Director Sam Levinson on Another Happy Day, Learning from Dad, and Ellen Barkin's 'F*cking Genius' Twitter Account
![< > celebration by Gotham Magazine with cover star Ellen Barkin of the new film Another Happy Day at The VAULT at Pfaff's on November 2, 2011 in New York City.](http://movieline.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/levinsonfeat630-120x57.jpg?w=120&h=120&crop=1)
In his debut feature Another Happy Day, director Sam Levinson (yep, Barry's son) worked with a cast including actors who've been legends since before he was born in 1985: Ellen Barkin, Ellen Burstyn, George Kennedy, Demi Moore, Thomas Haden Church, and newcomer Ezra Miller play stubborn, dysfunctional family members who bicker, spar, and essentially fail to communicate at a tumultuous wedding. Levinson garnered the 2011 Sundance Film Festival Waldo Salt screenwriting award for penning Another Happy Day, and -- like Barkin on Twitter -- is proving himself to be a fearsome, perceptive, and honest voice. We phoned Levinson to discuss his father's influence, why he screened Carnal Knowledge for his cast and crew, and Ellen Barkin's amazing candor.