Jemaine Clement stars in heart-warming ‘People Places Things’

Jemaine Clement is a brilliant funnyman. One-half of the New Zealand musical parody duo “Flight of the Conchords,” Clement is capitalizing on the cult status of his hit HBO series by branching out into the world of movies.

He’s already had bit roles in big movies like “Men in Black 3” and “Rio,” and wrote and starred in one of this year’s funniest and best films, the vampire documentary “What We Do in the Shadows.”

And now he’s back with a star turn in the American indie film called “People Places Things,” which premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival.

The movie is not a straight comedy, but a surprisingly heart-warming and moving story about a man whose world collapses when his wife divorces him and takes his kids. It engenders as many tears as it does laughs.

Clement tells me he first noticed the humor in the seemingly sad circumstances.

“When I first read it, I found it quite funny, there are funny parts in it,” Clement said. “Then I watched &#8212 Jim Strouse is the director &#8212 I watched his other movies, the first one being a film called “Grace is Gone,” which is a very serious drama. And then I thought, ‘maybe I read this wrong.'”

It’s a great role for Clement. It capitalizes on a vulnerable side that we rarely glimpse in his much more broad comedic roles. And he admits to me that he can definitely relate to his character’s situation.

“My son is the same age as the kids in the film, so I know what kids of their age like to do, which is being carried around and drawing mermaids,” Clement said. “I was probably more moved by the script of this guy who loves his partner, his kids, and he’s lost his partner. She’s left him and he sees his kids half the time. I can relate to that more than I would before I was a dad.”

“People Places Things” opens Friday, Aug. 14 at SIFF Uptown Theater.