Dave Burd, known by his stage name Lil Dicky, is a multi-platinum rapper, comedian and actor. For three seasons now, he has been the co-creator, executive producer, writer and star of the critically acclaimed comedy series, “Dave.” In this hour, he takes us from the beginning, being the laugh machine for his friends, through the discovery of his musical talent and the viral comedy video years, and finding his happy place in pitch meetings, convincing the money people that he could not just make ...
Jun 26, 2023•59 min•Ep. 259
Few television show characters are more iconic than “Mad Men’s” Don Draper. Jon Hamm played him for 7 seasons and just might have changed television forever. Since then Hamm has ventured into film and exercised his funny muscles. Last year’s “Confess, Fletch” was a wonderful example of what Hamm can do with good material, and so is his latest, “Maggie Moore(s),” directed by his friend (and “Mad Men” co-star) John Slattery. In this episode, he talks about how Slattery worked with him to establish...
Jun 20, 2023•26 min•Ep. 258
Mark Duplass is the living patron saint of the indie filmmaker. Honest, simple, modest, positive, affirming about the work, Duplass, first with his brother Jay and now on his own, has become a household name in the film world for producing projects in a DIY style foregrounding authenticity, improvisational humor, and human connection. As an actor, both in his own productions and also series like “The Morning Show,” he finds a way to keep that homegrown genuineness alive in front of the camera. H...
Jun 13, 2023•42 min•Ep. 257
In recent movies like “Air” and “Funny Pages,” television series like “Our Flag Means Death,” and plays like Annie Baker’s “The Flick,” Matthew Maher has made a name for himself as someone who can bring an oddball or weirdo to life with enough charm, charisma, and genuine gusto to make us love him unconditionally. On this episode, he talks about his acting foundations, the tools formative teachers have given him, and some theories he has developed as a teacher himself. He explains the allure of ...
Jun 06, 2023•53 min•Ep. 256
It is extremely hard not to love Jeff Hiller’s character Joel, opposite Bridget Everett’s Sam, on the hit HBO series “Somebody Somewhere.” Their friendship is sweet, revelatory, and concerningly codependent, all at the same time. On this episode, he talks about how he got good at auditioning while wondering if he’d ever play someone with an inner life, “or a name.” He tells the story of landing “Joel,” the surprising connections he shares with the character, the secret ingredient that makes his ...
May 30, 2023•35 min•Ep. 255
Owen Teague is only 24, but he’s already had an opportunity to show his range as an exceptional young actor in shows like “Bloodline,” “Black Mirror,” and “The Stand” and films like “To Lesley,” “Montana Story,” and the new Nicole Holofcener film, “You Hurt My Feelings” (which opens Friday, May 26th). On this episode, he talks about gleaning “a lot” from the great actors he’s worked with, knowing when to “separate yourself,” the importance of feeling scared but not intimidated, discovering how c...
May 23, 2023•53 min•Ep. 254
With incredible performances in films like “Midnight Cowboy,” “Coming Home,” “Deliverance,” and “Runaway Train,” Jon Voight has earned himself a spot in the acting Pantheon. At 84, he has never stopped working. Seven seasons of “Ray Donovan” being a recent highlight. On this episode, he talks about how he “starts slow” when developing an approach to a character, letting “things drop into my psyche.” He pinpoints directorial characteristics of John Schlesinger (director of “Midnight Cowboy”) that...
May 16, 2023•35 min•Ep. 253
You’ve seen his work in such films as “Interstellar” and “Cloud Atlas,” and television series like “Containment” and “Carnival Row," now David Gyasi plays Austin Dennison in Debora Cahn’s new hit Netflix limited series “The Diplomat.” On this episode, he talks about the rare collaboration he had with Cahn in developing Dennison, the part of the job he finds “sacred,” loving re-HEARsal, the real reason why he is so picky with the roles he takes on, and much more. Back To One is the in-depth, no-n...
May 09, 2023•34 min•Ep. 252
The 4K restoration and re-release of the comedy “Party Girl” brings Parker Posey to Back To One . Shortly after the success of that movie in 1995, she went on to star in so many independent films, like “The Daytrippers,” “Clockwatchers,” “The House of Yes” (not to mention a bunch of Hal Hartley and Christopher Guest classics), that she was dubbed “Queen of the Indies.” On this episode, she explains why that moniker was oddly detrimental to her career. She talks about recent experiences on the se...
May 02, 2023•31 min•Ep. 251
My first encounter with the work of actor, writer, director Betsey Brown was her captivating and shocking performance in “The Scary of Sixty-First.” Then, in her first feature film “Actors,” she and her brother Peter Vack play over-the-top versions of themselves in a wildly fictional, yet super-personal exploration of their relationship that boldly pulls out all the cinematic stops. It’s the kind of rare indie that gives you hope for the future of film. In this episode, she talks about the aspec...
Apr 25, 2023•50 min•Ep. 250
Emily Meade is best known for her roles in the HBO shows “The Deuce,” “The Leftovers,” and “Boardwalk Empire.” Her latest project, the Amazon series `Dead Ringers,” premieres on April 21st. She became an advocate for intimacy coordinators on set following a lack thereof on “The Deuce,” where she portrayed a sex worker. After urging HBO to hire an intimacy coordinator, her advocation ignited the use of intimacy coordinators on all HBO sets and beyond, creating a new standard in Hollywood. In this...
Apr 18, 2023•39 min•Ep. 249
For three decades, Julio César Cedillo has been delivering authentic, nuanced, fully realized performances in films and television series such as “Sicario,” “Cowboys and Aliens,” “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada,” “Narcos Mexico,” and the new Netflix film “Chupa,” to name just a few. In this hour, he generously shares what he’s learned from being a “lunchbox actor,” doing this work he loves. He talks about why, as an actor who happens to be Mexican, his first read of a script is a “searc...
Apr 11, 2023•52 min•Ep. 248
On this special episode, we’re talking all about voice! Neda Lahidji is an actor, singer, vocal health coach, voice teacher and a certified vocal health first aider. She specializes in the voices and vocal health of actors, VO actors, and singers, including any vocal athletes in the film industry as well as directors who use their voice tremendously throughout production. She talks about the different factors that affect the voice, gives us techniques to help maintain a vocal athlete’s optimal v...
Apr 04, 2023•57 min•Ep. 247
Edwin Lee Gibson’s stage career spans 40 years and over 100 U.S. and international theater productions. On television he is currently reprising his role as series regular "Ebraheim" in season 2 of FX's hit series “The Bear.” On this episode, he talks about the importance of listening, “letting the character find me,” working with the late Peter Brook, cultivating a relationship with fear, how his stutter actually made him dig deeper into the study of speech, and much more. Back To One is the in-...
Mar 28, 2023•36 min•Ep. 246
Jeremy Jordan is probably best known for his Tony and Grammy-nominated portrayal of Jack Kelly in “Newsies” on Broadway, as well as his many roles on television including series regulars on CW’s “Supergirl”, NBC’s “Smash” and Disney Channel’s “Tangled.” And now he leads a star-studded cast as the tenacious record industry giant Neil Bogart in the epic new feature film “Spinning Gold.” On this episode, he talks about how finding a character’s physicality and where they hold tension informs his pr...
Mar 21, 2023•49 min•Ep. 245
Sophie von Haselberg stars as Sissy St. Claire in Amanda Kramer’s psychedelic fever dream musical “Give Me Pity!” It’s part mock 70’s television special, part monologue film, and requires the creation of a bigger-than-life persona on screen, and von Haselberg carries it all and delivers a virtuoso performance. On this episode, she takes us from Kramer “pulling me from the ether,” through extensive preparation, getting the character “into my body,” a frustrating Covid pause, on to the live theate...
Mar 14, 2023•34 min•Ep. 244
Spanish-American actor Marta Milans reprises her role as Mama Rosa in the second installment of the “Shazam” saga, which hits theaters March 17th. If you binged “White Lines” during the pandemic, you appreciated her work in that Netflix hit series. On this episode, we go way back to when she played Goneril in “King Lear”…at age 8! She takes us on a journey of her life as an actor, a job she says you cannot do well unless you “must do it to breathe.” She tells us the reason why language comes eas...
Mar 07, 2023•37 min•Ep. 243
Mia Wasikowska’s first project in The States was the HBO series “In Treatment.” She was just 16 years old, but if you watched it then, you were probably in awe, like me, marveling at this seemingly fully formed acting artist, performing, with nuance and subtlety, well beyond her years. She continued to wow us with stellar work in “Jane Eyre,” “Madame Bovary,” “Alice In Wonderland,” “Stoker,” “The Double,” “Tracks,” “Damsel,” “Bergman Island,” to name a few. Her latest is an absolutely beautiful ...
Feb 28, 2023•20 min•Ep. 242
You might know Todd Stashwick from “The Riches” or “12 Monkeys” (the Syfy series, where he played Deacon), but you definitely know him from his guest star work on countless shows, both dramas and comedies, spanning more than two decades. And now he plays Captain Liam Shaw in the new season of “Picard.” On this episode, he talks about how the little boy “Star Trek” fan in him leapt for joy when he sat in his captain’s chair for the first time, while the “all business” actor in him had to focus on...
Feb 21, 2023•32 min•Ep. 241
Jonathan Roumie—actor, director, producer, and speaker—is best known for his award-winning role as ‘Jesus' in the groundbreaking series and global sensation, "The Chosen.” His new movie, the Lionsgate period drama “Jesus Revolution,” is based on the events of the last great spiritual revival in America. Roumie portrays the enigmatic, hippie street preacher, Lonnie Frisbee. On this episode, he gives us a peek at his in-depth approach to the work, which ranges from authentic ‘Method’ to ‘mysticall...
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 240
Elliott Crosset Hove is a true rising star in the Danish film world. The remarkable new film “Godland,” his third collaboration with Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason, just landed him a European Film Award nomination for Best Actor. On this episode, he walks us through his extensive preparation “check list” which he uses to stimulate his unconscious mind and build a defense system to combat doubt. He talks about how the stunning but grueling environment where they shot “Godland” helped him stay...
Feb 07, 2023•32 min•Ep. 239
Clay Tatum and Whitmer Thomas wrote and star in the wonderful new comedy “The Civil Dead,” which Tatum also directed. On this episode, they discuss their long collaboration and friendship that goes back to Alabama at age 11, doing comedy events in Los Angeles with Power Violence , filming sketches, honing their craft, learning valuable lessons on the HBO/A24 production “The Golden One,” the importance of rhythm in comedy, the importance of trusting your own voice, and applying it all toward the ...
Jan 31, 2023•48 min•Ep. 238
British TV and film star Joanna Scanlan won the Best Actress BAFTA award last year for her incredible performance in “After Love.” She plays Mary, a devout convert to Islam who, shortly after becoming a widow, discovers her late husband's secret family. In this episode, she takes us on a little tour of the meaningful aspects of her acting process— the investigative phase of initial script reading, the “harnessing” of feelings, the mystical “clicking in” that happens through the words, and why it...
Jan 24, 2023•36 min•Ep. 237
To say Guslagie Malanda plays Laurence Coly in Alice Diop’s “Saint Omer” feels incorrect; she becomes her. It’s a performance that holds such subtle power and authenticity that it’s easy to take it for granted. On this episode, Malanda explains why she turned down countless acting jobs after her first film, “My Friend Victoria.” She talks about the year-long pre-production period that she needed to prepare for the role, the nightmares that plagued her during that time, the breakthrough of learni...
Jan 17, 2023•34 min•Ep. 236
Tallie Medel is an award winning actor, educator, artist, and one third of the legendary Cocoon Central Dance Team. Her fiercely authentic and nuanced performances in films like Dan Sallitt’s “Fourteen” have garnered attention from critics and audiences alike. This past year she gifted us with Becky in the acclaimed “Everything Everywhere All At Once.” In this episode, she talks about the communal environment on that production that benefited the performances, the importance of establishing true...
Jan 10, 2023•53 min•Ep. 235
If the Back To One podcast has one tradition, it is the yearly visit from its very first guest, the living patron saint of the working actor, Kevin Corrigan. This is his fifth time on the show ( Ep. 1 , Ep. 67 , Ep. 133 , Ep.185 ), and as you’ll hear, he still has a healthy supply of great stories, laughs, and inspiration to dish out. He talks about his recent stints on “Law and Order: Organized Crime,” “City on a Hill,” and the indie film “Bang Bang;” tells a hilarious story illustrating the wa...
Dec 27, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 234
The last time Vicky Krieps (“Phantom Thread,” “Bergman Island”) was on this podcast ( episode 174 ), we learned about how she approaches the work through a kind of “emptying out” of herself, and a “deconstruction” of everything in her obit, even her preconceptions regarding the role. This time she’s back to talk about her astounding work in Marie Kreutzer’s film “Corsage,” an imaginative re-telling (or perhaps a “correcting?”) of a year in the life of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Krieps talks a...
Dec 20, 2022•43 min•Ep. 232
The first time Andrea Riseborough was on the podcast ( episode 100 ), we got a chance to hear how this incredible actor approaches her craft. On this episode, we get to focus on her astounding work in the new movie “To Leslie.” She talks about the interesting ways shooting on film in the middle of the pandemic affected everything, why working on her character’s alcoholism would have been a disaster, finding a touchstone with director Michael Morris in Barbara Loden’s “Wanda,” taking the objectiv...
Dec 13, 2022•44 min•Ep. 232
Marc Maron is a stand-up comedy veteran and the host of the popular “WTF” podcast. As a screen actor, he cut his teeth playing a version of himself in the series “Maron.” Lately the Netflix series “Glow” and Lynn Shelton’s “Sword of Trust” put more of his range on display. And now he delivers the epitome of “supporting” performance in the incredible new film “To Leslie,” opposite Andrea Riseborough. On this episode, he talks about his apprehension with accepting the role, his impatience with the...
Dec 06, 2022•33 min•Ep. 231
Ever since her incredible performance in “I’ve Heard The Mermaids Singing” 35 years ago, Sheila McCarthy has been one of Canada’s most hardworking and reliable actors in theater, television, and film on both sides of the border. In her latest project, she joins a “murderers’ row” lineup of actresses like Judith Ivey, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley, Frances McDormand, and Rooney Mara in Sarah Polley’s powerful new film “Women Talking.” On this episode, she talks about how the production was both daun...
Nov 29, 2022•36 min•Ep. 230
