The Coleman family is at it again in Director Nisha Ganatra’s body swap comedy, Freakier Friday.

In the follow-up to 2003’s Freaky Friday, Ganatra’s film finds mother, Tess, and daughter, Anna, discovering that their identity crisis past may be repeating into the next generation some two decades later.

On August 24, after the DGA membership screening in Los Angeles, Ganatra discussed the making of Freakier Friday during a Q&A moderated by Director Adele Lim (Joy Ride).

During the conversation, Ganatra revealed how she helped her actors play each other’s roles and the audience keep track of who was whom for the film about women who undergo a magical four-way body swap.

“When you watch them, they’re doing really sophisticated acting because it’s four actors playing eight parts. And that part became so important. We had rehearsals and made sure to work with the costume designer and the production designer so that you had no doubt when Jamie [Lee Curtis] was in Jamie’s body because she was more of a fashionista. And the actors really worked together to get each other’s mannerisms.”

Ganatra’s other directorial credits include the feature films The High Note, Late Night, Fast Food High, Cake and Chutney Popcorn; the movie for television Pete’s Christmas; and episodes of Deli Boys, Welcome to Chippendales, Transparent, Code Academy, Better Things, You Me Her, Futurestates, Girls, Dear White People, Future Man, Mr. Robot, Shameless, Married, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Last Man on Earth, Love and Black Monday. She also earned a 2020 DGA Award nomination for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials for her Libresse/Bodyform ad, #wombstories.

Ganatra has been a DGA member since 2007 and serves on the Independent Directors Committee.