The Significance of Mentorship and the Anxiety of Influence

Ira Sachs visits the pod to talk about his new film Passages, in which the marriage of a gay couple (Franz Rogowski & Ben Whishaw) is thrown into disarray when one of them begins a passionate affair with a woman (Adèle Exarchopoulos). The stylish, sexy drama is one of the hottest films of the summer, not least for its expert direction and impeccable cast. Sachs talks to Screen Slate’s Jon Dieringer about mentorship, his strategy of not rehearsing with actors, the influential films on his cinematic “cheat sheet,” censorship, and filming heated love scenes.

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