Seth Rogen may have been the bigger name of the two men interviewed on the stage, but Will Reiser was the one with the story to tell. Moderator Dave Itzkoff made the right call by beginning the discussion about last year’s “cancer comedy” 50/50 with Reiser, who documents parts of his own cancer experience in the screenplay he drafted for the film. Reiser insisted, however, that while themes, situations, and some relationships were lifted from real life for his script, most of the film’s events are not part of his recovery story.

PANEL NERDS

Kristen Wiig and Paul Feig say they’ve been surprised at how last year’s comedy hit Bridesmaids has been received by some critics. They are pleased by the overall reception of their film, but wonder why so many people wrongly called it a “female comedy,” when it’s “a comedy with women in it,” as Wiig characterized it. No matter, the film, which is now getting some Oscar buzz, may have paved the way for similar projects to get greenlit in the future.

Who: Pedro Almodovar and Penelope Cruz, interviewed by Lynn Hirschberg What: TimesTalks‘ “A Conversation with Pedro Almodovar and Penelope Cruz” Where: The Times Center When October 7, 2009 Thumbs: Up

Who: Quentin Tarantino interviewed by Lynn Hirschberg What: TimesTalks, “A Conversation with Quentin Tarantino” Where: The Times Center When: August 14, 2009 Thumbs: Up