Camera Roll with Marina Sulmona
Camera Roll is an interview series where we glimpse into the current moment via the mundane and the ordinary — the life documented and forgotten, lived through our phones and beyond.
Between leisure time spent flitting around her Clinton Hill neighborhood and beyond, Marina Sulmona takes on the role of working closely with artists to help bring their visions to life, in fully realized form — be it here, as passerby's treasured editor, or in the work she does as a producer and artist manager. Look carefully into her own creative practices and writing, and you'll notice how the act of joining imagery with words lies at heart. Together, her knack for working with artists and her own keen eye induce the multidisciplinary work she's done here — working with writers, taking stock of our audience's interests, and overseeing it all — and for other clients. Marina grants access into the intricate corners of her life in the conversation ahead, speaking about her obsessiveness, when she makes time to write, and saving movie still screenshots.
Where are you right now?
Sitting at my green desk at home in Clinton Hill.
what kind of phone do you have and how many images do you have in your camera roll?
A green iPhone 13 Pro that I got a few months ago. This was the first time I’ve ever just copied my entire old phone to my new one, so it felt kind of anticlimactic and like nothing had changed. It has 36,730 photos and 1,717 videos on it — I’m shocked I have this many videos and have no idea what they’re all of.
What’s your morning routine?
Sometimes, I'll get into the routine of reading in bed before getting up, which starts the day on a clear and calm note. But I've always been more of a night owl, and these days am acclimatized to going to bed way too late and waking up without a ton of time before starting work. I still try to enjoy a bit of stillness as I ease into the day's work with a matcha or coffee.
Tell us a little bit about your upbringing and journey.
I grew up in Vancouver, which was very idyllic and lowkey. At eighteen, I moved to Montreal for university. It will maybe always be my favorite city, aside from how biting the cold gets. After that, I lived in Toronto before finally moving to New York for a Master's degree in media and cultural studies. I think my energy has always been more suited to larger cities, and more than anything, I like the challenge and thrill of moving somewhere new.
how did you first get into the photo and editorial worlds?
Living and working in Toronto is when and where I really immersed myself in the worlds of photography, film, and even editorial. I worked at a company called ARTHOUSE, where I produced photo and video shoots and led all of our creative marketing, which was always so fun and fulfilling. I started as an intern, but eventually (and very quickly), got to involve myself in everything, and to work and develop close relationships with all the artists we represented. This was possible because of it being a small company, and I'm forever grateful for how much I learned there.
I think the experiences I had there kick-started my career and set me up well for this next phase. Ultimately, what I currently do now — as someone who works across mediums with text, imagery, video, and design — is craft cohesive stories. Whether it's editing passerby, writing and designing newsletters for various clients, or producing photoshoots for magazines, it's all kind of one and the same. My job, essentially, is to oversee all the different aspects that go into producing and packaging a story. It is to bring about pairings of imagery and words in a way that (hopefully) piques people's curiosity.
what do your days look like?
They differ depending on what projects I have going on, but most of the time, I start my morning by working through my emails and other organizational tasks, seeing what's timely, and then carving out time in my day or week to focus on tasks that require more mindful attention — like writing or editing. When it comes to the literal writing or line editing of a piece, I usually have to do that at night, when everything, including my brain, feels quieter. Most of the work I do is fairly solitary, save for producing shoots which involves a lot of collaboration and coordination with people. I'm much more on the go when producing a shoot.
what kind of skills and approach do you bring to your work?
Putting the vision and interests of the artists I work with first has always underlain my work, whether as a producer, agent, or editor. Doing this kind of work requires a certain level of sensitivity, tact, and a keen eye for reading and receiving people. Artists often, and rightfully so, feel protective of the work that they do. I think a good producer or editor deeply respects that and believes in the work but isn’t overly sentimental about it. It’s crucial to know how to balance other competing interests that arise so that the thing, in its best form, actually gets made.
The work I do also requires a certain level of obsessiveness — you have to notice all the small details and be really, really organized. No one else is going to do that for you. It's funny because I think I tend to come across as pretty laid back and calm when processing a stressful situation — which there are many of in production — even when internally, I'm not at all. But it works in my favor: no one ever wants to work in a situation that feels stressful, so I think being able to diffuse that and set the energy is really important.
any advice for those with aspirations to get into your line of work?
I think it's of utmost importance to trust your gut — with whatever you do. I feel like I have a very strong gut intuition, and it's always and only when I don't listen to it (because it's easier or whatever not to) that I've felt like I made the wrong decision. Also, be open, flexible, and curious; go with the flow and the opportunities that interest you, no matter how small. If it's feasible for you to take them, take them. Lastly, read and watch everything you're into and go deep into your interests.
When did you get your first phone? tell us about it.
2007. It was such a big, exciting deal, but somehow, I don’t actually remember the model. I think it was a generic Nokia. What I do remember is really, really wanting a hot pink Motorola Razr, which I never ended up getting.
tell us about what an image on your phone means to you.
I've included a picture of one of the sets I produced for a TIFF photo studio. This was the second year I produced a studio for Caitlin Cronenberg, and though the first year was hectic because it felt like I was learning everything on the fly, bringing these particular sets to life was quite involved. It was also one of the first shoots where I was involved with the creative direction and decision-making. The crew we worked with was awesome, and our set designer deserves a big shoutout for driving to suburban parking lots to buy old porno magazines to fit with the '70s theme. This photo marks all the memories of that time: all the work that went into it and all the fun we had.
how do you use your phone or other tools to mark and remember your life?
I keep everything — irl and digital. In terms of physical media or objects, I have boxes of cards from basically every birthday, childhood DVDs, etc. This extends to my phone and computer — everything that's ever been there is somewhere and will never be deleted.
It's all a little haphazard, though. I rarely revisit most of my old stuff, but knowing it's there and being able to do so years later is assurance enough. I recently read my childhood journal, front to back, for the first time in probably a decade. It sparked memories of things that were so precious at the time, but I hadn't thought about since. I try to journal for this reason. When it comes to going back through my digital belongings, sometimes on a plane, I'll scroll through my whole camera roll, and it's always really nice.
do you feel the need to capture certain moments on your phone or is life better lived in the moment?
A bit of both. I like documenting things and recording moments that become memories. I really don't think that I'm someone who is on their phone all the time, taking pictures of everything — especially when I'm not alone. That's the mode some people use to engage with the world around them, and that's cool. But it's not mine. In the best of moments, I'll take a quick photo or two on my phone and then put it away to enjoy whatever's going on.
what style do you like to use when taking photos and videos on your phone?
My style has changed over the years, and I'm sure it will continue to evolve — but I think that what I like to photograph has remained the same: close-ups of plants, things I see on the street, mirror selfies, food, my friends, flowers, sunsets, and views of nature. These days, I'd say that the approach I take to editing is much more minimal. I barely edit the photos I put on the internet. I realize this is just part of how trends change, and my own tastes get sucked into that, but I will say it's much more freeing and far less time-consuming, which I'm a fan of.
How long do you typically spend on your phone in a day?
I’m not big on phone tracking metrics, mostly out of disinterest, so I don’t have Screen Time set up and feel like I couldn’t hazard a guess. When I’m most busy, I notice I use my phone less and it always feels better. On occasion, I will check how long I spend on Instagram, which typically averages just under 20 minutes a day.
what apps on your phone do you use most?
Aside from maybe Messages and the Podcast app, I'd say Twitter and Letterboxd. I also really like Audm — on weekends, when running errands or just walking around the city, I'll listen to articles. It's a nice, refreshing change.
What are your favorite accounts you follow?
A few years ago, I became obsessed with goats and fell in love with @goatsofanarchy. Other than that, lately, I've been retreating back to wanting to use social media to see what my friends are doing.
last thing you googled on your phone?
what’s been inspiring you?
Being outside and watching the world move. A couple of years back, I worked through The Artist's Way, and one of the week's tasks was not to read anything — not a book, an article, a tweet, etc. Though I obviously couldn't get by reading not a single thing since I was in school at the time, I cut out all reading that wasn't absolutely necessary. It was so meditative and did wonders. This feels silly to say, but it felt like a similar idea as with travel: by clearing the clutter, you can escape within your own mind and actually discover new things about the world. I think this inclination to be curious about the world’s little details also resonates with what we do at passerby.
Favorite thing you’ve come to possess in the past year?
I tried hard to think of something less materialistic and more sentimental, because I've come to acquire some beautiful, old things over the years that are draped in meaning. But when it comes to the last year, what most readily comes to mind is a vintage Oscar de la Renta trench coat with red, ornately patterned silk lapels that I bought on New Year's Day.
What are you reading?
The Leopard, The American Cinema, and The Castle on Sunset, which I bought in LA. I read books like I watch tv shows — I’ll start them, put them down for months or even years, and then pick them up back. So I idly always have too many to keep track of at a time and then forget things.
What are you watching?
I’ve been in a bit of a rut, but loved Severance, and am now watching Dickinson and movies from the ‘60s and ‘70s. Hal Ashby’s Shampoo is one of my favorites but I somehow haven’t seen many of his other films, so am working my way through those. I also recently watched the obviously iconic Sunset Boulevard and half of the not good, but wild in its own right, Mars Attacks!, back to back on a plane — I have a folder on my computer where I save screenshots from movies and added some new faves to it from both.
images provided by marina sulmona