Michael Tolkin is a novelist and filmmaker best known for the 1992 Robert Altman film The Player based on his novel of the same name. He also wrote and directed The Rapture, about a woman’s conversion to Christianity and belief in an imminent Judgment Day, which brought him to the Zócalo/Getty “Open Art” panel discussion entitled “How Do We Depict Religious Experiences?” Before the event, he talked in the Zócalo green room about sushi, scripts, and The Seventh Seal.
Q: What’s the best ever on-screen depiction of religion?
A: The Seventh Seal.
Q: Do you have a favorite childhood memory?
A: No.
Q: Tacos or sushi?
A: It depends how long it’s been since I last had sushi.
Q: Hardest thing you’ve done this week?
A: A story meeting on a script I am working on.
Q: If you had to spend an entire weekend locked up in a store, which store would you pick?
A: A food store.
Q: What book in your home would you want to hide from visitors?
A: None.
Q: Worst thing about L.A.?
A: The traffic.
Q: Are you a player?
A: No.
Then, as he walks away, looking over his shoulder:
Actually, I really am.
*Photo by Jake Fabricius.
