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I have been a fan of Mike Mills for quite some time. His screenwriting and the way he directs films make each of his film has his own artistic signature.

I have watched all his films except Thumbsucker. Even though each film has a different story, a central theme that I recognized in all his films is that he builds his film characters in his own unique way. The way that they carry themselves, where they go, who they hang out with. All of these influences how someone become their own self. They focuses on the part where the kid in the movies grow up and how it affects the relationship with their parents.

20th Century Women is realistic with the props that Mills owns. Annette Bening who plays Jamie’s mum is based on Mills’ mum while the dad in Beginners is based on his father. To make C'mon C'mon even more realistic, Mills also collaborated with Molly Webster, a senior correspondent for WNYC's Radiolab, who helped to interview kids in C'mon C'mon. Mills really embraces every aspect to make his film real.

Mills says the idea of memory comes up in all his movies. "Like, what are you going to remember? Who are you going to remember it with or what are you forgetting? Or what are you getting wrong?"
He shot C'mon C'mon in black and white, so it does feel like a shared memory.
"Most of my films, most of my writing, needs to start with someone I know, someone I can observe, someone who I love and someone that I'm trying to figure out."
Mills says he makes films about the people he loves, to capture their essence forever.

Both film and books let writers capture some of their memories forever. That is also why I wrote in the first place. With fiction, the fiction itself would become a memory of when I write the story and what I was dealing with in life in some way.

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Take care,
Celeste

Letters for Creatives

Mike Mills with his realistic storytelling …