After their 2004 breakout hit Napoleon Dynamite, creators Jared and Jerusha Hess were sitting pretty on cloud nine. Bankable stars in their own right, the pair opted to go mainstream for a little fun in the form of Nacho Libre starring Jack Black. But now, after a three year hiatus, the duo is back on the indie scene with their newest creation, Gentlemen Broncos.
In the film, which was funded and released by indie-powerhouse Fox Searchlight, we get to follow a teenager outsider as he tries to stake claim on a science fiction novel that was stolen and published by his favorite author. The off-the-wall jokes are what pave the way to success for this real life couple, and when I got to sit down with them during their latest trip to Austin, I could barely control my excitement.
I owe this hobby/career to the one and only Stephanie Peterman who, while interning at Fox, told me that I had too many opinions and irrelevant information to keep it all bottled up inside. I survived my first rated R film, Alive, at the ripe age of 8, it took me months to grasp the fact that Julia Roberts actually died at the end of Steel Magnolias, and I might be the only person alive who actually enjoyed Sorority Row…for its comedic value of course. While my friends can drink you under the table, I can outwatch you when it comes iconic, yet horrid 80s films like Adventures in Babysitting and Troop Beverly Hills. I have no shame when it comes to what I like, and if you have a problem with that, then we’ll settle it on the racquetball court. I see too many movies to actually win any film trivia contest, so don’t waste your first pick on me. My friends rent movies from my bookcase shelves, and one day I do plan to start charging. I long to live in LA, where my movie obsession will actually help me fit in, but for now I am content with my home in Austin. I prefer indies to blockbusters, Longhorns to Sooners and Halloween to Friday the 13th. I miss the classics, as well as John Ritter, and I hope to one day sit down and interview the amazing Kate Winslet.
