Interview With "Past Lives" Director/Writer Celine Song

[00:00:00] TIAA is on a mission.

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[00:00:14] new music inspiring a new financial future,

[00:00:17] with 100% of streaming sales going to a nonprofit that teaches students how to invest.

[00:00:23] Stream Paper Right Now and help close the gap. I don't know. It almost feels like in a weird but nice sort of way. Like I'm in debt to you to just say thank you for the rest of your life. Wait, that means a lot. That is the nicest thing. That is the nicest. So good. Well, let me ask you this because you are going through what very few people go

[00:01:42] through during a war season where it's a full year cycle, more than a year.

[00:02:45] of but we don't know when you're releasing the movie at first at a festival at Sundance, you know? So I think that it's like it's amazing because I'm going to be experiencing the entire

[00:02:51] life cycle of the movie on my first movie. So I just know everything about it now,

[00:02:57] you know, because I get to be so at the heart of it and I get to be hard. I would, that's

[00:03:02] be a heart of it at Sundance. I got to be best part of it because the making of it has been, was so rewarding and totally a dream and we're all really close and we're going to work on next thing together and everything. So some of it is just, you know, it's like really is like letting the,

[00:05:25] while we were dressed up on a red carpet taking a fancy photo or something. We would just look around and say we'd take a look at it.

[00:05:27] Remember when our hair and makeup trailer was leaking because of a storm?

[00:05:32] Remember that?

[00:05:34] It's kind of a funny thing, where we're like, we can always remember what it was like to

[00:05:39] actually make this movie on the ground.

[00:05:40] And that always was such a powerful, browning feeling.

[00:05:44] And it really keeps everybody's head on their shoulders. that we adore and movies that we talk about, movies that have historical significance in the history of independence and the map, and movies in general. And to me, I just only think of it as such an honor that this movie that we made together is their first off the nomination. You know, but an incredible thing. Like that's honestly one of my favorite parts of this,

[00:07:02] which is that like,

[00:07:04] this movie that we made together is a contributed to that. I want to know like in terms of just connections that you formed over the last couple of weeks or months has there been anybody on the campaign trail that either has given you that same level of Groundedness as you talked about before or just some any any advice or even like a pinch me moment

[00:08:20] Oh my god. I can't believe I'm in the same room as so and so

[00:08:24] Well, I think that you know, it's welcomed into the filmmaking community, right? And I think that's part of it is this much a special thing. And I keep running into everyone and we just get to talk about movies and be together as movies and I think that really is the best part of the world. Yeah. Because, you know, what's really great is the way that we get to spend time.

[00:09:42] We have to get to spend time with other people who do our jobs, right? where you constantly had to remind yourself, this is a movie. It's not it's it is different. Like what was the element that you kind of found yourself having to constantly remind yourself of that distinction? Oh, I think that, you know, it is a pretty direct thing because I know what

[00:11:01] is a true about theater and I know that's true about film.

[00:11:04] When it comes to, for thing that matters about both mediums because it's dramatic storytelling is still story character blocking, working with actors, actors working.

[00:12:20] So I think, to me, the difference didn't feel necessarily

[00:12:25] so vast. entirely around that. So when it comes to visual language, the visual language has to speak to the entire film and what the entire film is about. So and sometimes it's literal, sometimes it's a pretty obvious or it's something that you can make really clear. But some of it can be totally

[00:13:40] poetic. Some of it can be a visual language curious pals living between the bookends of grand museums and dive bars. Hey, you know the place, the sweet spot where highbrow and lowbrow become drinking buddies. So join our barroom chats as we talk influential work

[00:15:00] and uncover stories of how the familiar became iconic.

[00:15:04] Think behind the music for the walk. But we didn't know what it would end up being until we found that street, this East Village

[00:16:20] Street that my DP, Shabbi, had into the past, which is right to left. And North went away for a brief moment before turning around and start walking towards for present and the future, which is from left to right.

[00:17:41] So realizing that that walk is a timeline,

[00:18:46] poetic importance of that game and what the themes about, what the actors have to do, but it didn't of course know the visual language that emerged from it.

[00:18:51] Yeah.

[00:18:52] Yeah.

[00:18:53] I love how just hearing how well thought out everything is both on a surface and on an

[00:18:59] internal level too and how that's going to translate over to an audience because there's

[00:19:04] so much subtext here in shot selection But I think that what I realized that nobody has to do with the movie it's transformed is that in that scene, when we flashback, it's as though we're in point by spreading it in darkness at the same time, the adults are saying goodbye. We're actually implying that these kids have been waiting for this goodbye for 24 years in that corner. They never got it when they were children, and now we get to have it.

[00:22:41] Okay. They also went really, really late.

[00:22:42] Yeah, that's what we shot it, too.

[00:22:44] Yeah.

[00:22:45] All right.

[00:22:46] Now that I know this, because I live in New York, I'm going to have to go now.

[00:22:49] This is just happening.

[00:22:50] It's a great sign.

[00:22:51] I'm sorry.

[00:22:52] You should go.

[00:22:53] You'll have fun.

[00:22:54] I will.

[00:22:55] Absolutely.

[00:22:56] The menu is really long.

[00:22:57] Oh, really?

[00:22:58] I want to...

[00:22:59] I hear that a lot of people actually come in now to just take a photo or just to have

[00:23:05] a drink there because of past life.

[00:23:07] How did they cocktail out? special film here as I told you before and I want to thank you for your time. Thank you so much. Alright, have a good rest of your day. Hey everyone, thank you so much for listening to my interview with the writer and director for PassLive, Celine Song here on the Next Best Picture podcast. PassLive is nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Picture and Celine Song for

[00:24:21] Best Original Screenplay and is up for your consideration in both categories.

[00:24:26] You will be listening to the first humans until present.

[00:25:44] If you like Mike Duncan's The History of Rome and wanted a similar program covering