Interview (Written): Mike Mills

A conversation with the writer-director of the movie 2oth Century Woman.

A Vulture interview with Mike Mills whose writing and directing movie credits include Thumbsucker, Beginners, and 20th Century Woman.

I think we’re in a phase right now with comedies, especially in TV, where the writers don’t actually like the characters and you can sense that. It’s more about “What will this horrible narcissist do next?” To me, 20th Century Women was the antidote to that because it loves its characters so fully and is so generous to them.
Yeah. Like, I don’t like Seinfeld. Everyone loves Seinfeld, and it’s obviously a great thing, but that sort of snarkiness … like, displaying your worst parts as comedy, I find incredibly privileged.

I think if you look at who is making these projects, there is usually an amount of privilege at play.
I don’t mean to summarily judge it all, but I don’t relate to it. If anything, I err in the other direction. My complaint about myself is, like, “Mike, can you fucking just be a little less sweet and vulnerable? Can you just be a mean person for once?” And the answer is no, I can’t. Films are so fucking hard to make and it is a cultural privilege to get to put this out there, so I’m going to put my poker chips in for an authentic, genuine, sincere connection between people. I’d rather watch people trying their hardest to understand each other instead of watching them be shitty to each other — “Ha ha, isn’t that funny?” For better or worse, that’s my lot in life when it comes to my talent and my creativity. And I can fully see how I’m repugnant at times. [Laughs.]

So what is your writing process like? Writing can be very solitary. There’s no one to hug, probably. 
It’s super-hard. I’m a fish in water for about a year of the three years it takes me to write a script, and the other two years are kind of hellish. When you’re writing, you’re failing at least half the time, if not more. For what ends up on the page, there’s gotta be seven or ten other things that don’t. I’m not a super-confident person — surprise surprise — and suspension of disbelief doesn’t work for myself.

What do you mean?
Sometimes I write it and I just don’t believe it.

Really? Even when it’s as drawn from life as 20th Century Women and Beginners?
The parts that aren’t, or the connective tissue, is my own construct. For that, I can be like, “Who cares?” It feels so presumptuous. The solitude of writing … it’s like you’re dorm-mates with depression, and you could easily go in the wrong door. It’s really dicey turf for me.

A trailer for 20th Century Woman:

For the rest of the Mike Mills interview, go here.