Lisa D'Apolito, Laraine Newman, Jordan Walker-Pearlman, Anne Alvergue Q&A | Love, Gilda - SFJFF38

so Lisa I imagine that so many people wanted to make the movie about Gilda and so when when I saw this movie was opening at Tribeca I was surprised that there hadn't been a movie yet about Gilda can you talk a little bit about how this project came to you and also how you got access to all the incredible material that is part of this wonderful film well what's really interesting is there's been a couple TV movies about Gilda so when I came about with the idea which I'll tell you in a second there wasn't any interest there was people don't know who Gilda Radner is anymore so it was really hard at the beginning so the way I came about the project is I do fundraising videos for Gilda's Club which is a cancer organization founded by Gene Wilder and Gilda's friends after Gilda passed away and the original one is in New York City but there's 18 of them throughout the country and it's an amazing amazing place and when you walk through the door you see photos and and edges of Gilda all over the place and many of the members had to read her book called it's always something so when I would interview them for these fundraising videos they would talk about Gilda as if she was a friend and they would and many people reach for her when they were going through the same experience that she was going through so I thought she had an amazing legacy that not only as she's just an amazing iconic female comedian but she really is somebody who inspires people in a very important way probably everyday and you have had a really interesting career you started out in acting and then you progressed to do more of your own work and then you also work in an advertising agency where you've done a lot of hour-long documentary pieces can you talk about what was what's different about this project and also you know what were the different way is that you thought that you might go with it and how did it turn out to be primarily used with her own voice well what's different than anything I've ever done before is I had to raise my own money so raising money was a very essential part of a filmmaker and independent filmmakers part of making a film so that was extremely eye-opening and a learning experience about so the film was originally meant to be a shorter film mostly for members of gilda's club and about halfway through about two years ago or two and a half years ago I asked Michael Radner Gilda's brother who's been a really great supporter of the film in every every imaginable way and he said he had some things in storage and they were gonna stay there forever because they're heavy and I was like no no I'll come to Detroit and Gilda's friend Judy also said well we'll come we'll help you with the boxes and when we came to his house he had dozens of boxes and in there were these amazing amazing everything's amazing photos there was a home movie the cancer where you see Gilda with her ninth chemotherapy she created her own 20-minute video and in there were audio tapes - so there was 32 hours of Gilda telling her life story so once I I saw this amazing material I and once i listened to Gilda I was like well once I once I listened to Gilda in these audio tapes I knew I wanted to tell her story that she needed to tell her story so that was really the direction I want to go at and one thing that I've never mentioned to an audience the song that you hear upfront disco Gilda that was never released so that was also in the boxes so that was another find a song that you know Gilda and Paul Shaffer created that nobody's ever heard before yeah I mean I think this film is so incredible because it's so it feels very intimate and it's a woman telling her own story and a lot of documentaries you know they're most a lot of documentaries feature many talking heads and you know we do hear from other people in this film but it strikes me as so unique what a wonderful opportunity to have her be able to tell her own story up until the even the extras at the end so that was a really wonderful experience to see it I had a question for you and because there's so much material both still photography and you know video of different formats how did you go about working with Lisa on the editor of so much archival material like how did I call it down yeah there was a lot I mean I think Teresa's credit as she just mentioned she was oops sorry that she was adamant that you know that guilt to tell her own story and for a while we weren't sure if the audio quality was gonna be good enough I mean it was a real issue as you can tell sometimes there's you know it's really gravelly um so once we figured out we could do it and we had enough to do it then we would sort of you know I would be down from 32 to 13 and then just kept going and sort of weaved a tapestry of not only her private audio tapes which she recorded when she was in remission then we also included audio interviews and video interviews and then some from her book and then sort of kind of edited around the Veritate gems that we had the home movies were really key to everything yeah I think it was really striking the photography of her at each moment and how the mood transitioned from one section of the film to the other using so many beautiful still photographs yeah being that's all thanks to Michael Ratner and her friend her friends not Judy yes so a lot of besides the material from the boxes so much came from Gilda's friends Alan and Robin Zweibel had some home movies of his friend Judy and just we collected from whoever we could so they were very generous in adding to the library of what we had so Lorraine first of all I want to just thank you for all the wonderful characters that you've brought to us it's so wonderful seeing the clips of you all together and I wonder how it is for you seeing this film and also thinking about when you first started out together I think you were 23 and maybe Gilda was 21 I mean that just seems 20y like I think she was six years older than me and I'm gonna talk into the mic by the way one of the first things guilt and I did together was go shopping we went to Saks I told Lisa this story knowing that she was 6 years older than me and we were in one of those dressing rooms with the neon lighting that makes everybody look like [ __ ] and I'm looking at the back of her legs and you know I have like not to brag but really significant cellulite and on her nothing she had the most beautiful legs and so that was you know the first blow but it was interesting to see the Lampoon our because she took me up there and I actually ended up being on that album that's not funny that's sick it's just because she brought me up there to meet people because I didn't know anybody and being the person that she was she wanted me to have friends but yes and she knew I was scared she knew I didn't know anybody in New York and she kind of took me under her wing and you know there's a section in the film that really talks about how it was for women on that show at that time and then we see the new generation of SNL women sort of talking about how influenced they were by you and Gilda and Jane Curtin what what's your take on that period and women and calm and how you felt then well I know that women stand-ups had a very difficult time but coming from an improvisational review is a completely different thing because you write your own material also like a stand-up but it's a collegial discipline and also Lorne Michaels was such a champion of women's humor he wrote for Phyllis Diller and Joan Rivers and obviously Lily Tomlin that was when I first worked for him on a Lily Tomlin special and so Lorne was an absolute unequivocal supporter of women's humor and I remember somebody saying that Gilda never felt like she was second to the guys and none of us did because we came from I think it's like whatever happened with the women's movement we were of that generation we could just take it in stride because they'd already gone before us and broken down all the barriers and how did you feel seeing the finished movie I mean you have one of the best lines in the movie the [ __ ] snipper how how did you feel about the were there things that you learned absolutely there were a lot of things I didn't know I didn't know she went to the hospital when we were doing the show I had no idea that that happened there were a lot of things that were a revelation to me I'm trying to think of one of the most significant but I'll have to circle around because I can't remember what it was but one of the things that strikes me most and I think you're all gonna I think we can all recognize that it brought her to life and this is what I've said to Lisa is that the way in which she did this it made it feel and look like Gilda contributed like she was there participating in making this movie and that's a great accomplishment on Lisa's part and the editor yeah wonderful I guess and a third question that I would have for you is that you know Lisa is that you know I'm sure you asked a lot of people to be in the movie and to be interviewed what do you think what did you say to Lorraine for example to get her on board and what were the different responses that you got from different people when you approached them about the film well it's each interview led to another interview so that was sort of how that happened it's very very hard to get to people that you don't know especially if they have it's very hard to get to performers to go through their agents so you really need to have access so in order to get to the right I mean I I started four years ago on this film and I started trying to recruit people over a period of time but one led to another led to another led to another and I was very lucky Gilda's friend Alan Zweibel and Robbins why bell our executive producers so they were very influential in helping some of I think having Lorraine Lorraine can tell you better but it was really through people that we knew I knew and Jordan we see you as a really young kid in this movie and we see you grow and change and I'm wondering I know you were at the Tribeca premiere yes this is the second time that you've seen the movie I don't know if you stay it for the whole I didn't have I did not have the courage to watch the whole film today I'll admit but can you talk a little bit about this project and what it means to you what it means to me thanking Lisa publicly I have thanked you privately is that Gilda got her voice back Gilda's voice was submerged for a very long time and it was partly my responsibility and partly genes responsibility it was too painful and then when you bury the pain that deeply I guess you don't realize how deeply you buried it and so she was there with us in ways certainly her voice you know I wake up in the kitchen sometime and what are you doing go for the coffee over there but the the life of it her voice had kind of disappeared and what is so special about the film is that she got her voice back and it's not just her voice through her performances but it's actually her voice and when she was dying the last year of her life at the point where she knew she was dying she was on a desperate journey that's how she wrote the book she was on a desperate journey to to say something that would impact people and that she felt she could leave a legacy to and the book was a start but I feel this film and everyone's work in it to me just on a familial emotional not objective level I heard her again and that other people would hear her again that's the most special thing and Lisa do you feel like the film is reaching new generations of people that maybe weren't old enough to have seen the original episodes I hope it does I hope the film reaches younger people because our audiences primarily have been people who who remember Gilda and they're coming to to learn more about her and discover her again but when I have shown the film to high school students and some college students who have never heard of Gilda they've watched the film where they watched the trailer and they're very inspired by her so I'm hoping it does reach a new generation so tell your young friends to come out and see the film huh so when what is the plan for the release of the film and how can people see it well it's very exciting on September 21st the film will be out in 30 cities and it'll be I'm not sure what what on theatres but it'll be opening in San Francisco and I think Berkeley also so that's very exciting and also on demand for the people who won't be able to come to the theatre or for young people who don't go to the theatre they can watch it on their phone okay let's open it up to the audience I know that people will probably have questions so raise your hands and we'll find you having over here yeah when I was down in New York many years ago I was surprised to see Gilda Radner away as one of the streets in the village um what do you know about the history of Gilda Radner way that's in the block of gilda's club so it's right on the corner so um Gilda's Club had had that Street dedicated to her yes hello thank you so much for this amazing film and for bringing Gilda to life again for us thank you for what you said about Iran's voice being heard that was so beautiful and Lorraine personal thank you for everything you've done and I'm one yeah yeah I'm wondering what is your favorite memory of working together with Gilda that was either your happiest or funniest when we did the New Orleans show which was a complete disaster on every imaginable level lots of stuff happened I mean you know we were put into a room in a building having no idea what part of town we were in we were told to wait there until they got a around to rehearsing with us and they forgot about us and we were there for four hours and the only thing in the room we were in was a one of those trash cans with the foot pedal that lifted the lid so she made a puppet out of it you know things like that but we were so tired and having way too much fun in New Orleans and Marilyn Miller and Gilda and I were in Marilyn's hotel room and we were all sitting in the bathtub together and Marilyn had written she had read a story about a woman dying is not kind of morbid dying in her apartment and her dachshunds eating her so we started that thing way before Chris guessed and Bill Billy Crystal did don't you hate it when a dachshund eats your face though and we just you know like built on that and just laughing so hard somebody peed I'm not gonna say who but it's just you know those cherished moments where you're that tired that everything is funny and we just that was that was another great memory not that question over here on your left I David Lamm but with the Bay Area reporter loved the film loved to recall the days when Saturday Night Live was really funny you know in there in the early days it hasn't been for a number of years but it was good to see what the premise of the show was and how wonderfully Gilda fit in with those other wonderful people John Belushi Chevy Chase and everything that was an amazing amazing group of people what a way to launch a life thank you you're in the middle on your left thanks so much for a wonderful film at least I'm wondering what's gonna happen to the archival material that you collected for this film will it be available somewhere well as my friends have said Gilda's the gift that keeps on giving because also in in her archives this is probably one of the beginning of some projects she also left behind a screenplay that Michael he didn't even know he had the only copy of her screenplay she also wrote these wonderful funny short stories she did so there's a lot still to explore and then where were Michael and I are talking about eventually where those where the archives will go a question here in the front and just to follow up on that has there been any conversation to have a diary published like Joan Rivers and George Carlin have had similar things yeah I mean there's the film was only finished a couple months ago so I'm still sort of absorbing all we have there's um her the the diary that we talked about her eating disorder is pretty powerful it it takes place over a period of six months so I did talk to Michael about possibly publishing that because I think he could really help people you know a good place for some of her things is the National Comedy Center in Jamestown which was Lucille Ball's hometown and they have the you know Lucy Museum there and when they were going to build that they approached her and said we want to do a museum to honor you and she said I much preferred if you did a museum to honor comedy so this place was really her idea and it has George Carlin's written handwritten material it has Rodney Dangerfield's handwritten material and I it's an amazing place and I think it would be a great place for some of gilda's things it's in Jamestown it's it's a buffalo you should pardon the expression it's ice it's but Jamestown is really quite beautiful and the museum is mind-blowing it's a completely interactive experience and yeah I think they should have an exhibit of her stuff there's another question back here on the left hi you managed so L to capture her say any wonderful appeal and yet include some difficult subjects like her problems with food from everything I've read which there have been a lot written about Saturday Night Live that camaraderie was accompanied by a lot of drug use and that's not alluded to at all in the film I wondered if you'd consider that and decided not to or why Gilda didn't use drugs yeah I mean that wasn't part of her story I really I really based the film on Gilda's personal material and that was never anything that came up I mean we did at one point think about Anna and I did think a little bit about the the environment that Gilda was in but this was really her story so we want everything to come from her point of view and that was nothing that we ever had any writings or audio tapes about her there's another question over here towards the back on your left thank you I want to thank you all as that many others have done here you won't believe it but the woman who just spoke asked my first question I had - which was was was Gilda besides her struggles with cancer and with an eating disorder was she ever struggling with substance abuse and you've answered that as so many others were in that period my other question is just a footnote and I noticed in the credits that Howard sure was thanked and I just wondered what he had to do with this well another part of the film that I'm very lucky for is that many of gilda's friends donated their personal their their artwork or their music so I was able to use the song honey because of Paul Shaffer and Howard Shore and so and some other music the disco gilda up front so and also Gilda's friend Edie Baskin who was the SNL photographer donated over a hundred film a hundred photos to the film so I was very lucky to have so that's why Howard is dedicated because he was very generous okay another question over here on your far left hi I do have to just say Laraine Newman is in the house I have and I have a question for Lorraine in terms of women and comedy I'm over here you're I'm right here hello hi so we have a lot of changes have happened in relation to women and their role in politics comedy all kinds of work and I wonder if you worked with Al Franken at any time and what you think about what happened to him in terms of this whole accusation of his appropriateness with someone I boy it's gonna get me in trouble because you can't say that you don't believe somebody but I don't believe those women you know I knew Alf I've known al since before SNL and you know as much as I think you know the me2 movement it's time has come it's also come at a cost for really decent people and that really breaks my heart and you know the whole idea the idea that Chuck Schumer and what's-her-name Elizabeth Warren these people Elizabeth Warren I really just admired so much and they did not stand by him and I just think that's so rotten and it was also the idea of like the definition of bitterness you know you drink poison hoping others would die I mean you know thinking that the that others would follow suit you know they'd somehow clean their house because you know liberals and Democrats were being so rigorous about themselves that was so naive in my mind and it just breaks my heart he was a real public servant a true believer and a really decent guy and we needed him in politics ok we have time for one more question let's make it a really good one ok towards the back on your right side no pressure awesome I'm interested to know how the whole getting together of Amy Poehler and Melissa McCarthy Bill Hader took place and how it came to being all of that place well I had a list of of modern what we call the modern day comedians inspired by Gilda which was massive massive list and eventually we were the first person of the modern day comedians we got on board was Amy and once Amy came on board she really was very supportive in getting all the other people on board I mean they're all friends from the SNL all time so once Amy came on board I was flying back and forth to LA and within a month I got everybody and they were they were just amazing amazing and I was very I was very shocked I knew they were inspired by Gilda but I was really shocked about their reaction to holding Gilda's personal Diaries was really something I didn't expect yep that was beautiful really really wonderful part of the film to have them read you know and you could really see they were taking it all in well this has been wonderful thank you all so much I hope you'll all continue the conversation with us down at the contemporary Jewish Museum so we'll see you there