The No Film School Podcast

Jeff Nichols Discusses the Inspiration, Writing, and Directing of 'The Bikeriders'

Listen Later

Jeff Nichols is the director of the film, The Bikeriders, a story about a 1960s motorcycle club that turns into a menacing gang, known as the Vandals. The film is adapted from Danny Lyon’s book of the same title. The complex nature of The Bikeriders, leaves us asking, “Why are we attracted to dangerous things?”


In today’s episode, No Film School’s Jason Hellerman speaks with director Jeff Nichols to discuss:

  • Feeling inspired by a photographic documentary book
  • Deliberately changing the film’s structure from the first hour to the second hour
  • The importance of character point of view
  • Why the film style felt appropriate for this story
  • Casting and location scouting - two of the most important parts of the process
  • Using photos from the book for location inspiration
  • Feeling drawn to dangerous characters
  • Why he doesn’t block scenes or rehearse with actors
  • Using a documentary-style editing structure 
  • When Jeff realized this story needed to be a movie




    • Memorable Quotes

    • “It was by design that the first hour would have one feeling, and the second hour would have another.” [7:58]
    • “These actors are so damn good. I just get to sit back and watch. Sometimes I forget to yell cut.” [16:14]
    • “I was trying to build the script on the page to feel like it had been collected and put together like a documentary.” [22:45]



      • Mentioned

      The Bikeriders (trailer)


      The Bikeriders (book)  



      Find No Film School everywhere:

      On the Web

      https://nofilmschool.com/


      Facebook 

      https://www.facebook.com/nofilmschool


      Twitter 

      https://twitter.com/nofilmschool


      YouTube 

      https://www.youtube.com/user/nofilmschool


      Instagram

      https://www.instagram.com/nofilmschool


      Send us an email with questions or feedback: [email protected]!

      Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

      ...more
      View all episodesView all episodes
      Download on the App Store
      The No Film School PodcastBy No Film School
      • 4.5
      • 4.5
      • 4.5
      • 4.5
      • 4.5

      4.5

      418 ratings

      More shows like The No Film School Podcast

      View all
      Filmspotting by Adam Kempenaar & Josh Larsen

      Filmspotting

      3,946 Listeners

      The Treatment by KCRW

      The Treatment

      611 Listeners

      The Business by KCRW

      The Business

      663 Listeners

      Scriptnotes Podcast by John August and Craig Mazin

      Scriptnotes Podcast

      2,429 Listeners

      The Next Best Picture Podcast by Evergreen Podcasts

      The Next Best Picture Podcast

      491 Listeners

      IndieWire: Screen Talk by Indiewire: Screen Talk

      IndieWire: Screen Talk

      328 Listeners

      The Director’s Cut - A DGA Podcast by Directors Guild of America

      The Director’s Cut - A DGA Podcast

      740 Listeners

      IndieWire's Filmmaker Toolkit by Chris O'Falt

      IndieWire's Filmmaker Toolkit

      102 Listeners

      The A24 Podcast by A24

      The A24 Podcast

      1,056 Listeners

      The Big Picture by The Ringer

      The Big Picture

      5,623 Listeners

      The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna by Meg LeFauve & Lorien McKenna

      The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna

      969 Listeners

      Team Deakins by James Ellis Deakins, Roger Deakins

      Team Deakins

      1,120 Listeners

      Script Apart with Al Horner by Script Apart

      Script Apart with Al Horner

      206 Listeners

      The Town with Matthew Belloni by The Ringer

      The Town with Matthew Belloni

      1,066 Listeners

      Ankler Agenda by TheAnkler.com

      Ankler Agenda

      104 Listeners