More of this Feature ADDITIONAL INTERVIEW: • Jennifer Beals ('Sophie') ADDITIONAL "Roger Dodger" INFORMATION: • "Roger Dodger" Production Photos • "Roger Dodger" Trailer, Credits and Movie News

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Writer/director Dylan Kidd's feature film debut, "Roger Dodger," had the distinction of being the opening night film for the inaugural San Diego Film Festival. Fresh off its win as Best Feature Film Narrative at the Tribeca Film Festival, "Roger Dodger's" director and cast members were on hand in San Diego to discuss filming the biting comedy.

DYLAN KIDD (Writer/Director)

Hooking up with Campbell Scott for this film sounds like a Cinderella story. Can you explain how you got Campbell Scott to look at your script?
Before we met Holedigger Films, my producing partner Anne Chaisson was stuck in the typical Catch-22. I was not a director with a track record, which is okay if you have a strong script that you really believe in. But without money, it's impossible to get talent attached because agents insist you be able to make an offer. Without talent, money people aren't interested. So you have the option of lying, which a lot of people do. You go to an actor and say, "I've got a million dollars," then you go to the money people and ask for a million dollars. We thought this script was strong enough that we could do it in an above-board way. But it was very tough to get through that firewall of agents and managers. Basically once we sent it to an agent, you might as well just have thrown the script into the Hudson River. You never hear from people again.

We just caught a one-in-a-million break, which is that I - in desperation - started carrying the script around with me in New York. I live in New York so I might as well always have it on me. I was sitting in a coffee shop that I'd never been in before and Campbell Scott walked in. He has a real history of taking a chance on first-time directors. Even so, when I approached him, I expected him to do the normal thing, which is, "You have to go through my agent. I can't take the script directly." But he is a real exception to the rule. He's the kind of filmmaker I wish more actors had the confidence to be. He makes his own choices about material. He took it, read it, and called me back. Within a couple of weeks, he had signed on. It was through him that we got Jennifer [Beals] and Isabella [Rossellini] and Mina Badie. It's a total rags-to-riches story. I really feel like I'm about to turn into a pumpkin. We couldn't get anyone to return our phone calls, and then we met Campbell and three months later we were shooting. We only met Campbell 14 months ago and it's been this incredible rags-to-riches story.

So do you suggest all aspiring screenwriters go to New York and hand out scripts?
I'm not someone who would stalk without a purpose. I felt like I had a script that could be a great role for somebody. I'm not generally a pushy, stalker-type personality but it's just that, at a certain point, it was like if I don't make this movie, I'm going to go crazy. I felt like a fish out of water. You literally have to make the movie.

You wrote the screenplay and directed the film, and it's your first feature film. Did tackling both jobs ever get overwhelming?
I kind of think that it helps. I think it ended up not being a problem because the cast was so great. I think that when you're a first-time director - particularly with amazing, talented people - you're a little bit worried about leverage on the set, or if your opinions will be taken seriously. I think that maybe on a big studio film, or if you are directing somebody else's work, there might be a temptation for the actor to go and ask the writer what they think. It ended up being a total non-issue.

I liked it because, for me, I spent three months really just preparing and breaking down every scene. I figured that it was my first movie and if I'm going to screw up, I want to screw up from over-preparing. I've never directed anything I haven't written so it's tough to say what the differences are.

Would you have allowed anyone else to direct your script?
No. This is the first script that I've written that I felt was strong enough to try to pull together. I really consider myself a director first, that's what I went to school for. I've gotten an agent through this process and I'm starting to look at other scripts, and at open directing assignments. We'll just see. I wouldn't be surprised if I kept on directing my own stuff.

If you said to me that I could only do one thing for the rest of my life, I would choose directing. Directing is why I got into movies. It's a group experience that's amazingly collective - when it's going right. When it's going terribly, it's just awful. This was a really special shoot. To me it's all about the relationships that you form and having everybody contributing and coming up with ideas that you never would have thought of.

You're also listed as a producer of this film. What did you do in that capacity?
Producing is a sham credit. It's definitely two parts of your brain - directing and producing. I have to say that of the three people who are credited with producing, I'm the weak link in the chain (laughing). Whenever there was some tense discussion about some kind of budget problem or schedule crisis, I would just find an excuse to leave the room and go talk to my costume designer.

Jesse Eisenberg was the first person you cast. What was it about him that made him right for the one of the lead roles?
When I was first writing the script, I did a thing called a 'wish list.' If I watched a movie and I really like the way the costumes looked, I'd make a note of the costumer - just in case a hundred million dollars falls in my lap and I can work with anybody I want. I happened to be channel surfing and saw a 30 second promo for a Fox show called “Get Real.” I saw Jesse for 10 seconds. He didn't have any lines but something about him made me think he'd be great for Nick. I forgot all about him until Anne and I set up a screenplay reading in New York. We decided to announce to the New York industry that we are out there. We had a casting director for the reading and when I went in to talk about Nick, she had two headshots. One of the headshots was Jesse. It was just one of those things that clicked. He was so good at the reading that we didn't have auditions. No one else has ever played that role, he was that good. He was a knockout character.

How much of Campbell Scott's character is based on your own attitudes or experiences?
None. It's definitely a fair question. I think if you write something you have to take responsibility for what you write, but I feel it's like the same way that Paul Schrader could write “Taxi Driver” and not necessarily be that character. For me, writing is a fun way to do things and create characters that I would never be. He's somewhat based on someone I knew in college who had a very interesting technique of approaching women. He would hone in on what their weakness was and that was really interesting. I also think it's a certain type of personality that you find a lot in any major city, which is the over-educated, hyper-verbal person that has no inner knowledge at all. Like an overgrown toddler in a Prada suit.

When you sit down [to write] you definitely think, “Why should someone go to this movie?” You know that whatever characters are going to lead the audience into the movie are going to have to push it a little bit. I hope that's what we were doing.

You filmed "Roger Dodger" on a very small budget. Why didn't you go digital?
To me, it's not an acceptable substitute for film yet. I'm assuming it will get there at some point. I was trained on film and to me, video is a news gathering medium. I think it works for something like “Blair Witch” where the more amateur it looks, the more you buy into it. I can't stand it and it was never an option. As desperate as I was to make the movie, I never would have shot on digital.