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Kristen Stewart recently spoke out against the idea that you need years of technical training to make movies. As she prepared to debut her first movie as a director at the Cannes Film Festival 2025, she called that belief outdated and unfair, especially for women trying to break into directing.
Stewart, who used to be known mainly as an actress, is now stepping behind the camera with her film The Chronology of Water. She talked about how the film world still has barriers that make it hard for new voices—particularly women—to become directors.
She told Variety that the rule about needing technical experience before directing is basically a way to keep people out, mostly based on old-fashioned, male-dominated thinking. Kristen argued that if you have something important to say, you should be able to make a movie without having to spend years learning every technical detail.
“There’s this nonsense idea that you need tons of experience or technical skill, but really it’s just protecting the industry. It’s a male way of thinking, like making a movie is some super hard thing. But honestly, anyone can make a movie if they have a story to tell,” she said.
Kristen also shared how tough it was to get her film funded. She agreed that the real challenge isn’t learning how to direct, but having the time and dedication—and especially figuring out how to find money. Since she couldn’t get support in the U.S., she ended up shooting the movie in Latvia and Malta.
She said, “It’s not about learning a bunch of technical stuff—that’s just nonsense. If you’re allowed to express yourself and connect with what you want to say, a film will come out of you. It shouldn’t have taken so long… and I’m excited for my next one.”
The movie is based on a memoir by Lidia Yuknavitch and stars Imogen Poots, who plays the lead over several decades. Kristen plans to act in her future directing projects, but she thought Poots was the perfect fit for this role because of something special she brought to it.
Stewart also shared some behind-the-scenes moments, like how nervous she was writing to singer Fiona Apple to ask permission to use two songs in the film—and was thrilled when Apple personally replied. She gave a shoutout to directors Sofia Coppola and Rose Glass, who helped her by giving feedback on the script she worked on for eight years.
Finally, Kristen encouraged young women directors to question the usual rules in the industry and not just accept random restrictions or rushed deadlines. She wants them to push back and change the game.