When the world has escaped coronavirus, American actor Paul Schneider wants to revisit Italy. While the European country is currently languishing in a COVID-19 crisis, videos that have emerged of citizens singing to each from balconies have tugged heartstrings everywhere. Human connections have transcended isolation, despair, quarantine and continue to bring people together across cultures. It particularly resonates with the 44-year-old actor, whose new show Tales from the Loop, “Explores what makes us all similar, but also gives us a new perspective on understanding things we all know."
Connecting dots
The new show which recently dropped on Amazon Prime Video draws its inspiration from an unlikely source: Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag’s art book of the same name. His beautifully austere and striking works have formed the essence of Tales from the Loop. But showrunner Nathaniel Halpern brings different direction to each episode, with experienced hands like Mark Romanek, Charlie McDowell and even Jodie Foster. Though the show’s slow seethe is the result of the creator’s ability to birth anticipation and a restrained visual cerebral language. “The challenge was really in [what Halpern] wrote,” reminisces Schneider. “That’s the kind of challenge you want that puzzle out and unlock the best version of the material.” Prepping for the birth of a new baby in a few weeks, Schneider is certain that Tales from the Loop will particularly hit home during these times of social distancing. The need for connection has never been as imperative as it is during a quarantine lockdown.
Widely touted as a science-fiction endeavour, Tales from the Loop is actually, Schneider insists, a deep dive into human emotions. Its genre is merely a tool to unlock universal mysteries. “For science fiction to be effective we have to care about a character and that’s true for a story that’s set in space or a story is set in a Southern courtroom like To Kill to kill a Mockingbird,” says the actor. “These are stories about heart, they’re not about nostalgia or science. They’re stories about empathy.”
Artificial intelligence
Augmented with a bionic arm, Schneider’s character George is teaching himself on a daily basis to be the father his own parent never was. “So in a way it’s a microcosm of the show,” reiterates the actor. “You have this robot arm, an element of science fiction but the core of the character is about family, secrets, love and loss.” Plus, portraying the physical delivery of an artificial limb, which took anywhere from 45 extra minutes to three hours in make-up, pushed Schneider’s boundaries. Strapped with a brace, tape and other apparatus, George had to be effortless on screen as he visually translated the character’s internal struggles. Like for instance in a sequence, Schneider’s favourite, that witnessed George row a boat towards information he’s desired for his whole life. “He’s not sure if he wants to know the answer, but he needs to know, recalls the actor. “I remember shooting that day and it was beautiful, a day that you feel lucky being able to go to work.”
The show’s ubiquitous appeal had Schneider lassoed in from the start, a lure that has drawn the actor to creative collaborations since his career first started in 2000 with George Washington. Filmmaking happened to satisfy his eternal yearning for connections that would resonate far and wide. “The script is the score and we are all working to play it perfectly,” he concludes, likening the process to a well-oiled symphony. “These were things I was interested in before the coronavirus and obviously these are things that more poignant at this moment.”
Tales from the Loop is streaming on Amazon Prime Video
