Opening this weekend is writer-director Whit Stillmanâs (Metropolitan, Barcelona, The Last Days of Disco) first movie in thirteen years: Damsels in Distress. Filled with the unique characters and dialogue that populate all of his works, Stillmanâs latest film is about a group of college coeds (Greta Gerwig, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Carrie MacLemore, Adam Brody, and Analeigh Tipton) whose friendship is threatened by a series of romances, âincluding slick Charlie (Brody), dreamboat Xavier (Hugo Becker), the mad frat-pack of Frank (Ryan Metcalf), and Thor (Billy Magnussen) â who threaten their friendship and sanity.â For more on the film, hereâs the trailer.At the recent Los Angeles press day, I got to speak with Stillman and Gerwig. We talked about the dialogue, favorite movies and actors, karaoke, and a lot more. Hit the jump to watch.Finally, if you missed my extended interview with Stillman which goes into a lot more detail on the making of Damsels in Distress, click here.Director Whit Stillman and Greta Gerwig
- Karaoke. Gerwig says "We Built This City" and "Fist City" are her go-to karaoke songs. Stillman blanks, but does tell a karaoke song from the Barcelona shoot
- 1:40 - Gerwig cites Woody Allen, Howard Hawkes, Preston Sturges, Ernst Lubitsch, and Whit Stillman as favorite directors. She's been watching a lot of John Wayne lately.
- 3:00 - Stillman mentions how much he likes Gay Divorcee director Mark Sandrich as well as Jimmy Stewart, Fred Astaire, Margaret Sullivan. Says Gerwig reminds him of Irene Dunn.
- 3:30 - Gerwig didn't alter too much of the dialogue, but did make a few minor changes. Stillman admires Gerwig's "gulp."
- 4:40 - Gerwig prefers a lot of takes. Stillman says he usually did about 6-8 takes with Gerwig.