Last Podcast On The Left
Last Podcast On The Left
"The performance and the emotion is coming through the edit and the audience putting two and two together." — Ben Leonberg
"The way this film starts, then some of the film festival we've been to, first frame is a dog asleep on a couch and the audience goes aww. They're already on his side. We don't need to save the cat." — Ben Leonberg
"It's not a dog actor because it's looking at you with genuine love. It's doing the thing that a real movie star does." — Ben Leonberg
The episode features an interview with Ben Leonberg, the director of the film "Good Boy." Leonberg details the unconventional production of his film, which stars his own dog, Indy, as the lead. He explains that Indy, being unaware he's in a movie, offers a unique and genuine performance that relies on his natural behavior and the audience's interpretation. The conversation highlights the challenges and innovative techniques employed to capture Indy's "performance," including shooting from a low angle to mimic the dog's perspective and using editing to build tension and evoke emotion. Leonberg contrasts this approach with traditional filmmaking, emphasizing visual storytelling and audience projection.
The discussion delves into the film's horror elements, which are driven by the dog's reactions and the audience's inherent anxieties about why dogs bark at seemingly nothing. Leonberg also touches upon the film's origin during the COVID-19 pandemic, which necessitated a small, intimate production with only himself, his wife, and Indy. This practical constraint ultimately proved beneficial, allowing for a more focused and personal filmmaking experience. He draws parallels between his approach and classic cinema techniques, particularly the "Kuleshov effect," to illustrate how editing and context shape audience perception.
The interview also explores broader themes in filmmaking, such as the value of visual storytelling over dialogue, the debate between film school education versus self-taught knowledge through consumption of films, and the idea of "breaking the rules" in screenwriting, citing examples like the unexpected death of Janet Leigh in "Psycho." Leonberg expresses a desire for more films to be made with animal casts, and he discusses the public's strong emotional investment in the well-being of animal characters, referencing the impact of films like "Marley & Me."