In our film issue, we related how mumblecore master Joe Swanberg comes up with quarterlife contemplations in the form of movies, but not before explaining to you what “mumblecore” was. We have more interview snippets after the jump.
For the full story, grab a copy of our film issue. -RAYRAE
Your two-person crew approach really challenges the need for all the frills built into the Hollywood system. If you did have the budget, what or who would you spend it on?
Joe: I would love to pay my collaborators better. If I had a bigger budget I wouldn’t work in a different way, but I would make sure to pay everyone well. I would also like the experience of working on constructed sets on sound stages. It would be very fun to have the freedom to remove walls and light from above and completely control a location.
Your films feel less about escaping reality and more about confronting it. Did your strict adherence to reality come from a rebellion against the status quo, or was it really just more about circumstance and the way you liked to work?
Joe: Originally my adherence to reality came from the frustration of not feeling like I was seeing reality anywhere in the media. I wanted to represent myself and the people around me as I saw them. I don’t feel frustrated anymore, and I feel like an overwhelming number of people are making realistic narrative films now, so my interests are changing. I’ve moving away from reality into a more psychological territory. I am still trying to make truthful films, but I’m trying to get at the truth through different channels.
What is catering like on a Swanberg production? 
Joe: We eat very well! I like to take my actors to restaurants at night so that we can talk and drink and share ideas. I want my films to seem like a vacation, and food is an important part of that. Even though the films are very cheap, I am happy to spend money on good food. When we made HANNAH TAKES THE STAIRS, my friend Kevin, who did the the music for the film and was my only crew member, cooked food for us every night. That was the best!
Photo via nypress
