Through deliberate casting choices, a permissive approach to performance, and an editing process that prioritizes variety, Lanthimos shaped \u201cBugonia\u201d into a film that balances the absurd with the dreadfully hilarious. Here are the lessons filmmakers can learn from his latest film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Build trust, then step back.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nWhile the overtly political \u201cBugonia\u201d may tackle new subject matter for Lanthimos, he approached the unfamiliar landscape with oh-so-familiar collaborators: The film marks his fifth collaboration with Stone and his second with Plemons. Returning to actors he trusts allowed his working method to be notably hands-off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rather than guiding his stars toward predetermined performances, Lanthimos maintained distance from their preparation, allowing their choices to remain opaque even to him. Relinquishing control in this way \u201cwas simple,\u201d he explained on IndieWire\u2019s \u201cFilmmaker Toolkit\u201d<\/mark><\/a> podcast. \u201cIt\u2019s nice when you\u2019ve worked with someone and just have a shorthand.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\nIn doing so, Lanthimos created an environment where actors felt free to experiment without over-explaining or over-correcting. For collaborators like Stone and Plemons, that creative space encourages confidence and freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Plemons told movies.ie<\/mark><\/a>, \u201cThe more time you spend with someone, the better you get to know that person and the easier it is to communicate. Or you realize that there isn\u2019t even much of a need to communicate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\")
(L to R) Director Yorgos Lanthimos and director of photography Robbie Ryan during the production of BUGONIA, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Atsushi Nishijima\/Focus Features \u00a9\u00a02025 All Rights Reserved.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nMix professional and non-professional actors.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nAlongside repeated collaborators Plemons and Stone, Lanthimos cast a new face to play Teddy\u2019s autistic cousin Don: 19-year-old Delbis, who is autistic, developed his love for performance through the inclusive theater program the Miracle Project<\/mark><\/a>. Don functions as the audience\u2019s proxy, carrying skepticism and moral uncertainty through the film. Stone, who also served as a producer, described Don to the Los Angeles Times<\/mark><\/a> as \u201cthe audience\u2019s window, the one who can see through the charade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nDelbis was unaware of the scale of the project when he responded to an open casting call for \u201cBugonia.\u201d That unfamiliarity was precisely what Lanthimos was seeking. \u201cI wanted him to bring his very special sensibility and understanding of the world and how he saw the character,\u201d the director told NPR<\/mark><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nBy placing non-professional actors alongside trained, experienced performers, Lanthimos introduces a level of uncertainty into each scene\u2014one that heightens tension and forces real-time reactivity between characters. In a heated argument between Teddy and Michelle at the dinner table, for instance, Don\u2019s eyes dart back and forth between the characters, as if silently admitting he no longer knows who to believe and inviting the audience to sit in that same discomfort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shoot for variety, not perfection.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nDirectors vary widely in how they approach a take. Some prioritize efficiency, while others favor exhaustive repetition in search of precision (we\u2019re looking at you, Fincher). Lanthimos falls somewhere in between, focusing on intention over quantity. \u201cIt\u2019s not cohesive from the beginning,\u201d he told Variety<\/mark><\/a> of his diverse filmmaking approach. \u201cYou\u2026try things out and see how they work and find the balance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nBy encouraging variation, he and longtime editor Yorgos Mavropsaridis gain greater flexibility in postproduction. Take the chaotic kidnapping sequence, in which Teddy and Don struggle to physically restrain Michelle. Lanthimos made the last-second decision to film the scene using a crane setup. As cinematographer Robbie Ryan noted to Variety<\/mark><\/a>, \u201cYorgos just said, \u2018Why don\u2019t we try the attack from inside over the pool?\u2019 \u201d This improvisation places the viewer at a comical distance, creating the scene\u2019s delicate, unpredictable interplay of humor and tension.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThat flexibility is essential to landing the film\u2019s tonal balance. As Lanthimos told Deadline<\/mark><\/a>, directing often involves \u201cfiguring out the balance between the hilarity of it and the darkness of it.\u201d Multiple interpretations of the same scene allow that balance to be adjusted in retrospect.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n(L to R) Aidan Delbis as Don and Jesse Plemons as Teddy in director Yorgos Lanthimos\u2019 BUGONIA, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Atsushi Nishijima\/Focus Features \u00a9 2025 All Rights Reserved.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nLet the audience connect the dots.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\nLanthimos\u2019 projects often leave viewers eager to discuss not only how the film made them feel<\/em>, but what it might be saying<\/em>. This ambiguity is intentional. Rather than providing clear answers to questions raised in his films, Lanthimos structures them to encourage personal interpretation. As he explained to RogerEbert.com<\/mark><\/a>, his goal is to allow audiences to \u201cconnect the dots for themselves, whether it revolves around the plot or the motivations and background of a character.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In doing so, Lanthimos created an environment where actors felt free to experiment without over-explaining or over-correcting. For collaborators like Stone and Plemons, that creative space encourages confidence and freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Plemons told movies.ie<\/mark><\/a>, \u201cThe more time you spend with someone, the better you get to know that person and the easier it is to communicate. Or you realize that there isn\u2019t even much of a need to communicate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n Alongside repeated collaborators Plemons and Stone, Lanthimos cast a new face to play Teddy\u2019s autistic cousin Don: 19-year-old Delbis, who is autistic, developed his love for performance through the inclusive theater program the Miracle Project<\/mark><\/a>. Don functions as the audience\u2019s proxy, carrying skepticism and moral uncertainty through the film. Stone, who also served as a producer, described Don to the Los Angeles Times<\/mark><\/a> as \u201cthe audience\u2019s window, the one who can see through the charade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Delbis was unaware of the scale of the project when he responded to an open casting call for \u201cBugonia.\u201d That unfamiliarity was precisely what Lanthimos was seeking. \u201cI wanted him to bring his very special sensibility and understanding of the world and how he saw the character,\u201d the director told NPR<\/mark><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By placing non-professional actors alongside trained, experienced performers, Lanthimos introduces a level of uncertainty into each scene\u2014one that heightens tension and forces real-time reactivity between characters. In a heated argument between Teddy and Michelle at the dinner table, for instance, Don\u2019s eyes dart back and forth between the characters, as if silently admitting he no longer knows who to believe and inviting the audience to sit in that same discomfort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Directors vary widely in how they approach a take. Some prioritize efficiency, while others favor exhaustive repetition in search of precision (we\u2019re looking at you, Fincher). Lanthimos falls somewhere in between, focusing on intention over quantity. \u201cIt\u2019s not cohesive from the beginning,\u201d he told Variety<\/mark><\/a> of his diverse filmmaking approach. \u201cYou\u2026try things out and see how they work and find the balance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n By encouraging variation, he and longtime editor Yorgos Mavropsaridis gain greater flexibility in postproduction. Take the chaotic kidnapping sequence, in which Teddy and Don struggle to physically restrain Michelle. Lanthimos made the last-second decision to film the scene using a crane setup. As cinematographer Robbie Ryan noted to Variety<\/mark><\/a>, \u201cYorgos just said, \u2018Why don\u2019t we try the attack from inside over the pool?\u2019 \u201d This improvisation places the viewer at a comical distance, creating the scene\u2019s delicate, unpredictable interplay of humor and tension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That flexibility is essential to landing the film\u2019s tonal balance. As Lanthimos told Deadline<\/mark><\/a>, directing often involves \u201cfiguring out the balance between the hilarity of it and the darkness of it.\u201d Multiple interpretations of the same scene allow that balance to be adjusted in retrospect.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lanthimos\u2019 projects often leave viewers eager to discuss not only how the film made them feel<\/em>, but what it might be saying<\/em>. This ambiguity is intentional. Rather than providing clear answers to questions raised in his films, Lanthimos structures them to encourage personal interpretation. As he explained to RogerEbert.com<\/mark><\/a>, his goal is to allow audiences to \u201cconnect the dots for themselves, whether it revolves around the plot or the motivations and background of a character.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/L-to-R-Director-Yorgos-Lanthimos-and-director-of-photography-Robbie-Ryan-during-the-production-of-BUGONIA-15_4243_D017_00006_rgb-1024x683.jpg\")
Credit: Atsushi Nishijima\/Focus Features \u00a9\u00a02025 All Rights Reserved.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nMix professional and non-professional actors.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Shoot for variety, not perfection.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/L-to-R-Aidan-Delbis-Jesse-Plemons-07_4243_D011_00159_rgb-1024x683.jpg\")
Credit: Atsushi Nishijima\/Focus Features \u00a9 2025 All Rights Reserved.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nLet the audience connect the dots.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n