“Wise up, folks. We're all alone out there and tomorrow we're going out there again.” Talking About The Big Chill with our guest, writer/director Mandy Fabian
In this episode of Movies We Like, hosts Andy Nelson and Pete Wright are joined by the multi-talented writer/director Mandy Fabian to discuss her fascinating career journey and the classic 1980s ensemble dramedy, The Big Chill. From her early days as a clown and sketch comedian to her path to becoming a filmmaker, Mandy shares the twists and turns that led her to direct her first feature film, Jess Plus None.
Throughout the conversation, Mandy provides insights into the challenges and joys of indie filmmaking, from the financial risks and creative compromises to the importance of assembling a supportive team and maintaining a sense of fun amidst the pressure. She also delves into the unique challenges of shooting Jess Plus None, with 90% of the film set outdoors, and how this serendipitously worked in her favor during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The discussion of The Big Chill, Lawrence Kasdan's seminal film about a group of college friends reuniting after the death of one of their own, touches on the movie's enduring themes of nostalgia, friendship, and the passage of time. Mandy and the hosts explore how the film's iconic soundtrack and stellar ensemble cast, including Kevin Kline, Glenn Close, and William Hurt, contribute to its status as a cinematic touchstone.
With Mandy Fabian's infectious enthusiasm and Andy and Pete's insightful commentary, this episode offers a delightful deep dive into the world of filmmaking and the lasting impact of The Big Chill. It's a must-listen for anyone interested in the creative process behind the camera or the power of a well-crafted ensemble piece to resonate with audiences decades after its release.
About Mandy
Mandy Fabian began her career in Austin, Texas as the youngest member of a professional sketch comedy troupe before attending Vassar College to major in film. (What? I know. Her parents thought that too.)
Since then, her focus has been writing female-driven stories with humor and heart. Mandy co-created and directed The Young Hillary Diaries, Lifetime's first digital series, was awarded a fellowship from the Sony Pictures Television Directing Program, and was named Best New Filmmaker of the Year by NewFilmmakers LA. Her screenplay, Late Bloomer was selected for the NYWIFT Meryl Streep/Oprah Winfrey Writers Lab, and in 2020 she was one of six directors chosen to lead an all-female crew for the Moonshot Initiative.
Mandy’s feature debut, Jess Plus None, an LGBTQ+ modern day The Big Chill meets Bridesmaids, had its World Premiere at the BFI Flare Festival in London, its US Premiere at Frameline Film Fest in San Francisco, and is set to be released Worldwide in Summer of 2024.
Mandy lives in London & Los Angeles with her husband Patrick Fabian, her daughters Abbey and Delilah, and a champion’s collection of reusable water bottles.
Welcome to Movies We Like • Writer/Director Mandy Fabian on The Big Chill
About Mandy
About The Big Chill
“Wise up, folks. We're all alone out there and tomorrow we're going out there again.” Talking About The Big Chill with our guest, writer/director Mandy Fabian
In this episode of Movies We Like, hosts Andy Nelson and Pete Wright are joined by the multi-talented writer/director Mandy Fabian to discuss her fascinating career journey and the classic 1980s ensemble dramedy, The Big Chill. From her early days as a clown and sketch comedian to her path to becoming a filmmaker, Mandy shares the twists and turns that led her to direct her first feature film, Jess Plus None.
Throughout the conversation, Mandy provides insights into the challenges and joys of indie filmmaking, from the financial risks and creative compromises to the importance of assembling a supportive team and maintaining a sense of fun amidst the pressure. She also delves into the unique challenges of shooting Jess Plus None, with 90% of the film set outdoors, and how this serendipitously worked in her favor during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The discussion of The Big Chill, Lawrence Kasdan's seminal film about a group of college friends reuniting after the death of one of their own, touches on the movie's enduring themes of nostalgia, friendship, and the passage of time. Mandy and the hosts explore how the film's iconic soundtrack and stellar ensemble cast, including Kevin Kline, Glenn Close, and William Hurt, contribute to its status as a cinematic touchstone.
With Mandy Fabian's infectious enthusiasm and Andy and Pete's insightful commentary, this episode offers a delightful deep dive into the world of filmmaking and the lasting impact of The Big Chill. It's a must-listen for anyone interested in the creative process behind the camera or the power of a well-crafted ensemble piece to resonate with audiences decades after its release.
About Mandy
Mandy Fabian began her career in Austin, Texas as the youngest member of a professional sketch comedy troupe before attending Vassar College to major in film. (What? I know. Her parents thought that too.)
Since then, her focus has been writing female-driven stories with humor and heart. Mandy co-created and directed The Young Hillary Diaries, Lifetime's first digital series, was awarded a fellowship from the Sony Pictures Television Directing Program, and was named Best New Filmmaker of the Year by NewFilmmakers LA. Her screenplay, Late Bloomer was selected for the NYWIFT Meryl Streep/Oprah Winfrey Writers Lab, and in 2020 she was one of six directors chosen to lead an all-female crew for the Moonshot Initiative.
Mandy’s feature debut, Jess Plus None, an LGBTQ+ modern day The Big Chill meets Bridesmaids, had its World Premiere at the BFI Flare Festival in London, its US Premiere at Frameline Film Fest in San Francisco, and is set to be released Worldwide in Summer of 2024.
Mandy lives in London & Los Angeles with her husband Patrick Fabian, her daughters Abbey and Delilah, and a champion’s collection of reusable water bottles.
Welcome to Movies We Like. Each episode, Andy Nelson and Pete Wright invite a film industry veteran to discuss one of their favorite films. What makes a movie inspirational to a cinematographer or a costume designer? Listen in to hear how these pros watch their favorite films. Part of The Next Reel family of film podcasts.
Andy Nelson:
Welcome to movies we like, part of the true story FM entertainment podcast network. I'm Andy Nelson and that over there is Pete Wright.
Pete Wright:
I'm Pete Wright.
Andy Nelson:
Mhmm. On today's episode, we have invited writer director Mandy Fabian to talk about Lawrence Kasdan's The Big Chill, a movie she likes. Mandy, welcome to the show. Loves. Loves.
Andy Nelson:
That's fine.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, sorry. Hi. I just jumped in there. Loves. I'm obsessed with hi, guys.
Mandy Fabian:
Thank you so much for having me.
Pete Wright:
Oh, Mandy. It's about time.
Mandy Fabian:
I know.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. We are thrilled to have you here to talk about you, your career, your film that you have playing. And of course, this film you love.
Mandy Fabian:
I do. Yeah. I know there, and there's nothing that I like to talk about more, so great.
Pete Wright:
Oh, well, perfect. Then yourself and the big chill.
Andy Nelson:
We've scheduled the next 5 hours. So hopefully hopefully, we'll be able to squeeze it all in.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yeah. Buckle up, guys. Buckle up. This is gonna be great. I I took notes.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Right. Right. Well, before we jump into the big chill, because we certainly, are gonna talk about that. Let's talk a little bit about you and your career and your story.
Andy Nelson:
And we should preface this by saying, on our network, there's a a show called the Curiosity Codex hosted by Kyle Olsen, and he's had you on for a whole series of episodes talking about your career and your journey through the industry and your process of making, your film your first film just plus none and kind of like that whole journey. So we'll certainly put a link to that in the show notes, but covering some of the same stuff. But, I mean, just getting a sense of who you are and kind of how you how you decided, you know, this this is the industry I wanna be working in. What was what was your journey like?
Mandy Fabian:
I think I was like a lot of those people that really couldn't do anything else. I mean, I've always been just a clown, you know, ever since, I mean, ever since I was a kid, like, my mom was very funny. My grandmother was very funny. Oh my god. I just called myself funny.
Mandy Fabian:
That's like the first rule of comedy. That's like, you should never say I'm hilarious.
Pete Wright:
No. Deprecating always includes a self. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
But I I just was always I, you know, I was always trying to make people laugh and get on stage. So I started off actually as an actor who did a bunch of character work And I did sketch comedy, you know, in college and improv and then in New York City. And and then I guess I decided that I I found that I was liking doing the sketches and characters that I created, maybe even more than doing, like, you know, Chekhov's 3 sisters. That was not for me. Or anything written by the masters.
Mandy Fabian:
I was
Andy Nelson:
like tone. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. I I I didn't go with, like, classical, really well written theater. I was like, I fellas, I got this. And I started writing writing my own stuff for theater, actually. And then that moved into doing silly, like, writing music.
Mandy Fabian:
And I did these silly, you know, YouTube videos. And then I shot the music videos. And that's actually what got me started in directing as I was singing and recording music and then shooting my own music videos and then editing them.
Andy Nelson:
Oh, wow. Okay.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. So the first time I found myself on a film set was like this crazy, oh, wow. I've been preparing for this exact job, and I didn't even know it. Although I was also a film major in college, so I don't know what I was thinking. I went I went to a college reunion.
Mandy Fabian:
I was like, guys, guess what? I'm a director now. And they were like, yeah. You you were.
Andy Nelson:
You that's why that's
Mandy Fabian:
why I was told right. Yeah. You actually majored in film, so I'm not sure why this is a surprise to you. But I kinda
Andy Nelson:
Well, you know, they say a lot of people who go to film school, when you get out, the first job that you're actually ready for is being a PA. So I suppose the fact that some of them actually did make it to director is a nice surprise.
Mandy Fabian:
Well, when I say I was a clown, I'm not kidding. Like I was an improv and sketch. And I only became a film major because I was like, listen, I got this acting thing down. There's nothing you could teach me. So I'm gonna learn about all the people on the other side of the camera and learn what they do, but it's only so I could be a better actor.
Mandy Fabian:
Truly, I was so cocky and ridiculous that that's why I became a film major. But then later, I was like, I really like this filmmaking stuff.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
So nuts. Yeah. So so proud. So proud of that. Oh, yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
No. I'm a train wreck, but, you know, like, it goes it's very wiggly, but it has been a lot of fun.
Pete Wright:
Well, I don't know. Yeah. I don't know if it's post worthy. Well, I know it's post worthy. I don't know if it's some place public, but some of your music videos, particularly there was the, celebration of pride.
Pete Wright:
That
Mandy Fabian:
is I love the gays.
Pete Wright:
I love the gays is one of the funniest things that I've I've ever had the the pleasure of watching, and I share it with everybody. Gay straight, they all get subjected to, I love the gays.
Mandy Fabian:
Maybe it's
Pete Wright:
a classic of the oeuvre.
Mandy Fabian:
Thank you very much. Yeah. I wrote it when they were, debating on whether or not gay marriage should be legal in the state of California. There was a proposition, and I wrote I wrote the song. And in the song, I say, I hope my children grow up to be good and gay.
Mandy Fabian:
And guess what? My oldest daughter's a lesbian.
Pete Wright:
Okay. You just you won parenting.
Mandy Fabian:
I won. Like, all
Pete Wright:
I can do is write
Mandy Fabian:
a song about it, and it comes true, guys.
Pete Wright:
This is the thing about the the West Coast, though. I mean, what they say is true. Like, you failed as a parent if at least one of your children doesn't grow up gay in California, Washington, Oregon. Like, you just have to have that. Yes.
Pete Wright:
Or at least bi. Bare minimum.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh my god. Yeah. It's we're the only we're the only state or, I guess, air area of the country where we're like, yeah. But, honey, why don't you try girls? I mean, like, look at look how pretty Susie looks.
Mandy Fabian:
Don't you think she's don't you wanna carry some of her books? I mean, it's true. It's so true.
Pete Wright:
So true. I it's never been so clear.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, I'm so glad that you like I Love
Pete Wright:
the Gays. That's a good that's it. It's hysterical. It's great.
Mandy Fabian:
And if you're having a bad day like, I Love the Gays is a love letter to gay people, but, but I Hate Everyone is a is a love letter to anyone who's having a really bad day. That's another song I really like.
Pete Wright:
You know, I'm I'm listening to the podcast, Lonely Island and the Lonely Island podcast right now that they're doing with Seth Meyers, which is a review of all of their their stuff. And some of their classic music videos feel very much like you were kind of ahead of those guys on SNL, like like a a good day and throw it on the ground. Like some of those things kind of have that flavor of just great, great songs that are total earworms and are and are statement comedy. And it's just it's just perfect.
Mandy Fabian:
Aw. Thank you. Thanks. Yeah. I kinda was like I tend to as we've stated, I tend to bounce from things to things, but I kinda was doing YouTube before YouTube was the thing, you know, and I had, like It
Andy Nelson:
was like what was that one where it was like you do make those little videos, but they're all, like, 5 seconds long? What was that app that
Mandy Fabian:
had a brief Snapchat. No. I don't remember. Snapchat. It was like
Andy Nelson:
you you make these you would make these super short videos. That was, like, their whole thing. Vine.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, Vine. I bet that's Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. It was bought by Twitter and, summarily destroyed.
Andy Nelson:
Murdered.
Mandy Fabian:
Okay.
Andy Nelson:
But I but there were, like, some serious, like, Vine Stars, and that was their whole shtick. It was like, I'm gonna just 6 seconds. Expert at at making these little 6 second videos. That's how was that music, group? Well, that duo, us, the duo.
Pete Wright:
Us, the duo.
Andy Nelson:
And they were found they were found making cute little diddies on that. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. I I remember when Vine came up, I think I was already like, ugh. Like, that's part of my career strategy. Because when everyone's zigging, I'm gonna zag. You know?
Mandy Fabian:
Like, that could make me famous. I'm gonna go over here.
Andy Nelson:
Well well so you go from, like, making these sorts of projects. But, I mean, obviously, you don't just sit down in LA and just go, okay. Well, I'm a director now. I'm gonna jump in and start making movies. I mean, there is still a process.
Andy Nelson:
Like, once you got once you finished college and you kinda went through a process, a number of different things, trying to figure out what is the next step and where am I gonna go? So what was like, what were those next steps on your path to figuring it all out?
Mandy Fabian:
Well, what I love about it, there there was a little bit of luck and then also just I love doing this stuff so much. Like, I never I never resented it or got bored with it. And I loved, you know, dragging people into doing the music videos. So I was just frothing with joy about all of this. Right?
Mandy Fabian:
And then I wrote this short film script because I had an idea that I just thought was really funny. And, clearly, I laugh at my own jokes. And I have a friend who was a producer, and she wanted to produce it, but she said, I'll only produce it if you direct it. And I was like, I was 7 months pregnant with my first daughter or with my second daughter. I think it was my second daughter.
Mandy Fabian:
And I was like, I don't know. Okay. Because I figured, well, I'll probably I'll either have the time in my life, and I'll I'll know that I wanna direct, or I will learn that directing is really hard. And I want nothing to do with it because I'm a youngest child and a follower, and a clown, as we stated before, who's going to listen to a set. Right.
Mandy Fabian:
But but I did it, and it went really well. And we made a really good first short film. It was called Killing Vivian. You can actually see it, on my website or on my Vimeo. It's it's up for people to enjoy.
Mandy Fabian:
And that was my first short film. Missy Pyle's in it. Patrick Fabian is in it. It was just really it it rang all the bells. That's at that moment when I was like, oh, I've been practicing music, and I've been practicing editing, and I've been practicing talking with actors and working on comedy and getting beats down.
Mandy Fabian:
And I've been, like, you know, the the thing that I really had to work on more was my visual language because then even with music videos, you have to, you know, you have to make things kind of interesting and tell a story with quick shots. So but that was the thing that was probably the biggest challenge is like, oh, how do I make this cool like a film and not just like a goofy music video?
Pete Wright:
Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
So yeah. So that was my that was my first foray. And then once I did that, again, it was just so fun and gratifying, and I found my tribe. You know? I I couldn't believe that there were people that would do these 12 hour days with me.
Mandy Fabian:
You know, we would just find a weekend. I would write a pretty tight little short, and then I would get actors that I loved and had always wanted to work with and get to tell these stories. I could not believe that people were helping me, were showing up and thought that it was as much fun as I did. That was the part that was really just like, oh my god. This is happening.
Andy Nelson:
Wow. That's, I mean, that's great. And that's, I mean, I guess that's how you do it. You find other similar people who have those same passions and wanna hop into the clown car and let you drive it as, I guess, you could say.
Mandy Fabian:
I mean, the fun drives me to do anything. Like, I can't even work out, but if I'm listening to a great podcast or a soundtrack or a audiobook or something that's fun for me, then I can do it. So like that, I just made a bunch of shorts. And then finally, after I made and then I made a couple of dramatic shorts too. And I got more serious as a filmmaker with every short.
Mandy Fabian:
I was learning new tools, and I tried to really do different things to sort of, you know, learn each piece of the puzzle so that finally I felt I was ready to do a feature.
Andy Nelson:
But even that jump from shorts to features, I mean, you might feel ready creatively, but there's still, like, a a jump just in the scope. Right? Like, in in the scope, like, well, we're not necessarily just, you know, who's got a free weekend? You know, it's like it's it's kind of passes that point where sudden it's like, wow. We've gotta have a budget, and we've gotta build this schedule, and we have to get all these people to commit to this period of time.
Andy Nelson:
We've gotta find people to finance this thing. Like, there's still is, like, this big level, this little step up from just short filmmaking to that.
Pete Wright:
Like, you're getting to that real point. Like, that that jump from for for example, what what do you do? Remember what killing Vivian's budget was?
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yeah. I do. $5,000.
Pete Wright:
Okay. So that jump from $5,000 to say $40,000 to say whatever the budget was for just plus none. Right? Like, getting to the to that point, that jump seems to come with does it come with with the stakes that I imagine it comes with, or is it just another project?
Mandy Fabian:
It does come with stakes. The the financial stakes of doing an indie film right now is that the film business is really struggling. Right? In terms of in terms of indie film and how it gets out there and, you know, movie theaters, like it's just a, it's a very small it's. How do I put this?
Mandy Fabian:
Like there's, if if you're gonna make a splash with an indie film, you really have to have somebody famous in it, and then it very quickly becomes not an indie film. So what happens is the middle class of filmmaking really gets, it doesn't it's kind of just a really hard no man's land because you either have a star, someone who can get distribution and financing and attachment, and then that automatically balloon something up into a bigger thing. Or you're doing these smaller things and everyone's like, good luck. It's a great movie. No one cares.
Mandy Fabian:
Like, it there's a little bit of that sometimes. But so the leap was the that's what the risk is, is the financial risk because ultimately, you have to say to people, hey, you might be investing in a piece of art, which by the way is what people did. You go to France, go to museums in France, and you go, oh, yeah. All these people had patrons, or they made a lot of religious art because people were paying for religious art. Like, their industry was driven by by those things, but they had to get, you know, you, you, you had to rely on the kindness of strangers a little bit, like of people who just wanted art to exist and they saw the value in it, so they would pay for it on the front end.
Mandy Fabian:
So that's kind of what we did with just plus none is, you know, we could have we, you know, you you can keep pursuing for the bigger model, like the bigger, like, oh, let's do $3,000,000 or $5,000,000. That did feel big to me, to be honest. And it, but also, I mean, it, it just would have taken forever because nobody, I don't know. It's, like with celebrities, they're so careful. They're so guarded.
Mandy Fabian:
They're you know, it's it's a whole thing. It's and it takes you very much into the business of filmmaking. I'm far away from the creative of it, in my opinion, at least that you know? So for my first movie, I wanted a little bit more control. So we did, finance with independent equity, and we got people yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
We got people to say, hey. We're hoping you're gonna make this money back, but you might not. So you're investing in a piece of art, which I thought was, that's a that's one strategy that I think works really well. I mean, in terms of the creative risk then, once I knew that I had people who just believed in my work and loved what I did and loved the script, I had a really strong script. So that was the thing that made people go, oh, I don't care.
Mandy Fabian:
I just wanna, you know, it has a bisexual lead, which is, you know, we everybody needs in a not only bisexual children, but bisexual leads in their movies.
Pete Wright:
Definitely settled social science. Like, we get that.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cool. No.
Mandy Fabian:
I and it was just, I think it rang I think it rang bells for people, so they wanted to see it made. That was the luck part of it. It's like I had the skills. I had been on sets, trailing directors on 1 hour dramas, which essentially is like 10 days of shooting, and it's it's like, you know, it's really intense. So I had done sort of the the half marathon of movie, if you will.
Mandy Fabian:
I'd had that experience trailing other directors and watching what they did and how they manage their energy and their time. And then before I went to do it, I reached out to other directors who had done features and said, give me your top three tips. You know, one that was funny that I never would have guessed is don't drink coffee all day. And it's true. It actually makes you more tired.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Yeah. So And dehydrated. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
So it, but it was a, it was a very big leap, but I just, it was my dream, you know, so that the love of it. And then the, the, the belief that I should say the idea that I don't know if I'm ever gonna get to do this again. This might be like my one swing. So I made a real commitment to myself. Enjoy this.
Mandy Fabian:
Like, enjoy every second. It's gonna be really hard and it's gonna be really scary. And it's a huge risk because all of these people have given you money and said, go go forth and prosper. But I I had to sort of shake all of that off and go back to my clown roots and be like, I know how to do this. I've shown that I have success in doing this.
Mandy Fabian:
All of my films got, like, 3 of them got theatrical distribution. They all got, you know, online distribution things. They all won awards. Like, I can do this. And so the commitment to having fun was the most important thing, actually, in spite of all of the hugeness of that, yeah, of the pressure.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. And I suppose that's a very difficult thing when you finally get a chance to step into those shoes. Suddenly, you know, the director I mean, in the scope of, like, people above the line people kind of in charge of a film set, obviously, the producer has a lot of weight as far as managing the logistics, the financing, all of that sort of thing. But as the director, I mean, you're kind of like the center of the of the bicycles, you know, tire. Right?
Andy Nelson:
You're all the spokes funnel to you. Everybody's constantly asking you questions about this costume, or does this makeup look right, or how does this, do you like the this look for the the the shot and the lighting and all like, so many questions coming at you that you can lose track of that. Right? You you you have I just wanna have fun. I want this vision of I wanted just to be funny, and, this is my vision.
Andy Nelson:
But suddenly, it's like so many other things coming at you. Like, how do you how do you what do you do internally to to still remember that and keep that core close when everybody's coming out with other things?
Mandy Fabian:
I would say this is true for anybody who's doing a creative process. Right? There there's there's no there's no job that's 100% fun and stress free. Right? There I don't I can't I mean, I suppose there are things that but no.
Mandy Fabian:
Anything worth it is even gonna have bumps in the road. Right? So for me, that part of it is fun for me, though. It's only not it's not fun when you're not on the same page creatively with someone, and then you have to make a decision about that's best for the project. Right?
Mandy Fabian:
Like, how do I manage this? Is it better for me to manage this now, or do we need to find another person to do this job? Or what what are my compromises that I can make, or what can I push this person to do that I real you know, how do I how do I push back if it's something I really wanted? Like, those can be the sticky things, but overall, I think it's just really important. Some of it is luck, right?
Mandy Fabian:
Like you have to find the right people who hear about your job and wanna do your job and are available at that time. But, I had great people. Like, the the secret for me has always been hire amazing actors, get an amazing producer, you know, get the people who are just really gonna have your back and listen to you and wanna support the idea. So people coming to me with wardrobe, like, it was so fun. It was like, It was everything that I wanted to do that I had been ready to do.
Mandy Fabian:
So that part didn't overwhelm me. That didn't keep me from having fun. The only time it got a little tricky is when you would get pushed back or, you know, you would run into a thing where you're like, I I'm not sure I know the answer to that. You need to give me, like, 5 minutes. You know?
Mandy Fabian:
Right. Yeah. Yeah. But that's part of the fun too. Like, I've always been like, oh, I wanna run marathons and I wanna, like, do extreme things.
Mandy Fabian:
Like, so for me, the night when I was like, oh, oh, I have 5 hours to shoot 8 pages? That's different. Okay. And I had a whole shot list, and I had a whole prep thing. But I just like, when I looked at the schedule, I just didn't realize that that with the light where we needed the light to be for that time, I had 5 hours.
Mandy Fabian:
And I wanted to do all this stuff. And so I was like, I just kicked it into high gear. And I was like, that's part of the joy of having edited my own stuff early on is I can pivot. Right? And it's kind of fun.
Mandy Fabian:
It's fun and it's scary because then you're sending the dailies to the editor going, Hey, is there anything we need to reshoot or pick up? Like, did I miss anything? Like, is this gonna work? You know?
Andy Nelson:
For, for people who are tuning in, who haven't had a chance to see it yet, you know, the story, I mean, it it it's interesting because the bringing up the lighting is a key part of your story. You know, we're following Jess who's kind of a a little hopeless in her life, a little bit of a mess trying to figure herself out as she, goes to a wedding that's at, like, a a campsite that her best friend's wedding. She's gonna be the the maid of honor. And and it's just like, oh, you know, one of those, situation comedies where they're all at this at this, camp where many of them aren't campers, and it's one of those sorts of situations. But, also, Jess has one of those kind of, like, wrecking ball sorts of personalities as she bumps into all these other relationships and kind of, like, makes a mess of a lot of things.
Andy Nelson:
But so much of is it of of the of the film takes place in the great outdoors at this campsite, and you're dealing with lighting that you have to be planning. Okay. Well, the sun is we only have this window of sun because of all the trees and the mountains and everything else around us. You're paying attention to weather patterns, all of these sorts of things that you suddenly have to be taking account, when you're plotting all of this.
Pete Wright:
At at what point did you say to yourself, like, during the shoot, damn, I wish I'd written a, movie that took place in a controlled set
Mandy Fabian:
or a warehouse of some sort? Well, you know, it's interesting. One of the first inspirations that I had was I was on a campground, like camping. And I thought, oh, I wanna shoot a movie here because this light, the way this looks and feels to me is just perfect. It was it's my favorite environment.
Mandy Fabian:
I was really dumb about that. I was like, what? The sun's out. It'll be lit all day. You know, I didn't understand that we had to put up the silks and manage Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
That the light was consistent, all that. Yes. That was a total nightmare. But what was great about it is here I was, it's 2021, and I have a movie that's shot 90% outdoors.
Pete Wright:
Right.
Mandy Fabian:
I mean, it was COVID.
Andy Nelson:
That's smart. Yeah. Weird weirdly timed to be perfect for that sort of shooting.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. And and also because we were on a campground, we were all like sharing cabins and bunks, and, like, my sister came in and catered for the whole crew. And it was like we had to bubble. Like, people came up there and stayed at that campground for 3 weeks and didn't go anywhere. And then we still tested for COVID, but that was part of our strategy was like, look, we're all outside.
Mandy Fabian:
And at that point, it was safer. You could you could be maskless outside. It was it was kind of a gift because of the timing of it, that that I had a movie that actually could be shot during COVID with with without all of the, constraints and and financial constraints. I mean, a COVID budget for a movie was like, what?
Andy Nelson:
Extraordinary. Sure.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Yeah.
Pete Wright:
So Like Shonda Shonda Land kind of budgets.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. The fact that we could sort of manage that was helpful. And and I will say this is the gift of it too. I found there were all these unbelievable gifts. Like, when you tell a crew, hey.
Mandy Fabian:
Guess what? You're gonna be sharing a cabin with some other crew members for a and you're gonna be sleeping and sharing a bathroom and, like, we're gonna basically camp for 2 weeks in the woods. You really there are certain people that are, like, not up for that job.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. And the
Mandy Fabian:
people who are up for it, who are excited by it, who go, oh, thank God I need to get out into nature, they tend to be really cool people. I actually think that's how we had the amazing crew we did It's like, they were all like, thank god. Get me into the woods. You know?
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Right. Right.
Mandy Fabian:
So that was good. Funny.
Pete Wright:
Can we can we talk just a little bit about how you got the cast you got? I mean, these these people are funny and, Nate, I just like, from where you were on 1st big feature, that's all yours, what did it take to to get a guy like Matt Walsh and Rory O'Malley? Like, you're friends with these people. Right? Like, did they just say yes because they love you?
Mandy Fabian:
I knew Matt peripherally. I had met him ages ago. I did improv with a buddy of his. So I I knew him, and I'd had dinner with him a couple times, but I don't think he knew my work. But I knew him.
Mandy Fabian:
So I I reached out to him because I actually thought he would be perfect to play the ranger, you know, the sort of like offbeat, is he really on this planet with us kind of guy who had suffered a loss that I'd like sort of an on natural on we, but could also be funny. I just thought he was my perfect choice. So I sent him the script and and he liked it. So obviously, I didn't, you know, he didn't audition. But he said yes.
Mandy Fabian:
And then Rory, I met through the casting director. I I mean, I knew Hamilton, but I didn't know him specifically, and Book of Mormon, I didn't know his of Mormon. Right. Yeah. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
So I knew he was a big Broadway guy, and I loved his reel. So I cast him through the casting director, recommended him. And there were other people that the cast the the casting director was really very she gave me choices, and then I found things. Abby Miller,
Pete Wright:
who Abby, is she how you found, through the casting director, you found Abby?
Mandy Fabian:
No. I knew Abby because we used to sit we were singer songwriters at the same time, and we used to do gigs together. And, actually, one of the songs in the movie is hers
Pete Wright:
Yes.
Mandy Fabian:
And a bunch are mine. So we that's how we met, but then I knew she was an actress, and I would have her come to every reading of every screenplay I ever did because she always made a character interesting, and she was just special. Every every we would leave a reading and everybody go, who's the girl who played the sister? Who's that girl who and she was always cast doing drama. She was never allowed to do comedy, but I thought she was hysterically funny.
Mandy Fabian:
So she was gracious enough to play with the material with me. And, like, when I met with her, I was like, oh, this is she's got this. Like, she knows how to do this character because she's lovable and also willing to be as awkward as Jess is. Like, Jess is like my inner that is how I feel inside. That is how I feel every day, every minute.
Mandy Fabian:
Right now on this podcast, I am Jess.
Pete Wright:
Well, she's she is a slam dunk. Like, I she's just perfect for the role in a movie that is, that that just tells such a a neat, awkward story with just the right number of jokes. And you it's like it's practically a Marvel film. There's CG that I didn't notice.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh my god. That's amazing. Yeah. I was so lucky to have a VFX guy who was very understanding about me. I'm like, I need a bunny and a rabbit.
Mandy Fabian:
I mean, and a and a what else? Oh, and an owl. An owl? Yeah. And I was I was
Pete Wright:
totally into the movie. I was like,
Mandy Fabian:
I had no idea that this I was like, did you
Pete Wright:
just is this like the BBC right now? You just sat there in, like, a high hide and waited for animals to come by? That was amazing.
Mandy Fabian:
You wanna have something really funny? He when he showed me the an the owl clip, at first, I was like, oh, wow. And then I thought, I don't know. Does that look real? And then I looked at a real owl.
Mandy Fabian:
I was like, oh, no. That is how owls look. They're
Pete Wright:
just real. Look.
Mandy Fabian:
They're weird. Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Well and this was it. I remember you called, you called me, and we were talk after I I first saw the movie, and you said, did you notice any of the CGI? I said, well, I totally noticed one shot, which is at the very end when Abby hucks her cell phone, across the street. I was like, clearly, that's CG because no one throws a phone that far. And that's the that's not CG at all.
Pete Wright:
She's got an arm.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. That was great. Oh, it's so funny.
Andy Nelson:
That's funny because I noticed that too.
Andy Nelson:
I'm like, man, she really hooked that thing.
Andy Nelson:
Like, that's like I'm really getting rid of this thing.
Mandy Fabian:
That is really wonderful. You know in movies, you worry about movies becoming dated? I I there were a few people that were like, I just don't believe that anybody would ever throw their phone. And I'm like, maybe you need to take a look at yourself, but you would never throw a phone. You're a
Andy Nelson:
real big candidate. You're the person who can't go yeah. You're the person who can't handle not having Wi Fi when you're camping. Right?
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Exactly. I know. And I'm like, in 20 years, I that'll be the thing that everybody talks about in the movie. Like, there's just no no one ever throws your phone.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Right.
Mandy Fabian:
Why didn't she just use the implant? Yeah. Right. Should should we transition to to the big chill?
Andy Nelson:
Come in where there's music. Come in where there's laughter. Come in and share the warmth, spaghetti and wine. Oh, you know, I forgot what this is like.
Pete Wright:
Getting away from you people is the best
Andy Nelson:
thing that ever happened to me. I mean, how much sex, fun, friendship can one man take?
Mandy Fabian:
I know that Richard will always be faithful to him.
Andy Nelson:
That's nice. We'll trust.
Mandy Fabian:
Fear of herpes.
Andy Nelson:
There is a little known condition that affects all our lives. Symptoms range from lack of coordination, to lack of direction, to unusually mature behavior.
Andy Nelson:
Who do you think your clients were gonna be? Grumpy and sneezy?
Andy Nelson:
Check your temperature.
Mandy Fabian:
The ground is ready. I just need someone to plant the seed. Yeah. But who's going to be the lucky farmer?
Andy Nelson:
What? You're not going to what?
Mandy Fabian:
I can always be counted on to do the right thing. It's a disgusting curse.
Andy Nelson:
If you feel any of these symptoms
Pete Wright:
It's about everything. Suicide
Mandy Fabian:
Alex and I made love the night before he died. It was fantastic.
Trailer:
Despair. You don't know anything about me.
Mandy Fabian:
For 15 years, you've acted like I'm the one you really wanted. You made sure that everybody knew it.
Andy Nelson:
Where did our hope go?
Mandy Fabian:
A lost hope.
Pete Wright:
That's it. Lost hope.
Mandy Fabian:
It
Trailer:
was easy back then. No one ever had a cushier birth than we did. It's not surprising our friendship could survive that. It's only out here in the world
Mandy Fabian:
that it
Andy Nelson:
gets tough.
Trailer:
You may have contracted the big chill. I know, but I'm telling you, I think
Andy Nelson:
I've got something good right here. I haven't met
Mandy Fabian:
that many happy people in my life. How do they act?
Andy Nelson:
The new stars of the eighties in a comedy for all times. Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Mary Kate Place, Meg Tilly, Jo Beth Williams, Lawrence Kasdan's, The Big Chill. In the cold world, you need your friends to keep you warm.
Andy Nelson:
I watched The Big Chill, then I watched Just Plus None. And it's funny when I started Just Plus None, because I I I walked into it pretty blind. I didn't realize that you were it was so much like the similar story. I'm like, okay. It's a group of friends.
Andy Nelson:
They're all kind of coming together for this one thing. I mean, it's a wedding as opposed to a funeral, but they're all coming together and relationships and all this. I'm like, that was such an interesting thing. I I wanna talk about, like, your your origin story with the Big Chill, like, when you first saw it and stuff. But first, I wanna say, did you when you were putting just plus none together, were you like, is this something about Big Chill that you were tapped into as far as, like, I love that idea of people coming together who all haven't been around each other for a while and let the drama ensue.
Andy Nelson:
Is that was there an influencer?
Mandy Fabian:
It was completely an influence. I mean, I don't know that it was well, I mean, actually, I bet it was conscious because I saw the big chill when I was 12. My parents had separated and were getting divorced. And my my, you know, adult relationships everywhere I saw were in chaos. I lived in a small town in Texas on a ranch out kind of in the middle of nowhere, but we did have one thing.
Mandy Fabian:
We had HBO. I mean, like, literally we had like the 3 channels and then somehow magically through the ranch place where we lived, we got HBO for free. And The Big Chill was playing on HBO at that time. And I watched it every time it came on. And I just couldn't believe I couldn't believe that grown ups would talk that way.
Mandy Fabian:
I think there was such a a connection, such intimacy, like, that these grown ups would, like, kiss each other on the lips when they're just friends and that they would have this, you know, connection that was so deep and beautiful, just friends, not, you know, not like I'm gonna marry you and have I I knew married people that didn't have those that connection. You know? So I think as a kid, that lit me up because I was craving people talking about real shit. Right? So I think that just excited me.
Mandy Fabian:
The storytelling of that really excited me. And as a you know, that's what I write. I'm constantly writing, like, you know, mothers leaving their children or brides that are finding out that their husband's cheating on them the day of the wedding or, like, it I I my movies are very sort of talk like, they're they're about people talking and dealing with things, adult issues. That's what this inspired to me. So when I wanted to do a movie, I love ensemble comedies.
Mandy Fabian:
I love ensemble movies that, like, where characters begin a place and then end another place. And I think that that so that just excited me. I I I treasure my friends. I have really good friends from high school and college.
Andy Nelson:
Do do you kiss them all on the lips? Is that part
Mandy Fabian:
of the Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Do you rest as a big kisser?
Mandy Fabian:
I'm talking about being dated. No. It's more it's I was gonna say something so dirty. I'm not gonna gonna say that. Let's just say friendships have evolved.
Mandy Fabian:
No. But like that, I do. I I I am that friend who wants to talk about your feelings all the time. Like, I I wanna know how you are and where your heart is and where you are in this scheme of where we all exist in this world. That's what I like to talk about.
Mandy Fabian:
So I tend to, you know, write characters that that wanna deal with the deeper stuff. Like, I wanna know why we're fighting. I don't wanna brush it under the rug. You know? Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
And why we're all vulnerable together. One of
Pete Wright:
the things that's so interesting about this movie is that none of the individual exploits between these characters blow up to become the purpose of the film. And and case in point, you know, when she, as Mary Kay plays is, like, looking for somebody to help her to to sire a child for her, that just becomes a thing that they do. Like, she figures it out. She likes all these guys. She's like, oh, and and it turns out that's gonna be the one who's married with somebody else, but that's gonna be okay.
Pete Wright:
We're all gonna be fine with that, and they're just gonna do it. And it's not gonna break up a marriage, and it's not gonna break up a friendship. It's just gonna be adults doing, like, really adult things and figuring out that the drama in the movie exists elsewhere. You don't have to focus on the most purient of of dramatic beats. That's that's amazing.
Mandy Fabian:
It's nuanced. And and people having affairs, having sex, saying things that are hurtful, it's not this thing that then what I loved about it is what I love about that movie is it doesn't define who they are for the rest of their lives. It's something that they do. Like, they kind of all get to be nuanced and difficult and struggling and emotional and still be friends at the end of the day. Nobody decides they're never gonna talk to each other again at the end of that movie, you know, because they have a bond.
Mandy Fabian:
And I love the opening credits. I just marvel at those. I've I watched them as an inspiration. We all actually got together on the set of Just Plus None and watched the big chill as a group
Pete Wright:
Oh, nice.
Mandy Fabian:
Before we started shooting because I was like, this is what you should take into your into your toolbox as actors, this kind of history, this kind of love and who you've been together. And it really, I think it really informed their perform. I ripped off the big chill. When you asked them with an info, I I put, I think I added that scene of them dancing after I had rewatched it and been like, I love watching, just watching them dance in the kitchen. You know?
Mandy Fabian:
I mean, the packing. Right? The seeing what's in their suitcases, we had to cut a lot of that at the beginning because it was just taking us too long to get at the camp. But I had originally shot all of what was inside all of my character's suitcases too. And I had done that unconsciously.
Pete Wright:
That's interesting. Yeah. Was it did did everyone have a hairdryer?
Mandy Fabian:
I knew. That was awesome. Yeah. Yeah.
Andy Nelson:
That funny. That's kind
Mandy Fabian:
of a weird weird little little item that they all have. Yeah. I love Mary Kay Place.
Pete Wright:
Characters is the best.
Mandy Fabian:
And Mary Kay Place just smokes everywhere. Did that not jar you? You're like, she's smoking in the kitchen. She's smoking in her office. She's smoking in the car.
Mandy Fabian:
It's you know, we're so we've gone so far from smoking that that's the thing in the movie. I'm like, woah. And
Andy Nelson:
just, like, sharing cigarettes. I'm just gonna take that from you, and I'm just I just need some too. Yes.
Pete Wright:
She takes she's has her briefcase, and she's staring hard at the crucifix at crucified Jesus Christ on a cross. And she opens her briefcase to hide it and takes out, like, 3 packs of cigarettes.
Mandy Fabian:
Like Alright.
Pete Wright:
That's just, it's just perfect. This was one of the first movies like, you talk about how adults talk to each other and kiss each other. This is also one of the first movies that I remember seeing where adults were doing drugs casually.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yeah.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. That's a that was a really interesting thing. Like, I I feel like I grew up a little bit watching this movie because it changed the way I looked at my parents, and it changed the way I thought about what are my parents doing when they go across the street to have dinner with our neighbors. And it it, like, changes it changes the worldview when you realize that the thing I'm taught in school, to to fear and shun and, and and revile is a thing that adults in this movie that I like are doing without repercussion. Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Right? The double standard, I think, is is is illuminating in this movie and so beautifully articulated.
Mandy Fabian:
I agree. I also like I remember feeling as I was going through college. Well, some someone's gonna offer me drugs at some point, aren't they? Nobody did. I don't know why, but I was expecting to have that experience of like, oh, we're all gonna do uppers together.
Mandy Fabian:
I think because that movie, you know, like Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Right. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. It was very
Andy Nelson:
I I think for me, it was poltergeist seeing the 2 parents just smoking a joint in bed. Like, I think that's probably where I saw it. But, like, this was definitely a thing where it's just, like, you know, a variety of different there's pills. There's joints. There's you know, he's got the coke.
Andy Nelson:
Like, there's all these different things. And it's just so casual. And it I mean, it really was I mean, it was a different time. That there's an acknowledgment of that. And, you know, certainly, this is a group of people that you know, this story takes place in the, mid to early 8 or early to mid eighties about a people a a group of people who, you know, went to school together in the late sixties, definitely the hippie generation, now the yuppie generation.
Andy Nelson:
And they still have that connection, and that, I think, was an interesting element watching them dealing with those different elements in the process, whether it's just kind of the casual use of drugs as they're doing it or or just, like, figuring out, like, where they are in the, quote, journey that they're taking. And you certainly see that with William Hurt's character in in some of the situations, like when he's he can't believe when, Kevin Cline's character is so friendly with the cop. Right? That's where the cop comes over, and it's just like, what are you doing? And he's just like, I live here.
Andy Nelson:
I have made my life here. I have this space, and this is this is what I'm going to be doing, and I'm happy with this. That was, like, a real interesting journey that we see or just kind of, like, the way that the relationships start growing and changing over time. And, you know, we're getting bits and pieces with William Heard, who's kind of like the, in some sense, very, murky character as to, like, his story. But from his little self interview, it certainly seemed like he's got some PTSD after Vietnam.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yeah.
Andy Nelson:
But, like, the the changes in the struggles as they're growing and figuring out how to do it, right, how to be a grown up and how to work through life. And that I had forgotten that part of it is just, like, figuring out how to how to become an adult and just just, you know, make it work.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. I love the line that they have where they're talking about money. I think it's, the guy who plays JT Lancer
Pete Wright:
Behringer and Kevin Behringer. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
I always wanna call him Tom Skerritt, but it's not. Tom Behringer. He and Kevin Klein are having that conversation about money, and they and Kevin Klein says, it's good thing it doesn't matter to us. Right? Or it's good thing it's not important to us.
Mandy Fabian:
And that was a really funny, like, oh, yeah. Because they used to be like, oh, screw the man and screw money and all that. And now and now he says, you know, hey, that that cop has kept my place from being ripped off a couple times. You know?
Pete Wright:
And I I think that the setup for that line is actually the other part that's really important when Behringer says, who knew we would be making all this dough?
Andy Nelson:
Oh, that's right.
Pete Wright:
Yes. And and the answer is good thing it's not important to us with a wink. Right. Because, of course, it's important to them. Like Behringer's living it up.
Pete Wright:
Like, he's he's struggling because he's playing a a crappy part he doesn't like anymore, but he's still kinda living the dream.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. William Hurt is an interesting character too, and I read a I read an article on this, like how he is a very privileged guy. Right? He as I didn't he he he gets his he doesn't get finish his doctorate, but he gets through a master's and starts pursuing a doctorate. He gets a job as a radio psychiatrist.
Mandy Fabian:
You know? He's drifting, and now he's drug dealing, and he's driving this old Porsche and wearing his cool sunglasses. And, like, I think William Hurt really added this wonderful human element to that character. Like, if you just look at that character on paper, he's a real douchebag, kind of, but he is so gentle. He William Hurt makes him sort of gentle and lost.
Mandy Fabian:
If you just look at the elements of that character on paper. But but overall too, his privilege has allowed him to flail like this. I mean, they all kind of ask a lot of very privileged questions. Their their problems are that very, you know
Andy Nelson:
It is a certain group of people, but yeah.
Pete Wright:
It's a funny manifestation of privilege though, because it's the trappings of privilege. It's the loose drugs, but it's also a Porsche 911 that is a piece of garbage. Right?
Andy Nelson:
Like Right. The the rooftop's peeling off.
Mandy Fabian:
The That's Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Right. It's it's a piece of junk and and he gets out, like, he drives it as if he is a man of privilege, but he gets out of it like he's not. Right? He is he is the trappings and the superficiality, but it's more of the struggle, I think, than than the merit.
Mandy Fabian:
That's a really good point because then he goes to that broken down not broken down, but the sort of half built cabin in the woods. And he's just sitting there listening to the birds, and he's finding like, oh my god. This is great. This might be where I belong.
Pete Wright:
It becomes his identity. Right? He or he finds his identity there.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. He's the one who, at the end of the film, decides to stay and essentially kind of take over Alex's own journey of of finishing this place, like re using it as an opportunity to reconnect with himself. And it didn't work for Alex, but I in the scope of the story, you know, Nick is hoping that it will work for him. And I think that was an interesting element of this, you know, this broken man figuring it out.
Pete Wright:
To the point, Andy, where he takes over that role with Meg Tilly. Like, she's staying there
Andy Nelson:
too. Yeah. Right? Exactly.
Pete Wright:
She she gives him, Alex's jacket and, right, it it's just the whole thing. He just sort of fits in hand to glove to Alex's old life, and it maybe it'll be better.
Mandy Fabian:
It's interesting. Like, I remember when I watched it, I didn't have any judgment on that. Like, you just kinda go, oh, he's gonna do that now. As a grown up watching it, it's like, oh, you're gonna take over the suicidal guy's life? Like Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
I I don't know about that.
Pete Wright:
Because the last thing I saw of suicidal guy was his wrist. Right? That's the memory I have of Alex at that moment as an audience member. And, that's that's one of those, like, horrifying visions to carry across through a really what is ultimately a loving tribute to an old friend.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. And you guys know, I'm sure you know, Kevin Costner played Alex and then was cut out of the film. But then, Lawrence Kasdan put him into Silverado.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. That was okay.
Andy Nelson:
I don't know if he's ever released that because it was a whole scene that took place, like, at the end of the film. Right? Like, after we got to the end, it was a whole scene that was a flashback to their time at college. I remember I I is it Jo Beth Williams or Mary Kate plays? So I remember one of them talking about that time when they shot that and how much fun they had and and just kind of shifting their their place because I think she her character was she was living with Nick, and she was avoiding Sam and, like, you know, so we get to see kind of that life and the carefree life of that whole journey of them and everything.
Andy Nelson:
And Kevin Costner was there playing, himself. But, yeah, that whole thing was,
Mandy Fabian:
Such a better choice, I think, to never see him. Right? It's No. Yeah. It was I'm so glad that they did that.
Mandy Fabian:
Poor Kevin Costner, but, like, I'm really glad.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. At least he got another role out of it. But, yeah, and to your to your point, though, like, the fact that we do never see him as audience members, we only know him. It's interesting because they talk about, like, why didn't he leave a note? Why did he do this?
Andy Nelson:
Like, they're trying to figure out what happened with Alex too. Like, they've obviously lost touch. They're like, did we really know him? When's the last time you talked to him? Like, they're having those conversations trying to figure it out, and they don't really know who he is.
Andy Nelson:
And and but their their connections to him last, and that's the key thing. And I think when, I think it's when Nick is going through those old papers and everything and finds that article that,
Mandy Fabian:
Jeff
Andy Nelson:
Goldblum's character had written about him when he turned down that fellowship. And, like, they they obviously take that conversation in a different direction. But for me, I was like, that to me said, Alex also has never let go of this group and still is connected to these people and still finds it to be his, you know, his own family.
Mandy Fabian:
Why? I didn't I watching it again, I was like, I don't think I ever connected that fellowship thing. Like, were they sort of setting that up as the reason that he felt depressed because he never he always regretted not taking that fellowship? Or it wasn't quite clear. That was something I I noticed this time around watching it.
Mandy Fabian:
I was like, I don't think I totally get that.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. I my sense of it because I I don't I don't think it's not something I remembered either. But I think it's, Meg Tilly's character who says, like, oh, yeah. There's one thing. He always regretted turning that fellowship down, and that seems to be a thing in the group where a lot of them suddenly are affected by, oh my god.
Andy Nelson:
I you know? Like, that really kind of takes them,
Mandy Fabian:
They all have this emotional moment about that fellowship that I had not noticed before. It's such an interesting like, I love movies like this where people they're they're liter they're sitting around talking. Nobody who gets to make movies like this? But I really love them. I find them so satisfying.
Pete Wright:
Well, the fact that this is a movie yeah. Sitting around talking is one thing, but 2, that that what they're talking about is stuff that they trust me to fill in whatever blanks I need to fill in. Case in point, this fellowship conversation. I don't I don't know what that's about, but all I need to care about is their re emotional reaction to it because that affects how they'll relate to each other. And and so I think having, like, Kasdan has such faith as a filmmaker in the audience to be able to keep up.
Pete Wright:
It's it's like my favorite thing about watching movies is knowing when I'm in good hands, when an, when a director actually gives me something to work with as to chew on and and not spoon feed it to me. There's not a lot of ADR, obvious ADR. There's not a lot of, voice over. You know, it could have been Costner's voice describing the experience of, you you know, this
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. That's true.
Pete Wright:
Carolina plantation experience, and and we didn't have to have that because of trust.
Mandy Fabian:
Even the the allowing things to unfold, like the relationship between Joe, both Williams and Tom, it's not Garrett. Oh, god. Barringer. Barringer. Oh, Barringer.
Mandy Fabian:
I know. But, like, you know, their their tension that grows between her deciding to stay and then them just having these normal conversations, walking and talking, and her getting them getting him breakfast and kind of and him kinda being clueless as to what's happening and her being very specific about it, but they let it grow over like, there's nothing said. It's just shown. And it's so simple. Like, there's just I love that he lets that develop in such a simple way.
Mandy Fabian:
And then at the end, after, spoiler alert, If you haven't seen the big chill, I think it's okay to do spoilers. But, like, after they then had they consummate their love. And at the end the next day, she's like, alright. Well, we'll you know, Richard and I will bring the kids to Los Angeles. Wouldn't that be fun?
Mandy Fabian:
I remember as a kid, you know, being like, wait. What? They're not gonna end up together? But they just made love. You know?
Mandy Fabian:
I I did not understand the adult nuance of that at all. I was like, but they're they should be married now. They belong together. Why is she gonna go back with Richard?
Pete Wright:
That's another thing about making they've they've made drugs an adult thing that can happen. They've made sex out of wedlock a thing that can just happen, and we're not gonna worry too much about it. Yeah. It's it's it's amazing.
Mandy Fabian:
It's interesting too. They have all these really adult conversations, and then they do these really playful things like dancing in the kitchen, like playing the games outside. Another thing I ripped off from my movie completely. I don't, again, I don't think it was conscious, but when I rewatched the big chill, I was like, oh my god. I stole everything.
Pete Wright:
Well, okay. Montage of, playing games outside is is not strictly the purview of big chill and just plus none. I mean, we just talked about top gun. That you ripped off top gun is the bigger problem.
Mandy Fabian:
I would proudly rip off top gun. I didn't have enough shirtless people in my movie. That's true. That's a regret I have. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Born my life really. Oh, yeah.
Andy Nelson:
A big a big part of this film is definitely the soundtrack. Like, that is a huge element of this film With these characters, again, having grown up in that generation, we're getting music from their youth. And that's kind of how the soundtrack is built with all these fantastic songs kicking off with I Heard It Through the Grapevine, which perfectly kind of connects through the storytelling of, you know, relaying the message about Alex's death to everybody. Like, all these different yeah. It's it's it works so well.
Andy Nelson:
But all these different stories where it is, like, from beginning to end, it really is kind of defining the tone. And I think there's an interesting element of in the in the film about using the music to connect to who they were as they're figuring out who they are. Right? And, also, just as a side note on that, I do think that it's interesting that Jeff Goldblum's character is the one who's just like, don't you have any you know, there's good music now. Don't you have anything else to listen to other than all this old crap?
Andy Nelson:
Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
I feel
Andy Nelson:
like which is which was also telling, I think, just as far as the characters. But I think there's such an interesting voice that Kaz then chose to create in this tone of the film by making the soundtrack this way.
Mandy Fabian:
I completely agree. I that's something that made an impression on me as a kid. Like, I think I listened to the soundtrack. I got it and listened to it over and over again. And the fact the consistency of it, like, it was it was another character in the movie because it was all sort of of this genre.
Mandy Fabian:
It was it was soulful and primal, this music, you know, and connected to this this time in their life. So it it was not just sort of background music or just appropriate for this scene or that. Like, it it created this really cohesive tone for the movie that I that I loved. Like and and that's something, like, when I was doing just plus none, I really tried to do I stuck to soundtrack music. Well, a lot of it is sung by people in the movie
Andy Nelson:
Mhmm. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Which is really fun. But for the for the score, I, on purpose, like, wanted to do something that felt very cohesive. Like, it was it was as if there's a cabin somewhere off of this camp campground, and there's a gang of musicians that are jamming. It was all instruments that you that were real and things that you might find that you could you could possibly hear off in the distance in the woods. Like, I wanted it to actually come from that place and be sort of another character of, like, we're out here in nature, you know, old school.
Mandy Fabian:
And I think that was because of the big chill. It was so made such an impression on me.
Pete Wright:
Well and, part of the thing about the soundtrack and the chill is that it wasn't my music. Right? It was my parents' music.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yeah.
Pete Wright:
That that made it sort of, a step more foreign and intriguing and provocative to me. Like, that introduced me to so much, music that I I never thought of. And and it is one of the soundtracks, like, you know, what? Every decade, there's a there's one of those principal soundtracks. I think the eighties actually probably had more than more than its fair share because I but there's, like, Saturday Night Fever.
Pete Wright:
Rain, Dirty Dancing.
Mandy Fabian:
Right? Oh, god. Yes.
Pete Wright:
Those soundtracks are, like, you we burned them up at my house.
Mandy Fabian:
Yep. Did you know that the big chill soundtrack actually surpassed, Saturday Night Fever as one of the top selling soundtracks of all time?
Pete Wright:
That does not surprise me at all. I did not know that, but that doesn't surprise me. And and you hear it in the muse. I think I I mean, did they put it in use order? I I because I felt like as soon as I would hear a song playing, I would remember exactly what was going on in the next scene.
Pete Wright:
Like, the I it felt like every time I listened to the soundtrack, I would remember the movie so clearly. It it's it's a weird little bit of alchemy.
Andy Nelson:
Well, that was one of those soundtracks that was frustrating because they released it, and it was only, like, 10 songs on the soundtrack. And then and then they released another one, like, more music from the big chill or things like that.
Mandy Fabian:
It's just like,
Andy Nelson:
hey. Just release it all. Like, I it just it was always so annoying when they would release soundtracks that way. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Well, back then, I mean, I don't know for sure, but wouldn't it have been on a record? I what were where were we in the eighties?
Pete Wright:
You could get a LP or a cassette.
Andy Nelson:
And and CDs were around I mean, I don't I wasn't buying them in the in the early, mid eighties, but they were around.
Mandy Fabian:
They were?
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. They they started in, in the mid eighties, I think.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, well, Larry.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. But, yeah, it was it but because I know by by the late eighties, I know I had some CDs. I know my dad was already buying CDs by then.
Andy Nelson:
But
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yeah. That makes sense.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. Yeah. Do you remember your first CD?
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, that's a good question.
Andy Nelson:
My first CD was, deaf leopard, hysteria.
Mandy Fabian:
Alright. Oh, that's a good one.
Andy Nelson:
I I I was I play that a lot.
Pete Wright:
That get hysterical. Okay. We could do it. Alright. Go ahead, Maddie.
Mandy Fabian:
I'm pretty sure that I am so cheap that I would have clung to cassette tapes forever and ever. Okay.
Pete Wright:
That's that's on brand. I get it.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. But I actually think that it would have been maybe the when Harry met Sally soundtrack. I know that's late.
Andy Nelson:
No. That was 8089. That was
Mandy Fabian:
89. Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. That
Andy Nelson:
was right around when we were probably starting to buy them. Yeah.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. Well, I mean, so I just had to confirm because, mid eighties. Yeah. Actually, you're you're a little bit late. The first CD was 1982.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, like Okay. God.
Pete Wright:
Right? Think about that. My first CD was a compilation CD of recordings of movie symphonic scores called Time Warp.
Mandy Fabian:
What?
Pete Wright:
And it had, like, the theme, Alsos, Rox Zarathustra from 2001. It had the Star Trek theme. It had, like it was all of the the great sci fi themes, Time Warp.
Mandy Fabian:
Wow. So you That
Pete Wright:
was my first CD.
Mandy Fabian:
You've been into movie music for a long, long time.
Pete Wright:
Well, and I was into music. Like that was my, that was my thing in high school. And, I was a musician, so it was easy. And kind of a poser. Come on.
Pete Wright:
Like, I was not a conductor. Like, I played the piano. Come on. I can play a little ragtime
Mandy Fabian:
enough. Right. Right. Right. I love, I I love ragtime as a as in movie score.
Mandy Fabian:
It makes me think of, like, Woody Allen movies. I love that he always used classic
Andy Nelson:
He's like, yeah, old, like, I I always think of the
Mandy Fabian:
Rhapsody in blue. And
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. What's what's the one with, the movie with, Sean Penn as the as the musician in the twenties?
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, yes. The I
Andy Nelson:
just feel like, Django Reinhart.
Mandy Fabian:
Yep.
Andy Nelson:
Or Django Reinhart esque sort of character
Mandy Fabian:
in
Andy Nelson:
that film. But, like, that's the sort of tone I think of often with, Woody Allen films.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Yeah. He who shall not be named.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Right. Exactly.
Mandy Fabian:
Sorry about the rest of it.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Right. So so, Pete, it's interesting you brought up, like, Dirty Dancing and and some of these other films that had classic eighties soundtracks, but were from the eighties. I'm trying to think, like, what is a film that would have come out, I guess, in the this would have been maybe the the odds, that would have been, like, tapping into that sort of music, but in this sort of style. Like, you know, it was there a film that did this same sort of sort of thing, like, for our generation?
Andy Nelson:
Can you think of anything? It would have been, like, late eighties, early 90 or mid nineties music. Reality Bites. But that was made in the nineties. I'm I'm trying to think of, like, the one that takes place, like, mid when they're in their mid thirties looking back on that time in their twenties in college.
Andy Nelson:
I don't know. Is there anything? Man.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, I mean, so I, I listened to garden state. Yeah. Garden state
Pete Wright:
all over the place. So that that's one, like they were coming back for, you know, and grief and sitting on a train and listening to some very moody music.
Andy Nelson:
So But it was modern music. Right?
Pete Wright:
Yeah. It was modern music.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. I'm just trying to think. What is there anything that's looking back? Or maybe here's the question since maybe there's not. What would you put on the soundtrack?
Andy Nelson:
Oh, if you're making a movie of celebrating, like those people from your, college years, what are the what are the songs that kind of define that?
Pete Wright:
Dead Man's Party. Oh. Boingo Boingo. For sure. Some Boingo Boingo.
Pete Wright:
It would have to include stuff like, the pixies and the breeders and Depeche Mode and the OMD and there there was an article in The Wall Street Journal not long ago that said, you know, when people say, I want it to be like the good old days. When were the good old days? And it turns out, if you ask anybody when the good old days were, it was, like, 3 ages. It was, like, 11 when you were 11, when you were 15, and when you were, like, 18 or something. Right?
Pete Wright:
So when you're imagining what the world was like, the best time to ever be is when you were 11 years old because you didn't know who terrorists were.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. You didn't
Pete Wright:
know anything. Price of oil didn't matter because you couldn't drive, and music was great. Right? Yeah. Like, that was that's it.
Pete Wright:
That's what we're all fighting for something we can never get
Mandy Fabian:
to because
Andy Nelson:
it's us.
Mandy Fabian:
Right? Right. That's such a funny I mean, I get 11 and childhood, but then 15 and 18 feel real close.
Pete Wright:
They do feel real close, but I think maybe that's because, you know, a lot of people lose their virginity in that range. So of course, everything is awesome because we start having So
Mandy Fabian:
There was that good old day, and then there was that good old day. That good old day. Really
Pete Wright:
good old day
Mandy Fabian:
in the in that old pile
Pete Wright:
of dirty laundry, and there is that good old day in the back
Mandy Fabian:
of the you you get it.
Pete Wright:
So, anyway, I think that's really interesting. And so when I think of that music, like, all those bands come right off the top of my head because, oh my god, like, that that was those were the good old days.
Andy Nelson:
Those are the good old days. Yeah. Peter Murphy.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Amazing. Yeah.
Andy Nelson:
It is interesting how some music does feel like generation defining. You know? And I think that's, I mean, I love all of this music from the soundtrack. It's not from my generation, but I've grown into it. You know?
Andy Nelson:
But and I think that's just an interesting thing about, like, the way that music is used. And it would be interesting to see what would what would something about kind of this our generations like, what would what music would they be putting on the soundtrack?
Pete Wright:
Yeah. What's our big Jill soundtrack?
Mandy Fabian:
I still think of the eighties. Like, I still think of eighties music as being this sort of because that's the thing that's lasted in terms of I I but I could I have a basic music thing. Like, I
Pete Wright:
either I
Mandy Fabian:
either go to a concert and find a singer songwriter that I like, and then I listen to them to death, you know, or, like, I listened to Madonna in college. So embarrassing. But, you know? Hey.
Andy Nelson:
Madonna's great.
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah.
Pete Wright:
So it's okay. It's alright. This is a safe space.
Mandy Fabian:
I tend to, you know, listen to a lot of people that aren't you know, go to a music festival, and you're like, I loved all those artists, and then I listened to them, but I can't remember any of their names.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. Yeah. Right. Right. Right.
Pete Wright:
Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
But, yeah, but in terms of things that last, it feels like it feels like eighties music is still something that evokes an era to me for my generation.
Pete Wright:
Right. Because that's when you were, like, 11.
Mandy Fabian:
Right? Right? Well, those are the good old days.
Pete Wright:
I was having a lot of sex.
Mandy Fabian:
A lot of sex back then.
Pete Wright:
So much sex. And
Mandy Fabian:
Yeah. Oh, riding horses and then sex. That's so more sex.
Pete Wright:
Oh my god.
Mandy Fabian:
Packing into school then sex. Yep.
Pete Wright:
I think that's interesting because I there's something to this. Like, when I look at my kids, the best time of their lives is, like, the early 20 teens. That's the music that they got. They don't know who the eighties are. Like, they don't care about eighties music.
Pete Wright:
I play them a boatload of eighties music, and they're like, I could really take it or leave it.
Mandy Fabian:
That's interesting. Yeah. Yeah. I think I mean and also just because the way music was delivered, they don't have the same common language of music. Right?
Mandy Fabian:
There's
Pete Wright:
not They don't listen to albums.
Mandy Fabian:
Right.
Pete Wright:
They listen to playlists.
Mandy Fabian:
Right. And it's all curated specifically from here. It's like, I listened to the radio the other day, and it was like a radical act. I thought, oh my god. Other people are listening to the same songs I'm listening to.
Mandy Fabian:
And the songs that they play are songs that came before, you know I mean, not true with, like, a a p you know, like KCRW. Right? Like, they're playing current things and helping you find new artists. But in terms of a common language of music, it's tricky. You know?
Mandy Fabian:
That's why I think, like, people like Taylor Swift have gotten so globally huge because, you know, it's just easy. It's like the one person who's it's one of the people who's risen above the noise, so you go to that instead of going to a radio station and listening to all those other artists that you are forced to listen to kind of to find them while you're waiting for the next Taylor Swift song.
Pete Wright:
I the song of the summer as we record this, I'm dating it heavily right now, is Sabrina Carpenter's espresso, a song I have no idea what the hell it's about. It's grammatically incorrect, and yet all my both of my kids are like, this is this song is a a banger. And, we are yeah. We are House Divided on Sabrina Carpenter's. That that's me espresso.
Andy Nelson:
So in 10 years, Pete, when when your kids are watching a movie about their generation going through their call or celebrating, with their with their friends about their their, college days, that will be on the playlist.
Pete Wright:
Yep. Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
Yep. Right? Yep.
Pete Wright:
Yeah. Interesting. Olivia Rodrigo.
Mandy Fabian:
Olivia Rodrigo. Olivia
Pete Wright:
Rodrigo is gonna be nice. Yep. Oh my god.
Andy Nelson:
Absolutely. Oh,
Mandy Fabian:
we have so much fun singing that around the house. Right?
Pete Wright:
Yeah. Driver's license. Oh, very fun.
Mandy Fabian:
Very fun.
Andy Nelson:
It's a
Mandy Fabian:
bad idea. Right? Oh, God. We love that song. All 4 of us become teenage girls.
Mandy Fabian:
Outstanding.
Pete Wright:
What were we here to talk about again?
Andy Nelson:
That's right.
Mandy Fabian:
I know exactly. Well, I
Andy Nelson:
mean, it has been such a fun time talking with you, Mandy. Thank you so much for joining us to talk about the big chill, your career, let just plus none, all of this stuff. It's been a lot of fun.
Mandy Fabian:
Thank you. I mean, it this was such a treat. It was such a treat. You know, when I started to rewatch the big chill, I was like, well, I've seen this movie a 1000000 times. I'll probably just, you know, I'll just, like, hit the major points.
Mandy Fabian:
And then there's Patrick and I curled up on the couch laughing and grabbing each other and quoting it. Like, it was just it was so it was such a pleasure, and it's always such a pleasure to talk with you guys.
Pete Wright:
Thanks, Mandy. You're the best.
Andy Nelson:
We are thrilled. Thank you so much. Your movie is, certainly something that people should be looking for. Where do you have a a place where people can be kind of keeping up on, like, when it's gonna be released, where they can check it out and everything?
Mandy Fabian:
Yes. You can go to the website and check out the trailer and press and, all the things there. And you can sign up for the mailing list there if you're old school, if you'd like to get a little thing in your inbox. And also, we're on Instagram and we're on x. You can go at at justplusnone and follow us, and we will tell everybody there are going to be some theatrical screenings.
Mandy Fabian:
We the things that we know at this point, there's theatrical screenings, this summer. So we're we have about 6 or 7 theaters that are showing it and possibly some larger chains, which is great. That's gonna be happening this summer. And then later this summer, we expect to be available online. I don't know where yet, but probably all the places you can get stuff online.
Mandy Fabian:
So it's super helpful to follow us so you can find that out. If you have seen the movie already, like, or when you see it, it's also super helpful if people rate it on IMDB for us because that helps other people know whether what they think of the movie. If you don't like the movie, my name is Tina Fey. If you if you so just go to Mean Girls and just go ahead and rate that. And rate that however you want.
Mandy Fabian:
Just just
Pete Wright:
blend right in.
Andy Nelson:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's right.
Pete Wright:
But that's how I will continue. I have to go to the website and click on merch and then go buy. This is really important because there are two versions of the nobody fucks Brian t shirt.
Mandy Fabian:
And you could get the
Pete Wright:
one with the big green print that no one has purchased, but it's my favorite.
Mandy Fabian:
Is it the one with the dildo?
Pete Wright:
It has a vibrator on it.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, that vibrator. Right? Yeah. Oh, god. Yeah.
Mandy Fabian:
I love it. Lot of
Pete Wright:
good, font work.
Mandy Fabian:
It's too bad that they don't have vibrators that we could put the name in the movie on. Like, t Public doesn't offer that. They don't. Isn't that bizarre? That's strange.
Pete Wright:
T Public doesn't offer branded sex toys.
Andy Nelson:
Maybe maybe we would need to reach out to the right companies for
Andy Nelson:
them to just
Andy Nelson:
simply brand some of your merchandise.
Mandy Fabian:
We should
Pete Wright:
we should say there
Mandy Fabian:
is a That's t pubic. That's t. Oh. Oh, no. Did I?
Mandy Fabian:
I did.
Pete Wright:
There there is a healthy, and I say that with all respect, there is a healthy amount of masturbation in this movie, and it's delightful.
Mandy Fabian:
Oh, thank you.
Pete Wright:
Just that that that is an extra star on any rating scale.
Mandy Fabian:
Thank you. Honestly, it I and I invite anyone. If you're watching the movie and you're asking yourself, like, why is she masturbating so much? My question is why aren't you,
Pete Wright:
why aren't
Mandy Fabian:
you, why aren't you, come on guys. It's gonna make everyone let's lower the stress levels.
Pete Wright:
Maybe you'd understand if you did it
Mandy Fabian:
a little bit more. Exactly. Oh,
Andy Nelson:
great. Oh my gosh. Well, we will have the links for everything in the show notes. So just check on that. And like I said, we'll include the links to the curiosity codex so you can tune in and listen to the great conversations that Kyle had with Mandy about, all of this.
Andy Nelson:
Thanks everybody again for joining us. For everybody else out there, we hope you like the show and certainly hope you like the movie like we do here on movies we like. Movies we like is a part of the True Story FM Entertainment podcast network and the next real family of film podcasts. The music is chomp clap by Out of Flux. Find the show at true story dot f m and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, threads, and letterboxed at the next reel.
Andy Nelson:
Learn about becoming a member at the next reel.com/membership. And if your podcast app allows ratings and reviews, we always appreciate it if you drop one in there for us. See you