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鈥淲e were trying to make a film about someone who鈥檚 caught up in balancing the day-to-day, someone for whom working is like eating, but life has all these other demands of you,鈥� Reichardt, who penned the film with her regular screenwriter, Jonathan Raymond, said in an interview along the beach in Cannes.

How the 58-year-old Reichardt, long a leading American indie filmmaker, has balanced her own career in filmmaking with life鈥檚 demands has sometimes been a topic of debate. While steadily making movies, Reichardt also teaches film at Bard College. After suggested Reichardt has to teach to have health care, Gawker published a piece headlined

鈥淚 cringe at that,鈥� Reichardt said. 鈥淭he thing is, I love to teach. The idea of that really bums me out. I never look at anything but someone sent me that link. I never had the idea that filmmaking was going to sustain me.

鈥淚 just always think: I get to go make a film? That鈥檚 cool. About someone stealing milk?鈥� said Reichardt, whose revolved around a pair of baking friends in 1820s Oregon. 鈥淚 mean, I get it. Filmmaking is expensive. Then also, in America, we don鈥檛 do art for art鈥檚 sake. But I feel fortune. I鈥檝e gotten to make a lot of films in the last years. People who are going to make these films are either up for it or they鈥檙e not going to get involved. If an A24鈥瞫 up for making a film about two ceramicists, that鈥檚 pretty good.鈥�

鈥淪howing Up,鈥� which A24 will distribute in theaters at a not-yet-announced date, is one of the last films premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, which concludes Saturday with an awards ceremony. It鈥檚 also one of five out of 21 films up for the top Palme d鈥橭r award that was directed by a woman 鈥� a typical ratio in Cannes that has often been criticized.

The day before Cannes began last week, 鈥淪howing Up鈥� came up in the press conference held by the festival鈥檚 artistic director, Thierry Fremaux, who was defending Cannes鈥� record with female filmmakers. One journalist, as an example, discussed whether Reichardt鈥檚 film was 鈥渕ajor鈥� or 鈥渕inor鈥� Reichardt.

鈥淎nd Thierry said, 鈥楾hey鈥檙e all minor鈥�?鈥� guessed Reichardt, laughing.

It was an ironic exchange given that Reichardt films, where economic inequities often slyly dictate characters鈥� lives, have never catered to traditional dichotomies of status. The stakes in 鈥淪howing Up鈥� may be low, but they are, more importantly, whatever they mean to the characters. 鈥淎 lot of people are creative,鈥� Williams鈥� character says.

鈥淚f we鈥檙e talking in the context of, like, the hit is on side A, I鈥檓 fine with being a side B-er,鈥� says Reichardt. 鈥淏ut if it鈥檚 in the context of your own work, that鈥檚 maybe more discouraging. If you鈥檙e already a minor and then you鈥檙e a minor of your own minor, I don鈥檛 know. One really doesn鈥檛 need to spend too much time thinking about these things because the rest of the world will just decide for you. You can just do your own thing and let everyone else figure it out.鈥�

And for Reichardt, much of the joy of 鈥淪howing Up鈥� was in relying on Portland-based artists to make the pieces seen throughout the film. She shot much of the film in a defunct art school, filling its classroom spaces with artists and art-making.

鈥淚t鈥檚 community based. These are singular artists making their work but they鈥檙e not in a vacuum,鈥� Reichardt said while the thumping music of a nearby DJ preparing for the night鈥檚 party nearly drowned her out. 鈥淵ou could talk about it in terms of filmmaking, too. I鈥檓 working with my mates. The kids were making stuff that I would go home at night and work into the script. We were all passing things off and learning. It became a school, basically.鈥�

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