IR Z Direct Interview: Josh Margolin & June Squibb For "Thelma" [Magnolia-HE] - Part I - video Dailymotion

The Inside Reel

Writer/Director Josh Margolin & Actress June Squibb talk to The Inside Reel about characterizaton, reality and tone in regards to the digital home entertainment release of their film: "Thelma" from Magnolia.

Transcript

00:00What's your plan for the day?

00:14The usual.

00:15What?

00:16Oh my god.

00:17We are crazy.

00:18What?

00:19I didn't say anything.

00:20Have you been amazed about how people responded?

00:34Because it's not just the older people.

00:35The older people are bringing the younger people to see it.

00:39What does that mean?

00:40Is there a certain psychology about that and how was that when you were making it?

00:44Were you thinking about how people would see it or was it just about making a fun movie

00:49for you guys?

00:51You know, the hope was always that it would be a movie for people of a, hopefully a wide

00:56range of ages, because I want, I feel like a lot of movies that center older characters

01:01often either, especially if they're comedy or they play into any kind of genre, can often

01:06feel very broad or very silly or kind of, you know, parody and, or they can skew obviously

01:11very, very heavy and, and sort of maudlin and emotional and not that there's anything

01:17wrong with either of those directions.

01:18But I think what excited me about this, this project and the way we wanted to tackle it

01:23was that it, even though it happens to be about people who are of a certain age, we

01:27wanted to treat it with a certain sensibility that felt as kind of vibrant and fun and adventurous

01:33as you would a story about characters of any age.

01:36Grandma.

01:37Hello?

01:38Grandma, it's me.

01:39Can you hear me?

01:40Danny?

01:41I got into an accident.

01:42What are you saying?

01:43You got into an accident?

01:44What happened?

01:45I'm in jail.

01:46You're in jail?

01:47Oh my God.

01:48I had a woman, she was pregnant and I, I don't know what's happening, but they're holding

01:49me here.

01:50You sound so strange.

01:51Do you have a cold?

01:52I have a broken nose.

01:53The air bag, it went off.

01:54Okay, you gotta get a call.

01:55It's okay.

01:56It's a, it's a defense attorney.

01:57Okay.

01:58He's a lawyer.

01:59He's a lawyer.

02:00He's a lawyer.

02:01He's a lawyer.

02:02He's a lawyer.

02:03He's a lawyer.

02:04He's a lawyer.

02:05He's a lawyer.

02:06He's a lawyer.

02:07He's a lawyer.

02:08He's a lawyer.

02:09He's a lawyer.

02:10Did you see my wife, she's a lawyer?

02:11She, she's a lawyer.

02:12Mr. Zelinsky, you got a call, he told me he's a defense attorney.

02:13Oh, my God.

02:14He's a defense attorney.

02:15Oh my goodness.

02:16He told me that he needs a defense attorney.

02:17Okay.

02:18He's gonna bail me out but you need to send him the money.

02:19I'm so sorry, I can't believe this happened.

02:20He's gonna call you.

02:21They're calling now.

02:22That, that's him.

02:23Pick it up.

02:24Okay.

02:25Hello, Ms. Post.

02:26Yes, this is, um, Post.

02:27My grandson, Danny Markowicz, was involved in an accident of some kind uh, he has a broken

02:35nose.

02:36his full legal name, Daniel

02:38Markowitz, Daniel Alexander

02:40Markowitz. And so the hope was

02:42always that yeah, people of many

02:44ages would clock into it. But

02:46it's still been a surprise and a

02:47really, really wonderful thing

02:48to see people responding to it.

02:50We we hope that they would.

02:53To me was at Sundance. That was

02:56amazing. Everybody I mean, just

02:59felt the love from everybody

03:01that had seen it.

03:04I mean, how did you bring your

03:05sensibility? We you and I have

03:06talked for Nebraska and a couple

03:08other things. But it's always

03:09about finding the heart. But

03:12with the humor, you know, you're

03:13able to balance that energy. Is

03:15that always how you have

03:17approached a character or has it

03:19Yeah, I think I always approach

03:22with a certain amount of humor.

03:23I mean, I think that's just a

03:25part of me. And it just comes

03:28out that way. So that's that if

03:31you get me, you're going to get

03:33some of that I think with

03:35Okay, yes, I'm looking at his

03:37file right now.

03:39What do you need?

03:40I'm going to need you to mail

03:41$10,000 to this address.

03:43$10,000 Wow, my god.

03:48Can you drive to the post

03:49office?

03:49No, I don't drive anymore. I

03:53don't have a car.

03:55How about a cab? And remember,

03:57it has to be cash. We don't want

03:58him sitting there any longer than

04:00he has to. I'm going to give you

04:01the mailing address.

04:03Okay. Yes.

04:20Was there something with them?

04:21Obviously, this is based on

04:22Josh's grandmother as well. I

04:24mean, is there certain details

04:27or certain things? I mean,

04:28there's, there's a great moment

04:29towards the end, it doesn't give

04:30it away where you basically can

04:32tell your grandson that

04:33everything's going to be all

04:34right. And there's a sense of

04:36just time in that, you know, but

04:39you had to, you know, is, is it

04:41about the journey at times about

04:43the character? Or is it about

04:45the moment she's existing and

04:46whether it be with Ben, whether

04:48it be with her grandson?

04:51I don't, I think the journey is

04:55important. You know, her, the

04:57journey from the beginning of

04:58the film to the end is

05:00important. But I think it's

05:02also, to me, that line, you're

05:04going to be okay, is one of the

05:06most beautiful lines in the

05:07film. And I'm so thrilled that

05:11you picked up on that, because I

05:13think, I don't know that

05:14everybody does. And I just think

05:17that for a grandmother to tell

05:19her grandson that is so

05:20beautiful.

05:30For you, Josh, can you talk

05:56about looking at performance?

05:59Because the thing is, you have

06:01all these great actors, and you

06:02have to let them play,

06:04especially, obviously, June and

06:05Richard, you know, there's such

06:07an ease, but ease is not easy to

06:09show on screen, it takes a lot

06:11of effort. Could you talk about

06:13that and finding sort of that

06:15rhythm? And then I'll ask June

06:16about how that rhythm sort of

06:18evolved, especially with those

06:19two characters.

06:20Yeah, absolutely. I think, you

06:22know, as you said, I, I felt

06:24very lucky to have so many

06:25wonderful actors with these

06:27storied careers and amazing

06:29performances that I admired,

06:31kind of come on board and give

06:33their time and talents to the

06:35movie. So from the get, I felt

06:37in good hands, which was

06:38something that I think, you

06:39know, there's always a level of

06:41trust to be kind of earned and,

06:43and sussed out as you start

06:44working with somebody. And as

06:45you start kind of getting a

06:46sense of how they like to do

06:48things. And we, we got really

06:51lucky in a lot of ways, because

06:52I think, you know, June and

06:53Richard and Fred and, and, and

06:56everybody really got along like,

06:58you know, June and Fred are,

07:00are, are friends. Richard and,

07:02and June were, were friends.

07:04Like we, I think we all came to

07:07the project with a certain sense

07:08of sincerity and fun and

07:10connecting to, to, to the same

07:14things in the movie. And so

07:16she doesn't eat, she doesn't

07:17sleep. She just keeps that laser

07:20focus until the task is done.

07:23I'm Thelma, Thelma Post. You

07:25might recognize me from the

07:29telephone. I got scammed. I'm

07:35gonna get it back. I need a

07:37ride. She's a little faster

07:42than you would hope. Son of a

IR Z Direct Interview: Josh Margolin & June Squibb For "Thelma" [Magnolia-HE] - Part I

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