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Chloe Sevigny is all over the place, and yet she feels like shes nowhere.
She is, technically, unemployed.
That shouldnt be too difficult.
Were both two city folk.
But Ive been around.
Ive been all around Portland, I didPortlandiaand shot a short film of mine there.
I got their biographies, their stories.
It was easy to let yourself disappear into the space.
Were there any details from those biographies that informed your performance in a specific way?
A little tenderness, but not sentimentality.
Thats just the way it is.
To a little extent, our version of the movie is the Disneyfied version.
Not that the movie isnt bleak, but man, that book.
In the film, she talks to Charley with a sort of distant wisdom.
I imagine shes told it a million times, and thats how you get perspective.
When it all becomes a story you might tell.
The structure ofLean on Peteis unusual; characters appear and then get phased out of the narrative without returning.
What does she represent in his world, was the big question I wanted to answer.
I also stayed aware of the fact that Bonnies one of very few women in Charleys life.
I didnt want to come in and be all mothering, thats not Bonnies place.
Ive never been on a horse, and it looks quite painful.
Does it hurt as bad as it looks?Yes, but only emotionally.
The horses can really read your feelings, your nerves, your confidence.
That transparency is painful.
They can read you like a book and its terrifying.
You cannot fake it with a horse.
You recently appeared in the motion pictureThe Snowman,a matter of great interest to me.
Could you offer us any insight?[Whispering.
]I havent seen it.
Really?Its wild.I was doing a play when it came out!
I love Tomas, and I think hes a great filmmaker.
He was so generous on set with his actors that I wrote him a long letter after we wrapped.
Kind of a weird genius.
But yeah, Ive heard there was some strife with the studio.
It was not an inexpensive movie.
Maybe they took it away and then gave it back to Tomas?
So many movies have stories like that.
Youre also inGolden Exits, which recently entered theaters after a very delayed journey to the public, too.
When you were working on your own directorial debut, did you have to deal with …Directorial debut?
Kitty?Oh, yeah, thats right!
Thats a short, though.
I thought you meant, like, a feature.
A short still counts as directing!
And then I met one woman who said, I love this.
I can see you doing this.
Lets get it done.
I was like, Great, youre hired!
We could do whatever we want, hold it for whichever festival.
That much was just the absolute dream.
My second one was with [fashion label] Miu Miu, and they were the same way.
I had to use their clothes, but apart from that, total freedom.
I tried to dress everyone to look like they were wearing costumes, and not clothes.
For a fashion film, its just about the most anti-fashion film youve ever seen.
Is it getting more difficult to root out the roles that can be personally meaningful?
You always hear about the film industry shrinking.Well, I dont have a job right now!
[Big, gasping laugh that gradually turns into mock hyperventilation.
]Yeah, theres less money going around, magazines really feel that.
This is the first time in a couple years that I dont really know whats happening.
I keep going back to The Demon Seesaw you readthat essay?
its great, very comforting.
But yes, I feel a little nervous.
I feel like Im present!
So hopefully between that and this short, people will remember Im still here, pluggin away.
Fightin the good fight.
Is that a strange feeling, to be thought of as cool?
I think more people know about it than have actually read it.
But I know what you mean.
I dunno, it didnt affect me so much at the time.
They were emblematic of everything cool, all that was pure and great in the world.
I dont know if youve ever met her, but she has something that not many people have.
Shes exceptional very gifted, very thoughtful, very passionate.
She is real about her work, and uncompromising as an actress.
Shes a wild creature.
That was kind of annoying, but I learned some French, so thats fun.
But then we shot in Chihuahua, Mexico, on 9/11.
My brother worked downtown at the time, but he wasnt there that day, thank god.
I was really rattled, and then that same day they made us shoot inhelicopters.
I wish I could find this photo and share this with the world.
I look so tragic!
This interview has been edited and condensed.
