Interview by Paul Salfen, Text by Christine Thompson for AMFM Magazine
When Joseph Kosinski set out to put audiences inside a Formula 1 car at 200 mph, the technology to do it properly didn’t exist. So he and his team built it. Working from the groundbreaking camera systems developed for Top Gun: Maverick and pushing them further with Sony, Kosinski created something that simply couldn’t have been filmed five years ago. The result is F1, a high-octane sports drama starring Brad Pitt as a faded 1990s racing legend pulled back into the sport to save a struggling underdog team — and mentor a hotshot rookie while confronting the ghosts of his past. In this exclusive conversation with AMFM Magazine, Kosinski opens up about the surreal experience of filming on real Grand Prix grids, the driver’s mindset required to direct a movie this ambitious, and the unforgettable Abu Dhabi podium moment that still gives him chills.
The Camera System That Didn’t Exist
“This is seriously one of our most favorite movies of the year,” Paul Salfen told the director. “When we talk about one of the best movies, just technically this couldn’t have been done even a few years ago, right?”
“No,” Kosinski replied without hesitation. “The camera system to shoot this film did not exist. So we essentially had to invent it. We were able to use the system we had built for Top Gun: Maverick and develop it further, working very closely with Sony to miniaturize it — make it smaller, lighter, still have IMAX quality — but mount it on these race cars we were building. That technology simply didn’t exist five years ago. So it was kind of the perfect time to finally make this movie the way I wanted to.”
The result is a film that puts viewers inside the cockpit with an intensity rarely achieved on screen. The inevitable “Top Gun on wheels” comparisons are ones Kosinski takes as high praise. “I’ll take it,” he said with a smile. “I’ll take it for sure.”
Surreal Moments on the Starting Grid
Asked if there was a moment during production when he looked around and thought, “We nailed it,” Kosinski remained characteristically measured.
“I don’t think you ever say we nailed it,” he explained. “You don’t really know that until the movie’s done and out there. But certainly while making it, there were a couple of moments where I was saying to myself, ‘I can’t believe they’re letting us actually do this.’ Standing on the starting grid at Silverstone, having two of our cars at the back of the field, having Brad climb in in front of 150,000 people who are there to watch a real race… moments like that were pretty surreal.”
Advice for Those Who Want to Tell Stories at the Highest Level
Kosinski’s career trajectory — from short films to some of the most ambitious Hollywood spectacles of the past decade — has made him a role model for aspiring directors and storytellers. His advice is grounded, practical, and free of romantic notions about overnight success.
“At the beginning you just need to make something,” he said. “I started making my own short films which got noticed and was able to build from there. But it’s a lot of hard work. It’s a lot of preparation. There’s certainly a lot of ‘no’s along the way. It’s not just easy street. You’ve got to sell your idea and constantly be pushing through those adverse times when things don’t work out. I work with great people who love their job. I try to work with the best people I can — like Tom and Brad and Jerry Bruckheimer. You surround yourself with good people, you can do anything.”
The Driver’s Mindset
Directing a film of this scale and technical complexity requires the same intense focus demanded of a Formula 1 driver. Kosinski’s guiding principle is simple and unwavering.
“I always think about what’s on the screen and what the audience is experiencing,” he said. “They don’t care how hard it was to get a shot done or how much it cost or how early you had to get up. They just want an entertaining, emotional story that they can relate to — and they want you to show them something that they’ve never seen before. You’ve got to keep your eye on the end goal. If you have a great crew and you provide them the direction and give everyone that goal, when you have all those people working with you, you can pull off something pretty amazing… like we did with this.”
The Defining Moment: Abu Dhabi
When asked for a single defining moment that made the entire journey worthwhile, one sequence rose above the rest.
“There were so many incredible moments,” Kosinski recalled, “but the one that comes to mind is near one of our last days on the shoot — shooting the Abu Dhabi podium. We were on the podium right after the real ceremony. We got Charles and George to join us and spray Brad and Javier with champagne. We only had three or four minutes to shoot that scene. To see the performance that Brad gives in that moment, knowing this is never going to happen again and we got to do it now… that moment definitely sticks out.”
F1 delivers pure cinematic thrills while showcasing both technical innovation and genuine emotional depth. Kosinski’s determination to push the boundaries of what is possible on screen is visible in every frame — and audiences are responding.
As the director himself noted with a grin when we wrapped the conversation: it’s even more fun the second time.
