If you ask the Coen brothers about how they write their films, you might not get a straight answer. "It's mostly napping," Ethan tells Fresh Air's Terry Gross.
"We go to the office, we're there, we're in a room together," Joel adds. "We take naps, but, you know, the important thing is that we're at the office, should we be inspired to actually write something."
The brothers don't split up writing responsibilities — they "talk through" the dialogue and "work it out together," Joel explains.
The process seems to be working for the brothers who wrote and directed Fargo, The Big Lebowski, O Brother Where Art Thou?, No Country for Old Men, A Serious Man and True Grit. Their latest film, Inside Llewyn Davis, just won the Grand Prix at this year's Cannes film festival, and it's nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture, musical or comedy, and an Independent Spirit award for Best Feature.
Set in 1961, Inside Llewyn Davis stars Oscar Isaac in the title role, as a folksinger in Greenwich Village, just before Bob Dylan comes on the scene. He's known in the clubs but isn't particularly successful.
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