Taylor Swift, the American music singer, has spoken up about her impostor syndrome and her great intentions to delve into filmmaking. In an unexpected visit to the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival at New York City’s Beacon Theater, the 32-year-old singer discussed her directorial music video All Too Well: The Short Film and how she overcome impostor syndrome, as well as her intention to make a full-length feature film in the future.
Swift said to filmmaker Mike Mills:
“I was always inquisitive. I was continuously searching, studying, and trying to take in as much as I could. I basically began going into the edit and making modifications after a few music videos [in my career].”
Taylor Swift also spoke about her experience directing music videos including The Man, Cardigan, and Willow, which led to the creation of All Too Well: The Short Film, which she wrote and directed.
“It began with fiddling, and it progressed from messing with the edit to composing the treatments for the music videos… That was about a decade ago.”
Taylor Swift said that before 2019’s The Man, she would usually create her music videos before handing them to a seasoned director.
the best quotes said by taylor swift during her tribeca film festival talk (a thread) pic.twitter.com/roQyFn83lz
— regina (@futureofrep) June 11, 2022
What exactly is impostor syndrome, and how did Taylor Swift deal with it?
According to Very Well Mind, impostor syndrome is the sensation of feeling like an imposter—a person with imposter syndrome believes that they will be discovered as a phony at any time and that they do not belong where they are. They were just there by chance. It may impact anybody, regardless of socioeconomic standing, employment history, skill level, or level of experience. Taylor Swift confessed to Mike Mills at the Tribeca Film Festival that she sought out a female director after conceiving the video idea for The Man. Nonetheless, none that she was aware of were accessible.
“All of my fave female filmmakers were scheduled and quite busy, which is fantastic. That’s fantastic.”
Taylor Swift was filming the Miss Americana documentary for 2020 at the moment. She directed The Man herself after speaking with its director, Lana Wilson, creating a new creative drive in the singer-songwriter. She stated:
“Once I began directing music videos, I couldn’t stop.”
She had to overcome self-doubt before she could call herself a filmmaker, though.
“I guess I had impostor syndrome going on in my thoughts, telling me, ‘No, you don’t do that.’ Other persons who went to school to [direct] do this.”
Swift was pleased when Mills admitted that he, too, had not attended directing school:
“Oh! That’s good to know. That makes me feel a little better. Don’t you think it’s a fantastic exercise in following your gut instinct? There are several choices to be made. Most of the time, saying ‘I don’t know’ or ‘I’m not sure’ is not an option.”
Swift’s ambitions as a filmmaker have grown since she wrote and directed All Too Well: The Short Film, starring Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien. She described directing a feature film as “wonderful,” adding that she would approach it in the same manner she approached the short film.
“In terms of size, I don’t see it becoming much larger. I enjoyed shooting a picture that was so personal with such a tiny team, just a very strong set of individuals I trusted.”
Taylor Swift will release a 13-minute short film as a music video for All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) in November 2021, an extended rendition of the fan-favorite song from 2012’s Red included on last year’s Red (Taylor’s Version) — the latest album in her ongoing series of re-recordings.
