Filmmaker Lana Wilson’s interest in psychics was unexpectedly piqued the morning after the 2016 Election Day in Atlantic City, New Jersey, when she decided to have a $5 psychic reading. Though initially skeptical, the experience turned out to be emotional and comforting. This encounter led her on a seven-year journey to create a documentary called “Look Into My Eyes,” now showing in theaters. Wilson’s perspective on psychics shifted significantly following her personal experience, prompting her to explore and challenge the misunderstood tradition.
Despite gaining recognition for her previous documentaries on Taylor Swift and Brooke Shields, Wilson felt compelled to delve into the world of psychics. Her documentary takes viewers into the homes and sessions of various New York City psychics, offering an unjudgmental and insightful glimpse into their lives and practices. Wilson’s film aims to explore the depth and complexity of the human connection that exists in psychic readings, regardless of one’s beliefs in the supernatural.
During the documentary-making process, Wilson interviewed over 100 psychics across New York City’s boroughs before selecting the characters to feature in the film. She gravitated towards psychics who intertwined their practice with elements of therapy and found common ground among them, including shared experiences of personal loss or trauma that had profoundly impacted their lives.
Despite her success with documentaries involving celebrities like Taylor Swift and Brooke Shields, Wilson chose not to integrate a celebrity element into “Look Into My Eyes”. However, Shields did offer to participate in the film, suggesting the idea of her receiving a reading and channeling her late mother, a concept Wilson believed deserved its dedicated project.
Wilson highlighted the importance of the emotional experiences shared between individuals, whether famous or not, emphasizing the universal desire for witnesses to help us better understand ourselves. She found a parallel between the vulnerability displayed by psychics during readings and the vulnerability individuals show by sharing their stories with others, a theme that became central to her film.
