Charlotte Wells Says Chantal Akerman Helped Influence Her Next Project

When Charlotte Wells released “Aftersun” in 2022, it instantly became one of the most acclaimed debuts of the century — a bittersweet recollection of the brief time she spent with her late father.

The film’s emotional intimacy and formal control marked Wells as a talent to watch, but it also cast a long shadow over her follow-up. Whatever came next could face the specter of the “sophomore curse.”

For three years, Wells resisted rushing into a follow-up. She waited, she reflected, and she refused to commit to a project, until now.

That spark, it turns out, has come from a filmmaker she has long admired — Belgian auteur Chantal Akerman, who is receiving a retrospective at this year’s Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF).

“I have a project in which Chantal Akerman’s “News from Home” has been top of mind,” Wells told The Curb. “Because I’m speaking on the panel at MIFF, I’ve been re-watching her work and she’s so profoundly inspiring. The range of her projects, and her willingness to just pick up whatever camera was close to hand.”

That approach, Wells says, has reminded her of her own beginnings. “I’ve been reconnecting with film school friends lately, and it’s reminded me that we’ve made things from nothing before. I don’t want, having made a film that reached more people than I expected, to limit me from continuing to work that way. I’m not saying I’ll make every film like that, but lately I’ve felt the urge just to grab whatever camera is nearby and start making something.”

It’s a sentiment that hints her next project may be small in scale, more instinctive, and given Akerman’s influence, experimental. I look forward to seeing whatever she cooks up next.