Paul Giamatti Stars in 'The Holdovers,' a Surprising Holiday Tale at the KCET Cinema Series

Over a decade ago, Payne watched an unknown French film, "Merlusse" (1935), by the acclaimed filmmaker Marcel Pagnol. "I saw that film just once and it never left me," Payne recalls. Payne felt that Merlusse, which tells the story of boarding school students marooned with a reviled teacher over the holiday break, would make a great premise for a new story.

As fortune would have it, a script would soon land on Payne’s desk that cemented the idea for the him. "David Hemingson had written a pilot script that took place in an all-boys prep school, and it was wonderful," shares Payne. "I called him up and said, 'I don't want to make your pilot but would you consider writing a feature script based on a different idea?’" Payne usually writes his own screenplays, including "Sideways" and "The Descendants," both of which he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, but the collaboration with Hemingson on the film proved to be a success.

Immediately following the screening, Deadline's chief film critic Pete Hammond, who can also be seen on KCET's Must See Movies, moderated a Q&A with director, Alexander Payne.

Listen to the full Q&A from the screening below.