Cool people like cool things, which is why we asked cool person John Wilson to share some recommendations on Perfectly Imperfect.

John Wilson is a filmmaker and the mind behind HBO’s “How to with John Wilson”, a really special tv show executive produced by Nathan Fielder that uses John’s narration and incredible New York City street footage (shot by him and camera operators like Leia Jospe) to explain how to engage in small talk, enjoy wine, find a parking spot, split a check, and more. It’s my favorite show on television and the season two finale, “How To Be Spontaneous”, just aired last Friday, so it’s kinda the perfect time to binge the whole series if you haven’t already seen it. John has great taste and lucky for us, he’s here to tell us what he’s been into.

Without further ado

John Wilson (instagram)

📚 Thy Neighbor’s Wife

I really love Gay Talese and this is my favorite book of his. It’s kind of a history of sexuality in the United States. He even goes to this swingers resort and documents the dysfunction of communal living while it slowly ruins his own marriage. 

📺 Inside Edition

I watch inside edition YouTube channel all the time because there are a lot of stories that nobody else is covering. One of my favorite video titles is “world’s smallest police dog dies of heartbreak.” They do a lot of really weird pieces where they go to a hotel with a blacklight to see if they changed sheets between guests and stuff. 

📚 Among the Thugs

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It says so many interesting things about groupthink and crowd violence. He hangs out with a bunch of soccer hooligans as they fly around Europe and destroy whatever city they land in. There’s no logic just pure adrenaline. I feel like I have a better understanding of why people act the way they do every time I read it. 

📺 The Office Christmas Party

This is a great documentary that I think was on BBC in the 70s or something. They just film an office Christmas party and it becomes a sloppy mess where everyone is chain-smoking and making out in closets and stuff.

📽️ Overnight (2003)

I think about this doc all the time because it’s kind of a cautionary tale. It’s about the making of that movie “Boondock Saints” and all the shitty stuff that happened during development. The director was a megalomaniac who refused to listen to anyone else and got drunk off the attention he got from Harvey Weinstein and other people in Hollywood. Every time I’m being really stubborn about something on a creative project, I think of this movie and it reminds me that I should always make time to doubt myself.

Follow John on Instagram.

Watch How To With John Wilson on HBO.

Check out his short films on johnsmovies.com.

Perfectly Imperfect is a free newsletter featuring curated recommendations from real people. Subscribe for posts like these in your inbox twice a week.

Follow Perfectly Imperfect on Instagram

Join the Perfectly Imperfect Discord

Follow Tyler, Alex, & Serey on Instagram