Original-Cin Q&A: Co-Star/Writer of the Women's-Lives Anthology Materna Discusses Writing From Grief
Materna takes us up close and personal into the lives of four women who live in New York City, isolated and estranged from their loved ones. These women live very different lives and are separated by race, culture, politics, religion and class.
Each woman is introduced to us separately with 25 minutes of screen time each. And as their stories intersect, we come to understand their shared isolation and struggle for identity and connection.
They all end up on a New York subway at the same time and experience an incident which brings them together.
Assol Abdullina is one of the stand out actresses in Materna. Not only did she co-write Materna with director David Gutnik and Jade Eshete, her performance also won a Best Actress award at last year's Tribeca film festival.
Assol Abdullina in full catharsis in Materna
Our Bonnie Laufer spoke with Assol about how she got involved with the project and why it was such a personal and cathartic experience.
ORIGINAL-CIN: Congratulations on your Best Actress award at Tribeca. It has to be gratifying to not only be recognized for this role but also because you're a co-writer on the film.
ASSOL ABDULLINA: It absolutely was. I was not even considering the chance of winning anything. But yes, it was absolutely wonderful. It's also so gratifying when you pour your soul and your real-life experience into an art, and then you get acknowledged. It's so amazing.
O-C: What are the origins of this film coming together? I found it so interesting how we are introduced to each woman separately. And I personally don't think there's a woman out there who can't relate to all four of these ladies in one way or another.
You collaborated with the director and one of the other actresses and the three of you wrote this. How did that all happen?
ABDULLINA: I'm going to speak just for my story, because my story I did co-write with David Gutnick the director. I actually never met Jade, the writer of another story.
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I met with David very randomly through a friend of mine. At the time I was going through a process of grief, grieving the death of my uncle. And I found that it was interesting that no one in my surroundings were willing to deal or to listen to my experience.
David was the only person who was willing to listen to my story and that's how the collaboration began. He just came out and said, “Let's write it! Let's make it into a movie.” So that's how that started.
O-C: How did the idea come about to divide it up into four chapters and then have all of the women end up on that subway train?
ABDULLINA: I honestly cannot speak on David’s behalf on the timeline and the process, because in the end It was his process. But I think the idea was that these stories all have things in common, and the main thread is motherhood - hence the name of the film, Materna.
Lindsay Burge and co-writer Jade Eshete witness a violent incident on the subway in Materna.
I believe that David had an outline before we started that all four of these women’s different stories would be treated as an arc for one character, a woman.
O-C; Your character goes home to see her mother and grandmother after finding out about the death of her uncle, with whom she was very close growing up. As you mentioned, your storyline was based on a personal experience. All of the women in this film have some sort of issue with their mothers. Tell me a little bit about the process of writing this for you and how cathartic it must have been.
ABDULLINA: Oh my gosh, it definitely was. It's funny because I have always said that I hate the writing process. I really don't like to write, so with this project, I was kind of forced to write down my emotions and my experiences. And that was definitely very therapeutic and cathartic.
Although the story in the movie is a little different from my real life. It was very healing. I guess that's the whole idea.
O-C: What is your relationship like with your own mother?
ABDULLINA: It's a very loving relationship but it has its own ups and downs. My relationship with her changed drastically after the death of my uncle,
O-C: We all have unique relationships with our mothers. But at the end of the day, we love them, we want their approval and they're for the most part, trying to look out for the goodness in us. But sometimes we don't see that, because we find them to be nagging.
ABDULLINA: Oh, absolutely. I think my relationship with my mother became more healthy, but it only happened because of a very traumatic event. In a way, I have learned that in order to make something better it has to become worse.
O-C: All of the women's stories in Materna were shot separately. But at the end, we see them together in the subway car. Did you sit down with the other three actresses to discuss the themes of the film?
ABDULLINA: It was all shot separately and at separate times. But we did come together at the last moment when the last scene was shot on the subway, and that was very interesting. It was fun to finally meet these other actresses and get their perspective of the material.
O-C: It's also interesting because we see that scene from different perspectives and different angles. How many times did you end up having to shoot that scene?
ABDULLINA: Oh my gosh, it was a whole night's shoot. (Laughs) I remember we were all pretty exhausted after it. It was pretty intense, but I loved that we finally all came together at the end.
O-C: What did you learn about yourself after making a film and also being so close to the material?
ABDULLINA: That's a very good question. First of all, I wrote! I learned that I can write, because I’ve always hated writing and now I'm writing more often. That was definitely something I learned about myself.
The other thing I learned is how to be more vulnerable, how to sit in the vulnerable space and how to trust it. I learned how to go with the flow, so to speak and to trust my instincts. Working on this movie really changed me in many ways.
O-C: I thought that the director, David Gutnick, did a good job with this material. But I found it interesting that he wanted to tackle such a profound and very female-centric film.
Why do you think he was the right director and how do you think it might have turned out had a woman directed it?
ABDULLINA: That’s an interesting question, because not once in the process of making the film did I question David being a male at the helm. I think the greatest thing about David for this project was that he really - in regards to my story, anyway - he really trusted me.
He didn't get in my way of telling my story. He really kind of guided me, but at the same time, he stepped away and let me tell my story. So I think that was the biggest plus of him directing the film. I also think he just loves women telling their stories as honestly and as real as they can be.
O-C: What do you hope people will take away after watching this?
ABDULLINA: One thing I would say for people who are about to watch it, let the movie pass through you. I would want people to get in touch with their feelings. To just sit there and whatever the outcome would be, it will be.
Think about what you just watched, about the relationships, your own relationships with your mothers. And if something healing would happen, that's wonderful. And if not, if it's just an observation, then that’s wonderful too.