Phoebe Wolfe, on both sides of the camera

This month in Après Diaries, we’re basking in the glow of Phoebe Wolfe. 

A filmmaker and sartorial dilettante, Phoebe’s eye for scenic curation is just one of the reasons we’re captivated. Step into Phoebe’s world with us, stay a while.

To properly introduce you, what are your nicknames?

I’ve never really had a nickname beyond “Phoebs”. Though sometimes, when I order takeaway coffee, my name is misheard as “Vivi” which makes me feel like an Anna Karina character.

How would your friends describe you?

Type B.

Where did you grow up?

Sydney’s inner west with my three younger sisters.

How do you think this has influenced who you are today?

Massively. The inner west was this intersection of cultures, politics, and class where no one’s identity was tied to their income. Friends’ parents had been artists or activists, and dinner tables were full of stories and debate. It made me see the arts and politics as connected, and it gave me a worldview that values diversity, critical thinking, and questioning the default.

 

Coffee order?

Almond flat white.

 

 

 

What’s the best item you’ve purchased this last year?

A Canon photo printer. Perfect for moodboarding.

Do you have any current obsessions?

Nathan Fielder.

What are your top three songs of all time? Is this an impossible question to answer?

Three songs is impossible, so I’ll give you albums. Max Richter’s Recomposition of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Leonard Cohen’s Songs of Love and Hate, and Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours.

What are you currently reading?

Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico. Gia Tolentino describes it as exploring the gap between a curated lifestyle and a real life, the modern anxiety of wanting to be good in a world where every action is mediated by technology and capitalism. This tension between genuine selfhood and performance is something I’m constantly drawn to, both as a person and an artist.

Who would you choose to direct your biopic?

Well, I grew up in a vaguely religious household with three sisters, all navigating the plights of girlhood… obviously Tarantino.

 

 

Best thrift find?

A few years ago, a friend took me to a store in the 7th in Paris packed with pieces from an old model’s wardrobe. There, I found a pink silk skirt by Galliano for Dior. I was obsessed with Galliano then, so it felt like discovering a hidden treasure, one of the most precious things I’ve ever owned.

 

Where’s your favourite place in the world?

Paris.

 

What's your first memory of cinema?

Probably the video store at the end of my street. I’d walk down with $5 and choose a movie for my sisters and me. We had a rotation of an odd Little Red Riding Hood remake, The Sound of Music, and a bunch of Adam Sandler comedies.

 

What’s your most worn outfit at the moment?

Straight-leg APC jeans 90 percent of the time, paired with button-ups, cardigans or singlets. I never really wear t-shirts unless I’m going to bed.

 

 

 

 

Has your relationship to your work or creativity changed as your career has evolved?

Absolutely. Once directing became my sole income it felt different. I am lucky to have a manager who helps protect my passion by steering me toward projects where I can run wild creatively and balancing them with ones that simply keep the lights on. I still make time each week for narrative scriptwriting which feels like pure creative freedom.

What helps you when you’re lacking in creative inspiration?

Travel, showers, and books.

Favourite pair of shoes you own or wish to own?

My Chanel scuba tuxedos. The perfect mix of sharp and timeless.

Something you’ve misplaced/lost that you always think about?

A pair of black cat-eye Chanel sunglasses with a white rim that I wore daily for four years. I lost them on ANZAC Day when I was 22, searched obsessively online for the frame and never found it again. I still think about them.

What is your biggest inspiration?

I’m inspired by people carving their own lane, shifting northern stars as I navigate what it means to be an artist in the digital age. From old-school multihyphenates like Agnès Varda and Joan Didion to new voices threading fashion and narrative like Nadia Lee Cohen and Sofia Coppola, I’m drawn to anyone making their own rules.

 

 

 

Listen to a bit of Phoebe: