I've noticed, as a comedy fan, that I really like Paul Thomas Anderson or Quentin Tarantino because when they're funny, they're actually funny. It's not like when other dramatic writers have comedy, and I'm just like, 'Well, that's not funny. Why are you even trying to make a joke here?'

Paul Rust

Categorized in : You Funny Trying Comedy

In your 20s, you're checking your bank account to make sure you're not broke. In your 30s, you're looking at yourself and realizing you're broken.

bank-accounts realizing broken

I gotta say, the Catholic Church has churned out a lot of great artists and directors and actors, so if that's all they do, that's fine by me. If they're good at churning out tortured artists, that's great!

catholic church artist

I think a lot of nights together have been spoiled by somebody not being able to find a parking spot and saying, "Why don't we just go home?"

home night thinking

Growing up in a small town, in the Midwest, and Catholic: Those are sort of three layers of repression.

growing-up catholic three

My mom was my English teacher in high school. So to be able to bend the rules and be the class clown and get to take on my religion, my mom, and my town all at the same time was glorious. I think the desire to be funny was a mixture of wanting to be liked but also wanting to throw your elbows a bit. If you're cracking a joke in school, it's sort of anti-authority, but it's in the nicest, "Please like me!" way.

mom teacher school

Just the way LA is laid out - 30 miles of disparate neighborhoods - adds to the loneliness of the characters. There's a lot more space to feel isolated in. In Los Angeles, you have to meet the person, then walk out separately to your own cars, and follow the person to their neighborhood, and then pray that street parking isn't going to mess things up.

space loneliness character

I think "honest" sometimes gets used to describe a real depiction of real life. I don't think that's necessarily what we're doing. We created these fake characters and we're just trying to figure out what they would do in situations they enter into.

real character thinking

A lot of the day-to-day, minute-to-minute struggles are a bit more taken care of, so it allows you to start asking more existential questions like, "What do I want in life? What's going to make me happy?"

taken struggle want

If I heard there was a new show, and the creators were writing about how they met, I would be like, "Pass!"

mets would-be writing

Being sincere and true to yourself is a scary thing but, ultimate... by Paul Rust

Being sincere and true to yourself is a scary thing but, ultimately, a rewarding one.

true yourself being sincere

I would never turn down an invitation to co-write another Pee-wee... by Paul Rust

I would never turn down an invitation to co-write another Pee-wee Herman movie!

invitation turn down never

I don't believe in love at first sight. by Paul Rust

I don't believe in love at first sight.

love-at-first-sight love believe

With Quentin Tarantino, he makes movies imagining himself as the audience. To be specific and true to what he wants resonates to people who like his movies.

true movies like people

The thing I always liked about 'Pee-wee's Big Adventure' was Pee-wee's, obviously, an oddball, but nobody in that universe points a finger at him and goes, 'Look at the weirdo!' I think that's why weirdo, arty kids like it so much: because it's sort of like a utopia.

nobody look universe adventure

Probably around junior high, I became obsessed with films. by Paul Rust

Probably around junior high, I became obsessed with films.

around junior high obsessed

I remember watching Quentin Tarantino accept an Academy Award for screenwriting for 'Pulp Fiction.' If I'd known then that 15 years later one of his movies would again be nominated for an Oscar and I'd be in it - that would be pretty crazy.

award movies crazy remember

It made me proud to know I'd join a long gallery of actors covere... by Paul Rust

It made me proud to know I'd join a long gallery of actors covered in blood in movies.

movies me proud long

At one point, I just decided that it might be more creatively rewarding to put my time into writing on stuff that I could really be proud of rather than trying to get a one-episode part on 'Modern Family' or something.

family proud writing time

If I'm not emotionally stable, should I put myself in a relationship? Because wouldn't that mean that I'm just using it as a distraction from my problems?

problems myself relationship mean

I come from standup and improv. by Paul Rust

I come from standup and improv.

standup improv come