As I delve deeper into the captivating world of cinema, I find myself continually amazed by the stories of those who have graced our screens. One such individual is Jason Schwartzman, whose journey is as intriguing as any script he’s ever read. Born into a dynasty of film royalty, one might expect him to follow in his famous family’s footsteps without a second thought. But that wouldn’t be the Schwartzman way!
Add Between the Temples and Megalopolis to your watchlist.
For the actor who kicked off his career playing the nerdy schoolboy in Wes Anderson’s 1998 hit film “Rushmore”, Jason Schwartzman continues to find motivation. “It’s a tough gig,” he acknowledges, discussing his line of work and pointing out the “prolonged periods” that can pass between projects. “I’m always on the hunt for guidance myself,” he adds during our conversation at the Berlin Film Festival this year. “My key strategy, I guess, is simply that I never give up,” he continues. “My sole piece of advice, I suppose, is that whenever I work, I try to convince myself it’s my very first movie. I don’t want to cling to methods from the past.”
Indeed, it’s been quite a productive phase for the 44-year-old actor and musician, who goes by Coconut Records. He’s recently finished working on his seventh film with Anderson, titled “Asteroid City“, lent his voice to the villainous Spot in the spectacularly animated movie “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse“, and played the role of the oily games host in the prequel “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes“. “This was undoubtedly the busiest year I’ve ever had,” he admits, expressing more shock than satisfaction about this unexpected flurry of activity.
Additionally, this relentless workload hasn’t slowed down one bit. He’s currently headlining the comedy “Between the Temples” with renowned actress Carol Kane, followed by joining the esteemed cast of “Megalopolis,” a highly anticipated directorial return from his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola. To top it all off, in early September he’ll jet off to the Venice Film Festival for the premiere of “Queer,” a new film directed by Luca Guadagnino, the acclaimed director of “Challengers.” This adaptation of William Burroughs’ novel features Schwartzman in a leading role alongside Daniel Craig and Lesley Manville.
Initially, we have “Between the Temples,” a humorously poignant Jewish film directed by Nathan Silver (creator of 2017’s “Thirst Street”). In this production, Schwartzman takes on a primary role. He portrays Ben Gottlieb, a cantor for an upstate New York synagogue grappling with a spiritual predicament. “I believe it boils down to… faith,” he expresses. “This individual is responsible for helping children prepare for significant life events such as Bar or Bat Mitzvahs and guiding them through this process. However, he finds himself in a state of utter disbelief regarding his inability to uphold his role, making it incredibly perplexing.”
Despite the pleasant and breezy atmosphere on the set of “Between the Temples“, the actor confesses that it was challenging for him. He explained, “It wasn’t enjoyable… it was difficult, to be honest, because Nathan, one of the key things he stressed to me was that my character speaks extremely slowly, even though not all of it made it into the film. That was a major hurdle. It’s quite unusual to have a director tell you ‘slower’. You don’t often hear that. Over time, we got used to this slow pace… it felt depressing. I didn’t think we were making a comedy, honestly. I just wanted to approach everything seriously. I always asked the director, ‘Does my character find himself funny? Or is he a funny person or not?’ I always wondered: how do you see this movie, if the character was in a room, would he make you laugh?”
Schwartzman benefited from the support of some talented female costars during the filming process. Notably, Caroline Aaron portrayed Ben’s mother Meira, while Dolly De Leon, who garnered acclaim in “Triangle of Sadness,” played Meira’s partner. Additionally, Kane, a renowned actress from 1970s American cinema who was nominated for an Oscar for her role in the Jewish immigrant story “Hester Street,” also joined the cast. As Schwartzman developed a bond with his character Carla, he also formed a connection with his costar, Carol. “I do have a connection with Carol,” he says plainly. “I felt a connection with her.”
Schwartzman finds immense joy in both his personal life with art and design director Brady Cunningham, as well as his acting career. As he puts it, “I’m so happy to go to work. There’s no place I’d rather be. At home, my days can feel quite relaxed, but something changes when I’m on a movie set… I feel energized and excited to be there. I think it’s the thrill of work in general that I love, whether it’s a film set or not, but I particularly cherish it.”
It’s not surprising that Schwartzman was moved by the unique experience of witnessing his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola, direct Megalopolis – a film that has been a lifelong passion project since the making of Apocalypse Now in the 70s. “It was an incredibly impactful moment,” he shares, before recounting an extraordinary incident where Coppola improvised a solution on set that left many crew members puzzled. “It was born spontaneously. It was bizarre and people were skeptical, saying ‘That won’t work, I don’t get it.’ But he persisted, asking only for the chance to try. He did, and it succeeded. Later, I asked if this was a common occurrence, and he replied, ‘I’ve never done anything like that before.'”
The near-future story of an architect who dreams of building a utopia, it split critics when it premiered in Cannes earlier this year – and here at RT we called it “a flawed but wildly ambitious look at avarice” in our review. Schwartzman, who plays one of the residents of Megalopolis, was bowled over by his uncle’s free-spirited nature. “I was like, ‘That’s amazing… at your age… you’re trying things that are completely new and in the moment.’ With his reputation, and as a man with experience, to still be divisive, to still have people say, ‘That can’t work’… it was inspiring to see anyone not stuck in a formula. And what I witnessed every day, by the way, was him constantly putting himself in these situations that were totally nuts. And I was like, ‘I hope I can be this way.’ I’m not even talking about as a filmmaker, just as a person.”
It’s clear that Schwartzman comes from a family deeply rooted in cinema. His uncle, cousins (Sofia Coppola, an acclaimed director, and Nicolas Cage, an accomplished actor), and his mother Talia Shire, who played Adrian Balboa in the Rocky series, all have significant roles in the film industry. Despite this family connection, Schwartzman didn’t initially feel drawn to acting. As he put it, “I wasn’t aware I could want to be an actor. It was a part of my upbringing, yet I never watched movies and thought, ‘I could be on that screen.’ Movies like Lethal Weapon in the 80s didn’t inspire me to think, ‘This movie is missing something – me!'”
Above all, Schwartzman confessed his affection for movies from an early age. “I, as a child, was simply captivated by films. I adored going to the cinema. Comedies were my favorite.” Later in his teenage years, he developed a taste for unconventional films such as “Phantom of the Paradise“, “Bugsy Malone“, and “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band>”. Nevertheless, music held a special place in his heart. As a youngster, he owned a portable stereo system that allowed him to take music with him wherever he went. “It was like I could create it myself,” he said, “and I think that’s what really attracted me to music… you didn’t need anyone else to make a sound.”
Everything shifted when he stumbled upon the script for “Rushmore.” He admitted, “I had never read a script before reading it.” Even his mother took a peek, leaving her suitably impressed. Later on, she went to the video store and rented him three films for his audition, saying, “‘You should watch these.’ They were ‘Dog Day Afternoon,’ ‘Harold and Maude,’ and ‘The Graduate.’ I had never seen these movies before.”
Speaking about his upcoming work, Schwartzman shared that he intends to release a fresh album soon. He’s been holding onto a collection of songs for quite some time and was uncertain if he should continue creating music. However, after reconnecting with Ben Kweller, a musician he’s known since his youth, they are now planning to collaborate. This reunion reminded Schwartzman of the character Carol in the movie, symbolizing new life being breathed into his work. He suggested that without this recent connection with Ben, he might not have created another album.
Between the Temples opens in cinemas this Friday, while Megalopolis is released on 27 September.
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2024-08-21 18:04