The audience at the premiere of Brad Pitt-starrer War Machine were stunned when the lead actor himself made an unexpected appearance at the panel discussion following the screening.
Earlier, the organisers had mentioned that a discussion with director David Michod, and the film’s producer Dede Gardner would commence post the screening of the film, moderated by Anupama Chopra. Pitt’s presence was tentative until the last moment.
The satirical war drama features Pitt as a US Army general who believes he can win the war in Afghanistan. Speaking at the discussion, Pitt held fort on movies, failure, and the one mantra that has kept him going through all the hurdles he has faced. “Our films are branded by opening weekends. For me, longevity is more important,” he said. He addressed the recent controversy surrounding the inclusion of movies created by Netflix at film festivals, especially at Cannes, stressing that in the end it’s the content that matters, “We make them the same way whether for Netflix or for theatre. There is no difference.”
Brad Pitt: I’ve never even seen Godfather 2 on a big screen.#WarMachineAtMAMI @NetflixIndia
— ELLE India (@ELLEINDIA) May 24, 2017
When asked if there was any advice he would give to aspiring filmmakers, he said, “It’s very important to make your stories personal. Any good piece of art I’ve seen comes from within. That will be the most honest, most pure expression. It’ll be a joy.”
Brad Pitt: I have failed a lot more than Marlon Brando had. #WarMachineAtMAMI
— ELLE India (@ELLEINDIA) May 24, 2017
Brad Pitt also stressed on the importance of failing and getting back up on your feet after that. “There’s no success without failure. Embrace the suck!” he said, adding, “When I first got out, I moved out to LA, I started doing extra work, the guys in the background, I did that for a year and a half. Then I finally got an agent, and I went for two film auditions. So I called this agent, and said, how did I do, and she goes, have you ever thought about acting classes. I had been in an acting class for a year. My heart sunk. But I decided I’m going to figure it out. And… You have to have that resolve. It is a learning curve.”
So how does one of the biggest movie stars in the world deal with the times when nothing seems to go right and there’s no sign of success in sight. “I don’t give a fuck, really,” he said, before clamping his hand to his mouth in consternation. After being assured that it’s not entirely inappropriate for him to drop the ‘F’ word, he continued, “At the end of the day, feel the pain, it breaks the suck, and get on with it.”
