Kristen Stewart touched down at the annual beachfront Cannes bash of Breaking Through The Lens (BTTL) on Friday, ahead of the world premiere of her feature debut The Chronology Of Water in Un Certain Regard.
Adapted from Lidia Yuknavitch’s memoir of the same name, the film the stars Imogen Poots as a woman who goes through abuse and personal hell and learns to heal and deal with past trauma through art.
With its focus on helping women and LGBTQIA+ filmmakers get their projects over the line, BTTL’s mission is close to her heart.
Stewart, who was joined on the stage by her former Sonic Youth artist and The Chronology of Water cast member Kim Gordon, was reminded of how she had first announced her attention to direct an adaptation of the book back in 2018.
The artist admitted she had probably jumped the gun in announcing her intentions so early, given “most moves are a decade in the making”, but said she felt vindicated about her dramatic declaration in 2024 that she would not act until she made her film.
“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 recalled how French producer Charles Gillibert, who she has known since her 20s, convinced her to travel to Europe to get the film made.
Speaking hours before the premiere Stewart said was in love with her film.
I watched my movie… which, by the way, is personal and subjective. I love it. Everyone can have their own relationship with it, but when I watch this thing, I feel like I’m watching my kid in a kindergarten. It makes me laugh; it excites me,” she asaid.
“And I cannot be alone in that. You know, 50% of the population, I’m sure will look at the chunks of mass in the bloodletting and go, I know exactly what hole that came from and I fucking think that it’s insane to think that that was a crude thing to say, it’s a beautiful thing to say. The blood in our movie, it doesn’t come from wounds, its orifice-sourced, the place where things are born matters. It’s the female experience. You can hold life and death in the same sentence.”
Quizzed on whether she ever considered playing the protagonist or casting another big A-list actor to secure the budget, Stewart said this was never a consideration.
“The list of women and men that can finance a movie in the entertainment industry are so beyond me. They change quickly, and I don’t understand them at all. There’s just no way to make something with a face or a voice without making truly intrinsic decisions based on instinct,” she said.
“Imogen was just the only person that could play this part. I’m not right for the part. I would love to be in something that I directed, and I will do it soon. It was just obvious she’s really porous, but direct. I told her in the car. I think the reason she got the part is… she has…. she doesn’t have big tits or anything, but she seems like she does… what is it? Big Dick Energy, she has BTE,” she quipped.
