Gillian Laub

Episode 118: Photographer and director Gillian Laub returns to the podcast to discuss her latest projects. Follow Gillian on Instagram @gigilaub.

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Transcript

Speaker 1 0:03

Welcome to, and here's Modi. We are back and here's Modi, and the conversation, as we were setting up for the podcast is Jillian Laub is uncomfortable being on camera. She's an insane, amazing photographer who puts everybody on the spot and she now realizes who's alive. Uh, filming, and you're.

Speaker 2 0:28

I have so much empathy for the people who I photograph because I realize how difficult it is when you know it's the worst. It's. I really, really don't like it.

Speaker 1 0:41

To me it's the second worst thing I've been doing standup comedy. First is to travel, Second is doing the promo pictures. Mine is the guest list.

Speaker 3 0:48

That's the worst thing about doing comedy.

Speaker 1 0:50

Yeah, no, but you. It's so funny how you almost had this panic when you realized the camera with angles.

Speaker 2 0:56

When I come. I didn't realize when you come in for a podcast. Thank God I had a meeting before this Cause I would have come in like a total hot mess hello, look at me I'm just saying you know, she looks like all right like the head counselor at some jewish camp.

Speaker 1 1:11

She's adorable, cut off jean shorts and a gilbert godfrey shirt. We are in the studio with jillian lab and let me just tell you your name is something I look at almost every night. Your coffee table book is on our coffee table.

Speaker 1 1:27

And it's like in my level when I'm laying down on the sofa looking at the television. It's there and it's such a beautiful color. It matches this beautiful objet I have on top of it and it's underneath. Underneath. That is Annie Leibovitz's book. It's the same color and it's a very nice piece on our coffee table. So I see your name almost every day, wow, and the coffee book is amazing. Those of you who haven't gotten it and it was an amazing project you did.

Speaker 2 1:56

Family Matters, family Matters. Thank you, it was sold out. It just got reprinted by the publisher Mazel Tov.

Speaker 1 2:02

Put the microphone closer to your mouth.

Speaker 2 2:04

It just got reprinted. I didn't you know, sorry, it just got reprinted with an additional quote from Amy Schumer.

Speaker 3 2:14

Speaking of which, what did?

Speaker 2 2:16

Amy say Something really nice.

Speaker 4 2:22

But I don't know it off the top of my head. I also love that you're on top of Annie Leibovitz. Oh my goodness.

Speaker 2 2:29

Wow, wow, what an honor.

Speaker 1 2:32

Her book is right underneath yours.

Speaker 2 2:33

What a true honor.

Speaker 3 2:35

Welcome back to the show. We just had to redact a whole moment because Jillian got too excited about a Bork project that she probably signed a lot of NDAs for, so she probably signed a lot of NDAs for you probably signed a lot of NDAs for that right I did.

Speaker 2 2:48

I don't know about a lot, but it's definitely not a public event.

Speaker 1 2:51

We're excited for the project for you and we'll get right back into the podcast and we'll cut that out.

Speaker 2 2:56

I couldn't hold myself. That's amazing. Good for you, I have so many questions when it premieres can we come?

Speaker 1 3:07

Please, premieres, can we come? Because please, no, really, though. Okay, for real, leo gets very upset when we're not invited to things we should be invited to.

Speaker 3 3:11

He gets very, very upset. Even if I don't want to go, I want to be invited, right?

Speaker 4 3:15

I can say no, given that you're the person who's constantly putting everybody and their mother on a guest list yeah, yeah, I just mean.

Speaker 3 3:24

Sometimes I see events that are like on brand and I'm like how are we not invited to this? Although I did get invited to a thing.

Speaker 2 3:30

What was the last thing that you were upset that you weren't invited to?

Speaker 3 3:34

The Israeli Day Parade. No one reached out to me.

Speaker 2 3:37

That's a public parade, though.

Speaker 3 3:38

No, but you were on a float last year, yeah.

Speaker 1 3:41

Usually I was on a float year. Yeah, usually last year I was um. You please ask me. I think it. I I don't know what. What's your theory?

Speaker 3 3:49

first of all, we were we were away, but it's just um.

Speaker 1 3:50

But they should still reach out to me yeah, you should have been on a float right

Speaker 2 3:55

I gotta see a picture of you on the float I have a.

Speaker 3 3:57

he was shirtless, with little pasties, no speaker um that. That's a different parade, a different parade.

Speaker 2 4:05

But meanwhile everyone is such a I've been trying to get my family, it just hasn't worked out. But everyone that I've I don't know I've come in contact with so many people that are like oh, because I guess I've been just more curious about comedy and I ask what comics people are into and your name often comes up.

Speaker 1 4:23

That's amazing, mashiach Hanonji comics people are into and your name often comes up. That's amazing, thank you, that's all leo. Leo puts me. Leo has gotten me into everybody's phone everybody. Leo has put like it's like into everybody's phone a good virus. It's all in there, yeah good virus, it's a good virus.

Speaker 1 4:37

It's, yes, it's great, thank you. The special is out, know your audience and so people have been watching that and sharing it. And then we've been chopping it up and just little clips here and there which are doing insane and that, um, and so I'm glad to hear that that's so exciting and good and please bring your family to a show I know, oh my god, I'm gonna be at the beacon in december oh, okay that's the new hour family will plots

Speaker 2 5:02

die no, I know, I know, mike laub, I know, okay, I want to make sure to get that date now and I'll when will die? No, I know, mike Laub, I know. Okay, I want to make sure to get that date now and when tickets go on….

Speaker 3 5:10

The tickets are on sale already for December 19th at the Beacon Theater everyone.

Speaker 2 5:14

December 19th Ali, white-jules, mark and Carol, we're there, get them, yeah.

Speaker 1 5:18

But be the one that buys the tickets and invites them. We'll get you your own ticket.

Speaker 2 5:23

I like to support. I don't like, I don't. I'm not one that likes to get free. I I like to support artists.

Speaker 1 5:30

Okay, good, good, we'll take the support um and support you and your amazing project that you just did with amy schumer oh come on, you were in the.

Speaker 2 5:40

You were in the audience with Rachel. Oh are you talking?

Speaker 4 5:44

about the no, that was a different thing, okay. I was with Rachel, I was, yeah, no Go.

Speaker 2 5:50

Okay, sorry, I thought you meant the Rachel Feinstein's.

Speaker 1 5:54

You were the director of her.

Speaker 2 5:57

Special, special. Amy was the executive producer.

Speaker 1 5:59

Okay.

Speaker 4 6:00

Which Mazel Tov, we love you, rachel. Mazel Tov to Rachel. Which Mazel Tov, we love you.

Speaker 1 6:03

Rachel Mazel Tov to Rachel, mazel Tov to Amy and Mazel Tov to you for that.

Speaker 2 6:09

But I was more blown away by your project with the… oh, with… the Survivors.

Speaker 1 6:11

The Survivors yes.

Speaker 4 6:13

She's like that wasn't me. You're like I have too many projects going on right now.

Speaker 1 6:17

I'm so sorry. Okay, thank you she has a cookbook coming out, recipes of the laub recipes.

Speaker 2 6:24

Oh goodness um the survivors yeah remember that remember those guys I'm, I'm still.

Speaker 4 6:30

I just filmed um helena's 100th birthday wow so um okay, so a few months ago there was a huge project called live to tell, in which which Jillian Laub photographed 200 Holocaust survivors.

Speaker 2 6:48

Yes Wow.

Speaker 4 6:49

Would you like to? Could you tell us a little bit about that, Sure?

Speaker 2 6:51

Okay, I'm very emotional right now, so Okay. That was my daughter's last day of school, so Today, yeah, oh, wow, high school. No, she's moving school. So it was just, it was yeah, sorry. Okay, I digress. So, as we were all shook after October 7th I guess you know I can't even really describe the feeling of just helplessness and despair that I felt and then I saw that statistic of 20% of young people don't believe the Holocaust happened.

Speaker 3 7:39

They think the Holocaust is in the air. I think it's more than 20%, but keep going.

Speaker 2 7:42

So that was disturbing to me, obviously, and at the same time it's really crazy. I got this phone call from the head of the AJCF, which is the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation, ajcf, and they were doing an event at the Jewish Museum of Heritage downtown. Okay and where they were doing an event for survivors. So he said, three days before the event was happening, I need you to shoot 250 survivors. And I said, okay. He said I'm told that you're the person to go to.

Speaker 1 8:23

Photoshoot, just so we understand. Oh my goodness, yes, Photoshoot oh God, we did not need you finishing the work of the Nazis.

Speaker 2 8:34

So in a few days I had to figure out how can I photograph over 200 survivors who the median age is like 90.

Speaker 1 8:45

Yes.

Speaker 2 8:46

And I didn't know what health they were in, and so I just said a group portrait is just not going to be possible. I can't do that. So I enlisted Kira Pollack, who I've worked with for many years. She was at New York Times Magazine and Time and Vanity Fair I'm sure she's a photo editor. So we decided that, you know, we had to figure out how am I going to photograph over 200 Holocaust survivors. So we built, we were inspired by the murals of Avedon Richard Avedon, yes, and the family photographs that. There's the sorry I'm like are you going to be able to edit my shit?

Speaker 4 9:30

You're good, you're fine, you're fine.

Speaker 2 9:32

No, this is like please be able to edit. You're good, you're fine. You're fine. No, this is like. Please be able to edit, like to edit what you're killing it.

Speaker 4 9:37

You're great. Oh god, I just take a deep breath.

Speaker 2 9:42

Yeah, god, okay, you're fine photographing 250 holocaust survivors.

Speaker 4 9:48

That's just insane to begin with now that you say that it was inspired by Avedon, I so see that like so clearly.

Speaker 2 9:56

Well, I'm not a it's funny, I'm so not a studio photographer, so I had to kind of figure out and really his murals. I mean, if there's any pictures to be inspired by, they're his portraits. Wow, that's incredible and I just really wanted the people to come alive. So the day was, if you can imagine, completely insane and hectic.

Speaker 3 10:27

Did you travel to them?

Speaker 2 10:29

No, we set up a studio. So they all came to you, so they all came with their helpers family.

Speaker 3 10:35

Yeah, logistically that's hard, logistically it was a really, really complicated production.

Speaker 2 10:42

But what I realized? I was so focused on making the pictures in such a short amount of time because they came in on buses and they had to leave at a certain time altogether, at least not on trains. Oh gosh Folks.

Speaker 3 10:57

Inappropriate. You both have a checkmark. That's striking in this episode. Keep going.

Speaker 2 11:03

So I had to work very fast, so there was no time I like to really interact with people that I'm photographing with, and it was hard. But what I can say is that it felt so. Every single person who was in front of the camera was just so emotional about the time that we were living in, and the anti-Semitism and the different anecdotes from the day just felt so, so, so powerful.

Speaker 1 11:34

What anecdotes.

Speaker 2 11:35

So well, I mean, they're very sad. So it's not like they're funny anecdotes, it's just. You know, there was one woman who said that she was supposed to go to a wedding of her niece and instead she went to two funerals because her niece and her fiance were killed at the Nova Festival.

Speaker 1 12:04

Oh, wow.

Speaker 2 12:06

So it just felt jarring. You know that we were in this moment in time and people who had survived the hardest and like seeing the worst of humanity were now in a moment where they're seeing it again they were seeing. Just you know, know, atrocities happen.

Speaker 1 12:32

The one Holocaust survivor I deal with often said it was like watching the continuation, it was like the next episode.

Speaker 2 12:39

Yeah.

Speaker 1 12:40

Like watching the next. Here's the next season of the show. Here's the next season of the show is how he said it.

Speaker 2 12:46

Yeah, and I also just like, wanted to know. It was a moment of like I was feeling helpless. Where do you find? Give us some wisdom, please.

Speaker 1 12:58

No, but it found you, you found where to help. It came to you. You had a desire to help and however, this project came into your life, it came into your life. You put that desire out there. I desire to do something and make something meaningful, and here you did. Yeah, you did you collaborate with Amy Schumer, right? Well she, how was this? Yeah?

Speaker 2 13:17

She was. I mean, I go to Amy, for you know we were both, you know, in the same headspace and I Amy is kind of like the person that I bounce ideas off of and so she was kind of a creative partner and she's.

Speaker 4 13:35

Did you know when you were photographing them that they were going to be projected onto the Brooklyn?

Speaker 2 13:43

Bridge, no, so tell us how that happened so that's also kind of like amazing about I don't mean to sound corny, but like the creative process, because I had no idea what we were going to do. At the end of the day I just said, oh my God, there is something so powerful here. I don't even know what to do with it. It's hard to even process it all. So I kind of had this like dream that how we should make a larger than life mural, um and of all of the people, full scale, um, and wrap it around, do a public art project and wrap it around a synagogue on the Lower East Side, like I kind of envisioned that. And then a friend of mine was like you can't do that, they're going to be defaced. So she was.

Survivor Stories Projections Project

Speaker 2 14:33

Actually. It was so many like meetings of creative minds because a friend of mine said no, we need to project them off of, on landmark landmarks all over the city. They need to be. You know no one can touch them, or no one. The city. They need to be. You know no one can touch them, or no one, no one can tear them down. So that's where it came into my head oh, we have to do that. How we're gonna do it, I have no idea, but that is really how did you get permission to do it on the bridges?

Speaker 2 15:04

we did not get permission it was a gorilla thing, we would never get permission, yeah.

Speaker 1 15:09

I don't think you need permission to project something onto something.

Speaker 2 15:13

It depends there is a gray area. But because this particular friend worked with this production company who do guerrilla art projects, projections, they were this like amazing renegade team.

Speaker 4 15:28

Wow, I love that yeah.

Speaker 2 15:30

Production Triangle that's their company name and we worked with them and I set up more shoots. And what I did also is so important I wanted to know everyone's name and story. So we had to work backwards and I got my friend who had worked for the Shoah Foundation for seven years and had been had the experience of photograph, of interviewing survivors started. We got, we started to get all the names and numbers and she started to interview the survivors because it was so important to me that they weren't just faces. I wanted to know. I wanted to know all of their stories. They weren't just faces, I wanted to know all of their stories.

Speaker 2 16:13

So then the next few months we were just collecting interviews, doing more shoots and doing video interviews. Wow, and the goal was, with the projections is that you know? And every detail was important, Like, do we want to say that they're Holocaust survivors on the projections? But ultimately I said no, I want people to walk by and just feel like, oh, that could be anyone's grandma. And then you get you the projections would call. It was called live to tell. And then we built out a whole Instagram page which was, to me, the way to. I'm like how do I reach young people. How do I? So it was like social media, and that's the only social media that I use and I'm familiar with, so I was like we have to do this on Instagram, so it's shareable, so all young people can be able to share these stories. So that was the goal, was that the projections would be the call out to then go to the Instagram page to learn about people's stories.

Speaker 1 17:12

So is there an Instagram page for all the photos now?

Speaker 2 17:15

Yes.

Speaker 1 17:16

What's the Instagram page?

Speaker 2 17:17

Live to the number two Live to tell.

Speaker 4 17:20

And you had like a quote from each survivor.

Speaker 2 17:24

Yeah, so that was also we wanted. I really thought that it was important to not just have their faces but also have their quotes. And also you have to assume when you're doing a projection it was a new medium. It's not like a magazine or a book Somebody is walking by. You need to have that very, very short, to the point. So that was also a process to get the right quotes. So that was also a process to get the right quotes. Some people I loved their portrait, but they didn't have the quote that actually fit on the projection. What?

Speaker 1 17:58

was one of your favorite quotes from the survivors.

Speaker 2 18:01

Um. Every okay hold on. Every person saved is a whole world Right.

Speaker 1 18:08

Wow.

Speaker 2 18:09

I loved that one. Um, that's from the Torah Saved is a whole world.

Speaker 1 18:14

When you save one person, you save the entire world.

Speaker 2 18:16

Yes, Um, yeah, there were, just there were. Incredible. It was, and I and I'm continuing to work on the project since then people, we also had a page where you could if, if you knew of anyone that would want to be part of this project, so so many people reached out to us and I've been photographing um survivors since then this only in the new york area yes, but we're expanding yes, you need to need to go to Florida. Oh, yes, yes.

Speaker 1 18:45

I have people for you.

Speaker 2 18:46

Really yes, okay, okay, great, so yes, miami, then California.

Speaker 4 18:52

I'm going to Israel.

Speaker 2 18:53

I have people for you Like amazing that's amazing you do Okay, because we're doing a shoot in Israel the first two weeks in July.

Speaker 4 19:01

Oh amazing. Two weeks in July, oh, amazing. Yeah, my uncle, oh great. Where is he located? Right outside Tel Aviv. Okay, he was a kid in the camps. Wow, his story's incredible. Yeah, I mean everybody's story's incredible, and my very good friend Dina.

Speaker 1 19:15

Her father was bar mitzvahed in Bergen-Belsen. Stop it.

Speaker 4 19:18

Yeah.

Speaker 2 19:19

Wow, incredible stories.

Speaker 1 19:21

Yeah, he's one of the most incredible survivor stories you can ever. And the stories keep coming out of him. It's just insane.

Speaker 2 19:28

Where is he in Israel?

Speaker 1 19:30

He's in Miami and he's a part of a lineage of the Karestir Rebbe. He's the oldest living great grandchild of this Rebbe and we go with him to the grave once a year and he's 93 now and, God willing, next year we'll be going for the 100th anniversary of his great-grandfather to Karestir and he's-.

Speaker 2 19:52

When are you doing that?

Speaker 1 19:54

It's like the week after Passover next year. Okay.

Speaker 2 19:56

Yeah, can you connect me with the family? I'd love that you are.

Speaker 1 20:00

I am the family, I am the family.

Speaker 4 20:02

You're connected, maz. I'm the family. I am the family. You're connected, mazel tov. Yes, we are the family.

Speaker 2 20:06

Yes, Okay, wow yeah.

Speaker 1 20:08

So it's amazing. The stories that they have are insane and they keep popping up and they remember stories and other things that happened.

Speaker 2 20:15

But that's the thing. They're not going to be here. I mean not to be dark, but they're not going to be here for that much longer to be the first person oral history, you know. So it is the responsibility, like they're passing the baton to you and the children and grandchildren, but still their stories firsthand are not going to be, they're not going to.

Speaker 1 20:36

It's not going to be a firsthand story, it's going to be. My father was a survivor. But you have a project to send them to. You have somewhere, somewhere for them to go to and look it up. Yeah, you know, and that's very important.

Speaker 2 20:47

That is really. That's what like kind of kept me sane throughout this time, because I felt I had a purpose in this time. I mean, you were so active and you've been doing so much.

Speaker 4 21:01

I mean I don't. I mean I think everybody has done something. You know, everybody does the thing that they do and I think that's really what's been keeping a lot of us yeah talk about that.

Speaker 1 21:16

on stage, everybody's doing their thing, whether they're going on a mission, or whether they're going sending things or doing your project, or you know providing laughter to people.

Speaker 1 21:27

Something happened right away. People just felt they had to be there. Even though the war was in full, full bloom, they felt they needed to be there. They just flew. They just it was like we have to go. It is we just have to. Even if we just stay in a hotel, we just have to be in israel to show their support. It was an insane. I talk about that on stage. People felt a need to be there.

Speaker 4 21:50

Yeah, it's incredible.

Speaker 1 21:51

What other projects have you got going on? What else is happening besides?

Speaker 2 21:54

Oh goodness. Well, there is a big project that is happening that is very top secret, so I'm sorry, but I can't talk about it, that's okay.

Speaker 4 22:03

Tell us one that you can talk about. You've been really into comedy lately, yes.

Speaker 3 22:09

Have you directed Rachel's special? I don't think I knew that, so tell us what that actually means, because you know I also have a director's credit and I don't think it's accurate. I don't think what I did was directing. I think you did more than direct. What do you? What goes into directing a comedy special.

Speaker 2 22:26

Look, I don't. I can't really take credit for much. I have to be honest with you, amy. It was here's the thing. It was really great to work with Amy, because she is she does everything.

Speaker 3 22:39

She's shot a bunch. Yeah, she knows how to.

Speaker 2 22:41

She just does.

Speaker 3 22:42

How to make the sausage.

Speaker 2 22:43

Yes, and so what I cared about is how it looked right, so I'm not going to give notes on somebody's. You know it's.

Speaker 3 22:52

No, not on what Rachel's performed. Rachel Feinstein, she's hilarious.

Speaker 4 22:56

So her special's on Netflix. It's called Big Guy.

Speaker 3 22:59

So yeah, you weren't giving notes on like the content or how she was delivering it, but I. Visually.

Speaker 2 23:05

Vis, I'm giving notes on like the content or how she was delivering it, but I Visually, visually, it was really important to me.

Speaker 3 23:08

You shot at Sony Hall.

Speaker 2 23:10

Yes, yes so we chose that venue, so it was just everything. From where are we going to shoot? What is she going to wear?

Speaker 1 23:17

You know the lighting, the you know, keep going, keep going. Just so he hears, just so Leo hears.

Speaker 2 23:24

The cameras.

Speaker 1 23:25

Yeah.

Speaker 3 23:26

I didn't do any of that.

Speaker 1 23:27

Yeah, yeah, you did all of that. No, I didn't choose where the cameras were.

Speaker 3 23:31

That was the producers. I didn't choose, I didn't design the lighting you designed the lighting. You designed the stage the color I mostly did the editing which you didn't get a credit for in the editing.

Speaker 1 23:42

I mostly did the editing which you didn't get a credit for in the editing, which is one of the most genius editing I've seen in comedy specials and I mean like Netflix Big Budget Mulaney's. What Leo worked with was hands tied behind his back.

Speaker 3 23:58

Yeah, but I just got the multicam view and then I did the time stamp. Sorry, you directed his I technically directed Bodhi's special.

Speaker 1 24:05

He was involved in what I was wearing when I was shooting. Also, he was involved first of all, punchlines and second of all, the way I structured the set. Oh, a hundred percent. He doesn't take any credit. You're doing Wait hold on.

Speaker 2 24:21

I'm not finished yet.

Speaker 1 24:23

But I'm talking about when you watch a comedy special and the guy's delivering a joke, the setup, and then the bang, bang and Leo. At one point I saw him looking at all of the cameras and saying, and it hit him, he didn't need me. He's just like no 1.01, cut two on this word. And then if even the clips we have on Instagram, it's all Leo's cuts and they're amazing. He not only edited, he directed it and he produced it.

Speaker 2 24:53

So wait, I'm confused. So is it because you didn't get credit but you did the work?

Speaker 3 24:58

No, no no, I'm listed as the director of the special, but when I saw that, I was like I don't think that's what I did.

Speaker 2 25:08

I think I did something. I think my role was beyond that. You should not undersell yourself. I know when I see other people's specials.

Speaker 3 25:13

It usually says written, directed and performed by the artist.

Speaker 2 25:17

No, first of all, I love that you are like you wanna give, like that's so beautiful he's very nice, but you should.

Speaker 3 25:25

You are like you want to give, like that's so beautiful, he's very nice.

Speaker 2 25:26

I saw it, but you should, that is.

Speaker 3 25:28

But I wanted to know what your definition of a director of a comedy special is, because Well, I didn't know.

Speaker 2 25:34

So that's the thing. It was the first time I did that, so I didn't know I was I really I wanted to take Amy's lead because this is what she does and it was really. I appreciated the. I was so grateful for the opportunity and also to learn from her. So it it really what you? There's there's limitations to what you can do as a director for a comedy special right, so you it sounds like you did everything that a director does yes.

Speaker 3 26:03

I don't know't know.

Speaker 2 26:04

The answer is yes.

Speaker 3 26:05

I think I just did like the editing, maybe like.

Speaker 2 26:07

But that is.

Speaker 3 26:08

That's the editing.

Speaker 2 26:09

Editing is directing.

Speaker 4 26:11

I mean editing is directing.

Speaker 1 26:13

He did the editing too. Where. Why are you yelling? Because I want it to be known and I don't want you to be all the shy thing. You edited the whole special. No, I special, genuinely, asking genuinely, and you generally, when we got there, you how you wanted the letters. There was a problem with the letters, my moody name was problem and he fixed that. And then we and then um, where the? From where the stool, where I'm walking to, where I'm, my angle?

Speaker 2 26:37

he directed me why are you not taking ownership?

Speaker 1 26:40

because I don't really remember all of it, that stuff I just remember doing the time stamps like and then on this backstage also watching what I'm doing and words I missed that we had to pick up afterwards.

Speaker 3 26:53

Be proud of the work? No, I didn't mean to hijack this. I was trying to ask I'll hijack it again, leo so nice.

Speaker 2 27:03

I have to say, there's something so refreshing about this, and I don't mean to, but this is usually a woman who is second guessing herself. There's something. I'm sorry, there is something, really.

Speaker 1 27:15

no, there's something really she's a lady. She's not a woman. She's a lady, but she's very.

Speaker 2 27:21

But I'm saying like this is something that I feel it's just to have this beautiful man sitting in front of me and seeing you second guessing yourself.

Speaker 1 27:30

that's so human 100% he has no idea. He has no idea what he does. That's not what I meant she's fine no, no, I'll take the opportunity.

Speaker 1 27:39

I will promise you my special that anybody has seen. It know your audience available for everybody on YouTube. If you have parents or grandparents that don't know how to access things, a mitzvah, go to your grandparents and make sure they set up to watch my special, and Leo made that happen. That was literally. You know there's an expression yesh me'en. From nothing came something, from finding someone to direct. We were tight. The material had to get out. We found someone to tape it and then we were almost left alone and Leo took care of everything. We were, there was situation. We had a very good producer helping us.

Speaker 1 28:22

Yeah, again.

Speaker 4 28:23

Yeah.

Speaker 3 28:23

Okay, matt Shuler did a good job. Yes, did Leo Vega do a good job, but the editing the editing was a hot mess.

Speaker 1 28:29

The editing was a hot mess. You had to take care of all of it, did Leo?

Speaker 4 28:32

Vega do a good job, yeah, and on top of that, he also you know the special.

Speaker 1 28:38

Okay, showing the special and watch a special, but the clips that he also cut out that are now having views of four to five million some of them.

Speaker 3 28:51

Leo, it's a special that's own. When you directed rachel's special, you had never done a comedy special before but, you had directed like video content yes, yes, like what did you do?

Speaker 2 29:02

before that documentary, I directed a film called Southern Rights, that's on.

Speaker 3 29:07

HBO. Oh, yes, about the voting.

Speaker 2 29:09

No.

Speaker 3 29:10

I watched it when we did your last episode, which was a long time ago.

Speaker 2 29:13

It was about? Well, it started out being about the last segregated prom.

Transitioning From Photography to Video

Speaker 3 29:17

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. So you directed that documentary, yes.

Speaker 2 29:22

Okay, so you directed that documentary.

Speaker 3 29:24

Yes, okay so when you were enlisted to do Rachel's special. It's not like you had never directed video. No, because you were going for photographer.

Speaker 2 29:33

Oh yeah. Because I know a lot of people don't cross that line. It felt like a natural. You know I direct and you know, as a photographer, you're constantly. You know that You're constantly directing.

Speaker 1 29:43

There are people who have an eye for what the right thing is. You have it, leo has it. People see things and say this is how this could be better, this is how this should be. You have that, obviously.

Speaker 4 29:54

I think the interesting thing about photography that I have learned from basically being a fly on the wall for so many years with so many great photographers is that, unlike video, they have one frame to tell an entire story.

Speaker 3 30:11

Wow, yes.

Speaker 4 30:13

Which is incredible. Now it's different because it's digital, so you can click, click, click and then you pick one, but that only changed very recently. I mean, you guys have been working in film for years and even when you select the final image, you have one frame to tell an entire story that we tell in.

Speaker 2 30:39

You know, 30 seconds or a minute. You have to capture the essence in one moment. Well, that's the goal, that's the goal, that's the goal. So, but it's definitely working. Two different like two totally different ways.

Speaker 4 30:53

So I mean, there are a lot of very well-known and famous and world-famous photographers who didn't ever work in video media.

Speaker 2 31:04

It's hard to make the transition. It took a while, for sure, and you know the the first footage that I look at is like unwatchable. But then you know you try the. The goal is to try and make it like it's seamless, like the storytelling is seamless, whether it's a still photograph or moving image.

Speaker 1 31:24

Yes, leo, edited between two shows.

Speaker 3 31:31

And I was taking the setup from one show and the punchline from another, and that's how tight the times were.

Speaker 1 31:38

Well, that's why editing is directing.

Speaker 2 31:41

Because you're telling the story. So much of the final product is in the editing. So editing is so critical.

Speaker 1 31:51

It is, but in stand-up there is a special hush, there's a special knack for it and you see it and I've seen after I saw Leo Dumont, I've seen the mistakes in others- Huge.

Speaker 3 32:06

Can I say the one thing that drives me crazy about your special? Yeah, you can bleep this out if you don't like it. Can I talk about the baseball hat guy that, yeah, go ahead. So we taped two seatings at the Grand Merced.

Speaker 2 32:18

Theater.

Speaker 3 32:19

I didn't realize because there's so much going on. We did two seatings in one night. I'm running around crazy. In the second show there's a guy like very visible wearing a baseball hat.

Speaker 2 32:32

Mm-hmm.

Speaker 3 32:32

Like a very distinct baseball hat.

Speaker 2 32:36

So you had to take yeah.

Speaker 3 32:37

And so a lot of the shots we wanted to use when we were like going through, like the multicam view, when we were like transitioning between shows I'm like this baseball hat keeps appearing and disappearing. So that is what our main limitation was, because it drove me insane. I was like how did I not catch this guy when they were being seated? How did I not tell?

Speaker 2 32:56

him to take his hat off. That is a key thing. So that's what the front row and the continuity between the two shows.

Speaker 3 33:08

So there's some shots that are like the same camera but like cropped in. Yeah, and those are the shots, if you're watching at home, where the baseball hat guy was visible, because there's some shots that don't make sense, where it goes from, like here, and then we kind of like crop in, because you have to get rid of the baseball hat guy, but it's not like a normal crop, like you'll see, like it'll be like from your ankle.

Speaker 1 33:26

One of the cameras was on a tilt. There was a whole. I'm telling you. He did it with his hands tied behind his back and it was. I think it's a great special. It is a great special, it was a great special. That, literally, is what you know. I say be true to your audience. The rest will follow. This show is it's made for Jews, and I'm explaining the whole show to a non-Jew that's in the audience.

Speaker 1 33:50

Oh, wow so that's the whole, this entire show. I'm explaining what's happening. It's what's happening. It's literally, it's a window into the Jewish world through laughter and pride, and and it's brought us people. We now have Goyim, gays and theys as fans, and that's, and that's what that special did you know what?

Speaker 2 34:10

you know what film you should see if you haven't seen it yet. Do you know and I feel like the two of you would be friends Do you know? Amichai Laulavi.

Speaker 1 34:19

I know so many Amichais, I mean I literally my entire.

Speaker 2 34:22

So Amichai Laulavi is the head of Labshul and he was. He's the his lineage. He's like the rabbinical lineage, like they're you know royalty Okay. Lineage um, like their you know royalty, okay, and um, he had a. Um, how do I say? He had a, another person who was esther, queen, esther, do you know? Okay, anyway, the point is is that his story has now been made into a film, um called sabbath queen, made by by. Sandy Dubowski, who followed him for 21 years.

Speaker 4 35:02

Wow.

Speaker 2 35:03

And the film just premiered in Tribeca and it's amazing and I feel you would just Sabbath Queen.

Speaker 3 35:11

See, that's something we should have been invited to you must, because so much of his alter ego was performance.

Speaker 2 35:21

He, he basically took um. He's reinventing judaism okay through. It's called storytelling. So he's reinvented storytelling hilarious no, he's brilliant, he's really brilliant, he. I just think that you would appreciate him and this film so much. You must see it.

Speaker 3 35:40

Absolutely. I love when Rachel does her mom with the men in polka cape. Oh God, her mom, I'm sure whatever you're doing in your craft room in Bethesda. I didn't watch it yet, but I've seen her like working out this material for the last year or so.

Speaker 2 35:53

Oh my goodness, the material with her family, I mean her husband Was it so fun for you Like.

Speaker 4 35:58

I know you personally, so I know that you have a great sense of humor. But was it? It's not usually what you're in.

Speaker 2 36:08

Well, amy, I had never. I had never. I didn't know about her except that she was Amy's friend. So Amy had called me last summer and was like, would you be, would you ever be interested in directing this? And I was like, okay, well, if she's funny. But of course Amy has the best taste. So she sent me one of the specials. I was like, oh, I'm in, she is so funny.

Speaker 3 36:32

Yeah, she's funny. I haven't seen the special, but I've seen her doing this material at the cellar for a while.

Speaker 1 36:39

Yeah.

Speaker 3 36:40

But I'll go watch it.

Speaker 1 36:41

Amy, since we're giving plugs, amy also did, I believe Keith Robinson's.

Speaker 4 36:45

Yes which Keith Robinson's, I believe, comes out today. It just came out Today. Yeah, yes.

Speaker 1 36:52

Also great specials to watch. Send them to your friends. Make sure pause for laughter, Make sure you find time and things to laugh at.

Speaker 2 36:58

I haven't seen Keith's yet, but Amy is so proud of Keith's special. It's called Different Strokes.

Speaker 4 37:06

Okay.

Speaker 1 37:06

Oh wow, Because he had a stroke. Because he had a stroke.

Speaker 4 37:09

He's had more than one stroke Right, right, right.

Speaker 3 37:11

Yeah.

Speaker 2 37:15

So where can people find you? Where can people?

Speaker 3 37:18

find me Instagram so what's your Instagram?

Speaker 2 37:20

G-G-L-A-U-B G-I-G-I-L-A-U-B.

Speaker 3 37:23

And the live2tel.

Speaker 2 37:24

Live at live2, number 2, tel.

Speaker 3 37:27

That's where they can find the projects about the survivors.

Speaker 2 37:30

And my website, Jillian Laub.

Speaker 3 37:32

Don't whisper it and my website Jillian Laub G-I-L-L-I-A-N. There you go.

Speaker 2 37:40

L-A-U-B as in boy. Okay, there you go.

Speaker 1 37:42

We want to take this moment to thank A&H Provisions. That is who we collaborate with to make these episodes happen and bring people like you onto the camera and into the audio. Best hot dogs you'll ever eat in your life. Mike would love them.

Speaker 2 38:01

Okay.

Upcoming Shows and New Features

Speaker 1 38:03

And A&H Provisions Glock Kosher Meat. That's on another level, and kosherdogsnet is their website and if you put the promo code MODY you'll get for 30% off of your first order. Thank you very much, seth at A&H, for being a part of this. Thank you for being here.

Speaker 3 38:22

Wait, I have one more thing to say. There's a new feature. If you listen on Buzzsprout or if you listen on Spotify, there's a link in the description of the episode that says send us a text message. So you can send us your thoughts, feedback, questions, keep it nice. So you have the option to send us a text message and we also have information on our PO box that we just opened in case you want to send Moody mail.

Speaker 1 38:48

Yes, and we have shows coming up. Some of them are sold out, some of them aren't. Nashville is not sold out. There are a few seats left in Nashville. There's a few seats left in St Paul. There's a few seats left in Sydney, Australia and Melbourne. Two sold out shows there. One of the shows still has a few seats. The Beacon almost sold out too. That's in December. Go to modilivecom. Find a show near you. Find a show near no. Find a show near you. Find a show near no. Find a show near one of your friends and send them a link to whatever If I'm near there and, of course, be the friend that brings the friends to the comedy show. Get a few tickets, Invite a few friends. It's the best way to spend time with your friends and find time for laughter. Thank you very much for coming on.

Speaker 2 39:32

Thank you One thing there are crazy, oh my oh we're still on.

Speaker 1 39:39

Do you want to do another hot out? Don't say another thing that you want us to edit out? Is this redacted? Should we?

Speaker 2 39:43

end now. Oh yeah, we should end. Okay, all right.

Speaker 3 39:46

Thank you very much, the mysterious Julian Laub everyone.

Speaker 2 39:52

Okay, but that one thing.