Episode 27: Denis Villenueve x Jake Gyllenhaal collaborations with Manny Plaza- Fernandez

On the twenty- seventh episode of ATFT, director/ 1st AC Manny Plaza- Fernandez joins me in discussing the collaborations between Denis Villeneuve and Jake Gyllenhaal… more specifically, the films Enemy (2013) and Prisoners (2013). This episode is spoiler filled with a few expletives.

The two collaborations between director Denis Villeneuve and actor Jake Gyllenhaal were released in 2013. Enemy may have been made first but Prisoners was released first. Villeneuve regarded Enemy as his “practice film” as it was his first English- language film. Even though both Prisoners and Enemy are collaborations between Villeneuve and Gyllenhaal, they are very different films. Enemy is more of an art film that sparks seemingly infinite interpretations. Gyllenhaal carries that film as he plays two characters and besides him, there are very few other characters in the film. Prisoners, on the other hand, is a crime thriller with an ensemble cast that includes, aside from Gyllenhaal, Hugh Jackman, Viola Davis, Paul Dano, and Melissa Leo. While Prisoners is a film that also requires analysis, it is more straight- forward than Enemy. Both films are brilliant and do share similarities in from technical aspects. These two films prove that Villeneuve and Gyllenhaal are excellent, underrated collaborators who will hopefully continue to work together in the future.

This is Manny’s first appearance on ATFT! Manny and I met on the set of the upcoming short film, Time Will Tell, last November. There was only one production day in November before resuming in February but after striking up a conversation on that one day in November, it was clear Manny was incredibly knowledgeable about film. He was one of the first people on the crew I befriended and, after telling him a little bit about my podcast, he definitely wanted to make a guest appearance. Ever since, we talked about a few potential topic ideas and this topic proved to be a great first episode. This episode was recorded on August 7, 2024.

Manny is an Orlando- based 1st AC who has been working in the film industry for three years. He has just recently added the “director” title to his name! Manny’s directorial debut, the horror short film titled The Autopsy, is expected to premiere this September at OIF! Be sure you keep listening until the end of the episode to learn more about The Autopsy, his first experience in the director’s chair, and when you can expect to watch this film!

In this episode, Manny and I analyze both Enemy and Prisoners while (mostly) focusing on the direction of Villeneuve and Gyllenhaal’s brilliant and sometimes incredibly subtle acting choices. Manny also shares how he became a fan of Jake Gyllenhaal, his interpretation of Enemy (including the symbolism behind the spiders), and why he says Prisoners captures and evokes every emotion. All this and more on the latest episode of All the Film Things!

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