People Places Things

PEOPLE PLACES THINGS represents everything I know, think and feel about being a parent, a writer and a person. It is the most personal story I have ever told. It is also probably the funniest. -- writer / director Jim Strouse

When we meet quirky, offbeat Will Henry (Jemaine Clement), things are going pretty well. He’s making a decent living as a graphic artist and professor in and throwing an over-the-top fifth birthday party for his two lively twin girls, Collette and Clio (Gia and Aundrea Gadsby). But then he walks in on the twins’ mother Charlie (Stephanie Allynne), only to see his in a compromising position with their mutual friend Gary (Michael Chernus), a shlumpy but surprisingly successful performance artist. In a heartbeat, Will’s world collapses.

PEOPLE PLACES THINGS represents everything I know, think and feel about being a parent, a writer and a person. It is the most personal story I have ever told. It is also probably the funniest. -- writer / director Jim Strouse

PEOPLE PLACES THINGS represents everything I know, think and feel about being a parent, a writer and a person. It is the most personal story I have ever told. It is also probably the funniest. — writer / director

Profoundly new and surprising could also describe the ways in which writer / director Jim Strouse’s delicately observed character study dares to create a story out of simple, ordinary, everyday events and encounters that don’t require unbelievable coincidences, makeover montages, or broad bachelor hijinks.

For Jim Strouse, creating Will’s world meant walking that difficult line between honoring Will’s genuine pain while still allowing him to be suitable as a comedic . “Most the characters in this story are struggling or semi-struggling artists in touch with their feelings,” explains Strouse.

For a smart film about real people, the part of Will required an actor who could be likeable, but also believable as someone in a bit of an emotional rut. “I wanted someone funny, first and foremost,” says Strouse about the process of bringing Will to life. “But I was also looking for someone with a certain thoughtfulness. Will was always a little melancholy from conception but I was never interested in watching him wallow in sadness. So I needed an actor with a solid center that could be still and thoughtful and witty all at the same time and I found all of that and more in Jemaine Clement.

Key to revealing Will’s character are the scenes that Clement shares with young twin actors Gia and Aundrea Gadsby. “I’ve worked with kids on everything I’ve made,” says Jim Strouse about choosing to make the children such important figures in the film. “If you treat with intelligence and respect, they will trust you and do what you want. Aundrea and Gia were so naturally talented, and Jemaine took to them right away.

The final character in the cast is Will’s – at times picturesque (as the city can certainly be), but also a lived-in place, familiar, lived-in, and as claustrophobic as Will’s bachelor apartment and wide-open as the park where he plays with his kids. “The New York portrayed in the movie is the New York I have lived in for the past ten years,” explains Jim Strouse. “The coffee shops, the classrooms, and parks are all the same places I go to with my kids – Astoria and Cobble Hill, the School of Visual Arts, the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens.

Strouse credits the members of his production crew for enhancing his very personal perspective on the locations chosen to play out Will’s story. “My DP Chris Teague and I sat down and talked out every beat of the story. I knew all the places I wanted to shoot and my location manager, Steven Grivno, helped me secure them all.

MoreMovieDetails

All Posts
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Share this article: People Places Things

Facebook
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Email

MORE TOPICS

A Tribute to Storytelling and Visage: A Review of The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

“The Grand Budapest Hotel” is a visually elaborate and narratively rich cinematic performance, masterfully done and brimming with a captivating charm. It is a quintessential Wes Anderson creation – a delightful confluence of color, camera and character, a true tribute to storytelling and the art of visual rendition.

Avatar is a 2009 American epic science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Joel David Moore, and Michelle Rodriguez.

Avatar

Avatar is a 2009 American epic science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Joel David Moore, and Michelle Rodriguez. The film is set in 2154, when humans are mining a precious mineral called unobtanium on Pandora, a lush moon of a gas giant in the Alpha Centauri star system.

Waiting for Superman is a 2010 family documentary film from director Davis Guggenheim and producer Lesley Chilcott. The film analyzes the failures of American public education by following several students through the educational system.

Waiting for Superman

Waiting for Superman is a 2010 family documentary film from director Davis Guggenheim and producer Lesley Chilcott. The film analyzes the failures of American public education by following several students through the educational system.

As well, as music videos, Tarsem has directed some high profile television commercials, including the Pepsi "We Will Rock You" campaign, featuring Britney Spears, Pink and Beyoncé Knowles.

Tarsem Singh

Tarsem Dhandwar Singh (born 26 May 1961), known professionally as Tarsem, is an Indian director who has worked on films, music videos, and commercials. Tarsem is a Sikh-American and was born in Jalandhar, India. His father was an aircraft engineer. He attended the Bishop Cotton School, Simla, Hans Raj College, Delhi, and is a graduate of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

The Edge of Seventeen

Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld) and Krista (Haley Lu Richardson) are inseparable best friends attempting to navigate high school together… until Nadine’s older brother Darian (Blake Jenner) and Krista begin dating.

LIFE

LIFE explores the genesis of and layers behind Stock’s famous pictures, published the day before the Times Square premiere of East of Eden and James Dean’s overnight stardom.