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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 19 December 2023

Migration is the big family-orientated flick being release on Boxing Day here in Australia and I recently spoke to the director, Benjamin Renner (Ernest & Celestine), about the project…

Matt:  It’s the summer school holidays here in Australia which is always a big time for parents taking kids to the movies.  What do you look for in a great family movie?

Benjamin:  I always hope families are going to have fun and that was our goal here.  We wanted people to relate to these characters and come out of the theatre going “oh, that’s you” and “that’s me”.  We also wanted to share this idea of reuniting a family and teaching them lessons about getting out of you comfort zone and confront the challenges of life. 

Matt:  I do like a theme of this movie about getting out there are seeing the world.  These Mallards don’t have to worry about a huge mortgage but it’s still good advice to live one’s life by.  Is it a mantra you two subscribe in?

Benjamin:  Yeah, definitely.  Mallards actually have way more problems that we do in terms of quality of life.  The idea came from my producer who read an article about Mallards who, because winters are getting warmer and warmer, don’t need to go on migration any more.  Some of them decide to stay home.  The idea of being stuck in a routine is very relatable and we all go through it at some point in our life.  I’m important to travel and discover new things and open yourself to the world – it’s something we wanted to share in the movie.

Matt:  Mike White is one of the co-writers here who I’ve admired going back to his work on Enlightened.  He has a great, warped sense of humour and I was wondering if you had much to do with him in creating the film?

Benjamin:  He had written the script with my producer before I arrived on the project.  When I came in, he’d already spent a year on it.  I met him a few times and we discussed what he wanted to express so I could understand what the characters were feeling.  Unfortunately, he had to go shoot The White Lotus so I couldn’t have him through the whole production of the film.  That was a big disappointment but I also wanted him to do The White Lotus.

The biggest challenge was remaining faithful to the script and what he wanted to express.  Also, since the idea came from the producer, we were also able to bring new ideas along the way to make it even better.

Matt:  It’s a great cast.  Did you have any idea of the voice of each character before setting out or was it something that evolved?

Benjamin:  Some of them, yeah.  It was early in the process of the movie.  Kumail Nanjiani and Elizabeth Banks – I heard about them 3-4 weeks after I started working on the project and they were perfect for the roles.  They matched with the character in the sense that they have a similar spirit to the character.  Kumail could understand what it’s like to struggle to get out of one’s comfortable zone and Elizabeth was the same with someone who loves to take new risks.

It was really fun having the chance to work with those people.  They owned the characters so we could let the script evolve depending on what they could bring to the role.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 16 November 2023

A flood of Australian movies as been arriving in cinemas (just in time for AACTA Award voting) and the latest is The Royal Hotel from director Kitty Green.  I recently had the chance to speak to Kitty about the interesting project…

Matt:  The screenplay is accredited to you and another Aussie, Oscar Redding. How did the idea come about and what was the process between you two in putting it all on paper?

Kitty:  I had originally seen a documentary called Hotel Coolgardie which is about two Scandinavian backpackers working in an outback pub.  I was struck by the movie and thought it was an interesting documentary.  I then got to work on adapting it into a fictional film.

Matt:  Anyone who has travelled to outback Australia will know of pubs and people like we see in the film. Where did you end up shooting it?

Kitty:  We shot in South Australia – a few hours north of Adelaide in a little town called Yatina which is home to 29 people.  We took over that town.  It was hard to get a real pub to shut down for a few weeks so we used a studio in Adelaide to build the interior of the pub and take over that space. 

Matt:  Was it the kind of movie where you can get the locals to help out?  Did any of the 29 people in the town get involved?

Kitty:  There’s definitely some Yatina residents in the movie.  The owner of the pub makes a few cameos so that was exciting for him.

Matt:  I love it when films have a great opening shot and here you have a cracker - thinking we’re in some kind of nightclub when that’s not really the case. How did that evolve?

Kitty:  We wanted to show a good, fun Sydney vacation.  The idea is that it’s the kind of trip where you spend a lot of time in dark nightclubs and you’re not experiencing the country as much as you would if you went further out.  Once they leave the nightclub, you realise it’s on a moving boat in Sydney Harbour and it was a lot of fun to shoot out there.  We did want to make a point that’s not the real Australia and the real Australian experience.

Matt:  I am a big fan of Julia Garner and you’ve worked with her before. From your perspective as a director, what is it that makes her so damn good?

Kitty:  She’s electric.  You put her in front of a camera and the camera loves her.  She’s got a really interesting face.  She can do very little with her face and still be expressive and understand what the character is going through.  She’s also lovely to work with.  We get along and it’s really fun.

Matt:  I’m sure she’d get a few scripts thrown her way.  What was it that attracted her so much to the role?

Kitty:  We’d worked together before on The Assistant which was key and the idea of working together again was exciting.  Also, I don’t believe she’d been to Australia before and she was keen on the travel and adventure side of it.

Matt:  Garner plays the role of Hannah and Jessica Henwick plays Liv. They’re both gifted actors and so I was curious to know if you always saw it that way or whether there was any thought to flipping their characters?

Kitty:  I was attracted to the documentary, and I thought Julia could play the lead role.  I got the script to her and that was great first up.  It was then about casting her best friend and that was more of a challenge to find who would fit in and get along with us in making it a trio.  We found Jess who was wonderful and it really worked out.

Matt:  I have to ask about Ursula Yovich who really does steal every scene she’s in. I’ll describe her as the pub’s no-nonsense matriarch. How did you see that character and Ursula fitting so perfectly into the role?

Kitty:  My co-writer, Oscar, had worked with Ursula on a theatrical show before and so we wrote the role for her.  We thought she’d be a good partner for Hugo Weaving’s character.  We needed someone who was so tired and sick of him, and wanted to cut and run.  The two of them worked so beautifully together and their relationship was really solid.

Matt:  I was going to ask about Hugo Weaving because he’s one of my favourite Aussie actors.  Was it an easy pitch for him?

Kitty:  I think I had to convince him as I needed to send a few emails.  He was great and kind.  He was kind of the captain of the ship who set the tone on the set and it was wonderful to have him there.

Matt:  You’ve had a chance to show this film to big international crowds, like at Telluride and Toronto, who perhaps aren’t as knowledgeable about this part of Australia. What was the reception like?

Kitty:  We got some good reviews in America but I don’t know if they got all the jokes.  They’re pretty serious and the Australian sense of humour doesn’t always translate.  It has played better here in Australia because I think out audiences naturally know who these people are and what this place is.

Matt:  What’s it been like being back in Australia and showing it to festival audiences here?

Kitty:  We opened a few film festivals which was fun with big audiences.  It was exciting to hear the laughter and then see that transition into discomfort and people wondering if they should be laughing or not.  We’ve had some good screenings.

Matt:  What’s coming up? What will we see from you next?

Kitty:  I’m not sure.  I’ve got to sit down and figure it out.  I’ve spent a lot of time finishing this one up and getting it into theatres.  I’ll take a week off and then think about what’s next.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 28 August 2023

Past Lives is a wonderful film from first-time writer-director Celine Song.  While in Australia for the Melbourne Film Festival, I had a chance to talk with Celine about the project…

Matt:  The opening scene is incredible and such an interesting way of introducing the characters – looking at them from afar and being spoken about by people we never see.  What was behind that creative decision?

Celine:  I wanted to think of this movie as a bit of a mystery story.  It’s not a murder-mystery whodunit but it’s the type of mystery which can haunt us throughout our lives – who are these people to each other… who are we to each other?  It felt like the right way to begin the story.

When we come back to that same scene near the end of the film, because we have gone on the journey with these characters, the audience has many clues to help solve that mystery of who they are to each other.  We can also hear the conversation and discuss that very question.

Matt:  I had a chance to see this film in New York last month and it was serendipitous and I visited Dumbo the day before and took a photo of Jane’s Carousel.  New York City has such a strong presence in the movie so how did you settle on the shooting locations?

Celine:  I live in New York City and it’s a very personal city.  The way I wanted to show New York is connected to the characters more than anything.  I don’t believe every New York City film should have the Statue of Liberty but I felt it was important for these two characters to end up there because one of them is an immigrant and the other is a tourist.  This makes it a very special, romantic, important place to them both.

When it came to Jane’s Carousel in Brooklyn Bridge Park, I loved the carousel being enclosed by a glass case.  It’s protected from the wilderness in a glass building.  There’s something about that which spoke to the story of the film.   Their childhood is this amazing, fragile, protected thing and it felt like the right symbol for the film.

Matt:  I saw someone post a photo on Twitter of the front steps outside Nora’s and Arthur’s apartment.  What does it feel like to be responsible for an additional little piece of New York film history?

Celine:  That also taps into the way I wanted to show New York.  It’s the same with so many other cities but the most special places are often not the places you see on postcards.  It’s the places you walk past every day, or the place where you had a certain conversation, or a place that meant something.  You can’t point to that spot as a place you can find.

That’s how love and relationships work.  A place or a person becomes special and meaningful because of the way we see that place or person.  That was the philosophy of how I wanted to shoot New York.

Matt:  I love the music score from Grizzly Bear members Christopher Bear and Daniel Rossen and I’ve downloaded a couple of tracks already to my phone.  It’s like a kind of reflective mix of piano and jazz.  How did you all settle on what would best suit in the film musically?

Celine:  I wanted a musical world that would point to the silences in the film.  I also wanted to make sure the audience had room to feel something on their own terms.  I didn’t want to hammer the audience with a massive string score that begs the audience to feeling something.  I wanted room for the audience to find it themselves – a little more contemplation, memory, intelligence as opposed to pushing something overly sentimental.  Dan, Chris and I spoke about that a lot.  How do we make a very emotional score that is not sentimental and that was the guiding principle.

Matt:  There are some beautiful long takes in the film.  Can you explain what was behind that creative decision as opposed to a traditional, more edited film?

Celine:  This movie is about ordinary people with ordinary lives.  I didn’t think we could feel the moments in a “live” way by cutting back and forth too much.  I wanted to be intentional about when we go in for a close-up or when we do cut the camera.  The goal was to cut as little as possible.

I wasn’t thinking too much when doing it but in hindsight, I think it’s connected to my 10 years as a playwright.  I’m more comfortable with the audience’s patience.  It’s something you can ask of an audience if the silences and the long takes have a clear emotional content.  What’s important is that the audience understands the meaning of the silences, and they can also tell their own story “into” those silences.  

Matt:  You have two wonderful leads in Greta Lee and Teo Yoo.  Did you always have them in mind when writing the script or were there a lot of people considered as part of the audition process?

Celine:  I can’t create characters if I’m thinking about what actors will play them.  I was doing open auditions where a lot of tapes came in.  Greta and Teo walked into the proverbial audition room which was Zoom because I was making this movie during COVID.  During those Zooms, I could sense they were right for the character almost immediately.  I then spent more time with them which confirmed they were the right people.  I saw Greta as Nora and Teo as Hae Sung.

Matt:  This film premiered at Sundance with many other films back in January, but it has really cut through and found its audience over the past months.  It’s made over $9 million at the US box-office and people are talking about awards at year end.  I’m sure you always knew you had a great film but at what point did you realise this was going to break out and be such a success?

Celine:  I remember sitting there in the green room of the Eccles Theatre waiting for the world premiere at Sundance.  In a way, I’d been making this movie in secret.  I was making it just with the cast and crew.  I was very nervous because the secret was about to come out and be shared with the world.  I didn’t know how they would receive it and care for it.

You have a lot of control during the production but then you have to let go of all control and worry if audiences will care.  Sundance helped me realize that there is an audience for the movie and there’s a world full of people who connect to the story of Nora.  That is what is exciting to me.  Every time it opens in a new region and audiences experience it for the first time, what I feel is that I’m not alone.  It’s not just a specific feeling I had one time in the East Village.  It’s a universal feeling.

Matt:  What are you working on at the moment?  What might we see from you next?

Celine:  I’m going to keep making movies!

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 31 July 2023

The Miracle Club arrives in Australian cinemas this week and I recently spoke with director Thaddeus O’Sullivan about the project…

Matt:  How did this project first come across your radar?

Thaddeus:  It was about 15 years ago.  HBO were involved at that point, and they asked me to direct it.  Subsequently, they had some legal issues with the material, and it didn’t work out.  I was approached again 3 years ago.  By that point, it had gone through quite a number of drafts.  Kathy Bates and Maggie Smith were still interested in the project and soon after that, we moved on to the next stage.

Matt:  It’s a great cast but in the lead role, you have three wonderfully accomplished actresses – Maggie Smith, Kathy Bates, and Laura Linney.  How were you able to land them for what is a relatively low budget film?

Thaddeus:  Kathy and Maggie were attached about 15 years ago and then Laura Linney came in when I was attached.  She really liked the character and wanted to worth with Maggie.

Matt:  The power of the film comes from those leading performances.  Was it all there on the page from the start or did the cast have a say in shaping the great dialogue between them?

Thaddeus:  Jimmy Smallhorne wrote the original script, and his dialogue was very Dublinese and of a certain period.  The cast were interested in moulding that the relationships and backstories developed with a particular focus on Laura Linney.  It’s her character who represents the issues that drive the film.

Laura did a lot of homework on this character and needed to know where she was with each “beat” of the story.  Maggie had a very instinctive understanding of the character and she’s played many Irish folk on stage.  Kathy had to do a lot of work with the accent.  We had conversations going back 2-3 years and she had a dialect coach helping.  She was so dedicated that it was staggering.  She loved the role and wanted to give it her all.

Matt:  Is that actually Kathy Bates signing during the first act?

Thaddeus:  Yeah, that’s Kathy singing.  They all were.

Matt:  Period piece films tend to throw up their own challenges and this one is set in 1967s Dublin and the Lourdes.  The style of the old-school bus is one thing I enjoyed seeing.  How easy was it re-creating that period?

Thaddeus:  It was the period in which I left Ireland and so it was clear to me and sort of frozen in time.  It’s a period I was very comfortable with.  I had a production and costume designer who felt the same way.  Up until that point, Ireland had been a very conservative society and in the 1960s, things began to change.  This “crossover” made it a good place to set the film – moving from one era to another.

Matt:  He’s one of our breakfast show hosts – Craig Zonca is a big fan of short, concise movies which don’t overstay their welcome and this one clocks in at the perfect 90 minutes.  How much does running time come into your thoughts when shooting and cutting it all together in the editing room?

Thaddeus:  It only comes in when I’m doing TV series.  With regards to feature film, it’s a relief not to think about it.  Sony bought the film for the U.S. and they thought it was a really good length for the story.  It was very lean.  For me, I wanted to tell the story and not get bogged down in background and backstory.  I wanted to suggest it but didn’t want it to overwhelm the film.  I just wanted it to inform the characters and their motivations.  We did have more backstory in earlier drafts but if I’d done that, it would have been a longer, different kind of film.

Matt:  What are you working on at the moment?  What might we see from you next?

Thaddeus:  I’m in Canada doing post-production on a TV series called Hidden Assets.  We shot it in Ireland and Belgium and it’s the second series.  It’s a police thriller and that’s what I’m doing now.