photos by Marcie Revens (New York) & Tonya Wise (Los Angeles) - print courtesy of Columbia Pictures
Con artists and an FBI agent team up to take down corrupt politicians in Director David O. Russell’s new feature American Hustle.
Loosely based on the ABSCAM scandal of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, Russell’s film tells the story of how an FBI agent forces a couple of grifters into helping him snare a shady political operator. After the DGA membership screening in New York on December 8, Russell spoke with Director Barry Levinson (You Don't Know Jack) about the making of American Hustle and the joys and challenges of working with a stellar cast that included Amy Adams, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence and Jeremy Renner, many of whom he had collaborated with on previous films. Russell also spoke about the film in a conversation with Director Taylor Hackford (Parker) following the December 15 DGA membership screening in Los Angeles.
Russell’s other works include the short documentary Soldiers Pay; the feature films Spanking the Monkey, Flirting with Disaster, Three Kings, I Heart Huckabees, Silver Linings Playbook; and the DGA and the Academy Award-nominated feature The Fighter. He has been a member of the DGA since 1998.
