Interviews

2015 Sundance Trading Card Series: #34. Christopher Abbott (James White)

Published on February 5, 2015

Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2014 discoveries”…
Christopher Abbott: 1). Richard Hawley’s records Cole’s Corner and Truelove’s Gutter. 2). Marc Maron’s WTF podcast. 3). Anselm Kiefer sculptor/artist

Lavallee: Prior to playing the titular figure in Josh Mond’s James White, you were the visually tattooed/perhaps tormented central figure in his short film. How did that collaboration essentially assist in helping you reach the emotional depths demanded for this role?
Abbott: It didn’t really. But I think it started to establish how Josh and I would work together. We were friends already but hadn’t collaborated in that way yet.

Lavallee: Could you describe James relationship to with his mother, the unique bound they have and perhaps how that separation informs or influences his exchanges with those that surround him…
Abbott: I think their relationship in the film is pure, dependent, at times volatile and unhealthy, but its all out of love. They are friends not just relatives. James’ frustrations with her situation bleeds into all the other relationships in his life.

Eric Lavallée

Eric Lavallée is the founder, CEO, editor-in-chief, film journalist and critic at IONCINEMA.com (founded in 2000). Eric is a regular at Sundance, Cannes and TIFF. He has a BFA in Film Studies at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema. In 2013 he served as a Narrative Competition Jury Member at the SXSW Film Festival. He was an associate producer on Mark Jackson's This Teacher (2018 LA Film Festival, 2018 BFI London). In 2022 he served as a New Flesh Comp for Best First Feature at the 2022 Fantasia Intl. Film Festival. Current top films for 2022 include Tár (Todd Field), All That Breathes (Shaunak Sen), Aftersun (Charlotte Wells).