I don't see any real distinction about it because I don't hold sexual activity as some sort of exalted activity that is sacred with a little spotlight on it that we all need to be so careful about. Someone pays me for my time, for my ideas. What I said was what I do for a living is no different. Below, his response, and the trailer for The Girlfriend Experience, which screens one more time at the Tribeca Film Festival on Saturday night. Even if you're someone who says, 'I want to sit here and just be left alone.' You are going to have to negotiate on some level just to achieve that." Moderator Caryn James then asked Soderbergh about a comment he made in a previous interview: that what he does in his commercial films is the same as what Chelsea does. We all want something, whether it's emotional or monetary. It sounds cold or clinical to say this, but I think that's what life is.
Surprisingly subtle adult film star Sasha Grey slips into the part of Chelsea with guarded ease, and real-life trainer Chris Santos is pitch-perfect as her live-in boyfriend, who's left devastated when he can't stop her from crossing the line with one of her clients.Īfter a screening last night at the Tribeca Film Festival, Soderbergh explained, "The movie is about transactions. The action, so to speak, takes place in October 2008-with the financial industry in free-fall, Chelsea, the escort in question, spends less time between the sheets than she does listening to various affluent white guys completely freak out about the economy.ĭirected with signature finesse by Steven Soderbergh, the film's kinetic, intimate style turns out to be an ideal frame for the performances of the non-professional actors who fill out the principal roles (as in his previous film Bubble). Set over the course of one weekend in the posh restaurants, hotels and bars of Manhattan, The Girlfriend Experience explores the inner life of a young, high-price call girl as she tries to balance her fraught career path with her seemingly typical long-term relationship with a personal trainer.