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ARCHIVE

2nd(1999)



Whatever

Susan Skoog

  • USA
  • 1997
  • 112min
  • 35mm
  • color

SYNOPSIS

Set in the banal 1980s, Susan Skoog¡¯s debut feature treads the territory between adolescence and adulthood – an area with no guide. Anna longs to escape life in a New Jersey suburb by gaining acceptance into Cooper Union, the prestigious art school in New York City. Her divorced mother is too busy looking for a husband to pay much attention to her. Then there is the boy-magnet Brenda, the best friend who drinks recklessly, and who takes Anna to the wild side of teen life. The two speed-travel through a world of drugs and alcohol, of loud parties and easy sex. The two girls find romance, risk and adventure, creating the situations they find themselves in, which is where life¡¯s lessons are learned. Writer-director Skoog has said of the film, ¡°I¡¯ve never felt that my experiences, and those of my friends have been faithfully represented on-screen. Most coming of age films voice the male perspective or present stereotypes with easy solutions and happy endings. But for most of us there are no clear answers and our experiences fall in between the cracks of the high school cliche.¡± Whatever accomplishes what few films about women do: despite life¡¯s difficulties, Anna is never a victim. Anna is a true heroine who overcomes the disappointments of life by looking at them squarely in the eye. (Im Hyun-Ock)

PROGRAM NOTE

Set in the banal 1980s, Susan Skoog¡¯s debut feature treads the territory between adolescence and adulthood – an area with no guide. Anna longs to escape life in a New Jersey suburb by gaining acceptance into Cooper Union, the prestigious art school in New York City. Her divorced mother is too busy looking for a husband to pay much attention to her. Then there is the boy-magnet Brenda, the best friend who drinks recklessly, and who takes Anna to the wild side of teen life. The two speed-travel through a world of drugs and alcohol, of loud parties and easy sex. The two girls find romance, risk and adventure, creating the situations they find themselves in, which is where life¡¯s lessons are learned. Writer-director Skoog has said of the film, ¡°I¡¯ve never felt that my experiences, and those of my friends have been faithfully represented on-screen. Most coming of age films voice the male perspective or present stereotypes with easy solutions and happy endings. But for most of us there are no clear answers and our experiences fall in between the cracks of the high school cliche.¡± Whatever accomplishes what few films about women do: despite life¡¯s difficulties, Anna is never a victim. Anna is a true heroine who overcomes the disappointments of life by looking at them squarely in the eye. (Im Hyun-Ock)

Director

  • Susan SkoogSusan Skoog

    Susan Skoog is a 10-year veteran of the entertainment industry, with a career that includes credits as a writer, director and producer for television networks. Her first short film A Dry Heat was accepted to the Cannes Film Festival and subsequently screened at numerous festivals. Skoog studied at NYU¡¯s Tisch School of the Arts, and studied with the esteemed acting teacher Stella Adler

Credit

  • ProducerEllin Baumel, Michelle Yahn, Kevin Segalla, Susan
  • Cast Liza Weil, Chad Morgan, Frederic Forrest, Kathryn
  • Screenwriter Susan Skoog
  • Cinematography Michael Mayers, Michael Baroow
  • Editor Sandy Guthrie