GIRL ON FILM

A noted YA author reflects on her path to creative fulfillment.

Ever since seeing Star Wars in 1977, Cici felt destined to become a filmmaker—not just an artist, but an artiste. And after stumbling into an informal dance mentorship with Jacques d’Amboise, she felt her artistic world opening wide. She continued moving closer to her dream, attending NYU’s film program until her parents’ tuition help ran dry and she had to move home to Montreal. Feeling lost, she then left for Paris, where she took acting lessons. Back in Montreal, Cici joined a punk band, worked on her filmmaking, and discovered comics, pointing her toward future success. Any obstacles she encounters fail to create long-lasting tension on the page; whether being the quirky sidekick to her friends’ star power, lacking the technical film skills to execute her directorial visions, or recounting her high school sexual assault, Castellucci’s narrative rarely pauses to sink into the emotional beats. Interludes of contemporary Cecil dialoguing with her scientist father about the nature of memory repeatedly break the narrative flow. Four different illustrators represent different moments of her life; of them, Gagnon’s art bursts with the most energy. The intended audience is a bit hazy: Some things are given historical context that seems intended for teens, while many other references—although not vital to following the overall story—are dropped in without context.

A solid memoir of a young artist.