NYT Shorts Featuring the Year's Best Performers: Starring Oprah, Bradley Cooper, Robert Redford, Cate Blanchett, Julia Louis-Dreyfus [VIDEO]
New York Times magazine came out with a special featurette titled Making A Scene, celebrating the best performers in cinema in 2013.
The presentation includes 11 different shorts, featuring artists such as Oprah Winfrey, Bradley Cooper, Robert Redford, Cate Blanchett and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The project was overseen and directed by Oscar-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, known by many for his work with Steven Spielberg on Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan.
The actors were paired with seven writers from the film industry and given pithy lines to deliver in the sketches, which last from 30 seconds to a minute. The writers featured the likes of Greta Gerwig (Frances Ha), Seth Rogan, Evan Goldberg, Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy and Richard Linklater (After Midnight).
Dreyfus delivered a line written by Nicole Holofcener, who directed her in Enough Said, while Blanchett teamed up with mumblecore pioneer Andrew Bujalski (Funny Ha Ha).
The list of featured actors also included Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave), Forest Whitaker, Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis), Adele Excharchopolous (Blue is the Warmest Color), Gerwig and Michael B. Jordan.
Winfrey's clip shows her standing under a spotlight, addressing an empty theater.
"So, you died while I was out. How convenient? I thought it would be easier if you were dead but actually it's just irritating," she said, capturing the derisiveness of a line penned by Sarah Polley (Stories We Tell).
Cooper nails a careless attitude while driving the intensity of the dialogue he is given. He delivers a line scripted by J.C. Chandor (All is Lost, Margin Call).
"I'm broke, I mean it, don't laugh, it's all gone. Seriously, I've got nothing left, but still got this, what's it worth to you?" he said, as he dances playfully in a puddle of water under a starry night sky.
Watch the collection of shorts here:
