Director Alexandra McGuinness on Her Film 'She's Missing' and the Power of Female Directors

Los Angeles-based director Alexandra McGuinness had an exciting 2019, not only did she welcome her first child, but she also released her second film, She’s Missing, which she wrote and directed. We spoke to the Irish native about what inspired her to become a director, working alongside her husband and the rising power of female directors.

Photography by Alison Engstrom

Shot on location at SoHo Diner

On What Inspired Her to Study Film

Early on, I wanted to be an actor; I had given it a go but I had given up on it by the time I was 21. It filled me with so much anxiety and I didn't enjoy it at all—I did love being around people making films. Back then, I didn't realize that you could be a director because I didn't see a lot of women doing. I thought a director was an older dude because if you think about it as a kid that’s who you have in your head.  I saw Lost in Translation and thought that it was cool and that I could do that. I went to the London Film School, I loved it; it’s very old-fashioned. At the time, Mike Leigh ran it and we learned how to do everything on 35mm; you had to learn how to operate the cameras and how to paste the film together. Pretty soon thereafter, I graduated from film school and I made my first feature in London called Lotus Eaters. It was about a whole group of friends and it’s told through their life going to parties, every time you join them, they are at another party. It’s only something that I could have done at 25, it was so intense with so many locations, people and live music. I thought when I was younger that you just keep making more films but now I know that it can take at least four years to make one film from when you write it to when it’s released. 

On Why She Preferred Directing to Acting 

I really admire actors and I can see it up-close because my husband does it. The constant auditioning and putting yourself out there just wasn't a fit for me. Actors are amazing. The actors in this movie are great, Lucy Fry and Eiza González just came on set with strangers and exposed themselves in a very vulnerable way. I am in awe of people like that. 

On Her New Film ‘She’s Missing’

When I first came to America, I was doing a lot of driving around. I traveled to this one town in the Southwest that had all of these missing person posters. I also had never seen the desert before and coming from somewhere so green, it felt seemingly endless. I think the story started with those visuals. I had been to a rodeo and saw a rodeo queen competition and I wanted to do something with that but with someone who had a voice as a rodeo queen. I  wanted to explore loneliness, trying to connect with people and a darker female friendship. Lucy Fry plays Heidi and Eiza González plays Jane—both girls live in this small town that is bypassed by a highway and it’s down on its luck. One of them works at a casino and the other is a waitress at a barbecue restaurant. They are constantly being objectified by all of the male customers. There is a lack of agency or power that they have in the movie, but in different ways, they seize their own power. 

On the Dreamy Cinematography in the Film

I worked with the same cinematographer as my first film, Gareth Munden from East London. He is obsessed with America as well. We looked at the photography work of William Eggleston and Steven Shore and we knew that we wanted to show off the New Mexico landscape. We also wanted to shoot in a way that gave room to the actors. We often shot with two cameras and each actor had their own camera so we could follow their performance. 

On Working Alongside Her Husband, actor Blake Berris 

We have worked together a lot and we work well together. He is directing his first film in March and I am the producer of it. Blake is very helpful to me on set, he makes sure that the other actors are good and he looks out for me in the places that I cannot be, which is really nice and he watches every cut. The next film I’m making, Lucia, he’ll be doing behind the scenes work and he’ll also play a small part. 

On Becoming A New Mom

The biggest change is that your time isn't your own anymore. When I used to write, I used to procrastinate a lot but now if I have an hour I’m working and using it. I actually get the same amount done in a way, but with less sleep (laughs). You become more proactive. I’m very lucky that we are equal parents and that neither of us has a full-time job. At a certain point, we might need more help but we can do it for the time being.

On the Rise of Women Directors

I think there is a lot of women making movies; I have a ton of female friends who are directors, I just don’t know that people are seeing these films. I think there are a lot of opportunities for women to make their first and second films; there are many funds and festivals that are incentivizing it. The larger opportunities are still mainly going to men. Although I know there are a lot of blockbusters coming out this year being directed by women. We’ll see, it takes such a long time for these things to change. 

On Her Long-Term Goals

I would like for my next project to be a more mainstream film. I think that I can maintain the artistry that I want to do, but at a higher budget level with more prominent actors. I also want to keep making films that I care about. I am in a very lucky position that the two films that I made were movies that I wrote and had control over.  There are always little battles you loose along the way but for the most part it’s been my work. In the future, I’d maybe like to branch into TV; I always lean towards drama with unexpected funny parts. 

On Staying Inspired 

I like to read, to see other movies and plays. The last year I have been living my life a bit and at a certain point you get a lot of ideas. 

‘She’s Missing’ can be streamed on amazon

This interview was edited for clarity

Editorial Assistant Janie Dulaney