Huffington Magazine Issue 50 | Page 24

E COPYRIGHT PINE DISTRICT, LLC. Exactly. Not that Frances Ha is like Spring Breakers... No, no, make that comparison. ... but was the goal in the writing process to make the film as poppy as possible? One of the things that’s interesting about the movie is it was much sadder on the page. It was bleaker on the page. When I was acting it, however, I found this broadly physical comedic performance inside myself, which I didn’t know I was going to do. It really lightened everything. It made it feel like it was floating. It felt sparse and taut on the page and then once it was given to the Q&A BEST SUMMER EVER HUFFINGTON 05.26.13 ENTERTAINMENT FILM actors — me and everyone else — it felt like it started bubbling. It’s hard to explain totally, but it’s really exciting when you give it to people and you’re like, “Oh, it’s working.” It almost feels like the spell worked. It also helps that the actors we chose are all really great. We didn’t want to make a movie that felt heavy, but I don’t think we knew just how effervescent it would feel. This is obviously a very personal film for you: Your parents play Frances’ parents; you’re working with Noah; you’ve done all this press. As an actress, do you ever feel that you’re jeopardizing a sense of “I found this broadly physical comedic performance in myself,” Gerwig said.