project, she shared her vision of each garment embodying a distinct character of its own. Her collection was heavily inspired by witches and drew inspiration from a children's book from her home in Bavaria. This deeply resonated with me and led us to write a series of short stories, like the book had, centred around each garment and what the garment represented. Our mutual appreciation for feature film aesthetics inspired us to frame the fashion film as a trailer for a faux feature film.
CD: What inspirations did you draw from/if any?
MB: I initially drew inspiration from period pieces and horror films, but as the project evolved, we realised a purely dark and sombre tone wasn't the right fit. We then turned to satirical takes on these genres, weaving in elements of humour to lighten the overall feel. Other than that, I always have a little bit of Glen Luchford inspiration in the back of my mind.
CD: Can you talk a bit about the fashion in this film and why it was chosen?
MB: Lena’s debut collection was the starting point for this whole narrative and we base the concept around her collection. The story we weaved into the fashion film was intrinsically tied to these fashion pieces.