Stockland Martel

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As I mentioned on Tuesday, John Midgley’s exhibition “Rapture” opens tonight from 8 to 10 at ION Studio, and at 8, there will be a screening of Erotic Moments, an award-winning series of seven short films directed by Eva Midgley, John’s wife and longtime collaborator.

Eva Midgley

But earlier in the evening, there will be a screening of another Eva’s projects, the short film Peep Show. (She wrote and directed it, and John was the director of photography.) And the Peep Show screening is a private, invitation-only affair.

However…Eva was kind enough to send me stills from the film and to chat with me, via email, about her interest in characters who “do not fit in,” her shift from being a fashion director to a film director, and what she hopes viewers will see in Peep Show, which stars Josiah Early and Alicia Witt.

“Peep Show is the story of Richard, whose orderly life gets turned upside down when Simone, star of the local peep show establishment, leaves her 9 p.m. slot behind to follow her dreams,” Eva explained in an email interview with me. “It’s a story of love and longing, loneliness and disconnect. And then there is this sliver of possibility…”

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You describe Richard as having an “orderly” life, which—to me, at least—somehow suggests he’s proper or modest. Can you tell us more about Richard? What do you think viewers will make of his fondness for the peep show?
Richard’s life is orderly because he compulsively makes it so. He tries to control his world by imposing a sense of order on it, through folding his clothes in a particular way, through preparing his hot dogs (he sells hot dogs at the beachfront) in a certain way. And every evening at 9 p.m. he visits Peeps to see Simone. He talks to her. Richard sees Simone as the love of his life. It’s like a marriage but without the spouse. Richard is a man that needs that physical barrier in between him and his love, as he is unable to connect emotionally.

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A still from "Peep Show," directed by Eva Midgley. John Midgley was the DP.

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I purposely open the movie with Richard masturbating to the peep show. With absolutely no other information about Richard at that point, I think most viewers will feel quite ambivalent about him, to say the least. Judgment might be passed on him, viewers might feel disconnected from him, or feel uncomfortable about him. But then you see him struggling throughout the rest of the film, to restore his sense of balance in his life, whilst trying to maintain his distance, and I hope the viewer can sense his loneliness, his lack of place in this world, his unease around people. This is not a moral tale about the rights or wrongs concerning this type of sexual behavior, it’s about a man trying to find a way to connect to a woman.

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Did you write the story? What were your inspirations?
Yes, I wrote the story. I’m intrigued by peep shows, have been for quite a while. They are not really in existence anymore; it was really hard to find one to research. The story is a spin-off of an art project I am working on that uses the idea of a peep show as a mirror to one’s own sexuality. A bit like the saying that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” What you see says more about you than about what is in front of you. I’m drawn to characters who do not fit in. I’m obsessed with stories having to take place in rural environments, empty, desolate. That’s where I grew up. Those places are nuts. In fact, they often seem full of people who do not fit in. Stuck in the muck.

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Alicia Witt and Josiah Early in "Peep Show."

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How would you describe the film’s look and mood? Is there music, as well?
The film has a sense of calm. It’s pared down, sparse and dark—even though it’s right by the seaside. It’s a place where life passes by. Richard is very quiet; he only speaks when he really has to—like when he is trying to find out where Simone is. All the other characters in the movie are positively odd.

The music was composed for the film by Mariana Camargo. Mariana did a fantastic job. She pulled out all stops, recording everything live with a group of very talented musicians. It captures a quirky European feel and keeps you a little on edge.

John Midgley

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What was it like working with John on this project?
John and I work together a lot. On still photography shoots, I often do his production; on moving images, hedoes my photography. I used to be a fashion director and commission him. I love working with him on my films. It means I can relax about that aspect of filmmaking. I know it is going to look good. After 17 years of being together, we have a deep understanding of each other’s visual world, so just a few words usually suffice.

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You used to work in advertising. Tell me about your transition into filmmaking.
I only briefly worked in advertising. I spent more time in PR, branding, and then as a fashion director. I was very used to working with images, so when I moved into film my first projects were in fashion and highly visual. When I first left high school, I trained to be a dancer and a choreographer. I brought this with me too. My first short film features a model and a dancer—it’s like a silent old movie, with a great soundtrack.

With Peep Show, I finally moved fully out of my comfort zone, with a proper narrative and a fair share of dialogue. (Secretly, I am still scared of sound). I’ve come full circle now, moving with my directing towards commercials. I just signed on with commercials production company Knickerbocker Glory in LA as a beauty director and with Quiet Storm Films in London. I did a lovely project for Mac Cosmetics—a 10-minute slow-motion film all based on color and texture.

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Who are some of your favorite directors?
Almodóvar, Wong Kar Wai, Ang Lee, Woody Allen, Jim Jarmusch, Wim Wenders.

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You’ve also made a film called Erotic Moments. Tell me a bit about that.
It’s actually a series of 7 short films. They were created in collaboration with high-end erotica brand Coco de Mer. They were inspired by their customers’ most erotic moments and secret sexual fantasies. Coco de Mer has been collecting those “moments” via their website for years. I was given a list of thousands of those moments and based the 7 short films on it. They range from sweetly innocent to outrageously, but beautifully, explicit. The series won Best Experimental Shorts at CineKink NYC 2009, and “Footsie” (one of the films in the series) won the Destricted competition in London. They are screening all over the world at the moment, and the great thing is that they are bursting out of the erotic corner into mainstream festivals that are programming special evenings focused on female perspective on erotica.

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A still from "Erotic Moments."

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What do you hope viewers will take away from Peep Show?
Mmm, that’s a tough one, as I’m not very didactic in my work. I’m always on some sort of personal mission, addressing some bee in my bonnet, but I don’t think much about the viewer other than how to manipulate what they see. I tend to keep the “viewer” at bay as a very vague concept. Otherwise, I would turn into a nervous wreck. But I would be tremendously happy if people felt that little bit of possibly love shining through the cracks.

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