‘I Don’t Understand You’ Directors Brian Crano & David Joseph Craig On Working With Nick Kroll, Andrew Rannells & Making A Vacation Horror Comedy [Interview]

Filmmakers and real-life couple Brian Crano and David Joseph Craig have worked together for years now, with Crano often behind the camera and Craig in supporting roles such as the film “Permission,” starring Rebecca Hall and Dan Stevens. With the dark comedy-horror film “I Don’t Understand You,” starring Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells as a married couple on a trip to Italy, the two are working as co-directors for the first time. And this is partially because the story stems from a personal place, along with the instance where they, too, got lost in the woods in Italy. 

The film follows Dom and Cole as they vacation and wait to hear back about their adoption attempts. However, just as they receive good news, they find themselves lost and bloodied and doing everything they can to get back home to meet their child. We spoke to Crano and Craig about the casting process for Kroll and Rannells, stunt work, and night shoots.

‘I Don’t Understand You’: Nick Kroll & Andrew Rannells Talk Their Nightmare Relationship Comedy [Interview]

I know that the film is loosely based on real events that happened to the two of you. Was there an image or a moment that was the jumping-off point for the script? 

Brian Crano: Yeah, we got stuck in the woods on our anniversary in Italy, and that was much longer in real life than in the movie. It was five and a half hours, and we were lost in the dark and the middle of nowhere. So we were like, at some point, during the rage and fear of that moment, it was like, oh, this would be a pretty funny movie. 

Many elements make up this film, from the comedy and the horror, to the throughline of what lengths you’ll go to in being a parent. Was there a particular element you were most interested in exploring? 

David Joseph Craig: We went through this experience ourselves – not the whole thing – but we were in the adoption experience. I don’t think either of us understood the emotional catharsis each of us was having over the process of adopting and having a kid. I think by doing something so bombastic, we were able to connect about our emotions around the entire experience. It was around three years from when we started adopting to when we had our son. We didn’t talk about what it was doing to us then, and the movie gave us a chance to express that. 

Was there ever a moment when you thought about writing it as more of a straight drama?

Both: No [laughs.]

Brian Crano: We’re ridiculous people, and we were writing the movie during the pandemic, and making each other laugh while writing was a handy thing to do. I think we always wanted the movie to have messages about adoption being cool and birth mothers being these fantastic characters and humans when they’re usually portrayed in this negative way. So, after going through the adoption process and being like this woman is our hero, how is it possible that we can’t even think of an example of a birth mother in cinema being portrayed positively? It became a real engine for us to tell that story. But again, we’re silly people, so we need jokes and scares, and we want to surprise people and make the film feel super fun. 

What was the balance in making these characters likable while actively doing bad things? 

David Joseph Craig: That’s also a testament to casting probably two of our giant comedy geniuses of our time. They are undeniably likable and love each other so much that it screams off the screen how high their IQ scores are [laughs].

Was the ultimate goal to have a divide in how people respond to these characters and whether or not they’re rooting for them by the end?

Brian Crano: I think it’s much more interesting than limiting the audience’s experiences to, like, “These people are nice.” We love a movie where we can come out of it and argue about it. We’re happy to have people like them, not like them. Gay men in movies don’t need to be nice. They don’t need to be the best friends of the straight white lady. They can exist. As long as their mission is clear, they can do whatever. 

Can you talk a little bit more about the casting process? 

David Joseph Craig: We auditioned our Italian cast while in Italy, but Morgan Spector and Amanda Seyfried are our friends, and we just thought they’d be perfect for these parts. We wrote it during the pandemic, so we didn’t even know where this business was going or if we could make this movie, so we were writing it for fun. When we realized there was a window to make it, we approached Andrew first with the material simply because we were huge fans of his. He accepted, and we pitched him the idea of Nick because we’d just recently listened to a podcast where Nick spoke about recently becoming a new parent and all the fears and hardships he was nervous about. They matched ours perfectly, and before we could even get it to Nick, Andrew sent it to him, and 48 hours later, we had both of them on board. 

Is it true that beyond the experiences, Dom and Cole are slightly based on you two as well?

Brian Crano: I think they’re based on our neurosis. You know what I mean? It’s not literal, but I’m a fearful person, and Davis is a person who likes control, and if you let them iterate on those ideas, this is sort of how it ends up.

What’s that like as directors watching actors asked to play versions of you?

Brian Crano: Oh, it’s so fun. We had one dinner when we got to Italy as the four of us, and then after that, we were like Do you want to talk to us or do you need anything and they were like, “We got it.” [laughs.] So it was super fun. They were so collaborative and funny, and there was never a moment where it was dry or flat because they came in so engaged every day. It is just a dream to come to work, and you don’t need to do all the heavy lifting because it’s already on the screen. You can just play with it, give them little ideas, and let them go crazy. 

David Joseph Craig: We felt like a foursome on set the whole time. We worked the same hours since they were always there together for 98% of the movie, so it was a tight little foursome throughout the shoot. 

Did you always know you wanted to co-direct a film together, or was it the nature of this story that spurred it on? 

David Joseph Craig: I think it was inevitable that we’d end up doing this together. 

Brian Crano: It was climate change, and we would do a movie together—inevitable things. 

David Joseph Craig: We’ve worked so closely with each other’s projects for so long, and we’re each other’s sounding board, so it was probably inevitable. However, having a personal story and getting us into writing made it feel organic to work on the project together. 

Support independent movie journalism to keep it alive. Sign up for The Playlist Newsletter. All the content you want and, oh, right, it’s free.

How was it shooting on location? Is it as glamorous as it sounds, or were the night shoots too long? 

David Joseph Craig: The night shoots wherever you are…That was the most challenging part of the shoot, and we had a lot of different elements, too. We had rain, and mud, and blood. That was difficult because in Italy, you also have to honor meals at a particular time, so we couldn’t do any split days where we did half day and half night. We did all nights. But other than that, it was probably the best set I’ve ever been on. And I think that’s a testament to how they respect their work in film. Everyone on the set, no matter their position, had read the script, had their favorite scenes and knew what we were shooting. If I could work with that entire crew again, I’d do it in a heartbeat. It was just such a wonderful experience. Shooting in Italy and seeing “Under the Tuscan Sun” daily, you’re like, “This ain’t bad. 

Brian Crano: On the way to the van from the pickup, I’d go to the bakery and buy a giant pizza, and we’d eat that all day. And that was very helpful to just carb load. 

Aside from the night shoots, were there challenges in making the film that you hadn’t encountered in past shoots? 

Brian Crano: The level of the stunt work was something that neither of us had done. We were lucky to have Nash Edgerton, a talented director in his own right, to help us build those elements and effects. As a nervous person, I was like, Is everyone okay? Did anyone get hurt after every practice?, That was kind of emotionally challenging for me. But it was a lovely experience. And when those things go right, and they’re so scary, and everyone walks away fine, it’s great. 

How does it feel to have built a community of performers and artists around you that pop up regularly in your work? 

Brian Crano: It’s the best. You love them as people; they’re good friends, which is also lovely. You must serve all these departments when directing a movie and ensure everything works. When you see Morgan or Amanda show up, you’re like, “I don’t have to worry about that at all, it’s going to be amazing.” It’s also great because they brought their families and we got to hang out. It’s an enjoyable experience. 

David Joseph Craig: We have trust in them, but they also have confidence in us, so even if they think something going off the rails, like dousing Morgan in blood for three days straight, and he looks at you and goes, “What did I sign up for,” but he has the trust in us that we don’t have to assure him the entire time that we know what we’re doing. 

“I Don’t Understand You” is out now in limited theaters via Vertical. 

Ally Johnson

+ postsBio ⮌

This author does not have any more posts