It’s about a month afterSanctuarymade itsworld premiere at TorontoInternational Film Festival 2022, when cinematographerLudovica Isidoriand I meet over a Zoom call. At the start of our interview, she initially describes getting the chance to meetSanctuary’s director Zachary Wigon (The Heart Machine) as a typical in-agency arrangement — “I’m repped by UTA, as well as Zach, so my name was passed along to him.” — but, based on their first conversation together, it seems like they were fated to work together. “When we met on Zoom, his energy, his vision for the movie, and his understanding of cinema just grabbed my heart,” Isidori says.
Starring Christopher Abbott(Girls) and Margaret Qualley (Maid),Sanctuaryis an intimate look at the relationship between hotel empire heir Hal Porterfield (Abbott) and dominatrix Rebecca (Qualley). Throughout the course of their arrangements, Rebecca has helped transform Hal into someone capable of running a mega-franchise. Just as he is on the cusp of taking over for his late father, however Hal decides to end things with Rebecca. Nonetheless, she decides that she wants — indeed, deserves — more than what he’s willing to give her as a sort of final goodbye gift. What ensues is a confrontation of character, a negotiation of worth, and a deep exploration of their history, all confined to a single location: their hotel room.
“I was really pulled in, and was mesmerized by page three,” Isidori says ofSanctuary’s script (written by Micah Bloomberg, who also co-created Prime Video’sHomecoming). Between the script and her meeting with Wigon,Sanctuarybecame something Isidori needed to be part of. In fact, she recalls having an extensive conversation with her partner about joining the project, essentially pleading her case to move to New York for production even though she was seven months pregnant at the time. “To me, it was non-negotiable. The synergy between [me and Zach] was there right away. There was such mutual respect and excitement [about] working with each other that I was like, okay, I need to make this movie. I felt it.”
Creating Sanctuary’s Camera Language with Wigon
“The main goal from the get-go was: how do we not make this another quarantine movie, and how do we turn [a story] about two people in a room into a cinematic journey,” Isidori says of her and Wigon’s earliest conversations regarding their approach toSanctuary. Here, she is referring to that crop of films,known as COVID cinema, that were made during the height of the pandemic, when restrictions didn’t allow large casts and crews to get together to work, and thusbecame bottle movieswith minimal actors. Much of COVID cinema naturally told pandemic-related stories, like KJ Apa’s famously awfulSongbird, but there were others, like the romance filmLocked Down(starring Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor), that explored other genres as well.
No matter the genre or narrative, what united all of these, as Isidori puts it, “quarantine movies” was the story’s confinement to a single location, which, for better and worse, could be immediately felt as a viewer. ForSanctuary, this posed a challenge for Wigon and Isidori to create something that resisted the inevitable visual stagnancy of filming in a single location. “The first and biggest conversation was about [the] camera and camera language,” she says. “Zach had a vision in the beginning [that] he wanted to make thiscinema. Bycinema, I mean a movie that is aware of itself, that doesn’t necessarily take away the empathic experience, but actually elevates it.”
When it came down to it, Isidori says that capturing the constantly-shifting power dynamics between Hal and Rebecca throughoutSanctuarywas key. “Sanctuaryis a love story, and like every love story, it’s about power and the need for power and the shift in power dynamics between two people.” She delineates the importance of the camera in this movie as an active observer of the characters' story, not “taking away from the performances,” but rather supporting and highlighting them instead, while also “creating a roller coaster experience” for the audience. Isidori adds, “What we did was [we found] a camera language that modulated from very strict, formal, over-the-shoulder shots into handheld whip pan into other extravagant rotating camera moves.”
Related:TIFF 2022 Exclusive: Polly Morgan Talks The Woman King’s Cinematography
Wigon is One of Isidori’s Favorite Directors to Work With
Upon its screening at TIFF 2022,Sanctuaryreceived glowing reviews from audiences and critics alike, currently sitting at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. Though much of the praise was rightfully directed towards Abbott and Qualley’s performances and Wigon’s direciton, Isidori’s cinematography was also showered in recognition.The Playlistwrote that her work is “key to the unpredictability in a film that dares us to guess where it’s headed,” whileVarietyraved about her “active, intelligent camera.” When asked about her feelings onSanctuary’s praise, with respect to her work on the film, Isidori is humbled. “I have butterflies. I’m extremely proud of it. I think was able to do this because of Zach,” she says. “I wouldn’t be who I am without the directors I’ve worked with and without them allowing me to express myself.”
Indeed, Isidori defers all of her praise to Wigon, whom she says has become one of her most favorite directors that she’s ever worked with. “I know the [reviews] shout out [my work], but I think it’s only because of a bigger vision that is Zach. A movie is only good when everyone excels and when everyone is given enough freedom to express their voice in service of the movie.”
As of this writing,Sanctuary’s release date has yet to be confirmed.
