411 Movies Interview: Ross Partridge of Baghead Posted by Tony Farinella on 08.01.2008
411's Tony Farinella sits down with Ross Partridge of Baghead for an exclusive interview!
Ross Partridge has been around Hollywood since 1992, and he's finally get a chance to show what he's made of in the film, Baghead, directed by Jay and Mark Duplass. The film follows four struggling actors as they retreat to a cabin in Big Bear, California in order to write a screenplay that will make them all stars. Unfortunately, their story idea -- a horror flick about a group of friends tormented by a villain with a bag over his head -- starts to come true. Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing Ross Partridge, and we talked about his character in this very unique film. I hope you enjoy my interview with Ross Partridge.
TONY: When you first read the script for Baghead, what were your first impressions?
Ross Partridge: Well, I knew Mark and Jay's previous work, so I was very excited to read it. But, again, I was a little concerned about the fact that some guy with a big over his head, are we gonna be able to pull the wool over people's eyes with something like this? So, I started reading it, and I kept thinking to myself, "Are they gonna get me on this? Are they gonna get me on this?" But by page twenty-five, I was like, "I think I'm being got. I think I'm being had." Then by page thirty-five, I was like, "God damn it, they got me!" So it was pretty fun to read. And I knew by reading it, it was just such an obvious and simplistic idea, but if you could make it work, it could really be a lot of fun.
TONY: I was a big fan of The Puffy Chair, so I have to ask you, as an actor, what was it like working with Jay and Mark Duplass? They seem to have a very unique sense of humor.
Ross Partridge: It's an amazing work environment. They're a lot of fun and they're extremely generous filmmakers. And, basically, they're just tapping into making fun of themselves and making fun of situations that they found themselves in, and they do it in a way that's just really full of love, so there's no bitterness in it. They're just trying to take the smaller things and small situations and finding the subtlety that's in the smallest of things and make it fun, which they found the most humorous. Like I said, it was a complete joy to work with them. Being on set, it was a lot of playtime and a lot of collaborating with one another. And they're just very generous as far as how they go about filmmaking and their scripts. They're great writers, but they still think that their scripts won't be as good as what we could improvise in a specific situation. I think a lot of times directors who are writers, everyone's looking for perfection, and they set out to make perfection off of a page of what was created originally at a time that may have been a long time before the actual shooting of the movie and things may not be as relevant or funny. And even on set, they may not be as funny, but Jay and Mark, they're not looking for the perfection of what's on the page, they're just really plot-oriented and specific to the life that's going on immediately as you're shooting it. They're looking for the imperfections of characters, which become funny, rather than trying to create something that has already been established once before by being written on page.
TONY: What can you tell us about your character in the film?
Ross Partridge: Matt, he's been an actor in L.A. for a little while, probably ten to fifteen years, and has probably had one commercial. He's still excited about what he does, yet he's probably come to an age where he doesn't realize that he's probably almost a has-been, but he feels it inside and he doesn't really know how to connect the two. He's eager and willing to put himself out there at this point because he's clearly desperate to get ahead in the business any way that he can and he's willing to go to any lengths to do it.
TONY: Was it pretty easy for you and your fellow actors to relate to your characters? It just seems like Hollywood is such an unpredictable place and you never know when you're going to catch a break.
Ross Partridge: Oh, absolutely. You'd be foolish to think not, unless you were extremely lucky at a very young age and were catapulted into some sort of huge success and then you have a whole list of other problems to deal with. But, yeah, you certainly know that we're walking into a ring of fire every time we go out, and the chances that we are not gonna get a job are so much greater than actually getting a job for whatever reason because there are so many factors that go into it. We are a glutton of people who keep going towards the no, and we say, "Alright, hit me again. Let's try again."
TONY: How did you guys approach this movie? Were you looking to make a certain type of movie for a certain type of audience? Or were you just looking to make something that would amuse everyone on set?
Ross Partridge: It's one of those things where I think it's based mostly on Mark and Jay's instincts, but we're all pretty much on the same page. When something is striking us as incredibly unique and funny, everyone seems to know it. When you start hitting that lighting in a bottle, it's pretty easy to figure out.
TONY: How would you describe the tone of the film?
Ross Partridge: It's basically a balls-out comedy, and all of a sudden, it takes a very unsuspected turn and it becomes somewhat of a thriller with some horror elements to it, but it's certainly not a horror movie in the sake of gore horror movies. It's scary as all hell, there's some really tense situations, but it's based on your love for these characters and the simplicity of the idea that it actually becomes kind of a scary plot line.
TONY: When you work on an independent film, how do you approach the project? What's your state of mind?
Ross Partridge: I gotta be honest with you, when Jay and Mark offered me the part, I was absolutely ecstatic. I've been in the business for a long time and I've met a lot of different people and a lot of different directors, and when there's such talent in front of you, it's pretty rare and it's easy to recognize if you got the right set of glasses on. And I think Mark and Jay, when you meet them, you just know they have a very different and unique sensibility, and if you watch their other movies, from their shorts to The Puffy Chair, there's definitely something really exciting happening here. And it's something that is so unique, so I was thrilled to be working with them and so excited, and I feel like their best work is yet to come because they have so much to offer. And it's always good to be a part of something like that.
TONY: What was it like working with the rest of the cast? I mean, it sounds like you didn't have to worry about some big name actor getting in the way.
Ross Partridge: Even if Mark and Jay go on to make bigger films, which I'm sure they will, I think their sensibility is gonna attract those type of actors, and they're not gonna understand the process of what they're getting involved in. It's great to be a part of a group that, coming from the top up, there is no pretense, and it's all about doing the work. The bottom line is doing the work and trying to create some art and something that's unique and something that is inspiring. So it's exciting.
TONY: What was it like being directed by two brothers? Are they pretty different?
Ross Partridge: I think Mark deals with the plot structure of the script. I think they both do, but it's more that Mark is dealing with stuff as it's happening on set. They both have very editorial minds because they have an editing background. Jay is much more back-end minded, because he's really in the editing process. So you get the best of both worlds. As far as taking direction, they're never on different pages, they're of the same blood for sure.
TONY: What's your most vivid memory from shooting this film?
Ross Partridge: At one point, we were delirious from working a fifteen-hour day and one of the crew members had said something, and I remember between myself, Jay and Mark, we all basically fell to the floor laughing. And there was seven people who caught up with us and started just cracking up, and we were all hysterical and crying. I mean, we literally had to stop what we were doing for about a half-hour because we couldn't catch our breaths from laughing so hard. It's those kind of moments that you really hold onto.
TONY: Do you ever want to direct again in the future?
Ross Partridge: Yeah, absolutely. I have been writing, and I'm planning on trying to direct something in the next year or so.
TONY: What was it like the first time you watched this movie with an audience?
Ross Partridge: It was a very interactive experience. I wasn't sure if the horror was gonna mix in with the comedy and how it would all of a sudden turn genres and kind of twist around, but it was just a lot of fun. It was fun to hear people laughing and screaming at the same time, and the people who were laughing were just excited about it being so funny, and the people who were screaming were then laughing at themselves for screaming.
TONY: What have you learned about the path to success in Hollywood?
Ross Partridge: I think it's a matter of keeping yourself inspired and keeping yourself motivated to keep going on and being around people that will embrace you and keep you inspired that way. You just never know when an opportunity is right there. I met Mark and Jay at a film festival, I was there working on another film as a producer, and we met and became friends, and never did I think that they would call me up one day and be like, "Hey, we want you to play the lead in our movie." So, you just never know.
TONY: Finally, if someone is reading our interview right now, tell them why they should see this film.
Ross Partridge: Because it's so unique and it's so exciting and it's unlike anything you've seen, I can guarantee you. And it's such a worthy movie-going experience.
