Marc Maron on Making a Doc About the Grief of Losing His Partner, Lynn Shelton: ‘It Was Interesting to Let Another Artist Interpret What I'm Going Through'
In 'Are We Good?' comedian and podcast pioneer Marc Maron works his way through life after the unexpected death of his partner, filmmaker Lynn Shelton.
The 95-minute documentary is directed by Steven Feinartz, who also directed the comedian's 2023 HBO special 'Marc Maron: From Bleak to Dark.' The doc captures Maron as he processes his grief on and off comedy stages. The film also chronicles Maron's lengthy, complicated career, his struggle with addiction, his relationship with his declining father, and what the comedian is best known for – his podcast 'WTF With Marc Maron,' which launched in 2009.
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Feinartz and Maron, who met 13 years ago during an episode of WTF, started filming 'Are We Good' in May 2021 – a year after Shelton died.
'The film was a three and a half year undertaking, where I spent a bulk of the production with just myself filming Marc,' says Feinartz. 'My intention was to make a stripped down film that doesn't pull any punches. If you're a listener of his podcast or aware of his comedy, you'd understand that substance and honesty outweigh style. So, instead of the more conventional, highly-polished, flashy documentaries of today, I went for an approach that is more reminiscent of the films I came up admiring. 'Crumb,' 'Hoop Dreams,' and 'Bill Cunningham New York' to name a few.'
'Are We Good?', which is a reference to Maron's signature sign-off to his podcast, is a raw, unfiltered look at a 60-year-old man who is trying to balance life and a career while attempting to mend a broken heart.
Variety spoke to Maron and Feinartz ahead of the SXSW world premiere of 'Are We Good?' on March 11.
Steven, you said in the production notes for this film that you were initially hesitant about making this doc because Maron has long maintained careful control of his narrative. What made you take the leap and make the doc?
Maron: Yeah. Talk about that, Steven. I want to know how I control my narrative. Explain that to me. I felt nothing but out of control of my narrative for as long as you been shooting this thing, but go ahead.
Feinartz: I've been a long-time listener of WTF since the beginning days of the podcast, and I just always felt that you were getting Marc's story from Marc, and that's the most important thing. It's a confessional, and it's honest, and it's real. It's what he says to his fans and how he says it, and I thought, pulling back and seeing Marc from a different view would be interesting. The initial hesitation was that I felt that maybe Marc wouldn't have wanted a documentary, especially coming off something so heavy. I felt almost overly sensitive to the idea of it and didn't want it to feel like any exploitation of his grief. So, there were a lot of things that I was hesitant about.
Marc, why did you agree to participate in this documentary?
Maron: Years ago, some guy wanted to make a documentary about me when the podcast started becoming popular, and people didn't really know about podcasts. It was funny because I didn't know if I earned one in a way. So, when Steven wanted to do this, I felt like, what is it? And then it became about coming out of Covid and moving through grief, and then it just kept going on and on. There were points where I said to Steven, 'Are you waiting for me to die? Are you waiting for an ending?' That's usually when a documentary gets made – after someone dies or something horrible happens. But I thought it was interesting to let another artist interpret what I'm going through. I thought, well, if there's something that people will get out of this thing, let's do it.
There are moments in the doc that are very funny, but overall, it is not a lighthearted film about a comedian. How do you think audiences will react to that?
Feinartz: I think people who see a Marc Maron documentary know it's not going to be light. It's definitely not a traditional comedy doc, and I never intended to make a comedy documentary. It's a profile. I don't want to say it, but I will – Marc is a lovable curmudgeon and I think people who don't know his comedy as well, and maybe haven't been listening to the podcast for a bit, will be reminded of why they liked him and maybe will find a new perspective on him.
Marc, was making this doc cathartic in any way?
Maron: The impact that the doc had on me in terms of catharsis is that I do what I do for who I do it for, and it does help those people a great deal. And it helps me. I'm excited to generate the stuff I generate.
So would you say that the doc made you feel good about yourself?
Maron: I don't know about that. I mean, let's not go crazy. After I watched the last cut of the film, I said to Steven, 'Jesus, man. You make me look like this cranky but decent guy who succeeded despite himself.' And Steven goes, 'Yeah. Exactly.' So, on that level, I think it's not really a wake-up call, but there was some clarity around certain things that I would not have been able to see from my point of view about myself.
'Are We Good?' is seeking distribution.
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