Joey Magidson
Filmmaker Peter Hedges has a very unique distinction about him. He’s the rare director who’s attended a Q&A I moderated while not being the subject. Hedges was in the audience for my conversation with Sam Elliott and Bret Haley for The Hero, if memory serves. He was even complimentary of my performance, so you know he’s a good liar, too. However, Hedges is also a strong filmmaker, having directed (and also written) Pieces of April, Dan in Real Life, The Odd Life of Timothy Green, and Ben is Back. Now, he has The Same Storm to present, and as that comes to theaters, I recently was able to connect with him on Zoom and talk about his unique new movie.
This here is some of what I had to say about Hedges’ filmmaking in The Same Storm:
Filmmaker Peter Hedges has such empathy for his characters, he pretty much single-handedly makes this the sort of work you’re willing to invest in. He actually has a genius move of showing at the top his cast organizing and getting ready for the shoot. Seeing the actors and actresses preparing to basically operate their own camera and design the set is not just entertaining and interesting, it shows how invested they are in The Same Storm. It deftly sets the stage for what’s to come, so kudos to Hedges for that.
Below, you can see my chat with Hedges. We not just discuss some of his prior work (as well as our previous interactions), but we tackle his latest movie in a few different ways. It’s a very free-flowing conversation, almost like the flick itself. Few storytellers could have pulled this one off, but Hedges did, so that alone deserves your attention. Give our discussion a look, as well as the film, now that it’s out in release…
Here now is my interview with The Same Storm filmmaker Peter Hedges. Enjoy:
The Same Storm is in theaters now!
Interesting