At first, Larysa Kondracki didn鈥檛 think directing a TV miniseries based on the novel Picnic at Hanging Rock was going to be much of a picnic.
鈥淲hen the idea first came up I said, 鈥楢bsolutely not, that鈥檚 a classic,鈥� 鈥� Kondracki recalls.
She had seen the 1975 film directed by Peter Weir and was reticent about following in the Australian鈥檚 footsteps.
鈥淭hen it was framed to me as an absolute reimagining of the original book,鈥� says Kondracki, who started reading the 1967 novel by Joan Lindsay. It only took a few pages before the Canadian realized this was more than a mystery novel about the disappearance of several Australian schoolgirls on Valentine鈥檚 Day, 1900. 鈥淚t became a much darker and deeper, and sadly relevant, exploration of all these different girls,鈥� she says. 鈥淐reatively it was one of the most rewarding experiences I鈥檝e ever had.鈥�
Kondracki and the cast and crew 鈥� including Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones) as the no-nonsense headmistress of an all-girls school 鈥� shot the six-episode miniseries early in 2017 in Australia.
Episode three, which is directed by Kondracki, as were the first two, airs this coming Sunday in sa国际传媒 on Bravo. (Amazon Prime Video streams the series in other parts of the world.)
鈥淎ustralia really wanted to make a splash and make an international show,鈥� says Kondracki. 鈥淭hey just didn鈥檛 necessarily have the budget of something like American Gods or Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead.鈥�
Kondracki鈥檚 challenge was to make the miniseries special and stylistic on a tight budget. 鈥淭hat really came down to just a lot of creativity and an unbelievable work ethic on behalf of the cast and crew.鈥�
She singles out Dormer as 鈥渁 class act鈥� who 鈥渟et the tone for all the young actors. She came in and was such a force.鈥�
The director encouraged everyone to pitch ideas that could be used in the miniseries. Any idea that made it to the screen would win whoever suggested it a bottle of wine.
Soon, ideas were flowing from every direction. Kondracki says she gave away a lot of liquid bonuses, including a bottle of gin to a costume designer who didn鈥檛 drink wine.
The reward was part of an overall plan to create a positive work environment. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e supposed to be having fun,鈥� she says. 鈥淲hen you鈥檙e growing up as a kid, pretending to do movies, this is what you wanted to do.鈥�
Kondracki has always been interested in directing. At McGill University in Montreal, she threw herself into what she describes as 鈥渁 phenomenal theatre program.鈥� Later, she earned a MFA in film directing at Columbia University in New York.
She found early success as a director on The Whistleblower, a drama starring Rachel Weisz. The searing depiction of sex trafficking in war-torn Bosnia earned Kondracki a Genie Award for Best Director in 2011.
Her subsequent TV credits read like a critic鈥檚 Top 10 list, including episodes of The Americans, Better Call Saul, Legion and The Walking Dead. This has put her in business with today鈥檚 top showrunners, including Vince Gilligan and Noah Hawley.
Picnic at Hanging Rock is also her first project as showrunner. That鈥檚 a career direction she intends to pursue, although closer to home. After years of living in New York and Los Angeles, Kondracki has returned to her Toronto roots.
鈥淭his is a very interesting city to try and do this from,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he talent is here and we have a very robust industry.鈥�
鈥淭ruth be told,鈥� she adds, 鈥淚鈥檓 the mother of a two-year-old son. That鈥檚 a challenge 鈥� how do you figure out how to be a human being and an artist? Hopefully, if you do figure it out, you become a better parent.鈥�
