Twin Peaks, Bone Daddys, Bikinis, Bombshells and, of course, Hooters.
Andrew Bujalski knows his way around an Austin, Texas, breastaurant.
My research for this was beer and mozzarella sticks, and I didnt feel so great, he says.
Credit: Magnolia Pictures
Together, they navigate workplace harassment and single motherhood while sporting jean shorts and low-cut crop tops.
Its the most straightforward, American business.
You go in there, and it aint rocket science.
Magnolia Pictures
But there is something peculiar and unique.
Not obvious to me.
The alchemy of it?Alchemy is the right word.
Were a family place, and everybody loves our wings.
Something about it works in this culture.
I dont think you see so many of these outside of the states.
I did not visit it myself.
Im told its more of a tourist place.
Im a vegetarian, so it was a challenge.
Oh, what would you order?Often a mozzarella thing or an Onion Ring thing.
Some of those more chichi places would have a salad on the menu.
A salad wasnt always the case?That wasnt always the case, but Id usually drink a beer.
You were editing during the #MeToo break.
Howd this impact the final product?We werent going to make any drastic changes to the movie itself.
That conversation is way bigger and more important than this movie.
It was worth it to me to make a run at let that be an African-American character.
That all said, if we hadnt found the right person, we would have reconsidered.
But we got Regina Hall, and everythings great.
Tell me a little bit about casting Haley Lu Richardson.She was somebody who surprised me.
I was in LA and did one of these ridiculous speed-dating-key in sessions.
You feel like an ass doing things that way, but its part of how this process works.
Theyre not particularly seductive in there.
Haley Lu really got the bubbliness, the sweetness, and the caretaker aspect.
To be blunt, youre a white man writing about diverse women, often of color.
Its always more questions than answers for me.
I need people who are trying to understand each other or failing to understand each other.
But those characters were equally mysterious to me in a good way.
You cant write from nowhere.
God forbid I write what I know.
I know whats in my refrigerator.
Everything else I have to imagine.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
