BROOKLYN CODGER: WITH LIGHTYEARS OF
EXPERIENCE, BROOKLYN-BORN ASTRONAUT S TA R
RICHARD DREYFUSS HAS A LOT TO SHARE, EVEN
IF HE’S A LITTLE CRANKY SHARING ITMERICAN GRAFFITI, Jaws,
Close Encounters of the Third Kind,
Stand By Me, Mr. Holland’s Opus...
even while reading like a what’s
what of cinema, those titles are
just a handful of the extensive epochal mov-
ies Oscar-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss
has starred in since the 1970s.
The veritable virtuoso scooped the
Academy Award for Best Actor in 1977
for his role in The Goodbye Girl, at the
time beating Marlon Brando’s record for
becoming the youngest man to do so. That
essence of youthful joie de vivre is a quality
that animates Dreyfuss’ creative process
to this day, as is his self-deprecating sense
of humor.
After some five decades of working with
such fellow film greats as Steven Spielberg,
George Lucas, and Rob Reiner, Dreyfuss’ latest
film punctuates his stratospheric career.
80 SUMMER 2019 MOVIEMAKER.COM
A
NO MORE
OF THE SAME
A filmography of sameness
is one of lameness. These six steps
to sidestepping a cookie-cutter career
will help you approach each new
project with fresh eyes
BY RICHARD DREYFUSS,
AS TOLD TO CALEB HAMMOND
THINGS I’VE LEARNED
AS A MOVIEMAKER
PHOTOGRAPH BY BRADLEY CHERRYIn Astronaut, actor-turned-writer-director
Shelagh McLeod’s feature debut, he plays
a widower who, despite his world-weariness,
pursues his lifelong dream of going into orbit.
Here, Dreyfuss tells MovieMaker about
the keys to an inspired and efficient on-set
environment, warns of the perils of formulaic
storytelling, and dares moviemakers
to supersize their ambitions.- The fact that we want to make the same
movie over and over again is bad. Making
movies today is the story of how you
can create sequel after sequel after sequel.
That’s why, in the last couple of years,
I’ve realized that I don’t endorse acting
or moviemaking as I used to anymore.
I guess I just won the “Old Codger Award.” - Most moviemakers’ ambitions are too small.
They don’t really attempt to create some-
thing unique, and they should! They’re cor-
porate-minded and terrified of any attempt
to break new ground. That’s why you’re
more apt to see “sequel number four” get
made before anything else. To work with
Steven Spielberg when I did was to catch him
at his most courageous. But for the most
part, even the young directors who make
their own movies today want to make their
next film to resemble the film they just made. - If you’re thinking of taking a project, always
ask for the same thing: a creative and relaxed
atmosphere. That’s something that’s in the
hands of the director, even when you know
there’s always going to be an 800-pound
gorilla somewhere on set. You want to keep
the set light and fun.
4. It doesn’t matter whether you’re making
a drama or a comedy—what matters only
is that you bring to it as creative a mind as
possible. “Keep the set light and fun” doesn’t
mean you can’t play a tragedy or do some-
thing on the Holocaust. It means that you
are free enough in your head to come at a
subject with a maximum amount of creativ-
ity and a maximum amount of willingness.
5. Some of the advice that sticks with you
most throughout your career might be delivered
by a critic. When I was doing a production
of Julius Caesar at the Brooklyn Academy,
Walter Kerr wrote, “If Mr. Dreyfuss has
any ambition to continue a career as
a Shakespearean actor, then I would recom-
mend he explore the nature of the word ‘still-
ness.’ ” Throughout my performance, I was
constantly twitching and moving, moving
and twitching, and Kerr said, “That doesn’t
fly when you’re doing Shakespeare.” As I read
it, I knew he was taking me for something,
but more importantly, he was telling a truth.
He was giving me, as gently as he could,
a very good piece of advice about my work.
6. I usually say that I never get nervous
before I shoot a film. But my wife has pointed
out to me that that’s bullshit, and she’s
probably right. MM
Astronaut opened on Digital and On Demand
July 26, 2019, courtesy of Quiver Distribution.