On December 4, the IndieWire Honors Winter 2025 ceremony will celebrate the creators and stars responsible for crafting some of the year’s best films. Curated and selected by IndieWire’s editorial team, IndieWire Honors is a celebration of the filmmakers, artisans, and performers behind films well worth toasting. In the days leading up to the Los Angeles event, IndieWire is showcasing their work with new interviews and tributes from their peers.
Honoring Mona Fastvold, our Visionary Award winner and her “The Testament of Ann Lee” director, actress Amanda Seyfried reflects on her collaboration with the gentle but unwavering “Mother Mona.”
Mona Fastvold and I first met years ago through mutual friends. I thought she seemed so worldly and confident. I had no idea she was a director, I was just struck by her warmth and openness. We finally got to work together in 2022 which laid a great foundation for the wild, wonderful, creatively-thrilling adventure that was “The Testament of Ann Lee.”
There are a lot of ways you could tell this story, but with Mona’s vision and empathy for Ann, there was no one better, you can feel her in it. She’s very imaginative and unafraid of exploring the absurdity of humanity in a way I find fascinating. This was one of those once in a lifetime opportunities and I feel incredibly privileged to have been able to help bring this remarkable woman to life through her lens.
With her background as a dancer, she’s so musical herself and brought in the very best artisans and collaborators to help bring her vision to life. She’s a natural collaborator who brings people together, which made for such a supportive, familial atmosphere on our “Ann Lee” set.
“Mother Mona,” as I call her, is very clear in what she wants and also very maternal and supportive, which I love. We have an incredible shorthand at this point, she can say three words and I’ll understand exactly what she wants. She guides gently and always gives me more to mine from — not all at once, but with a steady hand.
Mona is one of the bravest filmmakers I know and, because of her unwavering vision, we get to explore Ann Lee’s life in a beautifully unique way that celebrates her strength, leadership, and accomplishments. It’s such a powerful story at a time when we desperately need them.
“The Testament of Ann Lee” opens in theaters on December 25 from Searchlight Pictures.