Actor Matthew Spencer, who plays the lead in a new adaptation of George Orwell's dystopian novel, says the story has new resonance today; TV networks are casting doubt about the popularity of original programming on streaming services; Andrew Ahn passed up med school for a film career, and now his directing debut is at Sundance.
'1984' adaptation brings George Orwell’s dystopian future to the stage
Decades after its publication in 1949, George Orwell's dystopian novel, "1984," remains an important part of our culture and the collective consciousness. Terms such as Newspeak and Big Brother are part of everyday vocabulary, and the very mention of "1984" conjures a dark vision of the future. The story certainly has new resonance in this age of global hyper-surveillance.
Several filmmakers have adapted the landmark work, and now the Broad Stage in Santa Monica is presenting the U.S. premiere of a production by London's Headlong theater company.
The Frame's John Horn recently spoke with Matthew Spencer about taking on the challenging lead role of Winston Smith.
Interview Highlights
Had you read the novel "1984" before auditioning for the part?
No. I mean, I knew of Big Brother and all those kind of things that are in our everyday usage, and I knew that it came from this novel. But I hadn't read it before getting the call for the first audition. I think it topped — or came very close to — a poll in the U.K. recently of the novels people claim to have read but actually haven't ... It felt like that for me, I thought, I must have read that, surely everyone's read that. But I hadn't before joining the cast.
A lot of what Orwell wrote about didn't come true. But do you think there are some general themes about the way we talk about politics — the way we are forbidden to talk about certain things without being considered subversive — that have proven to be more true than others?
Well, it's interesting what you say there about how we talk about things. Because I find the language is most interesting about how the news is reported. About how the politics frame things ... what words they use to describe torture... The subtle difference between using the word refugee and immigrant, and the very insidious nature of manipulating an audience into wanting to feel something without really knowing that you're being manipulated. That's the thing that is quite scary.
When you were thinking about staging the play, what made it a theatrical possibility?
That [was] a really important question for the creators when we were first looking at it: Why put on a play that originated from a book when you can just read the book? Interesting the audience in a way that was unexpected was part of that first rehearsal. How can we really screw with the audience's minds?
Well let's talk about that a little bit, because people who have read "1984" know that there are scenes of torture. Winston Smith ends up in Room 101 where unimaginably horrible things happen. Do you have a sense of how far you can go and how far is too far?
When we get to that point in the play, without giving too much away, it's really great to see the whites of the audience's eyes. There is a moment where we can really eyeball the audience and it's something you don't usually get in a play. For the actor, you don't really get to see what your audience is thinking or doing or feeling. So it's really fun to ride that wave of pushing the boundaries of how far we can go.
What do you find personally appealing in the character of Winston Smith?
It's funny to say it, but it's a lot of fun playing this character... There is a fantastic journey that Winston goes on in terms of his discovery of Julia, of that relationship, of rebelling. And so as an actor you get to visit every part of human life in that 101 minutes. It's very satisfying to go on that journey and complete it each show.
There are a lot of moments in the play that are very physically challenging. Is there a part that you look forward to every evening when you go on stage?
There's a line in the play that one of the characters says: "It's time." And when we get to "It's time," I do kind of look forward to exploring what that will then entail. Absolutely, I do enjoy being able to go through the gamut of emotions that Winston goes through.
Sundance 2016: 'Spa Night' filmmaker Andrew Ahn tells his Asian-American story
It’s said that for every film that gets into the Sundance Film Festival, there are 30 entries that don’t make the cut. So for Andrew Ahn — a young Korean American filmmaker — getting his feature debut into the event is quite an accomplishment.
"Spa Night" is one of the many movies screening at the festival, which kicks off Jan. 21 in Park City, Utah. Though most of the film is in Korean, it’s premiering in the U.S. Dramatic Competition.
The film is about a Korean-American teenager who discovers his sexuality while working at a spa. Ahn used his personal experience to write the screenplay and direct the film:
I just wanted to explore what it means to be gay and Korean-American. All the difficulties, all the cultural clashes that go into juggling different identities. I think that’s a little bit why I’m so inspired to make the film. You don’t see much that covers what it means to be an LGBTQ person of color — especially Korean. This is something that I feel hasn’t been dealt with much in the media.
The Frame spoke with writer-director Andrew Ahn about what made him want to become a filmmaker, the problem with Asian-American representation in Hollywood, and why it's so difficult for Asian-Americans to make films.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS:
Your work — both in your short film, "Dol," and your feature film, "Spa Night" — deals with the relationship between a parent and son. How did your parents react to you wanting to become a filmmaker?
It’s really funny. I went to Brown University, was a bio major. I was going to be a doctor. Typical Korean, you know. I was a good student so I was going to be a good Korean boy. But I realized I just didn’t want to be a doctor. When I told my parents I was really interested in film, I think there was a disappointment. I think that that’s a disappointment that other aspiring artists succumb to. And they stop at that point. Fortunately, I’m stubborn and so I kept going.
There doesn't seem like there's a lot of films about the Asian-American experience. Do you feel the same way?
I know a lot of filmmakers in the Asian-American community who make a couple films and then they stop because it’s so difficult. They can’t find funding or they can’t find actors, because the actors who are Asian-American find it difficult to find jobs, to find roles.
Even as I was developing my feature screenplay, I had people read it and give me notes that just sounded so ridiculous. I had someone tell me, Where are the white people in your screenplay? And it’s just like, ugh. I really want to be able to make a film where my identity isn’t defined by white people or the dominant culture. I really want it to be about who I am in a very kind of holistic, natural way.
Being a filmmaker probably doesn't pay the bills, especially if "Spa Night" is your first feature film.
So I have a day job, of course. I think it’s really tricky to be an aspiring independent filmmaker and sustain yourself. So I actually work at a private SAT academy. It’s one of those situations where, as a filmmaker, you have to make ends meet. I don’t make a lot of money from my filmmaking — yet. Hopefully, I’ll make some. For me it’s not about trying to get these bigger studios or production companies to rally behind us. For my film, I think that void is definitely a strong reason why I do this and with as much passion as I do.
Drama over Netflix viewership reveals tension between networks and streaming services
The Television Critics Association recently had its winter session in Pasadena, where networks preview the shows that will debut over the coming months.
And even though Netflix isn't a traditional TV network, it made an appearance at the TCAs as well, announcing the return of shows such as "Orange Is the New Black," "Marvel's Jessica Jones," and "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt."
Other network executives were buzzing about Netflix ... just not exactly about the streaming platform's programming. During NBC’s session, the network’s research chief said he had intel about viewership numbers for Netflix — and he asserted that some shows on the streaming service aren’t as popular as it would have you believe.
That touched off a war of words that revealed an underlying tension in the TV industry between the broadcast and cable networks that have to satisfy advertisers, and the streaming services that play by different rules.
Lucas Shaw, entertainment reporter at Bloomberg, joined us on The Frame to discuss the many reasons network execs want to see Netflix's viewer ratings, plus why Netflix values its shows differently than traditional broadcast networks.
Interview Highlights:
What exactly did NBC claim to know about Netflix's viewer ratings? How did they get that data?
NBC worked with this company called Symphony to formulate ratings projections for what different Netflix shows got. A number of different TV networks have attempted to formulate ratings for Netflix using different data — I know that some competitors have used piracy data to reflect how Netflix shows compare to some of their programming.
All these different TV networks are really curious to expose what the ratings are for Netflix, because a lot of them believe that the ratings are lower than Netflix would have you believe and that Netflix is getting away with a lack of transparency, and thus hiding these from investors.
And what does Netflix gain from all this? What numbers are they compelled to release?
Netflix only releases its subscriber totals and profit margins, sales — things like that. Netflix's argument is that the only way it makes money is if it sells additional subscriptions, and so that's the only number that matters. If the shows weren't working, you'd see subscriber numbers decline.
In that way, it's much like HBO and Showtime, which are also subscription-based models. Ratings don't really matter to any of these people, because ratings only matter to advertisers. However, HBO and Showtime have historically reported numbers, just because it's television convention.
You said that NBC's not the only network that has tried to ferret out Netflix's numbers — is this just nervousness on their part, due to Netflix's growth?
I think it's a mixture of nervousness and a legitimate desire to know. You speak to agents in Hollywood and they're very frustrated by the fact that they don't have any transparency from Netflix. They're used to constructing deals with some numbers, so they can evaluate the success of a given show, and Netflix just doesn't play by the same rules as everybody else. But Netflix would certainly have you believe that this is a reflection of nervousness. Ted Sarandos, who oversees all content for Netflix, has made jokes that NBC did this because they wanted to distract people from their own ratings.
If Netflix isn't looking at ratings like TV networks do, I wonder how they determine how much they can spend on an individual show, or to produce a series.
Netflix definitely has data on how much individual shows are watched. But what really matters for them is how many subscribers they think they gain and/or retain because of a particular show.
So I think there are some shows that are niche hits, that are so popular with a particular group that if there are 100,000 people who subscribe to Netflix just because of a given show, that's valuable to them in a way that might not be as valuable to NBC.
NBC needs as many viewers as possible to tune in to every show, because they're advertising-based. Netflix, HBO,and Showtime need, as they like to say, "singles, doubles, triples, and home runs," where you can have "Orange is the New Black," which everybody agrees has been a huge hit, but then you can also have shows that are a little less popular but have popular fan bases.
How many subscribers does Netflix have now? Are their projections for growth on-target?
They have about 75 million subscribers [globally]. Subscriber growth has picked up steadily overseas — this most recent quarter, they added four million customers overseas and about 1.5 million in the U.S.
What has some people concerned is their growth in the U.S. seems to be slowing, but that will matter less if they have the kind of explosive growth overseas that they anticipate. They're saying they can get way more customers outside the U.S. than inside, but whether that's reality or not remains to be seen.