Words
Film is the language of Dream. Every single night in our dreams, we all compose a film entirely by ourselves. We write it, direct it, edit it, light it, shoot it, and even act …
November 22, 2023
I found this shirt in my closet yesterday. It’s one of the shirts Brad Pitt wore in Johnny Suede. Costume Designer Jessica Haston worked very closely with me to find the look for Johnny. …
November 8, 2023
I’ve received a few awards for my films, but this one for Double Whammy holds a special place in my heart. The plaque reads, “Best Restraint from Homicide before, during, and after the making …
November 2, 2023
I was asked recently about a camera teacher I had at NYU Film School. The teacher had shot several award-winning features, but his classes were two grueling hours of resentment and self-promotion. He withheld …
October 30, 2023
I got into cinematography completely by accident. One day at NYU, a professor set up a film exercise. He assigned Jim (Jarmusch) to write a five-minute film, me to shoot it, and someone else …
October 20, 2023
The Real Blonde is the only film I’ve made for a studio. The budget was higher, and so was the pressure to cast Stars in every role. The battle to cast Catherine Keener in …
October 17, 2023
I first met Sam Rockwell in 1990 when he came in to audition for Johnny Suede. The part ultimately went to another unknown and rising talent, Brad Pitt, but Sam made such an impression …
October 12, 2023
I don’t have any qualms about working with stars. There are many who are very gifted and brilliant performers who don’t bring the whole movie star baggage with them. This was our starting point …
September 27, 2023
There is a crucial scene in Delirious where Les Galantine (Steve Buscemi) comes face to face with a real celebrity. As a paparazzi, Les’ mantra about the celebrities he hounded had always been, “They’re …
September 21, 2023
When I was writing Living in Oblivion, the first and second acts came easily. But I struggled hard with the third. One day, I was expressing my frustration to my wife, Jane Gil. She …
September 14, 2023
One night in 1990, around midnight, my phone rang. When I answered it, a strange voice said, “Is Tom there.” I said, “Yeah, it’s me.” He said, “Hey, it’s Nick Cave.” That woke me …
August 22, 2023
I met over 200 actors to play the part of Johnny Suede. For some reason, most of the guys who auditioned thought Johnny was The Fonz from Happy Days and even brought in his …
August 15, 2023
Sometimes you know an actor is the only one for a role, and at the same time, you know you’re both in for a wild ride. Michael Pitt embodied all the elements that were …
August 8, 2023
I hesitate to share this story. It’s old. It’s new. It’s personal. In 1990 I met Lenny Buckstone, a well-known musician I greatly respected. Lenny had just released a new album, and when I …
July 8, 2023
I recently met Adan Gonzales who has a very cool Film site called staunchtv. He did a really fine videocast of his profile of my film, Johnny Suede. I'm sharing it here. One famous …
June 19, 2023
"Lock Him Up" is a new Single I wrote and recorded. The Single, and the Music Video I directed, will be released on Wed. June 14--which coincidentally happens to be Donald Trump's birthday. This …
June 8, 2023
Although this album was released a few years ago this is the first chance I've had to get it out on Spotify and other places with my new distributor, DistroKid. I'm really proud of …
May 26, 2023
A friend sent me this today. It came from Eric Weiss at weissfoto on Instagram. Although this scene from Living In Oblivion was shot 25 years ago I remember it as if it was …
May 24, 2023
I recently had a great talk with Zef Cota who has a podcast called The Film Situation. Zef is also a filmmaker which prompted some interesting stuff to come up. You can listen to …
March 15, 2023
Sarah Cooper is pretty amazing. I don't know how I missed this when it first came out. It's more than mimicry. She creates her own character that is Trump and beyond. Brilliant. She did …
February 3, 2023
Someone very dear to me turned me on to this. (note: when someone you love blows your mind then stick around because you're in the right place). To say I'm a Neil Young fan …
February 1, 2023
I've got a new song (not on the new album). Here's a still from the music video now being edited.
January 23, 2023
I'm thrilled to announce the launch of this new site. It was designed and installed by my good friend, Eduardo Almonte, who as usual put his heart and soul into it. He created the …
January 7, 2023
In updating my website over the last month I made a somewhat depressing discovery. It seems that the only existing trailer for my film, Living In Oblivion, is a link to a copy of …
January 4, 2023
I found this poster from the 1-Man Show I did Off-Off-Off-Off Broadway in 1987. I'd originated the character of Johnny Suede in an acting class I took after graduating from NYU Grad Film School. …
July 20, 2021
I stumbled upon this photo the other day. It is Peter Dinklage standing in for himself on the set of Living In Oblivion. It is 1995. It is Peter's first film. I'd wanted …
July 13, 2021
I've known Scott Macaulay at Filmmaker Magazine for over 20 years. He's been at the forefront of NY Independent film, producing some of the most memorable independent films of the past few decades. One …
April 1, 2021
I shot this short piece to introduce the blu-ray and dvd release of the official Director's Cut of Delirious.
December 6, 2020
You put your soul into every film you make. And you love them all. But some you love a little bit more. Delirious is one of those films. It came into being at a …
October 9, 2020