@letterboxd
Instagram · Talking Head Edit
@letterboxd Benny Safdie talks us through his watchlist of films that influenced his solo directorial debut, The Smashing Machine 🥊 🎞️ Watch the full interview at the link in bio. The Smashing Machine releases in theaters October 3 from @a24. #A24 #TheSmashingMachine
Performance
Video #3760 · Talking Head Edit
[01]
Director Benny Safdie shares a personal anecdote about rediscovering the film *Rocky III* and breaks down its thematic depth, explaining how the story of a champion suffering a true loss and needing to find new meaning served as a key inspiration for his own film, *The Smashing Machine*.
[02]
[03]
121.7K17.3×Greenscreen personal movie review reflection@peter_reitano · Review
1.5M9.2×Director shares an important film@criterioncollection · Show and Tell
479.9K6.1×Cinematic reflection on coming second@therealdanielpark · Vulnerable Monologue
2.9M102.8×Emotional story with cinematic b-roll@therichardlin · Vulnerable Monologue
563.4K5.5×Visual essay on creative hyperfixation@alexwhoisalex · Vulnerable Monologue
628.6KCinematic montage of Tyson's story@rpn · Origin Story
156.6KWriting a sad sentence about loss in The Anger Book journal@theangerbook
477.3K5.7×Relatable text over moody cinematic shot@tonito.rt · Relatable One Shot
289.4K23.1×Sadness channeled into intense workouts@lachiecubis · Expectation vs. Reality
5.2MTired dad gets epic hype text@kylecooper_drhorton · Relatable Skit
3M9.5×Woman cries after discovering seven-year partner promised marriage to a coworker@single.salta · Vulnerable Monologue
347.7K38.1×Split-screen emotional music reaction@reactiontherapy · Reaction[04]
[05]
What stops the scroll in the first 3 seconds
Verbal hook · 70%
So Rocky three was shot by Bill Butler, who also shot Jaws.
Visual hook · 30%
A clean, medium close-up shot of the speaker, Benny Safdie, who is actively and expressively talking directly to the camera, creating an immediate personal connection.
[06]
Steal this for your own video
was by , who also .
[07]
The promise the opener makes, and how the video pays it back
Hook
Establishes credibility and piques curiosity by presenting a surprising, non-obvious piece of trivia about the subject.
Payoff
The payoff is the universal principle that connects the classic work to the new work, leaving the audience with a profound thought and a reason to be interested in the creator's project.
[08]
The structural pattern this video runs on
Framework
The Influential Anecdote
A creator reveals the unexpected influence of a piece of pop culture on their own work, framed through a personal story of rediscovery and analysis.
The Authority Hook
Begins with a compelling fact that connects two well-known entities, immediately positioning the speaker as an expert and creating an initial hook.
The Relatable Origin Story
Grounds the analysis in a personal, serendipitous anecdote, making the speaker's expertise feel accessible and discovered rather than purely academic.
The Aesthetic Epiphany
Describes the initial, purely visceral reaction to the subject's quality, focusing on craft and surface-level appeal before diving into deeper themes.
The Intentional Re-examination
Signals a shift from a chance encounter to a deliberate analysis, justifying the deeper insights that are about to be shared.
The Contrasting Insight
Delivers the central argument by comparing the subject to a more familiar counterpart, using the contrast to highlight a unique and overlooked quality.
The Thematic Revelation
Articulates the profound, underlying theme discovered through the analysis, providing the intellectual climax of the story.
The Creative Bridge
Explicitly connects the insight gained from the subject to the creator's own current project, providing context and a reason for the entire story.
The Universal Takeaway
Broadens the specific theme into a universal human sentiment, serving as the final, resonant payoff for the audience.
Benny Safdie talks us through his watchlist of films that influenced his solo directorial debut, The Smashing Machine 🥊 🎞️ Watch the full interview at the link in bio. The Smashing Machine releases in theaters October 3 from @a24. #A24 #TheSmashingMachine
contextual · beginning
Benny Safdie DIRECTOR - The Smashing Machine
So Rocky three was shot by Bill Better, who also shot Jaws. Amazing cinematographer. I was with Maceo, and we were coloring, I think, the curse. We walked into the the kitchen, and Rocky three was on TV. And we both just stood there. This looks awesome. Like, it looks awesome. You know, just the way that it's shot, everything about it. Then I just went back and I rewatched it. And there's something really special about Rocky three. And Rocky one, he loses, but he wins. In Rocky three, he loses. There's no upside. He suffers true loss, and he has to re find his meaning in life. That's a wild story. That one in particular was very meaningful for this movie. I like the sentiment of somebody at the top having to kind of reimagine their lives no win in some way. The win's a little different in Smashing Machine, but it's a win nonetheless.