L.A. indie fest afloat

For his part, Mantegna joked that "all I know to direct is Mamet. I can’t compare it to anything else."

But the helmer added the "main thing is to not be afraid of it. The times I’ve seen Mamet’s stuff be not as good as it should be is because people are intimidated by it. It’s good writing and you don’t fight it."

The good people who came to see Mantegna’s film were co-stars Peter Falk, Robert Forster, Jack Wallace, George Wendt, Tony Mamet and J.J. Johnston; plus guests Bob Laemmle, Brad Krevoy, James Woods, Anne Sterling, Hooman Majd, John Sloss and Seymour Cassel.