Writer-director Aaron Schimberg's third and latest film, A Different Man , premiered at Sundance last night. A surreal, singular tale of one man's desire to self-actualize, Edward, played by Sebastian Stan ( Pam & Tommy , Avengers: Infinity War ), is overcome by the reality of his disfigured appearance and his intent on changing it to further his acting career. After undergoing a drastic medical procedure, his new dream face quickly turns into a nightmare, as he loses out on the role he was born to play and becomes obsessed with reclaiming what was lost. Actress Renate Reinsve ( The Worst Person in the World ), who plays Edward's neighbor, says it was her first English-speaking part, and she was 'stunned' by the script--'it's heart and weirdness.' British actor Adam Pearson (who has neurofibromatosis, a physical deformity), portrays Oswald, a successful, endearing man who comes face-to-face with Edward, who ultimately becomes obsessed with him. A unique psychological thriller emerges through a haunting score and folkloric magical realism.
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00 Hello, this is Renate, you're watching Live Minute TV.
00:11 It's hard for me to say that I really can totally understand what this character is
00:16 going through because I'm not disabled and I'm not disfigured.
00:20 For me, what I was trying to understand was this aspect that we can all relate to, which
00:25 is you have to accept yourself and whatever it is that is coming with it at some point.
00:32 You have to find the acceptance because if not, the price that you pay is much worse
00:37 than if you think you're going to be stuck in this thing.
00:41 So it was the script, absolutely.
00:44 First time I read it, I was just stunned by its big heart and the weirdness in it.
00:49 It reminded me of a Charlie Kaufman movie and I love him.
00:53 So I had a meeting with Aaron and after Worst Person in the World I was sent so many scripts.
00:59 I was very lucky, but this was the one that really stood out to me.
01:04 And also preparing, everything happened so quickly and it was my first English speaking
01:10 movie so I was pretty nervous.
01:14 Basically I wanted to do a kind of reversal of Jekyll and Hyde where at night a disfigured
01:21 person would get to go out as someone who looks completely handsome and normal, who
01:25 looks like Sebastian Stan.
01:27 And the idea was unwieldy and I couldn't make it work and it seemed too complicated.
01:34 So there's one transformation in the film now and that's sort of where it started.
01:40 You come to every job, no matter what role you're in.
01:43 You're always learning, picking up new skills.
01:45 I think also working with other great actors sort of sharpens you up slightly.
01:50 And you rock up to work with the best version of yourself, whatever that looks like on that
01:56 day and you go to work and you make magic.
01:58 (gunshots)