Watch: PTA, Coogler, Del Toro, Safdie, Zhao in 2 Hour Director Convo

by Alex Billington
February 18, 2026
Source: YouTube

“When it’s 50% figured out, let’s just start. I just want the cameras to be rolling when s&!t falls down.” Listen in! The Directors Guild of America has posted their full-on 2 hour, 20 minute conversation with the five nominated directors from this year for the DGA Award (full list of winners here). This conversation was recorded at the DGA Theatre in Los Angeles on February 7th – right before the awards were handed out that weekend. The five Best Director nominees from 2025 are: Paul Thomas Anderson for One Battle After Another, Ryan Coogler for Sinners, Guillermo del Toro for Frankenstein, Chloe Zhao for Hamnet, and Josh Safdie for Marty Supreme. Ever awards season offers up fascinating interviews with some of the top talent in the film industry, but this one feels special. It’s not just a quick conversation – it’s almost 2 & 1/2 hours of the best directors in cinema today talking about the magic (and fun) of making movies. And it’s awesome. What a group of amazing filmmakers! And gathering them together to geek out is so entertaining.

Thanks to The Film Stage for the tip on this video debuting online. Here’s the official intro via the Directors Guild of America – from their YouTube: “On February 7, the DGA presented its membership with a unique opportunity to celebrate the craft of directing during the 35th Annual Meet the Nominees: Theatrical Feature Film symposium. Following a welcome from President Christopher Nolan, the 2025 Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film Award nominees — Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Guillermo del Toro (Frankenstein), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) and Chloé Zhao (Hamnet) — joined moderator Jeremy Kagan onstage in the Guild’s Los Angeles Theater for an in-depth discussion about their work.” There’s so many fascinating stories told over the course of this two hour conversation. What I also find quite interesting about filmmakers is that each one of them has an entirely different process, each one does things their own way, yet they all end up making incredible movies. And hearing from each about how they do it is the most intriguing part. Glad they posted this video online.

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