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Directing quartet 4 the cool on striking YDA Fold through father/son bonding

20 August, 2022

Were there any that your dads wanted that you didn’t, or vice versa?

R: We were ok to do everything because we trust each other. That’s what actors do!

S: There was one. With American Beauty, I was supposed to be naked on the ground in the middle of roses. I don’t mind being naked, but on camera it was pretty new! I asked if I could be in trunks instead, but they told me it was more realistic if I stayed naked on the ground. In the end, they didn’t even use a shot with my full body in the frame. I could have stayed in my trunks!

How do you rate your dads as directors?

R: I can’t judge them. To me, they are the best!

S: Same, but they are the only ones we worked with so far…

R: True. So maybe they are really bad, but we don’t know it.

Are you going to beat them at their own game one day?

R: I don’t know. Directing is a lot of frustrating work; a lot of writing and preparation. I prefer acting – that’s fun.

S: Same. I feel I had more fun acting than directing, though my dad told me we started our directing career with a tough one! Acting or directing, I always want to be with Rob, Dad and Nico! We’re the 4 THE COOL – I don’t see myself doing that alone.

What was your favourite film to parody? Which one did you have the most fun shooting?

R: I love the Titanic part. I don’t remember if it was the best to shoot, but it’s the funniest to watch.

S: I love science fiction, so I loved the War Of The Worlds scene; imagining having a massive alien tripod front of us. It’s one of the first green screen sequences we did and was a great experience to see the results. I loved it.

R: I loved The Karate Kid – maybe because it became my favourite film ever. I’ve watched it more than 20 times since. For me, it was the most enjoyable because I trained hard to do the perfect crane kick…

S: …and you did it great!

R: Thanks. You did one hell of a stunt… so you helped me well!

S: I loved the stunt scenes! I am the action dude, where you’re so good with drama scenes.

R: We’re a good team.

And which was the toughest?

R: Everything that took too much time! I’m not good at focusing for too long. Wayne’s World was a bit tough. We had to stay static on the car and it was freezing, and I was a bit nervous. In the end, I was really bad – you don’t even see me talking in that scene!

S: The attic scene was a tough one, because it was done during summer and it was probably 50 degrees inside!!! But the worst, for me, was The Fifth Element costume.

R: Ahaha, that one was awful.

S: It was made with tape and I had to rip it off.

R: Fortunately you don’t have body hair yet.

S: It still hurts!

How did your friends feel when you showed them the film? Are any of them clamouring to be in the next one?

R: I showed it at my school; I did a presentation to my class with my teacher. My friends LOVED it! After the screening, we were able to watch a movie from the list each Friday afternoon. It was great to continue that way and have our teacher involved in this project. All of my friends would love to be part of the next…

S: We’re doing another one?

R: No, it’s just because of the question… Did you show it to your friends?

S: I did not show it to any of them…

R: Never?

S: Nope…

R: Why?

S: I never thought about it.

You must be the youngest ever winners of a YDA. How does that feel?

R: I am really proud of it! Our dads told us that if we want to do something just for us, like a family memories film, we will have fun, but if we want to win something and be respected as artists, it takes more work and dedication. They gave us that choice, and I don’t regret anything.

S: They never gave us the choice! They said, “OK, we’ll do a film, but it has to be a good one so it will be a lot of work”. I don’t really know what winning at YDA represents to be honest, but after the win, my dad told me he was really really proud of me and of us as a team. That made me really happy.

R: It was a great project, a great adventure.

S: We spent so much time together. I think I am just waiting for the next project…

R: Shall we do a feature film now?