Back To One
295 episodes - English - Latest episode: 20 days ago - ★★★★ - 94 ratingsThe no nonsense, in-depth, actors-on-acting podcast from Filmmaker Magazine. Hosted by Peter Rinaldi. One working actor every episode doing a deep dive into their approach to the craft. No small talk, no celebrity stories, no inane banter—just the work.
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Episodes
Ariel Kavoussi
February 19, 2019 09:00 - 42 minutes - 39.1 MBI first took note of Ariel Kavoussi’s singular comedic talent in Onur Tukel’s “Applesauce” and then “Catfight,” where she hilariously played Ann Heche’s assistant and stole every scene she was in. She performed a similar theft this past year on the Netflix series “Maniac,” opposite Emma Stone. She also writes and directs her own work. Her new short film “The Poet and The Professor” was called a "truly absurdist, provocative, and contemporary feminist film” by Indiewire. We talk about the ori...
Josh Hamilton
February 12, 2019 09:00 - 42 minutes - 38.7 MBIf I ever need to cry on cue, I can just picture the expression on Josh Hamilton's face, in “Eighth Grade,” when Elsie Fisher hugs him. It's a beautiful, wordless culmination of his incredible performance, which landed him a Spirit Award nomination this year. We discuss that scene, and he shares some of what he’s learned from jumping from the New York stage to the big & small screens and back again over the past 25 years. He talks about the importance of syncing with the director’s vision, b...
Mads Mikkelsen
February 05, 2019 09:00 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MBMads Mikkelsen is perhaps best known for playing villains in "Casino Royale," "Doctor Strange," and the television series "Hannibal," but he’s also been called the "face of the resurgent Danish cinema,” culminating with his Best Actor win at Cannes for his work in Thomas Vinterberg's "The Hunt." In this half hour, he talks about performing some physically and emotionally wrenching scenes in two new movies he currently stars in, the pure survival film "Arctic," and the live action adaptation ...
Noomi Rapace
January 29, 2019 09:00 - 26 minutes - 24.9 MBNoomi Rapace became an international sensation playing Lisbeth Salander in the original, Swedish version of “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” and its sequels. Hollywood beckoned and leading roles in such films as Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus” and Brian DePalma’s “Passion” followed. Now she stars in Vicky Jewson’s Netflix nail-biter “Close,” in a role based on real-life female bodyguard Jacquie Davis. In this half hour, Rapace talks about the intense training she went through to prepare for the...
Imogen Poots
January 22, 2019 09:00 - 30 minutes - 28.1 MBIf you didn't know Imogen Poots was British, it is understandable. Few young actors transform so chameleon-like, role-to-role, applying accents so skillfully. I was first wowed by her in Peter Bogdanovich's "She's Funny That Way" and then I actually didn't even know it was her in "Green Room" until I saw the credits. She floored me again in "Frank and Lola" opposite Michael Shannon, in an entirely different kind of role. Now she plays a drifter with questionable parenting skills, who steers ...
Ethan Hawke
January 15, 2019 09:00 - 36 minutes - 33.7 MBEthan Hawke's "staying power" is grounded in hard work. He survived being the poster child of Generation X ("Reality Bites"), and thrived as Richard Linklater's go-to actor ("The Before Trilogy," "Boyhood") and always returns to the true home of the actor--the theater (he's currently starring in "True West" on Broadway). Now he has delivered one of the most critically acclaimed performances of the year in Paul Schrader's "First Reformed." He generously shares the wisdom and knowledge he's ac...
Aidan Gillen
January 08, 2019 09:00 - 30 minutes - 27.9 MBHe’s perhaps best known for his portrayal of Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish on “Game of Thrones” but I first took note of the uniquely talented Aidan Gillen as Mayor Carcetti on “The Wire.” The Dublin native’s most recent role was the manager of Queen in “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Now he stars in the period UFO drama “Project Blue Book,” which premieres January 8th on History. In this half hour he talks about his intuition-based approach to preparation, how Jez Butterworth introduced him to the work...
Joanna Kulig
December 25, 2018 09:00 - 26 minutes - 24.2 MBJoanna Kulig’s performance in “Cold War” is so astonishingly captivating and commanding and downright brilliant, that it feels like a classic performance delivered by an immortal screen goddess from the golden age of film. Pawel Pawlikowski’s penetrating black and white and impeccable direction helps, but this Polish masterpiece, short-listed for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, is impossible to imagine without Kulig. In this half hour she talks about how her music training came in hand...
Karen Gillan
December 18, 2018 09:00 - 25 minutes - 23.5 MBStarting with her big break on “Dr. Who,” and continuing with the “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Avengers” films, Karen Gillan has grown accustomed to fervent fandom surrounding her acting work. With "The Party's Just Beginning,” (which she wrote, directed, and stars in) she stepped away from that hubbub to make a small, dark, intricately structured film in her hometown in Scotland. The movie folds out from her character through hallucinations, flashbacks and alcoholic hazes to tell the tale...
Alessandro Nivola
December 11, 2018 09:00 - 46 minutes - 42.9 MBWe're catching Alessandro Nivola at a very interesting moment in his career. A day before our talk, he was awarded Best Supporting Actor at the British Independent Film Awards for his incredible performance in “Disobedience,” and a few days before that it was announced that he will star in David Chase's “Sopranos” prequel “The Many Saints of Newark.” He talks about the benefits of having time to prepare for the role of Rabbi Dovid Kuperman and facing the challenge of delivering that importan...
Jason Mantzoukas
December 06, 2018 09:00 - 33 minutes - 30.7 MBJason Manzoukos has made a living "bringing the funny" in tv shows like “The League,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “The Good Place,” and movies such as “The House,” and “The Dictator.” Now he stars in Hannah Fidell's “The Long Dumb Road” with Tony Revolori (“The Grand Budapest Hotel”). In this half hour, I send him down a rabbit hole on the evolution of comedy, he tells a great story about getting the hard truth from a casting director early in his career, and talks about wh...
James Ransone
December 04, 2018 09:00 - 39 minutes - 36.7 MBJames Ransone doesn’t like to talk about himself. He also doesn’t like to talk about acting. This might have been a disastrous interview except that his expressed frustration at having to speak about these things actually spawned an interesting and raw conversation about acting. I first noticed Ransone in the role of Ziggy in Season 2 of “The Wire.” He went on to star in the HBO miniseries “Generation Kill,” and in movies like “Sinister,” “Tangerine” and Spike Lee's “Oldboy” remake. This yea...
Eric Lange
November 29, 2018 09:00 - 37 minutes - 34.8 MBYou recognize Eric Lange. He’s been a working actor for 20+ years, with extensive theater work and a long list of television and film credits ("Narcos," "Lost," "Weeds," "The Bridge," to name a few recent ones). For "Escape at Dannemora" (directed by Ben Stiller), he gained 40 pounds to play Lyle, husband of Patricia Arquette's character, in the Showtime limited series based on the real-life prison break. He tells a wonderful, "outside-in" tale of finding a way into Lyle through some magic t...
Simone Missick
November 27, 2018 09:00 - 37 minutes - 34.9 MBSimone Missick is best known for playing Misty Knight in the Netflix/Marvel series "Luke Cage" (as well in "The Defenders" and "Iron Fist"). She tells a great story of getting that part, and her game plan for auditioning in general, and also talks about knowing when to offer script changes, even for Marvel material! Then we talk about her important new film "JINN", about a teenager torn between her burgeoning sexuality and her mother's newfound Muslim faith. "JINN" is now available on VOD an...
Melissa Leo
November 22, 2018 09:00 - 27 minutes - 25.8 MBMelissa Leo has acquired a lot of acting wisdom. On this episode, she graciously shares some. She was nominated for an Academy Award for her incredible performance in "Frozen River," and won one for playing Alice Ward in "The Fighter." Recent notable performances can be found in “Francine," "The Most Hated Woman In America," and her latest, "Unlovable," where she plays opposite Charlene deGuzman, who co-wrote the script based on her real-life experiences in a program for sex and love addicti...
Willem Dafoe
November 20, 2018 09:00 - 25 minutes - 23.3 MBWith over one hundred films in his legendary career filled with versatile, bold, and iconic performances, Willem Dafoe is one of the most respected actors of our time. His artistic curiosity in exploring the human condition leads him to projects all over the world, giant Hollywood movies as well as small Independent films. In this episode he talks about inhabiting Vincent van Gogh through the act of painting for his latest film, "At Eternity's Gate," and how being part of a strong director's...
Chloë Grace Moretz
November 13, 2018 09:00 - 25 minutes - 23.9 MBFrom her breakthrough in “Kick-Ass” through great roles in “Let Me In,” “Hugo,” and “Carrie,” Chloë Grace Moretz has become one of the hottest young actors in Hollywood. In this half hour, she talks about her recent decision to take time to “reassess who I am and find myself within my roles again,” which led to her brilliant performance in “The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” this year’s winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance (now streaming on demand). She also talks about avoiding what s...
Ben Foster
November 06, 2018 09:00 - 39 minutes - 36.6 MBWith riveting performances in films such as "Hell or High Water," "The Messenger" and "3:10 to Yuma," Ben Foster established himself as an intensely serious actor who goes all-in for a role. With this year's “Leave No Trace,” Foster takes that same intensity and brilliantly turns it inward, portraying a laconic veteran who suffers from PTSD and survives in the woods of Oregon with his teenage daughter, played by Thomasin McKenzie. Foster talks about working with McKensie to establish the con...
Elsie Fisher and Bo Burnham
October 30, 2018 08:00 - 30 minutes - 28.2 MBElsie Fisher was not just some 13-year-old Bo Burnham plucked from Middle America to star in his debut feature “Eighth Grade.” She has been a working child actor in Hollywood since infancy. She did, however, just finish eighth grade in public school when filming began, and she managed to create a performance so vulnerable and true that the seams of the acting craft are invisible. In this half-hour, I attempt to get Fisher and Burnham to open up about the origins of this movie and how this yo...
Jim Cummings
October 23, 2018 08:00 - 35 minutes - 32.9 MBJim Cummings' performance in the Sundance winning, one-shot short film "Thunder Road" was the talk of the indie film world in 2016. And then he turned it into a feature, and it won the Grand Jury Prize at the SXSW Film Festival. Now Cummings has decided to turn down the less than thrilling distribution offers and make the risky decision to distribute "Thunder Road" himself. It was the right move. The film has not even hit American screens yet and it has already made its money back and more. ...
Kayli Carter
October 16, 2018 08:00 - 32 minutes - 30.4 MBIt’s difficult, right now, to find the words “Kayli Carter” without the word “breakthrough” nearby. The adjective refers to her brilliant performance in Tamara Jenkins’ PRIVATE LIFE, in which Carter unflappably shines next to her more seasoned co-stars Kathryn Hahn and Paul Giamatti. She talks about the chemistry she had with those three, and about her formative experience with Mark Rylance in the play “Nice Fish” (including a 60 minute audition!), plus how she’s perfectly fine with passing ...
Kathryn Hahn
October 09, 2018 08:00 - 24 minutes - 22.6 MBKathryn Hahn has joked about her plethora of “best friend or randy crazy lady” roles in comedies like “How To Lose A Guy In Ten Days,” “Anchorman” and “Step Brothers.” But recent projects by Jill Soloway (“Afternoon Delight” and “I Love Dick”) and Tamara Jenkins (the new Netflix film “Private Life”) have cast Hahn in the lead role, and suddenly we have an exciting leading lady who’s much more than a scene-stealer-extraordinaire. She lets us in on a fascinating process she has for getting int...
Nicolette Robinson
October 02, 2018 08:00 - 36 minutes - 33.9 MBWhen Nicolette Robinson made her Broadway debut in September, taking over the lead role of Jenna in “Waitress,” she was not just fond of Sara Bareilles’ hit musical, she had been listening to the cast album cathartically as she went through emotional ups and downs in her own life. This might be part of why I found her “Jenna” so connected to the material, so alive. We talk about what led up to that Broadway debut night, stepping through the complex engulfing that is “Hamilton” (her husband L...
Taran Killam
September 25, 2018 14:41 - 28 minutes - 26.6 MBThe hilarious Taran Killam lets us peek under the hood of his comedic craft in this half hour. He stars in the new ABC series “Single Parents” (premiering September 26th) and the comedy “Night School” (opening September 28th) opposite Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish. He’s probably best known for his 6 years on Saturday Night Live. We talk about how that “bootcamp” prepared him for almost anything. But his talent goes beyond comedy. He writes, directs (check out his film “Killing Gunther” on d...
Linus Roache
September 18, 2018 08:00 - 36 minutes - 34.2 MBLinus Roache has played upstanding characters on “Law and Order” and “Homeland” but he had to plumb the depths and reach the epicenter of narcissism to play Jeremiah Sand in “Mandy,” and it’s a frightening joy to behold. He talks about the draining yet rewarding time bringing this character to life and the guidance and trust he had from director Panos Cosmatos. Plus he answers a listener question about the faith life of his character, King Ecbert, in the TV series “Vikings.”
Ashlie Atkinson
September 04, 2018 08:00 - 32 minutes - 30 MBAshlie Atkinson is getting kudos for playing Connie Kendrickson, the motherly yet evil KKK wife, in Spike Lee’s “Blackkklansman.” We talk about the unique prep work that went into inhabiting her and the tools she used to stay present inside such a sick character. We also chat about her approach to comedy, particularly in the Ingrid Jungermann web series “F to 7th,” and working with Craig Zobel in both “Compliance” (a favorite of mine, as may listeners know) and now the brand new CBS All Acce...
John Cho
August 28, 2018 08:00 - 35 minutes - 32.7 MBJohn Cho is perhaps best known for playing Sulu in the “Star Trek” reboots and Harold in the “Harold and Kumar” films. His new movie “Searching” takes place entirely on computer screens. Cho’s performance is one of the reasons why it is a successful piece of true cinema and not a novelty. We discuss the unique challenges of performing alone in some scenes and trusting director Aneesh Chaganty to navigate him through the space. We also talk about one of my favorite recent indie films “Columbu...
Raúl Castillo
August 21, 2018 08:00 - 36 minutes - 33.8 MBHis portrayal of “Richie" on the HBO series “Looking” brought Raúl Castillo some serious recognition and started moving him into bigger and better parts. One such role is “Pops” in the astonishing queer coming-of-age film “We The Animals” (in theaters now) directed by Jeremiah Zagar from the Justin Torres best-seller. Castillo talks in depth about his process of bringing this complex character to life, and the importance of owning your space as an actor. Plus we do a deep-dive into the strai...
John Gallagher Jr.
August 14, 2018 08:22 - 36 minutes - 33.8 MBHis performances in “Spring Awakening” and “American Idiot” are probably what John Gallagher Jr. is most known for at the moment (he won a Tony for the former), and are often what get him labeled a “musical theater guy,” but they were the only musicals he’s done in his nearly 20 year career. I ask him about two recent play productions (“Long Day’s Journey Into Night” and “Jerusalem”) that I suspect were very formative for him, and his latest screen role in the important and moving indie “The...
Topher Grace
August 07, 2018 12:43 - 24 minutes - 22.9 MBSeven seasons on the sitcom “That 70’s Show” led Topher Grace to roles in Steven Soderbergh’s “Traffic,” “In Good Company,” a not entirely successful turn as “Venom” in “Spider Man 3,” and lighter projects like “Win A Date With Tad Hamilton,” and “Valentine’s Day.” He then decided to change the trajectory of his career. He told his agents he wanted to work exclusively with great film artists in environments that inspired him. Worthy projects like “Interstellar,” “Truth” and “War Machine” fol...
Ann Dowd
July 31, 2018 08:00 - 27 minutes - 25.8 MBThe “stay positive and keep it simple” approach Ann Dowd has toward her work is truly inspiring. A go-to character-actor-extraordinaire for 30 years, she has now received wide acclaim (and an Emmy) for her portrayal of the terrifyingly devout Aunt Lydia in “The Handmaid’s Tale.” And her pitch perfect performance in Craig Zobel’s “Compliance” is, in my opinion, a tour de force for the ages. In this half hour, she talks about the nuts and bolts of playing these roles and generously lets us pee...
Grace Rex
July 24, 2018 08:00 - 36 minutes - 33.6 MBGrace Rex has been a series regular on the British sitcom “High and Dry,” a recurring guest star on “The Good Wife,” and had roles in “Master of None”, “Mindhunter" and “Boardwalk Empire,” among many other TV shows and films. For me, her finespun and hilarious work in Ingrid Jungermann’s “Women Who Kill” solidified her place among the uniquely talented comedic actors to watch. We talk about one special moment in that film, the “bizarre” endeavor of auditioning, and NOT getting into a co-dep...
Theodore Bouloukos
July 19, 2018 16:44 - 1 hour - 60.4 MBWe really get to know the brilliant actor Theodore Bouloukos in this hour. He lets us peek in on him as a child fascinated, perhaps to a peculiar degree, with design, typography, and channel logos. And then what led him to performance art with Brock Enright and others, and the "self training" of student film parts that led to feature roles and works exhibited and staged the world over. We learn the components that now make him a unique talent in the New York film world. I am thrilled and pr...
John Christopher Jones
July 10, 2018 08:00 - 49 minutes - 45.8 MBJohn Christopher Jones is a veteran “actor’s actor” with many Broadway shows including Simon Gray's “Otherwise Engaged” (directed by Harold Pinter), “Hurlyburly” (directed by Mike Nichols), “The Iceman Cometh” (with Jason Robards), and Shaw’s “Heartbreak House.” He is the subject of a documentary film, “The Endgame Project,” which follows him in his tenth year with Parkinson's as he rehearses and performs Beckett's masterpiece. A “text-lover” through and through, he continues to translate th...
Keith Poulson
July 03, 2018 14:13 - 39 minutes - 36.1 MBThere is, perhaps, no actor at the moment more synonymous with New York indie filmmaking than Keith Poulson. His uncanny comedic sensibilities first caught my attention in Bob Byington’s “Somebody Up There Likes Me.” He’s since honed his mastery of the low key “throw away” in dozens of low budget gems and appeared in nearly everything made recently by the prolific Brooklyn filmmakers Alex Ross Perry and Nathan Silver. He got to stretch his wings a bit in Zach Clark’s “Little Sister,” where h...
Glen Powell
June 19, 2018 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MBGlen Powell gives me hope for the future of the movie industry. He crushed the role of legendary astronaut John Glenn in “Hidden Figures,” and donned some 80s duds in Richard Linklater’s “Everybody Wants Some,” but he really grabbed my attention in the brand new Netflix rom-com “Set It Up,” where, in my humble opinion, he has crafted a classic, for-all-time, romantic lead performance opposite the incomparable Zoey Deutch. We talk about his process in general and do a deep dive into his work ...
Lea Thompson
June 12, 2018 13:11 - 23 minutes - 22.3 MBLea Thompson has a lot of wisdom to share. Her work as an actor spans three decades with hit films like the “Back To The Future” trilogy and “Some Kind of Wonderful” to successful television shows like “Caroline in the City” and “Switched at Birth.” She recently started a second chapter as a director. Her first feature film “The Year of Spectacular Men” (opening Friday June 15th) stars her daughters Madelyn and Zoey Deutch and was written by Madelyn. We talk about how this true family affai...
J. Smith-Cameron
June 05, 2018 08:00 - 37 minutes - 34.2 MBThe brilliant J. Smith-Cameron blew us away in “Margaret” (written and directed by her husband, Kenneth Lonergan) and in the acclaimed series “Rectify.” Currently she’s starring in the new play “Peace For Mary Frances” (with Lois Smith), and the praiseworthy film “Nancy” (written and directed by Christina Choe and co-staring Andrea Riseborough and Steve Buscemi), which opens Friday June 8th. We talk extensively about her work in the latest two pieces and how her desire for rehearsal is somet...
Sami Gayle
May 29, 2018 08:00 - 22 minutes - 21.2 MBSami Gayle has played Nicky Reagan on the hit CBS drama “Blue Bloods” for eight seasons, performed on Broadway a few times, acted opposite Adrien Brody in her first film, and she’s only 22. She now stars in “Candy Jar,” a fun and smart new Netflix film set in the world of high school debate, which was written by her brother Chad. We talk about the unique way the work deepens when you have played a character over a period of time, and why “quality over quantity” is the approach she’s taking w...
Lee Grant
May 22, 2018 08:00 - 34 minutes - 32.3 MBI finished Lee Grant's incredible autobiography "I Said Yes To Everything" right before sitting down with her and that was a huge mistake, only because it was frustrating to have such a limited time with the legendary actress after reading her extraordinary story. Consider this episode a tiny drop in the ocean of this astounding life. She was nominated for an Oscar for her first screen role in William Wyler's "Detective Story" and then was blacklisted by HUAC for 12 long, painful years. She ...
Harry Lennix
May 15, 2018 16:33 - 46 minutes - 43 MBAt the moment, Harry Lennix is perhaps best known for his portrayal of FBI agent Harold Cooper on NBC’s “The Blacklist.” The breadth and depth of his work on the stage and screen go well beyond that hit show, however, with film roles spanning from Robert Townsend’s “The Five Heartbeats” and Julie Taymor’s “Titus,” to General Swanwick in both “Man of Steel” and “Batman vs. Superman,” and on Broadway in August Wilson’s final play “Radio Golf," and “Cymbeline” at The Royal Shakespeare Company. ...
Sheila Vand
May 08, 2018 11:41 - 49 minutes - 45.9 MBIn this hour, Sheila Vand gifts us with a glimpse into the inner life of an incredibly talented young actor on the verge of harnessing her art and reaching new heights. She first captured our attention in Ana Lily Amirpour’s noir vampire western A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT, and in the small but pivotal role of Sahar, the Iranian housekeeper, in ARGO. Co-starring stints on NBC’s STATE OF AFFAIRS and FOX’s 24 LEGACY followed, and by the end of this episode she’ll make you anxious to see t...
Joshua Leonard
May 01, 2018 08:00 - 36 minutes - 33.9 MBJoshua Leonard first came onto the scene with the lo-fi sensation The Blair Witch Project, then went on to receive rave reviews for his performance in Lynn Shelton's Independent Spirit Award-winning Humpday. His narrative feature debut as director, The Lie, premiered at Sundance in 2011 and he just wrapped production on his sophomore feature Behold My Heart which stars Marisa Tomei. Currently he co-stars in Steven Soderbergh's thriller Unsane, which was famously shot on an iPhone. Leonard ta...
Emily Mortimer
April 24, 2018 08:00 - 47 minutes - 44.1 MBEmily Mortimer is perhaps best known for her role as MacKenzie McHale in Aaron Sorkin’s beloved HBO series “The Newsroom.” Some of her other memorable performances are in Woody Allen’s “March Point,” Martin Scorsese’s “Shutter Island” and “Hugo” and as Phoebe, Jack Donaghy’s love interest, on the NBC series “30 Rock.” In this hour she talks extensively about one particular, powerful scene in her breakout film, Nicole Holofcener’s “Lovely & Amazing” (which earned her an Independent Spirit A...
Kevin Corrigan
April 17, 2018 08:00 - 54 minutes - 53.3 MBWe could not have a more perfect guest for the first episode of a podcast about “the work” of acting if we build one. The TV guest star extraordinaire, the go-to indie comedy player of our time, the actor's actor--Kevin Corrigan seems to be in everything. From nearly 30 years of experience in front of the camera in indies like Buffalo 66 and Results, studio films like Goodfellas and The Departed and television shows such as Grounded for Life, Community, and The Get Down, he has developed a ...