Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Alice Englert, the Writer-Director of Bad Behaviour

By Lucy Spicer

One of the most exciting things about starting each year with the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent filmmaking. And while we learn a lot from the art that these storytellers share with us, there's always more we can learn about these filmmakers as people. This year, we decided to get to the bottom of those artistic wells with our Backstory questionnaire!Alice Englert is no stranger to Sundance, having appeared in three films that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival (In Fear, Them That Follow, You Won't Be Alone) in the last five years. But the 2023 Festival is extra special - it's where she made her feature debut as a writer-director with Bad Behaviour, an explosive black comedy that premiered in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition.

Bad Behaviour stars Jennifer Connelly as Lucy, a former child actor with toxic tendencies who attends a semi-silent retreat led by the enigmatic Elon (Ben Whishaw) in her quest for enlightenment. But Lucy doesn't seem terribly committed to the process, and the presence of a young social media influencer triggers something truly ugly within her. I always think it's worthwhile to make stories that bypass the binary of good and evil and stick to being complicated, says Englert. I also think a lot of people like Lucy are in tandem with something more and don't know what to do about it.

Despite some of the heavier elements in the film, Englert - who also plays Lucy's daughter, Dylan, a stuntperson in training - had a blast on set. I felt deeply overexcited about having such an epic stunt coordinator, Dayna Grant, who taught me how to roll around all over the place, get strangled, and twirl a stick. I love that part of filmmaking, the tactile part, even the touch of inevitable bruising. Rehearsal was a joy.

Bad Behaviour hit theaters in the U.S. back in June of this year and is now available to buy or rent. Read on to learn more about Englert and the making of her feature debut, including what inspired the story and what challenges came with the filming process.

LINK:	https://www.sundance.org/blogs/give-me-the-backstory-get-to-know-alice...
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