The name Hannah Einbinder will likely ring bells for fans of TV juggernaut Hacks, in which she plays floundering comedy writer Ava, as well as being the star of her own 2024 comedy special, Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go. Now she stars in Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma opposite Gillian Anderson in the newest film from one of the hottest directors in town, Jane Schoenbrun. It offers apuckish deconstruction of horror-movie lore while also having the actor play asneaky version of the director.
LWLies: One of the moments in the film that Irelated to the most is when your character Kris says she watched too many scary movies growing up, and it fucked her up. Ihad avery similar young person experience. Iwas wondering if you were akid who grew up watching too many scary movies?
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Einbinder: Idefinitely watched ascary movie too young, which put me off for years, and then Ireturned. But that wasSilent Hill. Really scary, especially for alittle girl because it’s about getting lost and your mom not being able to find you. It’s kind of classic little girl stress for me, and it’s really scary. And all of the characters are so crazy, like shark heads. But Ido love horror. Ifeel like most of my zone has been ecological horror or psychological horror. Ilove all the Stephen King movies, big John Carpenter fan, Cronenberg, also the supernatural shit.The Exorcist is huge for me.The Grudge. And there are some great slashers. That was actually my biggest blind spot of all of the subgenres, so Jane put me on to some great stuff. But yeah, comedy-horror, of course.Housebound, one of my favorites. So yeah, just kind of all over the map. Ididn’t realise until Istarted talking about this movie and started doing the film how much horror Ihad actually seen and loved. Iwas like, ‘Oh damn! Iguess Iam kind of intothis.’
I’m curious to know about the films that Jane put youonto.
They gave me some recommendations, some tonal and performance references.Persona,Secretary,The Duke of Burgundy,Crash, and then, of course,Halloween,The Texas Chain-Saw Massacre, alot of slasher stuff.ANightmare on Elm Street,Scream,Carrie. Itook it upon myself to expand the list in places. Ifelt likeThe Shining was fun, just for the sort of chase element. Yeah, the list goes on. But it’s just been so fun to discover, especially the psychosexual canon.
Oh yeah,The Duke of Burgundy is agreat pull. Fantastic film.
Must watch.
Can you tell me alittle bit more about that creative process for approaching Kris?
It’s very body-forward for me. Iput on the clothes. Speaking ofSecretary, there is one of the outfits in the film – multiple, in fact – but there is amain outfit that’s directly inspired by Maggie Gyllenhaal’s character inSecretary, where she’s got these long socks and along skirt and these little Mary Jane shoes. So Iwas like, yeah, she’s trying to cover up. Ithink it was important for Kris to really be trying to cover up, especially because my body – my actual body, and thus Kris’s body – is very much inherently sexualised because of the way my body is shaped. So Ithink Kris would want to cover that. That was important to me, that she was very uncomfortable. After those fittings and picking the glasses – which was so crucial – and all of that stuff, Ithink that helped me really lock into the physical manifestations of her discomfort. Ialso stole some mannerisms from Jane. Jane has acouple… some of the hand stuff is Jane, and some of the glasses-pushing Jane also will do. Just spending time with Jane, Iwas kind of stealing things left and right. Alot of it is on the page. So for me, Ididn’t make amood board per se, but Idid come in with, ‘Oh, here are some references,’ because Ialso wanted Kris to feel like an amalgamation of the films she’s seen. Idon’t know if you clocked it, but she has atattoo here.
I did see it, but Icouldn’t look at what itsaid.
It’s abattle axe. It’s asmaller version of Gina Gershon’s battle axe inBound.
Oh my God, that’s socool.
I fear she would have afilmy tattoo. It’s just small, right here in the scene by the fire, the intimate scene. Iwas like, yeah, that would be really cool. Just things like that. How can Imake her feel distinct? Icut some little bangs for it, Ijust tried to feel different.
Especially because obviously you’ve worked for so many years. By that point, it’s like these are two queer women working in the entertainment space. How can Imake myself differentiate? Obviously they’re moving in completely different spaces, but you want it to feel like this person is in no way the same. They do feel like such different people.
Thank you. Yes. Of course, we all know the spectrum of how we – newsflash – queer people, like everyone else, can be very different. We are not amonolith. Iwanted to make sure that Iwas representing these two people who, on paper, perhaps have similarities, but are really nothing alike at all. Ava walks in, dick swinging, to every room. She’s abulldozer. Kris could just barely be email-spreading. Ava’s grip would be…ah.
Yeah, that’s someone with afirm handshake.
Yeah. Iwould love to see those two girls in aroom.
Oh, I’m sure the fanfic writers will get right on it. You don’t have towait.
That’s unbelievable. So funny. Oh my God. Ihave not thought aboutthat.
I’m sorry for putting that in yourhead.
It’s amazing. It’s the funniest thing Icould ever imagine. Iguess, though, the more specific you are with the performance, the more relatable it becomes because people recognize those tiny idiosyncrasies. Watching the film, it’s like, ‘Yeah, Irecognise the way that you pull your sleeves. Irecognise the cover-up thing.’ Now you’ve said it, it makes so much sense because, for myself, as aqueer woman growing up and being confronted, as young as eight, with people making comments on your body, you do have that impulse to be like, ‘Okay, how can Ihide away from the world?’ Then, in my case, you get older and you get angrier, and then you develop an interest in horror because it’s everything you feel being expressed ten times over, which Ithink the film does so beautifully.
The kind of art that Jane is putting out there really feels like nothing else at the moment. Obviously it’s incredibly special to the queer community, the trans community, the sapphic community, but I’d love to know what appealed to you about the prospect of working withJane.
Yeah. Ithink it is knowing just how much of Jane’s personal experience is imbued in their films. For me, getting to work with someone who is so genuinely vulnerable in their work and does not shy away from things that are difficult was so thrilling. To read the script and laugh, too, felt like, ‘Oh, I’m getting to be apart of this incredible moment for this person of coming into their joy and loving themselves.’ Someone Iadmire and feel close to on aparasocial level through their work, and then getting to actually get close to them and feel that connection and meet the version of them that wrote this film – that was so appealing When we first had these meetings, before Jane told me that Ihad the part, Ijust was loving hanging out with them. It became such an intimate process that Ijust felt so lucky to witness.
Yeah. The film is so joyful. Ithink that’s maybe one of the things that surprised me about it because Jane’s previous work has been pretty dark and pretty tragic in places.
Well, Ithink the thing that it is hitting on is super universal. Ithink the central subject matter of the film is about liberation from shame and embracing desire and confronting dissociation and discomfort in your body. That is the most human thing, Ithink, ever since Eve ate the fucking apple. You know what Imean? That is so universal. While, yes, the film explores that topic through awoman and anon-binary person in asapphic dynamic, Ithink it is not only humanising our community and our experience, but, in doing that, helping people to relate to us and to themselves.
How would you define Jane’s directing style? It was apretty short shoot, from what Igather, and Iimagine it was you and Gillian for most ofit.
For most of it, yeah. Jane’s directing style is gentle and supportive and warm and detailed, and feeling-first. We had alot of conversations days before scenes, just talking about them, especially those intimate scenes, and especially the scenes where it felt important to communicate something specific, and in aspecific way. Jane is incredibly inquisitive, one of the highest-EQ people I’ve ever met. Just so perceptive of other people’s emotions and feelings. It’s like they have X‑ray vision. Just an incredibly supportive person.
I know, obviously, acrossTeenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma andHacks, it feels like, for someone who’s relatively at the beginning of what Ihope is avery long and fruitful career, you’ve had these experiences which are kind of rare. They seem so positive. Has that set you up with avision of what you want your career to look like going forward?
It has. Ithink it is atotal myth that good work is only made from some mad genius who makes everyone suffer. Total fucking bullshit. Ithink good artists are kind because they’re perceptive and they can understand people and have empathy. Iget that all these guy filmmakers are good at setting up shots. Iget it. But Ialways respond to the ones who are tender and vulnerable and sweet. Iknow that they’re out there. I’ve come across alot of really sweet people. Ialso think it’s astandard that Itry to set too. Ithink the good thing about feeling more embodied and more powerful is that I’m just like, it’s not gonna fly. Idon’t want to see anyone being spoken to in anegative way, and Iwill never do that to someone. No divas allowed, you know what Imean? Only divas in the cool sense, like Jean Smart, for instance.