If you love New York, you will absolutely love the work of Dustin Guy Defa. His first feature film, “Person to Person,” will be released in theaters this Friday, and it is a timeless love letter to NYC. The movie tells the story of several different people living in the city and how their lives intersect. It also beautifully explores the connections people form with one another.
The title “Person to Person” was previously used by Defa for one of his short films, but the feature is not a continuation of the short. In fact, the two films might seem completely unrelated if it were not for their one shared character named Bene, an eccentric vinyl collector, excellently portrayed by Bene Coopersmith. The character was based on him in both productions. The full-length film stars an impressive ensemble: Michael Cera, Abbi Jacobson, blogger-turned-actress Tavi Gevinson, and newcomer Bene Coopersmith. “Person to Person” will make you laugh and cry at the same time, and it is one of the best movies released this summer. I had the wonderful opportunity to speak with Dustin Guy Defa, the writer and director behind the film, and I am honored to feature such a talented filmmaker on The Zeitgeist.
First off, I absolutely loved the movie, and I know you made a short also called “Person to Person.” How much inspiration for the film did you draw from that besides the title?
Well, Bene plays Bene in both movies, and when I started writing the feature, I wanted to make another movie with him. I felt so excited at the prospect, since he’s a good friend of mine, and we have a lot of fun working together. I’m so happy that his charisma translated well on screen. When I was writing the feature, though, I never thought of it as an extension of the short. They’re different pieces, and the feature was originally titled something else, actually. In the end, though, I decided “Person to Person” was the best title for the film.
That’s really interesting. Although you just discussed your relationship with Bene, can you tell me a bit about how the rest of the cast came together?
It was a long process! *laughs* I don’t know exactly when the ball started rolling, but it was probably two months before we began shooting when the cast really started to come together– but we had Abbi and Tavi a little while before that. Although there was a normal casting process, we had so many speaking roles– 42 to be exact. I had written all of the characters so each one had their own little life, so when you’re watching the movie, whether it’s the person working at the bodega or some guy walking down the street, they are all different and unique.
What was the biggest challenge you faced while filming “Person to Person,” and what was the most rewarding part of making the movie?
It’s always nice when you’ve finished a film and get to show it to people. I feel great when it’s showing and depressed when it’s not! *laughs* But overall, the most rewarding thing is working with others. I love collaborating with people, and we built a family while shooting this movie. That’s something really unique about this profession– you become so close with the people you work with, and it’s really a group effort. The biggest challenge by far was shooting so many actors and so many different locations. It’s not the smartest thing in the world to have little to no budget and to go and try to shoot at a bunch of places in New York City! *laughs* We were faced with the reality of having to find new places to shoot on a daily basis, which was tough. Also, it was a very short shoot.
Wow! That’s amazing you could accomplish all of that in such a small time frame. You said the shoot was short– how many days was it?
It was 21 days. We got an extra day, which was really lucky, but two more days would have been huge. However, everything worked out great with only 21.
New York is one of my favorite places in the world, and I absolutely loved how the city was almost a character in itself. Does New York have a special meaning to you?
I’ve lived here for a long time, and one of the things I love about this city is all the stuff you witness, all the drama you get to see. The drama is almost like a mini movie– you see people yelling at each other in the streets or talking on the subway, and you’re wondering about their backstories. I also love the overall feeling of interconnectedness. You don’t even know what’s even happening a block away from you, but it’s probably affecting you in some way. I wanted to explore the mystery of that in the movie.
Where was the watch shop? Or did you create it for the film?
It was actually created for the movie. There were no real clock shops there that were big enough to shoot in. In Manhattan, there definitely weren’t any that offered enough space, and there weren’t any in Brooklyn either. The one in the movie was a recently closed down optometrist’s office, so we built around that.
Why did you choose to shoot in 16mm film? It felt very nostalgic to me, and I love that it provided a grimy, old school feeling for the film.
It’s so funny. I never think of 16 as being old school, but that’s just the nature of it nowadays. I just love 16 a lot; I shot the short in 16, and it felt like the right vibe for the feature, too. There’s a special quality that it has, and it’s very New York to me. The 16 film just very easily lent itself to the movie and overall storyline.
What message do you hope moviegoers take away after seeing the film?
I hope people will understand the value of friendship and the value of connecting with another person. That’s really what I was going for. All the characters have different kinds of desires to connect or maintain connections to other people.
When did you come up with the concept as a whole? Was it while you were living in New York?
Yes, it was. I started developing this while thinking about Bene. I wanted to explore his character more. In the film, Bene has a woman that he’s in love with. Wendy, portrayed by Tavi, experiences connection, too, but it’s lost in a sense. She and her best friend are going down different paths. As for Michael and Abbi’s characters, they’re two single people and Michael wants to connect deeply with her, but she just wants to get through the day. *laughs*
When did you realize you wanted to become a filmmaker?
I made movies all the time when I was a kid, but at that point, I had no idea what I was doing. Even as a teenager, it was the same thing. I wasn’t serious about anything like that in high school. *laughs* I think it was really when I realized that people actually make movies for a living and that they don’t just magically appear out of thin air. That was a big realization for me– that I could become a director for a career and that this was feasible.
What piece of advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers?
I’ve only been making movies on my own; the movies before this had no budgets at all. I’ve just been making them with people that I know. I think just working and getting a lot of experience is very important. You learn from making things, and the editing process teaches you a lot, too.
What’s next for you after Person to Person?
I’m writing my next movie– that’s all I can say for now!
Featured image of Dustin’s headshot courtesy of Brigade Marketing.