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I love Griffith on a very personal level, director Damien Chazelle says.
Griffith sits atop a hill as if its in its own world.
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That speaks to the sprawl and the spirit of Los Angeles.
Its totally, authentically, ironically its own thing.
L.A. traffic freaked me out before I even visited L.A., he says.
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The joyous outcome, involving dozens of vehicles and a hundred dancers, is road-rage relief.
So he hired Quentin Tarantinos favored production designer David Wasco.
It was an extraordinary challenge, but we tried to do the same thing from a different angle.
Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Demys poetic, glittery style was the single biggest influence onLa La Land.
(He filmed at 48 locations in 42 days.)
Right away I wrote a reference toCasablancainto the script, he says.
Miramax Films/Courtesy Everett Collection
Im a big believer in things as small as what your rig’s screen saver is.
Just look at Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr and those blues and reds and yellows, the director gushes.
This really reminded me of what I wantedLa La Landto feel like.
It was a major influence on the opening dance number, set on a traffic-clogged freeway.
“And I never wanted to set foot in it.
But instead of Michael Douglas storming out of his car, its a dance number.”
Courtesy Everett Collection
“It’s been more of less shut down except for specific events.
I remember scouting it and you go inside this absolutely gorgeous building, on the outside and inside.
It was strange and beautiful.”
Courtesy Everett Collection
“I absolutely love that documentary,” he says.
It doesnt have a specific place in film the way that New York or Paris does.
Which is why everyone has their own idea of L.A., and many are not the most pleasant.
“Certainly aware of it,” he says.
He adds, “That triggers the old movie buff in me.
But theyre also, both together and apart, very contemporary actors.
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Their style of acting is not what you would find in those old Hollywood movies.
Its more modern and behavioral and grounded.
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Courtesy Everett Collection
Criterion Collection
Wilson Webb; Ben Glass
