My Creative Hero: Natasha Foster's Grandmother, "Sozzle"
Colour, fantasy, and cheek are the three main ingredients in a Natasha Foster film. She’s known for creating stylised and vibrant worlds and infusing them with playful performance. A little bit ironic and always optimistic, Natasha’s films feel like falling down a rabbit hole into a fairytale wonderland.
LBB> Who would you say is your creative hero?
Natasha> My grandmother.
LBB> How long has this person been important to you and what are your first memories of meeting them or coming across their work?
Natasha> I was lucky enough to have three mothers when I was going up - all strong, creative women who instilled in me the belief that anything was possible. My grandmother, who declared herself "sozzled" after just one glass of wine at the races, became forever known as “Sozzle” from that point on. She played a huge role in influencing my thinking growing up. She read me stories, took me to galleries, and let me fall down the rabbit hole with her.
One day, I vividly remember planting flowers in the garden with her — she whispered that there might be fairies hiding here. Ever since then, I have approached my thinking with the belief that fairies are hiding in the garden - you just have to look for them.
LBB> How has your relationship evolved over the years?
Natasha> We spent a lot of time lying in bed together, the ABC radio blaring from the speakers. A dog on one side, a cat curled up at the foot of the bed. Papers everywhere, crumbs from a half-eaten egg sandwich, and a black coffee with one sugar tablet on the bedside table. She was an English lecturer and did all her marking and writing in bed. I didn’t realise it at the time, but those moments were my first introduction to the creative process.
I now do the same when writing or researching — propped up in bed, two dogs on either side, classical music playing, and my laptop on my lap. The process worked for her and works for me.
LBB> Why is the person such an inspiration to you?
Natasha> My grandmother was a kind, resilient, creative force of a woman who embraced the magical world and people from all walks of life. Her belief in stories and these magical worlds is instilled in me and heavily reflected in my work. Particularly in the magical fairy garden in Samsung’s 'Flipside', and the suburban setting and Aussie characters in the music video for Triple 1 Handy Man.
LBB> How does this person influence you in your approach to your creative work?
Natasha> She shaped my values, my empathetic approach to strangers, my curiosity about human nature, and, most importantly, that it’s okay to throw reality out the window and live in a fantasy world whenever you want.
LBB> What piece or pieces of this person’s work do you keep coming back to and why?
Natasha> What stays with me is her unrelenting belief that anything is possible — this concept of infinite possibilities that I carry with me onto every set. It’s what allows me to bring to life the fantasy worlds that live within our imaginations. You can see this philosophy in my latest work for The ICONIC, where butterflies fill the frame, fluttering to life in a bright office, turning the impossible into the everyday.
