The Hot Seat - Dide Su Bilgin

1. What is the first film you can remember having an effect on you?

Princess Mononoke (1997) by Hayao Miyazaki to this day lives rent free in my mind. It’s a film that taught me about perseverance, passion, and heart.


Also sick days, I’d get to sleep in my parents’ bed and watch Roger Moore ski off a mountain pass in an iconic yellow jumpsuit -- so safe to say 007 and Studio Ghibli are pillars of my creative ethos.

2. If you could work with one filmmaker, dead or alive, who would it be?

Agnés Varda. A visionary, an activist by nature, and a filmmaker that treats her subjects better than just about anybody else making movies today.

3. If you could remake any film, what would it be and what would you change?

Alright I’ll bite. Death on the Nile - we deserve better and I just know I’d crush that.

4. What is your biggest passion outside of being a filmmaker?

g r a p h i c design…

5. What are you working on now?

Midgirls - photo by Brian Van Wyk

It’s an exciting year; so I’m co-producing a feature film (in post) titled A Welcome Distraction which tells the story of a young man who goes to great lengths to avoid his family - shot & written month-to-month for a full calendar year with the staggering support of the Vancouver independent film community, Tom’s house & my 2004 Honda SUV. Unconventional? Tell me about it. 



On the flip side, I'm developing MIDGIRLS, a medieval comedy series with my brilliant co-creators Adriana Marchand, Carolina Martinez & Tanner Munson. It’s a show that follows the lives of really really average women and their gay best friend in the 15th century. Done are the days of egregious wealth, get me a show with my day ones!!!

6. Creatively, what inspires you to continue your journey in filmmaking?

I think my generation is quite obsessed with process. How to make, break, and create together. Storytelling came out of the need to preserve memory and much of my pursuit is in re-creating those feelings. I want to explore the hidden connections of my world, my femininity, my Turkish-ness, as creative practice.
It’s those sensory impressions, those pangs in the most benign moments that make me think, what was that? How can I feel that again?

I find myself striving to centre kindness and care on and off screen. That’s what I’ve learned matters most to me. In my relationships, my work, and in my form of political resistance. Those notions and the people who operate in that orbit inspire me to keep chasing that bliss.

7. Who are your frequent collaborators and what do they bring to your projects?

Simon Farrell, A Welcome Distraction

If I have any sense of what’s actually good for me -- both creatively and otherwise -- then I’ll make it a point to talk to the following people every single day: my unstoppable co-producer Maddy Chang, without whom most projects would simply unravel; Brian Daniel Johnson, my creative partner, my anchor, whose curiosity for human nature functions as both lighthouse and lifeboat; the limitless Adriana Marchand, who seems to operate beyond the usual constraints of this world; Derek Kwan, a jack of all trades and unbeknownst to him, my rival, then there’s multifaceted mixed media artist and life coach Kimberly Ho, outrageous visionary DoP Andriy Lyskov, and the endlessly dynamic Simon Farrell, whose performance in A Welcome Distraction remains, for me, a benchmark of artistic integrity.

I’d be remiss not to mention my improv troupes (People You May Know, Grad School Improv) - who aren’t just collaborators but essential sources of inspiration. Writers in their own right, scene-builders, masters of timing and invention, they’re the people I turn to first for almost any creative endeavour.

TBH this is a messed up question, there’s far too many.

8. What is the most rewarding part about being a BC filmmaker? What is the most challenging?

Dide Su on set.

It’s worth repeating because it’s true: the people. This place isn’t just talented; it’s overflowing with skill and imagination. If you can think it, there’s probably someone grabbing a macchiato at JJ Bean right now who can make it happen.

But too often, we hold ourselves back. We shrink big ideas to fit budgets, play it safe to secure funding, we avoid feedback (wtf) and pitch stories that look like everything else. Why not go weirder, riskier, stranger? Let the next generation of filmmakers cook!!

We have world-class crews, stunning locations, post houses, and a city full of hungry, talented filmmakers. But instead of leading, we’re servicing.
We need to bring real funding to Vancouver, build infrastructure for pre-production, and create incentives for co-productions that don’t just use BC as a backdrop but as a hub. There’s talent here. There’a ideas are here. What’s missing is the investment, the commitment, the belief that we don’t just support great films - we make them.

If we start now, we won’t just raise the bar. We’ll set a new one.

9. As a filmmaker, how do you measure success?

If my dad doesn’t comment on the sound mix, that’s pretty up there for me.

10. Who’s another BC filmmaker you’d like to spotlight?

MADDY CHANG. My google drive is 93% full because of her and I wouldn’t have it any other way. An exemplary producer, confidant, and will probably make Forbes 30 under 30 this year.