The Debut Opens Middleburg Film Festival as Eisenberg Praises Cast

Jesse Eisenberg said Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti were perfect on their first takes during the making of The Debut, speaking at the Middleburg Film Festival where the film served as the opening night selection. Eisenberg discussed the project while seated next to Moore.

He described The Debut as a humorous movie musical hybrid and said he shot one or two takes of each scene. The first two days of musical numbers scheduled for the film were shot in one day, he added.

Paul Giamatti, who also appears in the film, was out sick and did not attend the festival event.

Eisenberg was recently Oscar-nominated for A Real Pain, which he directed. He previously spoke to IndieWire about making The Debut as a small-budget independent film with Moore and Giamatti.