James R | On 23, Jun 2020

Pablo Larraín, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Kristen Stewart are among the star names taking the helm for a Netflix anthology of short films made in lockdown.

Called Homemade, the collection of shorts are personal, moving stories that capture our shared experience of life in quarantine. Produced by The Apartment Pictures, a Fremantle company, and Larraín’s company Fabula, Homemade is a celebration of the craftsmanship of filmmaking and the enduring power of creativity in the face of a global pandemic.

Filmed using only equipment found at home, the stories range from intimate diaries of the filmmakers’ day-to-day lives to short tales of fiction across multiple genres, turning a magnifying glass on how the lockdown impacted different countries and lives around the world.

Lorenzo Mieli, CEO of The Apartment, Fabula’s Juan de Dios Larraín and Larraín have rallied filmmakers from all around the world to join the project. It follows Netflix commissioning a similar lockdown anthology from Orange Is the New Black’s Jenji Kohan, calling Social Distance.

Behind the camera is a diverse and globe-spanning roster of some of the most acclaimed filmmakers of today, including:

Ladj Ly (Les Misérables) – short filmed in Clichy Montfermeil (France)
Paolo Sorrentino (The Great Beauty, The New Pope) – short filmed in Rome (Italy)
Rachel Morrison (Black Panther, Mudbound) – short filmed in Los Angeles (USA)
Pablo Larraín (El Club, Jackie) – short filmed in Santiago (Chile)
Rungano Nyoni (Kuuntele: I am not a witch) – short filmed in Lisbon (Portugal)
Natalia Beristáin (She does not want to sleep alone) – short filmed in Mexico City (Mexico)
Sebastian Schipper (Victoria, Roads) – short filmed in Berlin (Germany)
Naomi Kawase (True Mothers, Sweet Bean) – short filmed in Nara (Japan)
David Mackenzie (Hell or High Water, Outlaw King) – short filmed in Glasgow (Scotland)
Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Kindergarten Teacher / The Honourable Woman) – short filmed in Vermont (USA)
Nadine Labaki & Khaled Mouzanar (Caramel, Capernaum) – short filmed in Beirut (Lebanon)
Antonio Campos (The Devil All The Time) – short filmed in Springs, New York City (USA)
Johnny Ma (Old Stone; To live to sing) – short filmed in San Sebastián del Oeste, Jalisco (Mexico)
Kristen Stewart (Clouds of Sils Maria / Come Swim) short filmed in Los Angeles (USA)
Gurinder Chadha (Bend It Like Beckham; Blinded by the light) – short filmed in London (UK)
Sebastián Lelio (Gloria Bell, A Fantastic Woman) – short filmed in Santiago (Chile)
Ana Lily Amirpour (A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night; The Bad Batch) – short filmed in Los Angeles (USA)

Stewart says: “Art that is born of restriction has a way of becoming itself in a surprising and cosmic sort of way and short films by nature don’t have to abide by any rules which really opens up the idea of what a movie can do. I was so grateful for and liberated by this idea. It was a huge gift to be encouraged to make something out of this strange nothingness. I hope this series inspires people to do the same.”

Sebastián Lelio adds: “It was very challenging to conceive an audiovisual piece that somehow speaks about the experience of isolation, anxiety, madness and absurdity in times of Covid-19 in such a short time (Two weeks from writing to delivery) and all done within confinement.”

Paolo Sorrentino comments: “Homemade was a great challenge for those who want to tell a story. Finding a story and characters at my own place, with nothing else available, made me feel like when, as a kid, I dreamed of doing this job.”

The collection streams on 30th June on Netflix. Here’s a teaser announcing the project:

Homemade is available on Netflix UK, as part of an £9.99 monthly subscription.

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