Ep 294: Katie Cokinos: From Slacker to I Dream Too Much

Filmmaker Katie Cokinos joins Damien Swaby to reflect on a career shaped by independent cinema, personal vision and the determination required to get unconventional films made. Katie recounts beginning her career at the Southwest Alternate Media Project—better known as SWAMP—in Houston.

It was there that she first encountered Richard Linklater and helped his groundbreaking film Slacker secure completion funding, reach international festivals and ultimately find distribution.

She discusses the film’s initially difficult reception, including a sparsely attended screening at the Berlin International Film Festival market, and the small but decisive encounters that helped it connect with the right audience.

The conversation also explores Katie’s transition from supporting other filmmakers to finding her own voice as a writer and director.

She reflects on the influence of the French New Wave, the difficulties historically faced by women filmmakers and the experience of being overlooked on the festival circuit while pregnant.

Katie takes us behind the making of Portrait of a Girl as a Young Cat and I Dream Too Much, her coming-of-age feature starring Eden Brolin, Danielle Brooks and Diane Ladd, with Richard Linklater serving as executive producer. She reveals how motherhood changed her writing practice, how the film emerged after a 15-year gap between features and how an extremely low-budget production created convincing performances without conventional rehearsal time.

Damien and Katie also discuss:

• Why a filmmaker’s personal vision matters

• Helping Slacker find its audience after an early Sundance rejection

• Learning the language of cinema outside film school

• The influence of Agnès Varda and the French New Wave

• Writing in the margins while raising children