Actress Tika Sumpter was also a producer on "Southside with You," the film about The First Couple's first date; this weekend's Telluride Film Festival once again features Oscar-hopefuls; Melora Marshall takes on an acting marathon every weekend at Theatricum Botanicum.
A sneak preview of the Telluride Film Festival
Hang on to your seats, folks. The movie festival season is upon us.
The Venice Film Festival is happening right now and the Telluride Film Festival happens over Labor Day weekend, which means we'll soon see premieres of some of the year's leading awards contenders.
The Frame's host, John Horn, as well as some of our producers, are headed to Telluride to cover the festival. But John stopped by the studios before he left to give senior producer Oscar Garza a preview of some of the festival's biggest draws, from narrative films to indie documentaries.
Interview Highlights:
How is Telluride different from other film festivals?
The main thing is that you don't know what movies you're going to see. It's part of the charm of Telluride — though some people might call it the affectation — but you don't know what's going to play there until you arrive, and that means that you can't shop.
You either go or you don't go, and you put your trust in the film programmers. Generally, they do a pretty good job of showing an eclectic mix of narrative features, documentaries, and even some short films.
Even before the lineup was released, the trade magazines were writing about what Telluride can mean to a film that has Oscar aspirations.
The one thing that is true of Telluride is that if a movie doesn't play well there, it will not play well anywhere. This is an audience that is primed to love whatever it's going to see. That said, if you look over the very recent history of Telluride, in terms of films that have had either their world or North American premiere at the festival, tell me what these films have in common — "The King's Speech," "Argo," "Slumdog Millionaire," "Birdman," "Spotlight" and "12 Years a Slave." Do you detect a theme?
They're all Academy Award winners.
Yeah. I would say the Telluride programmers are gratified by that, but that's not their intention. They're not chasing awards, they want to show the movies that they think are the most interesting of that year's releases.
What are you looking forward to in this year's narrative films?
I'm very much looking forward to "La La Land," which is the musical set in Los Angeles by Damien Chazelle. He did "Whiplash" a couple of years ago, and "La La Land" stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone.
Very high up there is also "Sully," which stars Tom Hanks as the pilot who landed his plane in the middle of the Hudson River, and "Arrival," which is the latest sci-fi movie from Denis Villeneuve, who did "Sicario" and is now busy at work on the new "Blade Runner."
Do Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone do their own singing in "La La Land"?
Their own singing and dancing, and maybe they did their own catering. It's a lower-budget film, but Damien Chazelle is an unbelievably talented filmmaker. That movie's actually premiering at Venice, and it's part of a group of films that go from Venice to Telluride to Toronto, which is the week that follows.
Something else that happens at Telluride, and not all festivals do this, is tributes, and there are two this year. Who's getting the honors?
Casey Affleck, who has a movie that played at Sundance called "Manchester by the Sea," and Amy Adams, who's in the Denis Villeneuve movie, "Arrival." Again, they don't always pick big stars — you might say that Casey Affleck's a little young to have a career tribute — but they've had one for Rooney Mara, too. They focus on actors who they think have an interesting body of work, even if it's not a big body of work.
Telluride also screens documentaries. What do they have this year?
They're very fond of certain kinds of filmmakers. Werner Herzog, who's probably made 17 movies this year...
[laughs] Another one already?
He's got three movies this year: his documentary "Lo and Behold," he has a dramatic feature that will play in Toronto, and [at Telluride] he has another documentary, called "Into the Inferno," which is about volcanoes.
Errol Morris, who you probably know best from "The Thin Blue Line," has a new movie called "The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman's Portrait Photography." There's a fair mix of foreign language documentary and narrative features, so if you have any interest in any of those genres, you'll probably find something that you like a lot.
'Southside' star Tika Sumpter: Michelle Obama 'walked out of the house with a voice'
Long before they moved into the White House, Michelle Robinson and Barack Obama worked together at a corporate law firm in Chicago.
The film, "Southside With You," offers a fictional snapshot of those early days. It stars Tika Sumpter as Robinson and Parker Sawyers as Obama and was written and directed by Richard Tanne, who you may have heard on our show recently.
“Southside” takes place in 1989 Chicago, over the course of a day in what is a fictionalized version of the couple’s first date — or non-date in Michelle’s eyes. At the time, she was a young attorney and Barack was a summer associate working at her firm, Sidley Austin.
Actress Tika Sumpter took on the challenge of depicting the current first lady in her pre-Obama days. When Sumpter came by to speak with The Frame host John Horn recently, she explained what convinced her to take on the role.
Interview Highlights:
What inspired you originally to sign on to this film?
It was a synopsis, basically, and I just thought it was a perfect idea. I've never seen two African-American leads in a walk-and-talk, and it was just so smart. Regardless of whatever color or whoever it was, I just thought it was a smart idea and the perspective of a 25- and 28-year-old origin story. I wanted to have a meeting with [Richard Tanne] right away.
What was that idea? Just the first date?
Yeah. The idea was just the first date. I also loved the reluctance of Michelle not wanting to date Barack and what that could be, and I just feel like nobody came from that perspective. I haven't heard it. And every time I told somebody, an executive, they were like, That's interesting. So I just knew it was a good idea.
The design of the story and your depiction of Michelle Obama is that while he may go on to become president, you're the catch in this story. You're the reluctant person on the date. In fact, you are more capable at that point and more accomplished.
Yeah, she's the prize. I just think in a lot of romantic movies, the woman is always kind of chasing and sometimes even [saying], He's not that in to me, and things like that. It was just nice to play a complex, intelligent, capable woman. Everybody has their faults, but for the most part I feel like she's the one who's the stronger at the time of the two.
Michelle at that point was working for a firm called Sidley Austin and she could have easily had a career as a corporate lawyer. Who knows where that would have gone, but she makes a decision that has something to do with the man she ends up marrying. But she makes a big decision to not become that person. What happens in her life that takes her in a different direction?
Even before she was at Sidley Austin she did pro bono work [while] at Harvard Law for single moms. So she always was fighting for people who had less. and just [for] justice in general. I think sometimes another person can come into your life and make you more aware of the things you want and the things you don't want. So I think there was a turn there that happened. And also, when she did actually go see Barack talk at a community meeting — maybe not on the first date, it was probably later on — I think his character and the heart he had for the people made her realize, Wait a second, there are some things that I want to do as well.
When you came on to this film, you didn't just come on as an actor, you also came on as a producer. What did that mean and what did it entail?
Putting the pieces of the puzzle together, you know. I didn't necessarily know what it meant at the time, but I kind of naturally sprung toward lining up meetings and having my agents set me up with other producers who wanted to be part of the project, and helping to get financing and making casting decisions. Really being a part of the whole process rather than just coming in and acting. And I loved doing that because you have a say. Also I protected [director Richard Tanne's] idea. I think a lot of times in movies, everybody wants to put their fingerprints all over it and say, Well, I did that part, I did that part. And I think my main job was protecting the original idea.
When you were going out to meet with producers to see if they would finance the movie, what is the reception you got?
A positive reception because people liked the idea. It was just whether somebody was going to give the money. [Laughs] We love you but not that much! So we had an original deal with another company but we just didn't feel like it was the right fit, and then finally I had a friend that I met over a decade ago who created this amazing company. I gave him the script and he was like, I want to do it. So he financed it.
So always be kind to your old friends?
I actually worked at a place he would come to. It was a private members club.
You were waiting tables?
No, I used to be a guest list manager at the first Soho House in New York City. He was a founding member from London and we became friends through a mutual friend. And later on he built this amazing company in L.A. called IM Global. [His name is] Stewart Ford. He read it and called me and said, I want to make this movie. You gotta be nice to people on your journey in general because you never know who's going to come back and help you out. He really put the money where his mouth was.
There are a lot of people who know what the president's life was like as a young man. Probably not as many know what Michelle's life was like as a young woman. What surprised you in terms of what you found that may have clashed with what you thought you knew?
I don't know if anything clashed. I think her family dynamic really informed who she is and why she became who she is right now. Her family was definitely a household where [the message] was, Be seen and be heard. So she walked out of the house with a voice. I can understand where her confidence comes from — from her parents. I think her mom should write a parenting book. Seriously. Her brother's book, "Game of Character," really helped me see their family dynamic. Also, she was told no a lot, that she wouldn't get into Princeton, and Princeton wasn't for her. She constantly fought against people who told her that she couldn't do certain things. So I think it just validated how she became who she is today.
When she and Barack were at Sidley Austin, I think there were maybe one or two other black lawyers?
That too. She was surrounded by white men, mostly. That's why she was also reluctant to date a co-worker because she had to constantly prove herself. She had her own path. It wasn't about Barack Obama. That's part of it that I love.
When you were putting together this performance, people were going to recognize the character you're playing today. Do you try to do something that approximates the way in which she talks and is seen, or do you try to do something totally independent? Where do those two things come up against each other?
I didn't want to mock her. I didn't want it to be an SNL skit. I did get a dialect coach. I think her voice is very important. It's very distinct and you know when you hear it, it's her. She's very hard on her words and she curves them very much. When she does it she's very passionate about it. She's like Barack. So it's just being on top of every word. She stuck with me for a while afterward and I had to kind of get her out of me. But I had a great dialect coach.
When you watched her at the Democratic National Convention, do you start hearing yourself?
What I did feel was that I felt like I knew her. I felt like I played that younger woman who became that woman who spoke at the DNC. So I was kind of screaming up and down like, [gasps] Did I do this right? I hope she likes the way I portrayed her because I felt like I did it justice of who she led up to be.
Will you ever find out if the President and Michelle see it?
I'm sure if they've seen it, and if they liked it, they'll definitely reach out to us. And I hope so. I feel like there's a lot of integrity and heart in the film and people connect to it.
This movie premiered at Sundance and was incredibly well-received. Now it's in theaters and people are starting to see it. So it's been a little bit of a miracle at every step of its way.
Every step. It's the little indie that could. Michael Moore — I saw him the other day — he was like, I loved your movie. I'm putting it in two of my theaters in Michigan. Lupita Nyong'o just Instagrammed about it. And then just the people are loving it. So I feel like we did something right.
Speaking of little miracles, I see you've got one inside you.
Yes! She's coming soon so I'm really excited. And I'm excited that she'll be able to one day see her mom play this strong character. And hopefully just be really proud that she has somebody like me or like Michelle Obama or just so many women around the world to look up to.
Melora Marshall's weekly acting marathon at Theatricum Botanicum
Over the years, Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum has become a summer stock favorite for outdoor theater fans. The Topanga Canyon company presents a repertory season of five shows each year and in each one, actress Melora Marshall is always an audience favorite.
That’s because she keeps everyone guessing. Marshall is known for taking on multiple, unexpected and often gender-bending roles. This summer is no different.
“It’s 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'Titus Andronicus' and these scripts too,” says Marshall as she plunks down multiple bulky scripts on her coffee table. She lugs a stack of them along wherever she goes.
“It’s a lot of text!” she laughs.
It’s the actor’s life she’s learned to love, but, not so much in the beginning.
“I got very rebellious when I was like 15,” Marshall says. “I was like, ‘I’m not going to be an actress. I’m going to be in rock 'n' roll!’ [Laughs] So I sang in bands!"
While she was on the road in those days, she got invited to audition at the Mark Taper Forum. Before long she was understudying the lead actress in the 1975 hit play, “The Dybbuk.”
“I got my union card. I was very young — like 17,” Marshall recalls.
While that was her first professional theater gig, she’s actually been performing since her childhood. How could she not? Her mom was Herta Ware, a trained Broadway actress, and her step-dad was Will Geer.
Fans of the classic TV show, “The Waltons,” know Geer for playing the role of Grandpa Walton starting back in September 1972. Marshall says the money Geer made from acting on the hit program helped him and the family launch a small theater company in Topanga Canyon.
Over the years, Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum has become a summer stock favorite, presenting a repertory season of five shows. All of which feature Melora in completely different and often gender-bending roles.
"When it was first made, it was just earth," Marshall says. “And the railroad ties were set into the side of the hill. And he planted it all with herbs, so the audience could smell the herbs and walk on them.”
During any weekend through Oct. 2, audiences can catch Melora shapeshifting on stage — from classic Shakespeare and Molière characters to playing the title role in an adaption of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.”
Stowe’s words are a favorite for Marshall to recite, given the current presidential election. Her favorite line? “Frederick Douglas said, ‘The world would be a better place if women were involved in the political sphere.'
“Don’t you love that?” Marshall says. “It’s just in the last few weeks that has come out because now we are looking down the barrel of a woman emerging in a such a high place in our government. And the audiences, they can’t get around that. They are laughing! It’s possible!”
Between shows, Marshall pops into her house, which is steps away from the main stage. It’s the same home she grew up in.
While she washes carrots, she says: “Let’s cut those up so we can chew on that while we change into the next world, which is ‘Titus Andronicus!’"
With some healthy snacks at the ready, Marshall pulls out her make-up bag and hair styling supplies. It's already time to transition to the next show. But first, the show’s composer stops by to say hi. He just happens to be her son.
Marshall McDaniel, 31, is not only her son, but also her neighbor — and in his younger days, even her fellow cast member.
“When he was a kid, he and his brother, Kellan, they were all in shows,” Marshall says. “It’s cheaper than a baby-sitter. If I’m in the play and Marshall is in the play, then I’ve got them there with me.”
But as for McDaniel, being on stage is less than thrilling. In fact, he has trouble remembering the last show he was in. “It was, like, back in high school," he says. "I think it was 'Our Town.' I had a line or something."
Melora proudly says: “The family started Theatricum Botanicum. And I think it’s very satisfying that they get folded back into it. Because then the spirit of it stays intact in many ways.”
This land saved the family in many ways from early on, because times were often tough for the family. Will Geer had been blacklisted during the McCarthy era. But this theater offered the family open spaces to cultivate gardens and sell what they grew. It was even called ‘Geer’s Garden’ at one point.
But it was Marshall’s mom — Herta Ware — who found this property back in the '50s. It was as if Ware knew this would become the family’s artistic home for generations — and her’s too.
“She appeared in a lot of plays even after she couldn’t remember the lines anymore,” Marshall says. “We’d just have her in the plays. And sometimes she had lines in the book and she would read them. But toward the end, she couldn’t really talk anymore because she had dementia. But we would bring her into the plays because she loved being onstage.”
And while aging might be the ultimate sin in Hollywood, it’s not something that scares Marshall, who is 60. She’s played it all through the years — from ingenue to leading diva. And with that experience comes wisdom.
“In the midst of all that leading lady business, when you start getting older you recognize that in Shakespeare, the parts start to thin out for women. I was too greedy to not perform. Why be shy about it? Why not just say ‘okay!’”
Okay to going after roles that are reserved for men. In fact, in "Titus Andronicus," she plays the title character's brother, Marcus.
As Marshall's four-show weekend winds down and everyone has left, she walks onto the quiet darkened stage to hear her home the way she's always known it.
"In the wintertime, it’s so different out here because it’s abandoned. It’s deserted,” Marshall says. “And you come out here and sit and you feel like spirits or ghosts come and act on the stage when you're gone! It’s like they come out to play. [Laughs] It feels like it!
"I’ve made my home here. And now I’m growing older in this place and helping the new generations of performers and theater people emerge here and I get to be part of that cycle.
"In our times that are so stressed and accelerating so fast, when we all come together here and the audience is all here and we share that experience together, it’s like time stops.”