Authors — Peter Rinaldi
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“The Reality of a Life of Acting All the Time Is Different From the Perception”: Mia Wasikowska (Back To One, Episode 242)
Mia Wasikowska’s first project in The States was the HBO series In Treatment. She was just 16 years old, but if you watched it then, you were probably in awe, like me, marveling at this seemingly fully formed acting artist, performing, with nuance and subtlety, well beyond her years. She continued to wow us with stellar work in Jane Eyre, Madame Bovary, Alice In Wonderland, Stoker, The Double, Tracks, Damsel and Bergman Island, to name a few. Her latest is an absolutely beautiful film called Blueback. In this woefully brief episode, she talks about the underwater acting she had to do […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Feb 28, 2023 -
“I Kind of Wanted To Keep Doing It All, and Fortunately They Kept Letting Me”: Todd Stashwick (Back To One, Episode 241)
You might know Todd Stashwick from The Riches or 12 Monkeys (the Syfy series, where he played Deacon), but you definitely know him from his guest star work on countless shows, both dramas and comedies, spanning more than two decades. And now he plays Captain Liam Shaw in the new season of Picard. On this episode, he talks about how the little boy Star Trek fan in him leapt for joy when he sat in his captain’s chair for the first time, while the “all business” actor in him had to focus on the work at hand. Plus we discuss […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Feb 21, 2023 -
“…That’s When Something Else Works Through Me”: The Chosen and Jesus Revolution Star Jonathan Roumie (Back To One, Episode 240)
Jonathan Roumie—actor, director, producer, and speaker—is best known for his award-winning role as Jesus in the groundbreaking series and global sensation, The Chosen. His new movie, the Lionsgate period drama Jesus Revolution, is based on the events of the last great spiritual revival in America. Roumie portrays the enigmatic, hippie street preacher, Lonnie Frisbee. On this episode, he gives us a peek at his in-depth approach to the work, which ranges from authentic ‘Method’ to ‘mystically inspired.’ He talks about how his occasional need for solitude on set stems from being easily distracted, why chemistry reads should be not just […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Feb 14, 2023 -
“… I Just Had to Open My Eyes and Everything Was there”: Godland Star Elliott Crosset Hove (Back To One, Episode 239)
Elliott Crosset Hove is a true rising star in the Danish film world. The remarkable new film Godland, his third collaboration with Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason, just landed him a European Film Award nomination for Best Actor. On this episode, he walks us through his extensive preparation “check list” which he uses to stimulate his unconscious mind and build a defense system to combat doubt. He talks about how the stunning but grueling environment where they shot Godland helped him stay in the moment, his method for approaching a character from another time period, and much more. Back To One […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Feb 7, 2023 -
“Okay Whit, I Think You Need to Get Dumber”: Clay Tatum and Whitmer Thomas on The Civil Dead (Back To One, Episode 238)
Clay Tatum and Whitmer Thomas wrote and star in the wonderful new comedy The Civil Dead, which Tatum also directed. On this episode, they discuss their long collaboration and friendship that goes back to Alabama at age 11, doing comedy events in Los Angeles with Power Violence, filming sketches, honing their craft, learning valuable lessons on the HBO/A24 production The Golden One, the importance of rhythm in comedy, the importance of trusting your own voice, and applying it all toward the modest indie film that won the audience award at Slamdance last year and is about to win audiences over […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Jan 31, 2023 -
“Making Meaning Out of Life”: After Love Star Joanna Scanlan (Back To One, Episode 237)
British TV and film star Joanna Scanlan won the Best Actress BAFTA award last year for her incredible performance in After Love. She plays Mary, a devout convert to Islam who, shortly after becoming a widow, discovers her late husband’s secret family. In this episode, she takes us on a little tour of the meaningful aspects of her acting process—the investigative phase of initial script reading, the “harnessing” of feelings, the mystical “clicking in” that happens through the words, and why it’s always been about the love of it. Plus much more! Back To One can be found wherever you get […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Jan 24, 2023 -
“I Don’t Know How To Be a Product”: Saint Omer Star Guslagie Malanda (Back To One, Episode 236)
To say Guslagie Malanda plays Laurence Coly in Alice Diop’s Saint Omer feels incorrect; she becomes her. It’s a performance that holds such subtle power and authenticity that it’s easy to take it for granted. On this episode, Malanda explains why she turned down countless acting jobs after her first film, My Friend Victoria. She talks about the year-long pre-production period that she needed to prepare for the role, the nightmares that plagued her during that time, the breakthrough of learning to breathe, and much more. Back To One can be found wherever you get your podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Jan 17, 2023 -
“You Have to Be Willing to Make a Fool of Yourself”: Tallie Medel (Back To One, Episode 235)
Tallie Medel is an award winning actor, educator, artist, and one third of the legendary Cocoon Central Dance Team. Her fiercely authentic and nuanced performances in films like Dan Sallitt’s Fourteen have garnered attention from critics and audiences alike. This past year she gifted us with Becky in the acclaimed Everything Everywhere All At Once. In this episode, she talks about the communal environment on that production that benefited the performances, the importance of establishing true connection with her scene partners and using the present moment as a tool, how learning and teaching Clown has changed and shaped her work, […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Jan 10, 2023 -
“You Have a Character Goin’”: The Fifth Annual Kevin Corrigan Episode of Back To One
If the Back To One podcast has one tradition, it is the yearly visit from its very first guest, the living patron saint of the working actor, Kevin Corrigan. This is his fifth time on the show (Ep. 1, Ep. 67, Ep. 133, Ep.185), and as you’ll hear, he still has a healthy supply of great stories, laughs, and inspiration to dish out. He talks about his recent stints on Law and Order: Organized Crime, City on a Hill, and the upcoming indie film Bang Bang; tells a hilarious story illustrating the ways he practices acting when not on a […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Dec 27, 2022 -
“It’s Like an Invitation To Be Human”: Corsage Star Vicky Krieps (Back To One, Episode 233)
The last time Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread, Bergman Island) was on this podcast (episode 174), we learned about how she approaches the work through a kind of “emptying out” of herself, and a “deconstruction” of everything in her obit, even her preconceptions regarding the role. This time she’s back to talk about her astounding work in Marie Kreutzer’s film Corsage, an imaginative re-telling (or perhaps a “correcting?”) of a year in the life of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Krieps talks about treating the work as an invitation to play, how dealing with the coldness of the character had an effect on relationships outside of […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Dec 20, 2022
