The Playlist

Interview: Kaya Scodelario On 'Emanuel & The Truth About Fishes,' Sean Durkin's 'Southcliffe' & Her Return To 'Skins'

By Oliver Lyttelton
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May 7, 2013 11:01 AM
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2 Comments

Interviews

Every year (at least in the last few), it seems there's at least one actress who, while already on many radars, comes to Sundance with a performance that launches her to true stardom. Carey Mulligan, Felicity Jones, Jennifer Lawrence, Elizabeth Olsen, Mia Wasikowska and Quvenzhane Wallis all went to Park City as complete or relative unknowns, and left at the top of casting wish-lists. This year, perhaps the most notable Sundance starlet to break out was Kaya Scodelario.

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Hurt People Hurt People: Neil LaBute & Alice Eve On The Intricate Roleplaying Of ‘Some Velvet Morning’

By Kristin McCracken
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May 3, 2013 12:03 PM
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0 Comments

Some Velvet Morning, Alice Eve, Neil LaBute

Interviews

Since his award-winning debut feature “In the Company of Men” in 1997, Neil LaBute has developed a diverse career that spans writing and directing for both the stage and screen. Depicting unsettling and often cruel relationships between men and women, his work can be difficult to stomach, but there is no denying his unique voice. Over the years, LaBute has experimented with directing other people’s work, venturing into the horror (“The Wicker Man”), thriller (“Lakeview Terrace”) and comedy (“Nurse Betty,” “Death at a Funeral”) genres, to varying degrees of critical success. At the same time, he is a prolific playwright, with “The Mercy Seat,” “Fat Pig,” “reasons to be pretty,” and “The Shape of Things,” among others, making theatrical waves.

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Interview: Lake Bell On Her Love Of Movie Trailers & Her Directorial Debut 'In A World...'

By Oliver Lyttelton
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May 2, 2013 2:25 PM
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Interviews

Sundance London was something of a homecoming for actress/writer/director/producer Lake Bell. Though born in New York, Bell began her career studying acting at London's Rose Bruford College, a stone's throw away from the O2 complex where the festival was taking place. And what better place could there be for the international premiere of the feature directorial debut from the star, who's consistently impressed both in TV roles like "How To Make It In America" and "Children's Hospital," and on the big screen in the likes of "It's Complicated" and "Pride & Glory."

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Zoe Kazan Talks Twin Roles Of "The Pretty One' & How 'In Your Eyes' Is "Like Joss Whedon Does Nicholas Sparks"

By Kristin McCracken
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April 25, 2013 5:50 PM
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Interviews

After winning the Best Actress Award at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival for Bradley Rust Gray’s “The Exploding Girl,” Zoe Kazan added a big-budget rom-com (“It’s Complicated”) and more indie dramas (“Meek’s Cutoff”) to her resume, starred on Broadway (“A Behanding in Spokane”) with Christopher Walken, and wrote the charming (and underrated) screenplay for “Ruby Sparks,” in which she starred with her longtime partner Paul Dano.

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Dane DeHaan Talks Building A BMX Bike For ‘The Place Beyond The Pines,’ Impending ‘Spider-Man’ Fame & More

By Diana Drumm
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April 12, 2013 3:53 PM
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3 Comments

Interviews

You may know him from HBO’s critically acclaimed “In Treatment” or as Cricket in “Lawless,” or as the “monster” in “Chronicle.” Or you may not be able to place him yet, but that will soon change. Actor Dane DeHaan is not one to shy from a challenge and continues to impress filmmakers with that aspiration.

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Eva Mendes Talks Convincing Her 'Place Beyond The Pines' Director That She Was The Real Deal, Her Research & Her Goal To Keep Things Weird

By Diana Drumm
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April 10, 2013 6:03 PM
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3 Comments

Interviews

In her latest film, “The Place Beyond the Pines,” Eva Mendes shirks her sexy image and gives a down-to-earth portrayal of a small-town waitress forced to choose between the father of her child, a face-tattooed stunt motorcycle driver (Ryan Gosling), and a man who can offer her substantial security (Mahershala Ali) – kind of her own “Sophie's Choice,” as Mendes says. Though some may raise an eyebrow at her being cast in a Derek Cianfrance film, Mendes fought for the role of Romina, an important female figure in a film dominated by men and concerning legacy in America, particularly about what is passed down from parents to children. During her research, Mendes gathered up her own family and friends with children to further explore the role and added that thoughtful touch to her performance

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Interview: Shane Carruth Reveals The Mysteries Of 'Upstream Color'

By Jessica Kiang
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April 8, 2013 3:02 PM
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9 Comments

Interviews

In the hopes that some of you got to see "Upstream Color" over the weekend at one of its few, packed screenings, we're bringing you the concluding part of our interview with director Shane Carruth from the Berlin Film Festival, in which we spoke in a more minute way about the ins and outs of the film's plot, the motivations of some of its key characters, the thematic importance of the sound design and the metaphysics that underlies its ultimate meaning. Those who haven't yet had the singular pleasure of seeing it, we can only urge to go back and read parts one and two of the interview, or our review from Sundance, and then bookmark this one for later, as it's probably too close a reading of the film for anyone who hasn't yet become entangled in its enigmas.

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Interview: Shane Carruth Talks Trying To Make The Perfect "Album Film" With 'Upstream Color'

By Jessica Kiang
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April 3, 2013 2:35 PM
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2 Comments

Interviews

In Part One of our Shane Carruth interview, we brought you news of the "Primer" director's other projects -- the abortive "A Topiary," his work on Rian Johnson's "Looper" and the gestating "The Modern Ocean." But, of course, the real excitement is for "Upstream Color," which hits theaters this Friday, and it's a film that those Playlisters who've seen it have been profoundly impressed by. We can't wait for what will no doubt become a lively discourse because, much as we loved it, the film's willful impressionism has seen more than a few viewers, perhaps initially attracted by the genre trappings, leave the cinema (early) and frustrated. But as Carruth himself says, "People who are getting it are really getting it," and we humbly count ourselves among the latter group. During our extensive interview with the filmmaker at the Berlin International Film Festival, we got to talk in depth about his inspirations, his process and his hopes for the film's reception.

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'Upstream Color' Director Shane Carruth Reveals Details On Next Project 'The Modern Ocean,' His Work On 'Looper' & More

By Jessica Kiang
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April 1, 2013 4:02 PM
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5 Comments

Interviews

Psychotropic, romantic and beautiful like a scary dream, Shane Carruth’s long-awaited follow-up to "Primer," the self-distributed "Upstream Color" comes to theaters this Friday. Though it will undoubtedly divide, it has already, in its way, conquered many who've seen it: our reviewer in Sundance was little short of enraptured by the film, and this writer wholeheartedly agrees after seeing it at the Berlin International Film Festival. There are very few films that have the power to stay with you, buzzing and humming below the surface of your consciousness, for days after you see them, but the strains of "Upstream Color" remain with us still.

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Derek Cianfrance Talks About His Epic Drama 'The Place Beyond The Pines' & Almost Making Two Movies Out Of 'Blue Valentine'

By Edward Davis
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April 1, 2013 3:20 PM
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3 Comments

Place Beyond The Pines, Derek Cianfrance, Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper

Interviews

Filmmaker Derek Cianfrance took twelve years to make his sophomore effort, "Blue Valentine." A searing relationship drama about husbands and wives starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, it quickly put the almost-forgotten director – who made his feature debut with 1998's still unreleased "Brother Tied" and had turned to documentaries in that time – firmly back on the cinematic map. His follow-up, "The Place Beyond The Pines" arrived a relatively quick two years later, but was six years in the making and Cianfrance actually had Gosling on board before 'Valentine' had even begun shooting.

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