Goetzman and Demme have always been extremely clear about how complete the Talking Heads’ stage show already was before the two of them had the idea to shoot it (Demme once described it as “a movie waiting to be filmed”), but it wouldn’t be inaccurate to say that the origins of “Stop Making Sense” trace back to a phone call Goetzman received on one of those listless 1982 afternoons when he and Demme would sit around the pool and wait for opportunity to strike — which is what they did whenever they weren’t scouring record shops for new albums. “My brother was booking acts for CSUN [California State University, Northridge) at the time,” Goetzman recalled. “His job was to book The Motels and Oingo Boingo. And then he called and said ‘Dude, I think I’m going to book the ’Heads.’ And I just said ‘Jonathan, Grego’s going to try to get the ’Heads at CSUN,’ and Jonathan goes: ‘We’re filming it, man. 16 millimeter.’”
Indie Wire