'You are the film, the film is you': How 6 directors define what they do
Have you heard the one where Bradley Cooper does impressions of both Clint Eastwood and Sienna Miller?
During the recent Envelope Directors Roundtable, the conversation turned to rehearsal and how much is enough. Cooper recalled a moment while acting in "American Sniper" where he learned a lesson from director Eastwood about the value of knowing when not to over-rehearse.
Eastwood had explained to Cooper and his co-star Miller how the blocking of a scene would go. (Cue growly Clint impression.) Miller then walked her way through it. (Cue Miller's charming British lilt.) Eastwood said, "All right, I'll see you Monday." He had shot the rehearsal and felt he got what he needed.
An air of warm collegiality, friendly sharing and mutual understanding marked the Nov. 18 conversation that brought together Cooper, who directed (and stars in, produced and co-wrote) "Maestro," with "The Color Purple" director Blitz Bazawule, "Ferrari" director and producer Michael Mann, "The Holdovers" director Alexander Payne, "Past Lives" director and writer Celine Song and "Anatomy of a Fall" director and co-writer Justine Triet.
At the conclusion of the conversation, Payne exclaimed what a surprising treat it had been.
"I gotta say, it is so fun to hang out with other filmmakers," he said. "I mean, I know we have this, 'Oh, promote our movie' thing going on. But forget that, because we don't meet one another other than that. Directors live in our individual fiefdoms. So it's in these periods that we get to meet each other. That's a real gift."
Their conversation here has been edited for length and clarity.
Bradley, with "A Star is Born" and "Maestro," you've now made two portraits of artists and how they balance their work and their life. Are these in any way self-portraits? How much of you is in
