Cooper Raiff Hopes New Film ‘Takes The Pressure Off’ Young Audiences

CHICAGO (June 13, 2022) — Cooper Raiff started a party on his first-ever visit to Chicago. The filmmaker took the stage at the Music Box Theatre last month on opening night of the Chicago Critics Film Festival to introduce his new movie “Cha Cha Real Smooth,” in which he plays a 22-year-old who learns about life and love after stumbling into a job as a bar mitzvah host in his hometown.

The film follows Andrew, a charismatic college graduate who seizes an opportunity to make extra money as a “party starter” on the bar mitzvah circuit. He develops a friendship with a young mother and her autistic daughter, which makes for a moving dramedy about sharing formative experiences with people at different stages of life.

The film will soon be streaming for at-home audiences on Apple TV+, but Raiff told Patch he appreciates the in-person festival experience after his first movie “Shithouse” was released during pandemic shut-downs.

“You almost get warped if you don’t have that experience,” he said of the festival circuit. “It’s like, what are you churning this stuff out for, if not to share it and communicate it and be there for the reactions?”

The writer-director pitched the idea for his second feature film to producer Dakota Johnson, who also stars alongside him in this layered love story.

“I kind of spent most of the call talking about why I think she’s such an amazing actor and just pitched a role that would let her do all her things that she does so well,” he said. “She ended up being my writing buddy, so she was always there.”

The end result is Domino, a single mother of autistic teenager Lola, played by Vanessa Burghardt. Andrew quickly forms a bond with Domino and Lola, and their relationships are refreshingly memorable and heartfelt.

The cast is rounded out by Raúl Castillo, Odeya Rush, Brad Garrett and Leslie Mann as Andrew’s mom, whose character creates another special and subtle storyline.

“I wrote Mom thinking about her but didn’t dream that she would ever say yes,” said Raiff, who wrote Mann a letter about playing the role, calling her his “favorite actress in the world.” The moments shared between mother and son are an especially poignant and funny addition to “Cha Cha Real Smooth,” showing the filmmaker’s ability to balance several special story-lines over 117 minutes.

But the true heart of the movie is Andrew, whom Raiff said ended up being a version of himself. Producers encouraged him to play the captivating character after his initial hesitation. “I think Andrew is a really specific person with a very distinct personality and sense of humor and I think that it is my sense of humor,” he told Patch.

That humor and heart go a long way in making “Cha Cha Real Smooth” as memorable as its creator. It is a uniquely comforting and refreshingly human movie, serving as a moving tribute to parents of children with special needs and a beacon for post-graduates in an uncertain phase of life.

“Hopefully it takes some pressure off to see a guy working at bar mitzvahs, who doesn’t know who he is in any way, shape or form,” Raiff said of what he hopes young people take away from the film. “But also I hope that it’s just relatable and leaves people with this feeling of … how scary to have to start your own party but how like, lucky? And how fun and joyful and exciting.”

At 25 years old, the party is just getting started for Raiff’s film career. He hopes to emulate fellow Texan Jay Duplass, who helped get “Shithouse” off the ground in 2020. He also counts among his inspirations Chicago filmmaker Kelly O’Sullivan, who makes a brief appearance in “Cha Cha.”

“Greta Gerwig is [also] someone that I would love to emulate,” he said. “‘Little Women’ is just the best. It’s a perfect movie.”

Apple purchased “Cha Cha Real Smooth” out of the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award. “I think Apple is doing such an amazing job characterizing their stuff,” Raiff said, noting his love for “Ted Lasso” and “CODA.” “I feel really happy and grateful that they picked us to be a part of it.”

“Cha Cha Real Smooth” begins streaming June 17 on Apple TV+.