PATTON
OSWALT

Patton Oswalt was born in Portsmouth, Virginia, on 27 January 1969. His career as a comedian and writer provides one route into his work as an actor. Talking for Clapping earned him the 2016 Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special and the 2017 Grammy for Best Comedy Album. The awards recognise different forms of the work, rather than a film-acting performance. For FLM.RED, stand-up is a useful place to listen to how Oswalt shapes an address to an audience: a sentence can change direction as an idea develops, and a pause can let listeners catch up or anticipate what comes next. That relationship with the listener offers a point of comparison for his screen roles.

Ratatouille (2007) gives his voice to Remy in the original English-language cast. Pixar’s story follows a rat who wants to become a chef, a desire that puts him at odds with both expectations and the practical conditions of a professional kitchen. Oswalt’s work belongs within a collaboration of design, animation and sound. FLM.RED listens to the difference between Remy explaining his enthusiasm and having to act on it in front of others. A voice can make an imagined taste feel urgent, while the animated body has its own limits and possibilities. The character’s wish to be understood helps connect the culinary fantasy to a recognisable problem of finding a place to work and belong.

In Young Adult (2011), directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody, Oswalt plays Matt Freehauf opposite Charlize Theron’s Mavis Gary. Her return to her hometown leads to an unusual connection with a former classmate. The live-action setting gives Oswalt a different kind of exchange from either a stand-up audience or an animated kitchen. For FLM.RED, the conversations are worth following for the distance between recognising another person’s habits and knowing how to help them. Humour can make a difficult encounter bearable without making it comfortable. Moving among these forms reveals several uses of the same performer’s timing. The films linked below are titles currently associated with him in FLM.RED, not a complete record of his acting, writing, voice work or stand-up releases.