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In 1975, you directedHenry Miller: Asleep & Awake,which features theTropic of Cancerauthor in his bathroom.
I was learning to edit, cut, and shoot film.
I worked on quite a few of his documentaries, including one onBuckminster Fuller.
Finally, Henry was riding his bike around the Palisades, and Snyder pounced on himto do a film.
I want you to come over anytime you want.
So for nine years I was pals with him.
It gave me an appreciation of older mentors, which I was lucky to have.
And also: Europe.
Henry had lived there and spoke of it all the time.
By then I was convinced I was going to be a foreign-film director.
That was in her already.
That was my secret: Use whats already there.
We shotLa Dolce Gildaat One Fifth Avenue, a restaurant where we often had our parties after the show.
The actors, including Gilda, never saw a script.
I gave them their lines on index cards.
They arrived at the restaurant costumed and in character.
There were quite a few New York characters there, including Brian De Palma, whose presence was intimidating.
I wondered:Who was the most symbolic character ofSaturday Night Live?
Belushi,the samurai gruff but accessible and funny at the same time.
So to reverse that was interesting.
The night before shooting, John had been out late partying.
I was also amazed that he put in a great performance despite being hungover.
In addition, without rehearsal, he hit every mark every gravestone perfectly the first take.
No one else would be listening to them on big turntables.
The short was my first one working with a new cast.
Jan loved the final film and kept bringing it up in meetings to have it shown again.
Phil was a superb lip-syncer and did a flawless rendition of Crosbys vocal.
Do you have a particular favorite of yourSNLfilms?Well, theres about 50 of them.
The Belushi and Gilda ones are perhaps the most memorable.
I did a Chris Farley one where he drinks coffee and goes berserk.
I had no idea thats become quite popularas a meme!
Its a great compliment!
Howd you come up with Hidden Camera Commercials?Again, its the character the personality of Farley.
Hes great to go wild and go berserk, break down everything.
Id always rememberedthat commercialwhere they switched the coffee crystals on somebody.
And youre the Swedish host in that one, Knorben Knussen!
He is in the pantheon, the A-plus actor that came out ofSaturday Night Live.
Within a few months, he was a superstar.
Youre probably the first filmmaker who really tapped into his dramatic side.
His Honker character reciting Shakespeare really captured the crying clown aspect of his onscreen persona.Thats right.
I always liked to put the actors into a black-and-white, foreign-looking, gritty kind of movie.
It stood out from the show, which was video color.
In those days, people still had a connection with foreign films and older films.
Now its all kind of video-ish, not film anymore.
When Dick in a Box came around, I knew my time had passed.
It always feels like youre at the forefront of a lot of things.
How did those two experiences compare?I worked atSaturday Nightduring two stints.
It was after the first time I went back to L.A., where Im from.
They were doingNot Necessarily the Newsthere, in some studio basement, in a dank, windowless area.
It was a little more one-note.
Not as much fun, though I thought it was a good show.
In a way, I shouldve left two or three years earlier.
So I was losing the edge of what was happening.
Was it mutually decided?It was mutual on the part of management.
No, I was fired along with a lot of other people.
And they shouldve let me go; I was no longer relevant to it.
Its been 35 years since your film,Nothing Lasts Forever.
We live in a moment where almost anything is instantly accessible or streamable.
How does it feel to have made one of the last truly lost or underground films?
You really have to show a passion or interest to discover it.Its heartbreaking, and very gratifying.
Some people say its a cult film.
I love that its hard to find.
And I love only a certain audience has seen it.
Its very European, almost.Thank you.
Thats all I wanted to do be a European film director.
And I got that, with that film.
But I got enough renown and enough people who appreciate it.
Its almost better to be the underdog than being the asshole success.
But I also wanted old-timers: Imogene Coca, Eddie Fisher.
Before returning toSNL, did you ever have any other projects in the works?
A follow-up toNothing Lasts Forever?Actually, no.
Im not that bang out.
But I didnt want to be this Hollywood film director.
I admired their work, but it wasnt my style.
I wanted to do weird underground French films.
Theres one wherea park ranger put Metamucil in Old Faithfulthat made it explode.
Short films were not as widespread.
Anybody can be a director or writer.
