APRIL 8, 2006ŅDirector Salvador Litvak can stomach his first film, the family comedy When Do We Eat?, being labeled My Big Fat Passover Seder. Just do not decline LitvakÕs invitation to this year attend the Jewish holiday meal at the home of Ira and Peggy Stuckman.
When Do We Eat? takes a comical view of the family dynamics that keep the Stuckmans at each otherÕs throats. Ira (Michael Learner) wants nothing more than to put on Ōthe worldÕs fastest Seder,Ķ but he doesnÕt count on the tensions at the table spoiling his best-laid plans. It certainly doesnÕt help that he canÕt stop bickering with his childrenŅincluding a lesbian (Meredith Scott Lynn), a sex surrogate (Sheri Appleby) and the ultra-religious eldest son (Max Greenfield)Ņor his demanding, uncommunicative father (Jack Klugman). And letÕs not forget that another son (Ben Feldman) slips Ira a dose of Ecstasy, obviously making it impossible for him to concentrate on the task on hand.
Film South Florida spoke the Chilean-born director, who has family in Boca Raton, about When Do We Eat?Õs world premiere at last yearÕs Palm Beach International Film Festival, the importance of assembling the right cast for his first film, and his thoughts on the inevitable comparisons to My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
Film South Florida: What was the reaction like to the film when it received its world premiere at last yearÕs Palm Beach International Film Festival? Did audiences laugh in all the right places?
Salvador Litvak: it was the birth of the movie. IÕm indebted to the film festival, and I feel warm feelings for the community. We received such a warm welcome. In fact, the festival had rented a large screening room at the Muvico [Parisian 20 in West Palm Beach] ... but we ended up filling two screening rooms and shuttling reels back and forth between the rooms. Both audiences roared with approval. It was like the christening of a ship. It was a great sendoff.
Film South Florida: Did you go back and tweak the film after the PBIFF?
Litvak: There were a few changes. There was one scene involving Jack Klugman that was cut when we screened it here. I said after the screening that I needed to get it back in. So I lobbied the producer. ItÕs not an easy thing to make a film longer, and the scene is two minutes long. And itÕs a very dramatic scene. But the approval of the [PBIFF] audience that night gave me confidence that it belongs in the movie. Anyone seeing the film again will appreciate the new material. ItÕs not only important, but itÕs a heavy scene. ItÕs about the damage that is repeated in the family from one generation to the next. Jack Klugman recounts how he lost his family in the HolocaustŅthatÕs the cause of his anger toward the world, that it helps us understand his expectations of his surviving son [Michael Lerner]. He wants nothing but good things for his son, but he canÕt communicate that to him. This is a comedy, and I can understand why the producer would be reluctant to include such a heavy scene. But every movie has its highs and low, and they can exist alongside each other.
Film South Florida: Aside from reinserting that scene, whatÕs happened with the film in the year since the PBIFF? You obviously secured theatrical distribution with THINKFilm. Was it a case of sitting on the film until close to this Passover, the obvious time to release the film?
Litvak: We had to prove ourselves. We had no distribution deal, so we traveled with the movie from festival to festival, and we experienced constantly growing crowds with both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences. And we won awards. So we were able to show distributors that there is an audience for the movie. Hollywood keeps producing remakes, but this is an original comedy, and it looks at religion head-on. ItÕs not about religion, but it addresses a 3,000-year-old ritual. ThereÕs no bigger taboo in Hollywood than religion. You can show sex and violence, but when you talk about religion, everyone runs for cover.
Film South Florida: How muchŅif at allŅwas the film based on personal experience? I canÕt imagine you attended a Passover Seder during which a family member was slipped a dose of Ecstasy, accidentally or otherwise.
Litvak: No, it didnÕt happen with my family. It was just an idea we [Litvak and his wife, writer Nina Davidovich] had while we were talking on the couch. And it made us laugh. So we didnÕt set out to make it about our families. But when we were done, we realized there are similarities. We wrote from what we know. And Michael Lerner almost didnÕt get the part because he almost looks like my dad, and people do think heÕs based on my dad.
Film South Florida: This is a film that lives or dies by its ensemble cast. How tough was it to get everyone you wanted?
Litvak: We were fortunate that, this being my first film, to work with Jack Klugman, Michael Lerner and Lesley Anne Warren. It was a tremendous experience, but I had to be ready and confident as the cast would have walked off. I needed the right cast as the characters we wrote are intelligent, so we wanted smart people. What you also want are opinions, and they all had opinions on how to do things. It was a tight shooting scheduleŅone monthŅand it was Herculean effort because there are 11 people in almost every scene. You have to keep moving to get everyone on cameraŅyou shoot from his angle, her angle, dadÕs side of the table, momÕs side of the table. But you canÕt get caught up in the technical side of things; actors are like thoroughbreds, and you need to let them run. They came up with great insights. It would have been foolish not to let them give me their gifts.
Film South Florida: Did everything fall into place when you finally settled on your cast?
Litvak: We knew we had a fighting chance. Then shooting started. This is my first feature, so I never knew what would happen when the cameras started rolling. I was very fortunate to have [Phat GirlzÕ] Steven Wolfe as my producer. He did the producing. He told me just to direct. But it still took about two weeks for me to realize not to worry any of the other stuff, that the actors would tell the story and the truth would come out. Then everything became such a joy. And I didnÕt get overwhelmed. I kept everything in front of me, that it was important to do something real, something universal, much like Monsoon Wedding or My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
Film South Florida: Is it a help or hindrance to be labeled, for example, My Big Fat Passover Seder?
Litvak: I never want to compare projects, but people bring up My Big Fat Greek Wedding all the time. I take it as a compliment. Every movie needs help. IÕll take the help any way I can get it. But I certainly need the South Florida community to come out so we can expand from New York, L.A. and South Florida. If we donÕt get the support, the movie will disappear.
Film South Florida: Given the PBIFF audienceÕs response, how do you predict the film will fare with both Jewish and non-Jewish moviegoers in South Florida?
Litvak: We took it to the deadCENTER Film Festival in Oklahoma City and we came away with the Best [Narrative] Feature of the festival. People love movies about families. And this is a movie with heart and soul and depth, and its does not take itself seriously. Times are difficult and stressful, so people need a comedy like this right now.
Film South Florida: WhatÕs next?
Litvak: IÕm writing my next script. ItÕs a comedy. IÕm not talking too much about it as I donÕt want to take away from the energy I need to write the script. IÕm also making a documentary about intelligent design vs. evolution as it plays out in one town in California.
When Do We Eat? is now in theaters. Click here for more information.
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