Sundance: 'Late Night' director Nisha Ganatra on breaking records, directing Mindy Kaling and finally getting her due (Exclusive)

It's about time you knew her name.

Nisha Ganatra has been directing independent films and episodes of some of your favorite television shows for over two decades now but, unlike some of her male contemporaries, her career has yet to, as she put it, "blow up."

But, with her latest project, "Late Night," it's finally her time to shine on the world stage that so desperately needs her perspective. The film was written by Mindy Kaling, who co-stars in the film alongside Emma Thompson as Thompson's late-night host character's first-ever female writer. It's a charming, funny, topical and all-around joy of a movie that, thanks to a record-breaking $13 million deal with Amazon, will get the distribution that will hopefully ensure its success.

Following the premiere of "Late Night" at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, Ganatra took part in back-to-back panels at the Stella Artois Film Lounge, after which AOL's Gibson Johns caught up with the accomplished director to talk about her wild 24 hours at Sundance, her working relationship with Mindy Kaling and the exciting prospect of what "Late Night"s success could mean for the future of her career.

Check out our conversation below:

You've had a pretty wild 24 hours: "Late Night" premiered on Friday night, after which an ensuing all-night bidding war ensued, which ended in Amazon scoring a record-breaking $13 million deal to distribute your film, which was then screened again this morning before you took part in two panel discussions at the Stella Artois Film Lounge. I'm sure it's been a whirlwind. How are you feeling?

It’s been a crazy day! I’m over-the-moon excited. I’m so happy that people are going to be able to see this movie that we’ve worked so hard on. The fact that a movie with female stars and a female-driven story is the record-breaker at Sundance is good for all of us.

We hear the term "bidding war" a lot around film festivals, but what does that mean and look like from your end? What can you tell me about that process?

It means you’re up really late, and it's the greatest thing in the world for an independent film. [Laughs] You come to a festival hoping for distribution and you're worried if people will like it or will it sell or will people ever get to see this again outside of this festival, so a bidding war just means you have higher and higher chances of people seeing your movie. Our producers were up late negotiating and, at 5 a.m., we got the text that the deal was done. Jennifer Salke bought it for Amazon, and we are going to be seen in theaters. It was the best news ever.

See photos of Nisha Ganatra at Sundance 2019:

And I presume that such a deal far surpassed your expectations. When you bring a film like "Late Night" to Sundance, what's your vision for what could happen? And how did that differ from what ended up happening?

This is going to sound so nerdy, but just being at Sundance was the amazing end result. We were dreaming about this magical place called the Eccles Theater and Sundance … it’s such an incredible place to be a part of, not just because of the movies they show and what it does to you to be included here, but also what the support systems and the institute and being an alumni do for you. It’s an ongoing thing where it’s like, "You’re a good filmmaker. How can we help you keep doing what you’re doing?"

It must feel quite validating for you and your work.

Yes -- and uplifting!

You’ve done independent movies in the past, but you've been really focusing on television directing over the last four years or so. What about that intense experience in TV prepared you for making this movie specifically?

Indie film and TV directing are very similar. I started in independent film, and then I went to TV. It’s a faster pace, where you have to be very decisive and cover your ass and make sure you don’t limit yourself in the editing room. In an independent film, you make bold choices and you absolutely limit yourself. Those were the two things that were very different, but the fast pace and the lack of resources were things this film had. It was all about the brilliance of Emma Thompson, because she was so prepared, and if she didn’t nail these things in one or two takes, we would’ve never been able to make this movie in just 25 days.

Not to jinx anything, but I think the overwhelming opinion is that this movie will be very popular with audiences once it hits theaters, which will bring about a whole other level of promotion, media, interviews and just general buzz. How do you prepare yourself for something like that for the first time?

It’s not even a thing I’ve ever experienced -- I’ve only read about it and seen it happen. Obviously I directed Jay Duplass [on Amazon's "Transparent"] and seen him blow up; I’ve seen so many men come through Sundance and blow up, and it’s just exciting to think that it could finally happen to me.

Talk to me about your working relationship with Mindy Kaling. Obviously, you had previously directed her on episodes of "The Mindy Project," so this represented you two joining forces again. What makes your dynamic work so well?

When I read Mindy’s script, I thought, "Oh my god, I am [her character] Molly. Who captured all of my experiences so poignantly and so funnily in this lovely journey in such a fun, entertaining way?"

First and foremost, we are both comedy nerds; we love comedy, and I got into it to tell these stories about women and people of color, but to do it in an entertaining way like the movies I grew up watching and admiring. I always loved Mike Nichols movies and loved Pedro Almodovar. I just wanted to make movies that were working on both levels: Very entertaining and very funny, but also thoughtful and had something to say. ["Late Night"] kind of brought everything together in a beautiful way.

With Mindy, I always loved directing on her show, because she was so respectful of directors. She knew that this is an incredible craft that takes a lot of dedication. She didn't do that showrunner thing that some people fall into where they try to direct over you. She just really allowed me to direct and really focused on her acting. I became a director to work with actors, and performance is the most important thing to me. I always said that I don’t care how cool the shot was, if I don’t believe what this character is saying then nothing else matters. That was the fun of working with Mindy, because she lets you direct and focuses on the enormous amounts of tasks that she has.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

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