“Performance is fleeting. I like acting, and part of what I love about directing is that I love performance. There’s something incredible about being in the moment— being able to create an emotion that’s not real.”
–Benny Safdie, episode 354 of Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
Throughout his fifteen-year moviemaking career, director and actor Benny Safdie has been drawn to naturalism and first-time performers. Fittingly, his recent collaboration with comedian Nathan Fielder (“Nathan for You”) was a perfect match.
Benny joins us today to discuss their satirical black comedy series The Curse (9:10), the timely premise that inspired the show (13:35), and Safdie’s history of capturing real-life personalities on film (15:58). Then, he describes his early connection to the 1979 movie Kramer v Kramer (19:00), a New York encounter with photographer Robert Frank (23:18), and how directors Robert Bresson and Frederick Wiseman opened his eyes to the possibilities of street casting (26:05).
On the back-half, we dive into Benny’s co-directing work alongside his brother, Josh Safdie (29:55), a heartbreaking scene from their debut feature Daddy Longlegs (34:30), and the projects that followed: Good Time (40:00), Lenny Cooke (42:45), and Uncut Gems (55:00). To close, Safdie talks about why he worked as a boom operator while directing (48:15), his recent pivot to acting (52:35), and his full circle moment of playing an astrophysicist in Oppenheimer (1:00:40).
For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, drop me a line at sf@talkeasypod.com.
-
-
Show-notes:
- Stream Benny’s new series The Curse from Showtime.
- See his recent performances in Oppenheimer, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Stars at Noon, Licorice Pizza, Pieces of a Woman, and Good Time.
- Watch his directing work: Uncut Gems, Good Time, Heaven Knows What, Daddy Longlegs, The Black Balloon, and Goldman v Silverman.
- Follow Benny on Instagram, Twitter, and Threads.
- For more, listen to our conversations with Brit Marling, Oscar Isaac, Tom Hanks, Alana Haim, Bill Hader, and Bob Odenkirk.
- Order your Talk Easy mug in cream and navy or our vinyl record with Fran Lebowitz.
Illustrations by Krishna Shenoi.
Subscribe, rate, and review: Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
-