Elizabeth Orne: Crazy Glue

Aspiring filmmakers could do a lot worse than having Spike Lee as a mentor. “He always says, ‘by hook or by crook!’ meaning there’s no excuse for not having nailed your shots,” says Elizabeth Orne, who was taught by the prolific director while studying at NYU and compares him to a “strict father”.

Clearly his advice paid off as the young American’s thesis film, Crazy Glue, certainly has the shots firmly in place. Telling the story of a disaffected married couple’s attempt to rekindle their feelings, it climaxes with a particularly sticky situation.

Shooting that scene made for another interesting learning process for Orne: “I learned a lot about stunts, specifically hanging people from wires, and more specifically, hanging people from wires while kissing. If you have an upside-down kissing spot, I am your director,” she says, adding that, “stunts look fake until they don’t. You aren’t going to walk away from a complex stunt with several perfect shots to choose from, particularly if you’re simultaneously dollying the camera”. But despite the pressures of a “no-budget clock ticking,” Orne knew the effort would be worth it: “If you are resolute and very precise in your directing adjustments, there will be a glorious shot when it all comes together.”

The script was adapted from a short story by Etgar Keret, who authorised the switching of the characters’ genders, but otherwise wasn’t involved. Orne considers him a “literary genius” and was apprehensive about hearing his opinion of the finished film. “Fortunately, he was incredibly gracious. The letter he sent me was one of the best things that has ever happened to me,” says the director, who had allowed the story to evolve differently on screen from the written version.

Crazy Glue has received rave reviews and recently screened in the Telluride Film Festival’s official selection. Orne has also signed with Interrogate for commercial representation and she’s eagerly awaiting her first script, hoping it will be something “with a spark of magical absurdity”. Describing her directing style as “emotionally true yet delightfully entertaining,” when that first job does come in, she’ll no doubt recall the advice she gained from Lee. “Either you’re a director or you aren’t, and what’s in the can determines that,” she says, and with a short like Crazy Glue on a steadily blossoming reel, commercials will surely come her way sooner rather than later. In fact, it likely won’t be long before Orne is dishing out advice of her own.