Lorna Tucker's own life could be a shocking film. In March, her autobiography "Bare" will be released, about which she writes "welcome on a trip to hell and back".
Right now, she is current with the film "Garbo: Where did you go", which is a new and exciting portrait of the superstar Greta Garbo. Many previously unknown letters that were found with one of Garbo's relatives form the basis of the film.
The letters showed how what initially drove her was the longing to escape poverty, to become famous and rich. And what happens then when you've got everything you dreamed of? When I made the film, my respect for her grew immensely, says Lorna Tucker.
Her image of Garbo
At the same time, she is keen to point out that this is her image.
Someone else might interpret the letters in a completely different way. Five directors could make five completely different films based on the same material.
In the film, relatives of both Garbo and the actress's friends appear, interspersed with film clips, documentaries, and Noomi Rapace's voice, reading from the letters. Together, they provide a new image of the star.
Was she gay? I don't know and I don't care. It has no significance. We mention these rumors but don't delve into them.
Lorna Tucker had a turbulent upbringing herself. When she was 15, she ran away and lived for several years as a homeless person in London. She quickly became a drug addict, using heroin to dull her pain, and eventually tried to take her life.
Saved by kindness
Kindness saved her. A man who sold the English equivalent of Situation Stockholm, Big Issue, kept an eye on her. The rest sounds like a fairy tale.
When she started selling the magazine herself, she was contacted by a modeling agent who wondered if she could imagine becoming a model. On a photo shoot in New York, Tucker met a director and asked him how to become a filmmaker. She said "just start, borrow a camera, come up with ideas".
Since then, she has made a film about Vivienne Westwood and one about homeless people in London, her old friends.
Those people will always be part of my life, she says.
Now, Lorna Tucker is a acclaimed filmmaker planning her first feature film. But first, there will be another documentary, about the American-Chinese pianist Yuja Wang.
Is she afraid of falling back into drug addiction again?
Now and then, I can feel the craving for drugs, but I know how to handle it, says Lorna Tucker.
Age: 43 years.
Family: Partner, three children.
Lives: In London and Tuscany.
Occupation: Director.
Previous films: "Westwood: Punk, icon, activist", "Someone's daughter, someone's son".
Currently with: "Garbo: where did you go?" with Swedish cinema premiere on 17/1.
