Taylor Swift’s lyrics are often pulled from the pages of her diary, and"All Too Well (10 Minute Version)“and its accompanying short film were no exception.

Swift, 33, sat down withThe Banshees of Inisherindirector Martin McDonagh for theVarietyDirectors on Directorsinterview, and talked in-depth about her creative process behindAll Too Well: The Short Film.

The “Anti-Hero” singer said the short film was a direct reflection of a heartbreak she endured in her early 20s, and that she’s enjoyed the chance to revisit that period in her life.

“Emotionally, I was going through exactly what the short film depicts, and I think that time is such an incredible asset to use when we have these stories that are hard to tell in the moment,” she said. “Because it’s good if a story is hard to tell, that means it’s incredibly emotionally potent, but it’s impossible to tell it with perspective and truth if you’re in it sometimes.”

Taylor Swift and Martin McDonagh.Michael Schwartz for Variety

Taylor Swift (“All Too Well”) and Martin McDonagh (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) headline the first episode of VARIETY’s Directors on Directors series.

Swift added that she found it “exciting” to reflect on that period of her life now that she’s in her 30s, and that was something she focused on while directing her short film, which she released in November 2021.

“I think there’s a moment when you’re 19 or 20 where your heart is so, so susceptible to just getting broken, getting shattered and your sense of self goes out the window so quickly and it’s such a formative age,” she told McDonagh. “I wanted to tell that story, too, about sort of girlhood calcifying into this bruised adulthood.”

All Too Well: The Short Filmstars Dylan O’Brien andStranger Thingsactress Sadie Sink as a couple whose relationship is on the fritz. The film is set to a new, longer version of Swift’s fan-favorite song “All Too Well,” which originally appeared onRedin 2012.

Dylan O’Brien, Taylor Swift, Sadie Sink.Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 12: (L-R) Dylan O’Brien, Taylor Swift and Sadie Sink attend the “All Too Well” New York Premiere on November 12, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

Searchlight Pictures announced last week that Swift willmake her feature-length directorial debutwith an original script she’s written herself.

Martin McDonagh and Taylor Swift.Michael Schwartz for Variety

Taylor Swift (“All Too Well”) and Martin McDonagh (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) headline the first episode of VARIETY’s Directors on Directors series.

No further plot or cast details have been released, but Swift told McDonagh that her next project likely won’t focus on a devastating breakup.

“I don’t think I would go headlong into another heartbreak story because it’s just, you know, just did that,” she said. “It takes a lot out of you.”

source: people.com