2015 Sundance Trading Card Series: #42. James Ransone (Tangerine)

Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2014 discoveries”…
James Ransone: Movie: Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut is an absolute masterpiece. 15 years ago it seemed like Kubrick was a washed up recluse, but he was just so far ahead of the curb. If you want proof just read some recent articles on Jeffery Epstein‘s sex scandal. Music: Godspeed You! Black Emperor “Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven“. I liked them in the late 90s but I didn’t realize how brilliant that record is. The tension and release in that record is close to orgiastic. I also liked Hamilton leithauser’s debut record. Book: “The Accidental Universe” by Alan lightman. He makes really complex physics accessible for dummy actors like me. It’s actually beautifully written as well.

Lavallee: In Tangerine, you take on the role of Chester. Could you describe your character’s view of the world via his rapport with those close to him and where he might be in his own personal quest/journey.
Ransone: I think Chester is just trying to get by. Wasn’t it big daddy Kane who said “pimpin ain’t easy?”

Lavallee: This is your second outing with Sean Baker. Could you describe his working process and directing approach.
Ransone: There’s a sweetness to Sean that most directors don’t have. I think to be a good director you have to be a megalomaniacal control freak, but Sean is brilliant while retaining an intense amount of empathy for who’s in front of the lens, and I think the audience can see that. It’s impossible not to put a psychic imprint of yourself on film when you’re a director. I also love that Sean takes an almost fetishistic look at marginalized cultures and the nature of their position in society without ever condescending or looking down on them. If Senator McCarthy were alive today,I’m pretty sure Sean Baker would’ve been revoked of his citizenship.