Back To One

Joanna Kulig's performance in "Cold War" is so astonishingly captivating and commanding and downright brilliant, that it feels like a classic performance delivered by an immortal screen goddess from the golden age of film. Pawel Pawlikowski's penetrating black and white and impeccable direction helps, but this Polish masterpiece, short-listed for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, is impossible to imagine without Kulig. In this half hour she talks about how her music training came in handy while shooting the intricate moving camera shots in the film, and she ponders what it means when someone says she's "so natural." Plus she reveals how Pawlikowski helped her often simply by saying the words "Lauren Bacall."

Starting with her big break on "Dr. Who," and continuing with the "Guardians of the Galaxy" and "Avengers" films, Karen Gillan has grown accustomed to fervent fandom surrounding her acting work. With "The Party's Just Beginning," (which she wrote, directed, and stars in) she stepped away from that hubbub to make a small, dark, intricately structured film in her hometown in Scotland. The movie folds out from her character through hallucinations, flashbacks and alcoholic hazes to tell the tale of her grief over her best friend's suicide. I ask her what it was like directing a feature for the first time while taking on such an emotionally fraught role. And she tells the story of a revelation she had about her acting, early in her career, that changed everything. Plus she talks about how she turns that focused fan frenzy into fuel that energizes her work.

We're catching Alessandro Nivola at a very interesting moment in his career. A day before our talk, he was awarded Best Supporting Actor at the British Independent Film Awards for his incredible performance in "Disobedience," and a few days before that it was announced that he will star in David Chase's "Sopranos" prequel "The Many Saints of Newark." He talks about the benefits of having time to prepare for the role of Rabbi Dovid Kuperman and facing the challenge of delivering that important climatic speech. And how, for him, inhabiting a character often starts with the voice. Plus he confesses he stopped auditioning because he was "too scared," and self-tape changed his career.

Jason Manzoukos has made a living "bringing the funny" in tv shows like "The League," "Parks and Recreation," "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," "The Good Place," and movies such as "The House," and "The Dictator." Now he stars in Hannah Fidell's "The Long Dumb Road" with Tony Revolori ("The Grand Budapest Hotel"). In this half hour, I send him down a rabbit hole on the evolution of comedy, he tells a great story about getting the hard truth from a casting director early in his career, and talks about when to "pitch an alt." Plus I forbid all comedic podcast banter and he graciously complies.

James Ransone doesn't like to talk about himself. He also doesn't like to talk about acting. This might have been a disastrous interview except that his expressed frustration at having to speak about these things actually spawned an interesting and raw conversation about acting. I first noticed Ransone in the role of Ziggy in Season 2 of "The Wire." He went on to star in the HBO miniseries "Generation Kill," and in movies like "Sinister," "Tangerine" and Spike Lee's "Oldboy" remake. This year he played an astronaut in Hulu's "The First" and he's now shooting "IT Chapter 2." His direct, non-filtered responses to my questions (some of which he downright rejects) are bound to give you lots to ponder about this elusive and wondrous endeavor, and, if you're like me, leave you wanting to hear more from Mr. Ransone.

You recognize Eric Lange. He's been a working actor for 20+ years, with extensive theater work and a long list of television and film credits ("Narcos," "Lost," "Weeds," "The Bridge," to name a few recent ones). For "Escape at Dannemora" (directed by Ben Stiller), he gained 40 pounds to play Lyle, husband of Patricia Arquette's character, in the Showtime limited series based on the real-life prison break. He tells a wonderful, "outside-in" tale of finding a way into Lyle through some magic teeth, and waxes about the "getting paid to wait" life of acting for the camera.

Simone Missick is best known for playing Misty Knight in the Netflix/Marvel series "Luke Cage" (as well in "The Defenders" and "Iron Fist"). She tells a great story of getting that part, and her game plan for auditioning in general, and also talks about knowing when to offer script changes, even for Marvel material! Then we talk about her important new film "JINN", about a teenager torn between her burgeoning sexuality and her mother's newfound Muslim faith. "JINN" is now available on VOD and Digital.

Melissa Leo has acquired a lot of acting wisdom. On this episode, she graciously shares some. She was nominated for an Academy Award for her incredible performance in "Frozen River," and won one for playing Alice Ward in "The Fighter." Recent notable performances can be found in "Francine," "The Most Hated Woman In America," and her latest, "Unlovable," where she plays opposite Charlene deGuzman, who co-wrote the script based on her real-life experiences in a program for sex and love addiction. Leo talks lovingly about that production, and about how she sometimes gleans more substantial info from a dolly grip than a director. Plus she issues this warning - "Don't lie to an actor."

With over one hundred films in his legendary career filled with versatile, bold, and iconic performances, Willem Dafoe is one of the most respected actors of our time. His artistic curiosity in exploring the human condition leads him to projects all over the world, giant Hollywood movies as well as small Independent films. In this episode he talks about inhabiting Vincent van Gogh through the act of painting for his latest film, "At Eternity's Gate," and how being part of a strong director's vision is actually freeing. Plus I try to get him to talk a bit about the nuts and bolts of his craft.

From her breakthrough in "Kick-Ass" through great roles in "Let Me In," "Hugo," and "Carrie," Chloë Grace Moretz has become one of the hottest young actors in Hollywood. In this half hour, she talks about her recent decision to take time to "reassess who I am and find myself within my roles again," which led to her brilliant performance in "The Miseducation of Cameron Post," this year's winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance (now streaming on demand). She also talks about avoiding what she calls "emotional cavities," and how she craves to be taken off guard in her performances.