"I want to put an hour back into the movie": Kristen Stewart opens up about her directorial debut with The Chronology of Water

Kristen Stewart has gradually moved beyond her Twilight roles into more complex parts in films like Spencer and Love Lies Bleeding. Now, she makes her directorial debut with The Chronology of Water, an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch's 2011 memoir.

On December 4, 2025, Stewart discussed the struggles she faced while editing the film.

"I want to put an hour back into the movie," she told Hollywood Reporter on a Zoom call interview.

The Chronology of Water follows Yuknavitch's life from childhood abuse and addiction to finding strength through writing. It premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section on May 16, getting a six-and-a-half-minute standing ovation and positive reviews.

Imogen Poots stars as Lidia Yuknavitch, with Thora Birch as Claudia, Susannah Flood as Dorothy, Tom Sturridge as Kevin, Kim Gordon, Michael Epp, Earl Cave, Esmé Creed-Miles and Jim Belushi as Ken.

Stewart co-wrote the script with Andy Mingo and produced it with Michael Pruss, Rebecca Feuer and partner Dylan Meyer.

Shot on 16mm for a textured look, the 128-minute film uses nonlinear structure to match the memoir's emotional flow. 

From Twilight set to director's chair: Stewart's path to The Chronology of Water

Stewart read the memoir in 2017 and immediately pitched it as a film. It took eight years to secure funding, which she described as "f**king hard" as a first-time director.

Her parents worked in film; her dad as a stage manager and her mom as a script supervisor. As a result, she grew up on sets, which helped build her interest in directing. She put it off to focus on acting but learned from directors like Olivier Assayas and David Cronenberg.

After Cannes, distributors hesitated over the film's intense, nonlinear style. At Cannes, Stewart said:

 "Everyone was like, 'I cannot sell this.'" 

The Forge Motion Pictures acquired U.S. rights in August 2025 for a limited release on December 5, with an expansion to January 9, 2026.

“The reason that I wanted to make this was to screw with form, because it’s not about what happened to Lidia Yuknavitch, it’s what happens to us all and how we can internalise that violence. I know it sounds dramatic, but it’s true. It’s incredibly violent to be a woman,” she said (via Deadline).

In the UK and Ireland, BFI Distribution plans to open cinemas from February 6, 2026. Stewart kept her vision firm.

"When you’re a woman working in this business, you make your perspective a little different to be heard—you twist yourself into a palatable shape," Stewart said. "We are all walking pretzels."

Shooting involved long days with close collaboration. Stewart reviewed dailies closely to match her original ideas. Imogen Poots excelled in her role as Lidia and said at Cannes:

“You just don’t read things like that. Or if you do read scripts like that, they’re not getting made. And so it was just this living, breathing document. It was just such a miracle that we ended up making this film. It’s extraordinary.” 

What is The Chronology of Water all about?

The film tracks Lidia Yuknavitch from a home marked by violence and alcohol. As a teen, she swims competitively to cope, but family loss breaks her. Abuse from her father and addiction take hold, leading to toxic relationships and self-harm. 

In Portland, she falls into drugs, sex and unstable bonds, including one with a boxer played by Sturridge that mixes passion and danger. Women like Dorothy provide some support amid the isolation.

Timelines jump between swims, nights out and breakdowns to show how trauma disrupts memory. Lidia's body is central to scenes that blend desire and violence, like a failed birth that uncovers old grief. She turns to writing to own her past, with a voiceover that pulls from the memoir's focus on the body as a story. 

Watch The Chronology of Water in limited U.S. theatres now. It expands nationwide on January 9, 2026. 

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