The Treatment

<p>When Mike Mills turns to filmmaking, he turns to drama in a search for ownership of self. As in his first film, Thumbsuckers, and his newest, Beginners, identity is key.<br /><br /></p>

<p>Jennifer Yuh Nelson has worked in animation with big emotional surprises hidden in action stories. She brings that interest to bear as director of <em>Kung Fu Panda 2</em>.</p>

<p>Elvis hosts Rebecca Yeldham, Director of the Los Angeles Film Festival, David Ansen, Artistic Director for the festival, to talk about this year's event.</p>

<p>Writer-director Todd Phillips brings a transgressive element to studio comedy. From <em>Road Trip</em> to <em>Due Date</em>, his newest addition to the canon is <em>The Hangover, Part 2</em>.</p>

<p><strong>Paul Feig</strong> (<em>Freaks & Geeks, Knocked Up, Nurse Jackie</em>) directed the 'Farewell to Steve Carrell' episode of <em>The Office</em>, and his new film is the comedy, <em>Bridesmaids</em>...</p>

<p>With a few short films, director Spenser Susser deals with violent emotional impacts that summon physical violence as well. His first feature film, Hesher...</p>

<p>Elvis hosts writer, producer, director and creator of <em>Everybody Loves Raymond</em>, <strong>Phil Rosenthal</strong>, to talk about his latest production, <em>Exporting Raymond</em>.</p>

<p>Actor <strong>Timothy Olyphant</strong> is unique. He's best known for western lawmen in the 21st century, first in HBO's <em>Deadwood</em>, and now in <em>Justified</em> on FX. He discusses bringing them to life in this new world.</p>

<p>In recognition of National Autism Awareness month, we re-broadcast Elvis Mitchell's interview with <strong>Rupert Isaacson</strong>, writer and documentary filmmaker of <em>The Horse Boy.</em></p>

<p>We rebroadcast our 2010 interview with producer and Hollywood impresario <strong>Jerry Weintraub</strong>, currently the subject of the HBO documentary, <em>His Way</em>.</p>

<p>In celebration of <strong>Russell Brand</strong> hitting theaters in <em>Arthur</em> and as the voice of the Easter rabbit, E.B. in <em>Hop</em>, we re-broadcast this October 2010 interview with him...</p>

<p>Inspired to become a filmmaker by the film <em>Slacker</em>, <strong>Kevin Smith</strong> celebrated his 20th year in filmmaking by making the horror film <em>Red State</em> and announcing his retirement...</p>

<p><strong>Susanne Bier</strong> (<em>Brothers, After the Wedding, Things We Lost in the Fire, Open Hearts</em>), Oscar-winning director of <em>In a Better World</em>, talks about the delicate dance of interacting with an audience.</p>

<p><em>The Daytrippers, Superbad, Adventureland</em>. Director <strong>Greg Mottola</strong>'s films are about literal and metaphorical journeys. His newest, <em>Paul</em>, is a bit about both...</p>

<p>Not many people can claim credits from acting, to writing the animated film <em>Up</em>, to writing and directing <em>The Station Agent</em> and <em>The Visitor</em>. <strong>Tom McCarthy</strong> is just that guy. His newest film is <em>Win Win</em>.</p>

<p>An actor, a talk show host...<strong>Joel McHale</strong> was first and foremost a comedian, as his work on the show <em>Community</em> shows. </p>

<p><strong>Laurence Fishburne</strong> has won an Emmy, Tony and been nominated for an Oscar. He moves from film to TV to the stage for these. He talks of transitions and playing Thurgood Marshall, both on stage and in the HBO filmed version.</p>

<p><strong>WEB EXCLUSIVE: </strong>An editor is as important a component of a movie as the director. They often serve the function of sounding board and collaborator. <strong>Sally Menke </strong>was just that person... </p>

<p><strong>WEB EXCLUSIVE: Joel McHale</strong>, star of <em>Community</em> and host of <em>The Soup</em>, talks to Elvis Mitchell about being host of this year's Spirit Awards...</p>

<p>Despite the wide expanse of his films, from drama to goofball comedy, writer-director <strong>Gregg Araki </strong>(<em>Mysterious Skin, The Doom Generation, Smiley Face, Nowhere, The Living End</em>) set out to do something different with his newest, <em>Kaboom</em>. He discusses breaking with his tradition.</p>

<p>As part of the celebrations for Black History Month, Elvis hosts <strong>Thelma Golden</strong>, Director and Chief Curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem, to talk about the book, <em>Harlem: A Century in Images</em>, which was produced in association with the Studio Museum. Golden, who was one of the subjects interviewed on Elvis' documentary, <em>The Black List</em>, wrote the introduction to the book.<br /><br /></p>

<p>Elvis hosts director <strong>Derek Cianfrance</strong> (<em>Brother Tied, Black and White: A Portrait of Sean Combs, Run D.M.C</em> and <em>Jam Master J: The Last Interview</em>) to talk about his latest film, <em>Blue Valentine</em>, starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, for which she has received an Academy Award nomination.</p>

<p>From comedy to action drama, director <strong>David O. Russell</strong> (<em>Flirting with Disaster, Spanking the Monkey</em>) finds a way to make family the center of his films. In <em>The Fighter</em> he ads boxing to the mix.</p>

<p>Director <strong>Peter Weir</strong> (<em>The Truman Show, Witness, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Dead Poets Society, Gallipoli</em>) is a reader. Many of his films come from books, such as <em>Mosquito Coast, Master and Commander</em> and his newest, <em>The Way Back</em>. But he circles before committing to the material.</p> <p> </p>

<p>Sundance Director of Programming <strong>Trevor Groth </strong>is a mainstay on the American independent film scene. With an eye outside the mainstream, he's brought his sensibility to Park City. He discusses the state of independent film with Elvis.</p>

<p>Finding the drama in real-life figures. Documentary director Alex Gibney <strong>Alex Gibney</strong> (<em>Taxi to The Dark Side, Enron: The Smartest Guys in The Room</em>) has done that with several films, including his newest, <em>Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer</em>.</p>

<p>Actor <strong>Paul Giamatti</strong> (<em>Sideways, American Splendor</em>) has had the most varied career of any actor of his generation. Comedy to drama, Howard Stern's boss to President John Adams. He discusses that and his new film, <em>Barney's Version</em>.</p>

<p>From <em>Amores Perros</em> to his newest film, <em>Biutiful</em>, director <strong>Alejandro González Iñárritu</strong> (<em>21 Grams, Babel</em>) finds something new and fresh with each film. He tells us how.</p>

<p>What do the films <em>Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Short Bus</em> and <em>Rabbit Hole</em> all have in common? Honest comedy that heightens the drama. They also share director <strong>John Cameron Mitchell</strong>.</p>

<p>Animator and director, <strong>Bill Plympton</strong> (<em>Hair High, The Tune</em>) , has gone his own way. His absurdist work has earned him Oscar nominations (<em>The Cow Who Wanted to Be a Hamburger) </em>and such fans as Matt Groenig and Kanye West. His new feature, <em>Idiots and Angels</em>, is both spiritual and silly.</p>

<p><strong>Lee Unkrich</strong> (<em>A Bug's Life, Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo</em>) has been part of <em>Toy Story</em> from the very start. An editor of the first film, co-director on the second and director of the third, he shares what it's like to work on three classics.</p>

<p>The documentary <em>Exit through the Gift Shop</em> examines the street-art movement through one of its champions and an observer who fell in love with it. Producer <strong>Jaimie D'Cruz</strong> and editor <strong>Chris King</strong> discuss an unusual romance.</p>

<p>At a young age, writer-director-actor <strong>Lena Dunham</strong> has shown an exciting and subtle style in project after project. Her new film, <em>Tiny Furniture</em>, is the latest example. She explains her point of view.</p>

<p>Conan O’Brien or Jay Leno? New York Times television writer <strong>Bill Carter</strong> (<em>The Late Shift, Desperate Networks</em>) covers a different kind of war reporting, talk show wars. His new book, <em>The War for Late Night</em>, is news from the front.</p>

<p>The documentary <em>Marwencol</em> is about a man finding himself after a tragedy. The film was a similar journey for <strong>Jeff Malmberg</strong>.</p> <p>Elvis hosts director and editor <strong>Jeff Malmberg</strong> to talk about his award-winning documentary <em>Marwencol</em>, which tells the extraordinary story of Mark Hogencamp. Having survived a horrific beating by five men near his hometown of Kingston, New York in 2000, Hogencamp's long road to recuperation became focused on art, specifically building a fictional Belgian town (Marwencol) in his backyard and populating it with figures from World War II using military figures and Barbie dolls.<br /><br /></p>

<p>The Amish, blind mountain climbers, fighting for nuclear disarmament... Director <strong>Lucy Walker</strong>'s (<em>Countdown to Zero, Devil’s Playground, Blindsight</em>) new film, <em>Waste Land</em>, is about waste becoming art. It's drama and non-fiction.</p>

<p>Between them, actor <strong>Danny McBride</strong> and director <strong>Jody Hill</strong> have brought the 70's anti-hero to comedy, first with the indie film, <em>The Foot Fist Way</em>, and now, with <em>Eastbound &  Down</em> on HBO. It's awfully...funny.<br /><br /></p>

<p><em>Mad Men</em>'s creator <strong>Matthew Weiner</strong> discusses Midwestern manners, <em>Carnal Knowledge</em> and Jon Hamm.</p>

<p>With such films as <em>The Puffy Chair</em> and <em>Cyrus</em>, actress <strong>Katie Aselton</strong> has worked a lot in improvisation. With her new film, <strong>The Freebie</strong>, she also directs a film that doesn't rely a script.</p>

<p>The stark minimalism of <em>Never Let Me Go</em> might scare off most film directors. That very quality drew <strong>Mark Romanek </strong>(<em>One Hour Photo</em>; music videos, including Nine Inch Nails <em>Closer</em> & Hurt, Beck’s <em>Devil’s Haircut</em>) to the material. He talks about making loneliness visual.</p>

<p>Writer/director <strong>Sean Baker</strong> is best known for <em>Greg the Bunny</em> and <em>Warren the Ape</em> on TV. His feature film,  <em>Prince of Broadway</em>, is gritty and stark. It’s all more similar than you’d think.</p>

<p>Actor <strong>Philip Seymour Hoffman</strong> (<em>Capote, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, The Savages, The Talented Mr Ripley, Magnolia</em>) has worked with a dream list of directors: like Sidney Lumet, Paul Thomas Anderson, the Coen Brothers and Mike Nichols. With <em>Jack Goes Boating</em>, the Oscar-winning director becomes one. Was it a dream come true?</p>

<p>The Australian musical <em>Bran Nue Dae</em>, starring Missy Higgins, Geoffrey Rush, Rocky McKenzie and Jessica Mauboy, happens to be a comedy of aborigines. It's the <em>Mama Mia</em> of race. Director <strong>Rachel Perkins</strong> (<em>First Australians, Radiance, One Night the Moon</em>) talks about her brand new take on the subject.</p> <p>.</p>

<p>Writer-director <strong>Will Gluck</strong> likes self-aware characters. He wrote for the TV soap-satire <em>Grosse Pointe</em> and co-created the show <em>The Loop</em>. His newest film is the updated version of <em>The Scarlett Letter</em>. Does <em>Easy A</em> make the grade?</p>

<p>It makes sense that <strong>Jennifer Salt</strong> is now a screenwriter. The first act of her career was as an actress working with Robert Altman, Brian de Palma and Woody Allen. Her second act includes writing on <em>Nip/Tuck</em> and co-writing <em>Eat Pray Love</em></p>

<p>From the three <em>Austin Powers</em> movies to the two <em>Focker</em> films, <strong>Jay Roach</strong> has made some definite left turns. His newest, <em>Dinner for Schmucks</em>, is a departure that still lines up...</p>

<p>Actress <strong>Patricia Clarkson</strong> (<em>The Station Agent, Vicky Cristina Barcelona</em>) moves from impulsive characters -- like her roles in <em>High Art</em> and <em>Whatever Works</em>, to thoughtful ones -- like her role in the new film <em>Cairo Time</em>. </p>

<p>Many of us think we’ve first met <strong>Steve Carell</strong> (<em>Little Miss Sunshine, The Forty Year Old Virgin</em>) when he was a correspondent on <em>The Daily Show</em>. Many of us know him from <em>The Office</em>. But he’s made a big splash in movies this last year alone with three big films, including his latest, <em>Dinner for Schmucks.</em><br /><br /></p>

<p>After <em>Shaun of the Dead</em> and <em>Hot Fuzz</em>, writer-director <strong>Edgar Wright</strong> turns to the graphic novel <em>Scott Pilgrim vs the World</em> for his first adaptation. Find out how he makes it his own.</p>

<p>Documentary filmmaker <strong>Lucy Walker</strong> (<em>Devil's Playground, Blindsight</em>)  has made films in improbable worlds: Amish teenagers, blind mountaineers, and, with <em>Countdown to Zero</em>,  the nuclear arms issue. Walker and former CIA officer <strong>Valerie Plame Wilson</strong> talk "phishing."<br /><br /></p>