Behind-the-scenes production of the Year of the Dog

The Year of the Pig is about dogs. The film takes dogs as the medium and still tells the fact that modern people have poor communication. Mike white, the director, said: "The content of this film does contain a lot of obsessive thoughts, but I don't think all the characters here are extreme people. They just encountered some confusion in the pursuit of happiness. They think Peggy deserves happiness, but they don't know that Peggy's happiness is different from their own. " "They" in White's mouth refers to Peggy's boss Robin. Although he has achieved unprecedented material success, he has not experienced the taste of happiness. And her brother and sister-in-law, young parents' time is almost taken up by children; And Anabel, Peggy's colleague and good friend, is going through a crucial step from being single to getting married ... Indeed, the characters in the story seem to be extremely stubborn, too obsessed with their own lives to listen to other people's suggestions. Although this is not selfish, it often leads to the consequences of doing bad things with good intentions. Therefore, the Year of the Dog expressed its comments on "failure", suggesting that pets have become a bridge connecting friendship and comfortable life.

This film is the directorial debut of Mike White, who has written plays for The Catcher's Girl in the Rye and The School of Rock. He said that in the creative process, the role of Peggy was written with reference to molly shannon: "I know Shannon can play this role well, and to some extent, Shannon is Peggy's prototype in real life. She is an amazing woman.

Molly shannon is undoubtedly the most deeply rooted in people's hearts, and her dribs and drabs in saturday night live in the past six years. The reason why Mike White praised Shannon so much is that they worked together for the short-lived TV series Cracking. White hopes that Peggy presented by Shannon should be "a very kind person in essence, but she lost herself and me because she was out of the track of life." Finally, she got rid of endless confusion, including people she didn't need in her life. " White's view of this role is: "I think Peggy is a naive and romantic person, but to some extent she is a little ignorant." However, I don't want to set her as an eccentric antique forgotten by time, just want her to look special. "

About supporting roles

John C.Reilly, nominated for Best Supporting Actor in Chicago, plays Peggy's neighbor Al. This character used to be very compassionate and had a romantic relationship with Peggy, but now it has become the object of her anger, just because the "pencil" died in his back garden for no reason. Riley said, "Mike White told me that Al is the most difficult character in the film. He is just an ordinary man, living an ordinary life. But when you compare him with other people, such as Peggy, his behavior will be very strange. " As a suitor around Peggy, Al unfortunately became a new enemy of radical animal protection organizations.

Peter Sarsgaard plays Newt in the film. Newt lets Peggy join an extreme animal protection organization, but indirectly leads her to be disheartened by any kind of love. According to Mike White, there should be some unconventional ambiguous feelings between Peggy and Newt: "Newt's love is always full of passion, and he never wants to change this situation. He is pure and steady ... Peggy found herself in love with such a man. " After Pencil died, Newt gave Peggy another dog to mend her wound. He knows what he is doing. Sasgard said, "She doesn't need an expensive dog. She just wants a dog that needs her own help so that she can stop thinking about pencils. "

Laura dern, who was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress for A Chatty Rose, plays Peggy's sister-in-law. Mike White's thoughts on this role are: "Once you have children, your world will become smaller in an instant, because everything you do is for children, and you will be nervous that the surrounding environment is dangerous to children everywhere. Peggy is more like a loyal listener to her sister-in-law, listening to all the enthusiasm and anxiety of her brother and sister-in-law. When the form was reversed and Peggy was confused by the loss of her beloved pet dog, they could not understand why she devoted so much emotion to a dog. So, they let her down. " Dunn said: "Brett is a very festive character, because she only focuses on herself and her children, so she can't see anything else." It is very interesting to play such a neurotic role. "

Laila, Peggy's colleague and best friend, was explained by regina king. For her, this film may symbolize a turning point in her acting career. Mike White praised her: "I 100% am sure that you have never seen her like this." Regine King has always been one of mike white's favorite actors: "Laila has love, she has found a man, and she is going to get married soon. She took it for granted that Peggy must have similar troubles. "

Indeed, the Year of the Dog deserves praise not only for performances, but also for scripts. It is not an easy task to put the real character's character on the big screen intact. The inspiration of the film comes from the real experience of Mike White, who kept a cat in his garden and died in his arms on Christmas Day: "I experienced unimaginable heartache, and I can't even believe that everything I once had ended like this. When the cat died, it happened that I was overworked and stressed. I really need its company. After it died, my life began to get out of control ... at that time, I thought, maybe this feeling is a good material for making a movie. I can write this experience into the script to commemorate the lost life. I have always thought that making a movie about animals should be very interesting, but now I find it much more complicated than making a typical family movie. I hope this script will discuss the relationship between adults and animals, and then mix some humor and melancholy. "

With the efforts and support of all the actors, Mike White finally made the Year of the Dog his screen debut. Peter Sarsgaard said: "This film represents Mike White's macro idea of the world, and his views are very unique. Without a heart beating for life, he wouldn't dig out so many humorous elements. He can always find something realistic, but he never judges anyone from it. This film contains too many personal feelings. Is there a better director besides Mike White? "

titbits

The film was shot entirely in Southern California, where Mike White was born. He hopes that the hot and sunny weather there can be in sharp contrast with Peggy's painful experience.