E38 • Meta Absurdism Explored Through Docu-Fiction • PASQUAL GUTIERREZ & BEN MULLINKOSSON, dirs. of ‘Serious People’ at the Sundance Film Festival

Past Present Feature with Marcus Mizelle

Chapters
0:31
Past Present Feature, Hosted by Marcus Mizelle
0:51
Introducing Pasqual Gutierrez & Ben Mullinkosson, dirs. of "Serious People" at Sundance
1:43
Early Filmmakers and Films in LA
3:40
The Dream: The Birth of "Serious People"
6:58
Navigating the Meta: Blurring Lines of Fiction and Nonfiction
11:30
Casting Choices: Finding the Right Talent
13:46
The Creative Process: Improvisation and Collaboration + "American Movie" dir. by Chris Smith
17:30
Production
19:33
Past Inspo: Roy Andersson (“A Pigeon Sat on a Branch”) and Ruben Östlund (“Triangle of Sadness”)
22:13
Balancing Personal and Professional Lives
28:14
Roy Andersson pt. 2 + Cinematography
33:37
RIP David Lynch
36:12
The Concept of Auto-Fiction in Film
39:51
Ethics in (Documentary) Filmmaking
45:18
Memorable Moments from Making "Serious People"
49:04
Getting Into Sundance
50:41
Shared Filmmaking Wisdom: 1) Chill The Fuck Out 2) If You're Scared to do it, DO IT.
Past Present Feature with Marcus Mizelle
E38 • Meta Absurdism Explored Through Docu-Fiction • PASQUAL GUTIERREZ & BEN MULLINKOSSON, dirs. of ‘Serious People’ at the Sundance Film Festival
Jan 28, 2025 Season 1 Episode 38
Marcus Mizelle

Co-directors Pasqual Gutierrez & Ben Mullinkosson blur the lines between fiction and non-fiction with their latest film “Serious People”, which just had its World Premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

Ben discusses his filmmaking journey from Chicago to Shanghai and Pasqual shares the inspiration behind their film, which stemmed from a vivid dream he had, as well as real life - and also from the past works of Roy Andersson (“A Pigeon Sat on a Branch”) and Ruben Östlund (“Triangle of Sadness”). The discussion delves into the challenges of blending fiction and nonfiction, the importance of casting the right talent, and the creative process of improvisation. 

They reflect on the personal relationships that influenced the film and the unique challenges of co-directing with a partner. They also dive into the art of long takes, the concept of auto-fiction, and the ethical considerations in documentary filmmaking. They speak about the collaborative spirit that drove the project forward, culminating in their acceptance into Sundance.

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