An Interview with Lawrence Kasdan

This section reproduces excerpts from a two-hour interview with American writer-director Lawrence Kasdan. In the wide-ranging discussion, Kasdan talks about his early frustration as he struggled to sell his first screenplay, the issues with seeing his scripts directed by others, and the difficulties in directing others’ screenplays. Furthermore, Kasdan explains how he favors theme and character over plot, considers the duality in many of his characters (and his own life), and expresses his admiration for actors. Through firsthand testimony, then, the interview acts as a primary source in understanding important aspects of cinema history. It reveals Lawrence Kasdan’s thoughts on influential films to which he contributed, as well as demonstrating some of his motivations and rationales in a 45-year career as a Hollywood filmmaker and screenwriter.