Pedro Almodóvar, Blanca Suarez, and Carlos Areces. Photo: Philip May

Over the past several weeks, Film Society of Lincoln Center has hosted exciting Q&A events and spoken with the artists behind some of this summer's most anticipated films. In conversations about Before Midnight, Much Ado About Nothing, and I'm So Excited!, these filmmakers discussed topics ranging from their writing process to the presence of bathrooms on set.

For those who weren't able to attend these fascinating talks, or audience members who would like to revisit them, full video and interesting clips have been posted to the Film Society YouTube channel. Make sure to subscribe to receive great video content like this going forward. Below, we've rounded up some of our favorite highlights for your viewing pleasure.

Summer Talks: Before Midnight


Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, and Richard Linklater. Photo: Julie Cunnah.

During the first intallment of our free Summer Talks series, Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, and Ethan Hawke talked to Film Comment contributor Philip Lopate about Before Midnight, the last of their triptych of films that includes Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. 

In our first clip, the trio discusses the pleasure of writing and playing complicated characters, and their disinterest in likeability:

They also spoke about the film's wordy script, bucking the film school wisdom of the primacy of the image, and constructing a film in which conversation is plot:

An Evening with Joss Whedon


The Film Society's Matt Kaszanek and Joss Whedon. Photo: Julie Cunnah. 

On May 29, Joss Whedon, the man behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, and last summer's blockbuster The Avengers, spoke with Film Society about his newest film, a bold and modern adaptation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. The film is now playing daily in our theaters.

Whedon discussed his decision to follow a giant studio picture with a small-scale literary adaptation, his lifelong love of Shakespeare, and the choice to film Much Ado About Nothing, rather than another play by Shakespeare:

Whedon also discussed his frustrating experiences as a screenwriter and his path from writing for others to directing his own work:

I'm So Excited! Advanced Screening and Q&A


Blanca Suarez and Carlos Areces. Photo: Philip May. 

Finally, earlier this week Pedro Almodóvar and actors Carlos Areces, Blanca Suarez, and Miguel Angel Silvestre visited the Film Society for a Q&A following an advanced screening of their new film I'm So Excited!

During the conversation, Almodóvar and the cast talked about the rehearsal process, the differences between Spanish and American attitudes toward rehearsals, and the importance of having bathrooms nearby:

Almodóvar also addressed the theatricality of the film, the Spanish and American comedies that inspired him, and the importance of fiction in everyday life: 

For more great video content like this, subscribe to Film Society's YouTube channel!