Quotes

One of the most defining things about In the Soup (1992) is its look. The stellar cinematography of Phil Parmet comes across in a rich, high-contrast look, deeply saturated blacks and brilliant whites. The only way we could achieve that was by shooting on a fine grain color stock and then printing on black and white stock, the now extinct Kodak 5369, that was primarily used for making silhouette mattes and travelings mattes. This particular stock had a high silver content. It's a very critical process but back in those days you had old school masters, like Don Donigi at DuArt Film Labs, who were craftsmen. And you also had Irwin Young, who owned the lab and was one of the godfathers of independent film. We used to call him Uncle Irwin because he would keep the lab open for us on the weekends and he was completely dedicated to finding the look that worked best for the film. As we hoped, the result was spectacular. Even back then, it was quite an expensive process especially for an independent film; we did it anyway - but only for two prints. After seeing it, the Coen brothers duplicated the effect for The Man Who Wasn't There (2001). [Filmmaker Magazine, 2017]

[on the aftermath of In the Soup (1992)] For a couple of years I got a little lost. I started not liking making movies, I didn't like trying to raise money. I really meant it when I said I'd rather be a drug dealer or a gangster than [in] Hollywood. Harvey Weinstein, OK? I really had to deal with that guy! They're much scummier. Believe me. It was a terrible moment. (...) The thing I loved - like [the character] Adolpho loves - I had to go through this shit storm to get to it. I don't mind the shit storm of life. But liars, cheaters, horrible people! I started losing love. It was just a really weird time. Things got difficult financially. It was tough. [2018]

[on Little Feet (2013), his Kickstarter-backed effort that found critical acclaim] I rediscovered an aspect of In the Soup (1992) when I made "Little Feet". It's just the joy of making the goddamn thing. It's that goddamn simple. What stops us from doing anything in our lives, except some weird fear of doing something? It's hard, life's hard. I've just decided I'll make films. I don't give a shit. The money will come. [2018]

[on In the Soup (1992)] I want to keep making films like that. Some will get seen, and some won't get seen, because that's just the way the cookie crumbles. [2018]

[on his early years as a filmmaker] Back in the day, being a filmmaker was like rock 'n' roll. It felt exciting. We'd go to see punk music and hang out at the Mudd Club. I just felt like we were inventing the world with music and filmmaking. There weren't tons of people that were doing it. [2018]