Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

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Quinta Brunson: ‘Abbott Elementary’ is Back in Session Feb 11, 2024

Show notes

Today, we return to our conversation with “Abbott Elementary” creator and star, Quinta Brunson!

On the heels of her historic Emmy wins, we discuss the guiding principles behind the series (6:02), its incomparable cast (9:41), and the show’s personal connection to Quinta’s upbringing in West Philadelphia (14:49). Then, we unpack her earliest comedic influences (19:21), performing in improv in college (26:31), and the solace she found in Second City Chicago (29:09).

On the back-half, Quinta reflects on moving to Los Angeles at twenty-three (33:27), the feelings of alienation that followed (35:02), and the Comedy Store performance that irrevocably altered her course (36:55) and brought her to Abbott Elementary (46:56). To close, she shares her hopes for the years to come (51:00).

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Filmmaker Lulu Wang Creates In Between Two Worlds Feb 04, 2024

Show notes

Following the success of her autobiographical 2019 film, The Farewell, Lulu Wang has emerged as one of the most exciting voices in Hollywood.

With the arrival of her new series Expats, she joins us to discuss the responsibility she felt creating the Hong Kong-based show (6:55), collaborating with actor Nicole Kidman (12:30), and Wang’s personal connection to the project (13:12). Then, we unpack the contrasting perspectives embedded in the story (19:44), what she witnessed growing up in Miami, as an expat herself (22:55), and how she processes her family history today (24:15).

On the back-half, Lulu reflects on her college years (34:45) where she began to find her creative voice (36:46), the road to her debut feature film Posthumous (45:32), and why she wanted to tell a more personal story in The Farewell (50:30), which she first narrated on This American Life(51:25). To close, we talk about her full-circle moment creating Expats (1:04:00) and the importance of community (1:06:30).

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Oscar Nominations with Wesley Morris (The New York Times) Jan 28, 2024

Show notes

Wesley Morris has served as critic at large at The New York Times since 2015, covering film, politics, and pop culture. He joins this week to discuss this year’s Academy Award nominations.

At the top, we discuss the omission of Greta Gerwig from the Best Director category (6:07), former Secretary Clinton on Barbie-gate (10:12), the ‘perversely effective’ nature of Killers of the Flower Moon (16:30), and the ways in which Bradley Cooper’s Maestro upends the traditional biopic (21:45). Wesley then reflects on his early adventures in moviegoing (30:43), the indie film boom of the late ‘90s (35:15), the rise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (36:23) what the Best Picture nominations of 1988 can tell us about 2023’s slate (38:05), and the erosion of the ‘middle’ across film and culture (41:02).

On the back-half: Todd Haynes’ beguiling new film May December (44:10), Ava DuVernay’s Origin (45:53), the Academy’s fraught relationship to diversity (53:05), the function of Wesley’s work in 2024 (1:05:58) and a reading of his moving, personal review about Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers (1:10:54).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, reach me at sf@talkeasypod.com. This conversation was recorded at Spotify Studios.

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Dan Levy (‘Schitt’s Creek’) Goes His Own Way Jan 21, 2024

Show notes

Over the past decade, writer and actor Dan Levy rose to prominence for his work on Schitt’s Creek. After co-creating the series with his father, Eugene Levy, he turned to a more personal project.

Said project is his heartfelt directorial debut, a film entitled Good Grief(4:40). At the top of our conversation, Dan shares the origin of this story (13:22) and we discuss the importance of friendship (15:18), his experience working as a director (18:30), and a pivotal, full-circle moment from his time in London (20:32). Then, we discuss how he charted his course as a co-host on MTV Canada (28:00), the red carpet experience that clarified his path forward (35:22), and his ultimate arrival at making Schitt’s Creek (37:40).

On the back-half, we unpack the pure, timeless nature of the hit series (45:25), Dan’s journey to making Good Grief after the show’s momentous conclusion (49:15), a powerful scene from the film (52:18), the universality of loss (56:40), and the responses that encourage him to continue creating (1:00:00).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, reach me at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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Filmmaker Ava DuVernay’s New Hollywood Framework Jan 14, 2024

Show notes

Over the past 15 years, filmmaker Ava DuVernay (Selma, Queen Sugar) has become something of an institution in Hollywood. As a writer, director, and producer she’s worked to make our industry more just and diverse—creating opportunities for voices that have historically been underrepresented both in front and behind the camera. In many ways her latest film, Origin, examines a hierarchy she’s worked to upend through a bold body of work.

And so we begin today’s episode discussing her creative adaptation of Isabel Wilkerson’s best-selling book, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents (7:30) and the timely questions she hopes to pose as we begin 2024 (11:35). Then, Ava reflects on the influence of her Aunt Denise (17:42), what a typical Saturday looked like in the DuVernay household (21:56), her formative years as an underground emcee at UCLA (28:55), and how working on Michael Mann’s Collateral (34:33) inspired her to direct.

On the back-half, we talk about the making of Ava’s first narrative feature I Will Follow (38:46), a life-changing review from Roger Ebert (44:42) and the resulting decade as a director (49:15). We also wade through this past year in Hollywood (56:00), her hopes for ARRAY in the years to come (1:04:06), and the words of Angela Davis that keep her moving forward (1:06:00).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, reach me at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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Actor Michelle Williams Works from a ‘Place of Peace’ Jan 07, 2024

Show notes

As we begin the new year, we're returning to our conversation with brilliant actor Michelle Williams.

We walk through the making of Showing Up (6:05), Williams’ fifteen-year partnership with director Kelly Reichardt (8:10), and her upbringing in Montana and San Diego (10:42). Then, she describes coming of age on the set of Dawson’s Creek (14:50), her pivotal turn in Tracy Letts’ Killer Joe (20:00), and her path to Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain (26:10).

On the back-half, we discuss a healing passage from Rebecca Solnit’s A Field Guide to Getting Lost (29:37), Williams’ memorable performances in Blue Valentine (32:12) and My Week with Marilyn (37:47), and her final day shooting The Fabelmans (40:50). To close, she shares how she remains present as a mother (45:40), a formative Walt Whitman quote (47:22), and how—at age 42—she’s begun to create from “a place of peace.” (50:36).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, drop me a line at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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Talk Easy’s 2023 Mixtape Dec 31, 2023

Show notes

As we say goodbye to 2023, a collection of passages from some of our favorite episodes of the year. Featuring journalist and podcast host Sam Sanders on the stories of the summer (4:10), director and actor Natasha Lyonne on being a child actor in New York City (18:42), the Stanley Kubrick film that propelled Tom Hanks into performing (28:55), critic Hilton Als on the late Joan Didion (41:45), novelist Zadie Smith on the politics of writing (52:15), and to close, a tribute to the late Norman Lear (1:15:00).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, reach me at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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Bradley Cooper as ‘Maestro’ from The New Yorker Radio Hour Dec 24, 2023

Show notes

This holiday weekend, we're presenting a special conversation between actor and director Bradley Cooper and David Remnick of The New Yorker Radio Hour.

In this episode, they discuss Cooper's ‘fearless’ new film Maestro, his lifelong fascination with music, and how he constructed his intimate portrayal of legendary conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein.

To hear David Remnick on Talk Easy, listen here.

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The New Yorker Editor David Remnick: 'There's No Time to Despair' Dec 17, 2023

Show notes

David Remnick has been the editor of The New Yorker since 1998 and a staff writer since 1992. He joins us this week to discuss his latest dispatch from the Middle East (9:50), reporting on the aftermath of October 7th (18:09) in what has become the Israel-Hamas war. He also shares the personal story of Avichai Brodutch, how he imagines this conflict may resolve (25:10), and our ‘failure to communicate’ in this increasingly polarized moment (29:35).

Then, we turn to Remnick’s personal history: from the art that influenced him growing up in New Jersey (35:05) to his pathway to journalism at Princeton University (42:28) and his start at The Washington Post under the tutelage of legendary editor Ben Bradlee (48:00). On the back-half, we talk about Remnick’s early days running The New Yorker (56:45), the state of journalism today (1:00:30), why he cautions against despair as we head into 2024 (1:07:00), and a tribute to the creative longevity of musician Joni Mitchell (1:17:10).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, drop me a line at sf@talkeasypod.com.

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The Transformations of Actor Willem Dafoe Dec 10, 2023

Show notes

Willem Dafoe has built a career out of shapeshifting. His latest role in Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things demonstrates exactly that.

Today, he joins us to discuss his compelling performance in the imaginative tale (7:00), the elaborate details he discovered on set (9:20), and the three-hour physical transformation he underwent each day of filming (12:38). Then, Dafoe describes his upbringing in Wisconsin (15:15), his early love of B-movies (20:04), and his formative years in the theater as part of The Wooster Group in New York City (26:45).

On the back-half, we dive into his task-based approach to acting (35:55) and how it guided his memorable performances in the late William Friedkin’s To Live and Die in L.A. (41:10), Oliver Stone’s Platoon (43:52), and Sean Baker’s The Florida Project (49:44). To close, Dafoe reflects on the joy of collaboration (53:30), his search for truth as an actor (57:25), and his desire to continue creating in years to come (1:00:50).

For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, drop me a line at sf@talkeasypod.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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