There’s a movie, which opened in limited release this past weekend, that everyone is talking about that involves Facebook, but not Justin Timberlake. It’s “Catfish,” the emotionally engaging if somewhat questionably authentic documentary about the lives we create online versus the ones that actually exist in the real world. Following Nev Schulman, a young NYC photographer as he embarks on a relationship with a Midwestern family, you can’t help but feel bad for the guy while also feeling like not only could this happen to you, the viewer, but it probably has (to some degree). We had a chance to chat with the film’s directors, Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman (Nev’s brother). The interview that follows is 100 percent real. We promise. For those worried about spoilers, the first part of the interview is fairly innocuous, although we would still suggest reading it after you’ve seen the movie. However, the more heavy spoiler material will come at the end and we’ll give you fair warning to turn back.
The Playlist: You guys have worked together for a while. What role do each of you play in the directorial process?
AS: It’s very hard to describe. I guess, with “Catfish,” my role is to sort of, instinctively, throw ourselves into the fire. And Henry makes sure we don’t die.
HJ: I’d say we have worked together on a lot of things together, we have a company together, and now it’s kind of an unspoken relationship where, we fill in each others’ gaps as directors. Although that’s kind of gross. We work very organically together. I’m not sure how to describe it.
Are you guys usually this much a part of your films? Not only are you in it a lot but it’s also a very personal story with your obvious connection to Nev.
HJ: This is our first feature film. The things that we’ve made prior to this are mostly commercials and short documentaries and personal short films so we’re used to filming each other a lot but we’ve never really used it for anything until this movie.
At what point did you realize exactly what you had, with the footage you’d been accumulating?
AS: We realized very late in the process that what we had might actually be worth screening for people. There was certainly an instinct that there was an interesting story going on if we stayed close enough to Nev. But there was no objective in making a feature film out of it, until there was a very specific moment in Colorado, where everything turns. And that’s when we realized we might have enough of an arc for a feature film.
What was the editing process like on this movie?
HJ: We have an amazing editor, Zachary Stuart-Pontier, who’s really the fourth musketeer in this story. And we called him on the drive back and said “time for you to start working full time on this project.” And he really helped us separate the experience from the film. Because when you’re as close to it as we were, it was hard to recognize what was important to the story and what thing should be left on the cutting room floor. And because he wasn’t directly a part of it, although he was around the office a lot when it was unfolding, he didn’t go to Michigan, so he didn’t have the personal emotions wrapped up in it.
How tough was it being that wrapped up in it?
HJ: Prior to this I’ve always felt like the filmmakers should always step back a little bit and be in the background, particularly in a documentary. But this really changed my mind about that, especially with this story, we needed to be involved and we were involved. Because the person that these things were happening to was our best friend and brother, respectively. So for us to stay out of it would have been hypocritical.
What are you working on now?
AS: We’re writing one or two scripts right now that we hope will be as impactful as “Catfish.”
Were you surprised by the overwhelming response at Sundance, with the film being picked up by Rogue and Universal?
AS: It’s been a total surprise, every step of the way. We made the movie for ourselves, by ourselves, with very little money. And the goal was Sundance and if that was the end of the road, then that would have been just fine. And it just sort of struck a nerve with the movie-going audience. It’s a story that starts a conversation.
How do you guys feel about the marketing about this?
HJ: I like the marketing. I think that it’s a good idea to inspire people not to say anything because it enhances the film-going experience so much more if you don’t know what you’re getting involved in. And that’s how we went into it. After you see the film, you’ve shared the experience with us, and we can have a conversation about what it was like. In another respect, the marketing kind of focuses on the thriller/mystery of the film which is a tremendous part of it but I think people are pleasantly surprised to find out there’s a whole lot more to it than just a thriller and a mystery.
That’s interesting because Rogue usually does horror films. And there’s a moment in the trailer and certainly in the movie where it looks like it was going to go that way. There’s even been a comment that it’s going to do to Facebook what “Jaws” did to the ocean. What’s your reaction?
AS: Ultimately, the film, for us, the film has more of a positive message. And I think that’s the ultimate surprise in the film, that a real friendship emerges and a real understand that emerges after all this tumultuous storyline. In a way, it’s a bit of a misdirect.
HJ: I think what’s going on is that everyone has these pent up feelings of love and aggression towards social networks and the Internet in general, that the movie is a platform for discussing all these contradictory feelings we have about the web.
Have you changed with how you interact with social networking sites?
AS: I think I’m much less innocent about what I put online and what I expect from other people online. I’ve certainly changed my privacy settings and more guarded. But I’m still very open to meeting something or someone that will change my life.
Has Nev changed the way he deals with social networks?
HJ: Yeah, I mean I think he had a very difficult time after we got back and had a delayed reaction to many of the emotions that this experience brought up. He still uses Facebook. I think in the months after he got back, it made him want to reconnect with the people in his lives that he could meet face-to-face with. He got into a real relationship with an ex-girlfriend. They broke up since then but had a very great relationship for a while.
How does it feel as filmmakers when people call the movie a “fake documentary?” How do you respond to that?
HJ: When we were editing we never thought we would be an issues — because why would you think that anyone would ever question a real event in your life? But, you know, our first reaction was just shock and feeling insulting, in terms of what that would suggest about us as filmmakers. And we’re really not capable of that level of deception. We’re really not smart enough to come up with that kind of idea and I really can’t figure out even how, logistically, that would have worked. But thinking about it I understand why people are suspicious. And audiences are suspicious these days about marketing ploys and the kind of fake documentary as a genre and the fake viral documentary. There’s a trend of fooling audiences. But we’re definitely not part of that trend.
Do you think that works with the themes of the film?
AS: That definitely does, because the film is about — truth.
SPOILER TERRITORY — TURN BACK NOW IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THE FILM!
There are some scenes when Nev clearly didn’t want to continue filming. How did you grapple with that decision, especially given your relationships with Nev.
AS: I really didn’t think there was a choice. There was a question of truth. And I didn’t think Nev would be able to live with himself if he never went through with the discovery. It’s kind of like the parent that lets their child quit piano lessons when they get a little difficult. And you know 20 years later that parent says, “you’re not going to like it, but you’re going to thank me later.” That’s kind of how I was feeling.
So for you was there no question of stopping?
AS: Well, eventually, we all sort of going back and forth. And one point I wanted to stop and turn back and Nev forced me to stick with it. And the same goes for Henry too. We all sort of give and take with who was scared and who was brave. But initially Nev wanted to stop because it was getting painful and it was clear that he was involved with people who were not what they said they were. He was very mature and said “Rel, I understand that you’re very excited that there’s a story here but I need you more as a brother and a friend than as a documentarian right now, so please appreciate that.”
How does Nev feel about the finished product?
AS: I think he’s very happy to have this capsule of one of the most tumultuous times of his life.
We were really fascinated by Angela as a person and a character. How did you convince her to appear in the film?
AS: I think she’s also happy to have a capsule of this experience. As easily embarrassing and joyous as it is for both of them, she thinks it’s fair and she’s glad it exists. And I think she was looking forward to coming to terms with herself and becoming confident in herself as a person and an artist.
Has Angela seen the film?
HJ: Yes. We took it to her. It was pretty emotional, watching it with her. She couldn’t come to Sundance, which we were very sorry for her. It was great to finally show it to her and she thought it was funny and sad and embarrassing and in the end she said, “Thank you for treating the story this way. It was very fair. I’m glad it was the three of you who showed up on my doorstep and not someone else.” Her only criticism of the film was just that, while she understood why we did it, in streamlining the beginning of the relationship we lost a lot of the detail of their correspondence and this world she created, and she just wished that had more of a part in the film.
AS: Yes, some day we’re going to publish a book and it’ll have lots more of her world and correspondence. It will be very deep and juicy; makes for a great read.
Is that in the works?
AS: Well, not exactly, but we would like to do that one day, when we have a little more time.
HJ: It’s actually really amazing what she created. It’s like a living novel, in a lot of ways. And we think about it like a new artform. She has the mind of a great storyteller and she’s using Facebook as the medium of expression — all of the characters had fully developed lives and backstories and conflicts and they were an autonomous unit. They all communicated with each other. And it was all for the benefit of Nev. The audience of one.
The film ends with a note saying that Nev and Angela are still Facebook friends. Is that the extent of their relationship?
HJ: They’re still in touch a little bit. We’ve been in touch regularly. She and Nev have a much more complicated relationship and they’ve been working on trying to start over and build a real friendship out of this.