Timothée Chalamet in 'Marty Supreme.' A24/Courtesy Everett Collection For his breakout role in 2017's Call Me by Your Name, Timothée Chalamet learned Italian and how to play piano and guitar. To portray Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown last year, he picked up the guitar again, learned harmonica and took vocal lessons. Both roles earned Chalamet Oscar nominations. Now, in addition to rapping, he's seeking his third Oscar nod for A24's Marty Supreme, in which he plays a ping-pong hustler dreaming big. This time, Chalamet's preparation - training to perform the sport at its highest level - was once again extensive. Related Stories Movies Box Office: 'Marty Supreme' Beats 'Anaconda' on Christmas Day, 'Avatar 3' Crossing $600M Globally TV Christmas Has Never Been So Bingeable "He was singularly dedicated to getting this to be the same quality as the rest of the movie," says Diego Schaaf, the film's table tennis instructor. Schaaf grew up playing the sport in Switzerland but never competed professionally. Chalamet's preparation began long before Schaaf entered the picture. He secretly trained for years while working on projects like The French Dispatch, Wonka, and Dune: Part Two. So when he arrived for rehearsals for Marty Supreme, his skill level impressed Schaaf, an expert who previously worked on Forrest Gump (1994), Balls of Fury (2007) and an episode of NBC's Friends. Schaaf's wife, Wei Wang - a U.S. Olympian - also helped elevate Chalamet's performance. "We really dove into it last summer," Schaaf says. "We had to bring the mechanics of the strokes to a world-class level from the 1950s, which is distinctly different from how the sport is played today." Because the film, directed by Josh Safdie, is set in that era, Chalamet had to unlearn modern technique. "Timothée being a dancer, he understood immediately how he needed to move," Schaaf explains. "But we had to make that work within the context of relatively fast play." Wang worked closely with Chalamet to nail the period-specific techniques. "Different styles have very different strokes, and he understood all of it," Schaaf says. "He wasn't interested in doing the minimum. Even when he got it right, he'd say, 'Let's do it again.'" Timothée Chalamet in Marty Supreme. A24 That commitment came with challenges - especially since, as Schaaf notes, Chalamet performed all of his table tennis sequences himself, instead of using a stunt double. "We considered finding a double," Schaaf admits, "but it was hard to find someone who matched his physique and could play. From the beginning, I told Josh we needed the best possible players, because they can perform under pressure." Most Olympic-level table tennis players start training between the ages of 4 and 8, Schaaf explains. "So we knew there was a limit to how far we could go," he says. "But Timothée understood the sport well enough to know how difficult a shot would be - and then how it should look if you actually made it." Some of the difficult trick shots were missed but fixed in post-production. That understanding was crucial when choreographing matches. "In recreational table tennis, you barely move," Schaaf says. "This was very athletically demanding. He memorized every point, every movement, every shot. Timing was critical - some shots float, others travel fast - and he understood that immediately. He performed unbelievably well." Another high-profile name in the film, Tyler, the Creator, also trained with Schaaf and Wang at their club in Los Angeles, the Westside Table Tennis Center. Unlike Chalamet, Tyler had never played table tennis before. "It's rare to find someone who's literally never hit a ball," Schaaf says. "He loved it. One time he came straight from the airport, ran into the club and said, 'I'm going to buy myself a table!'" But Tyler's skill level in the film was intentionally much lower than Chalamet's. "In the bowling alley scene, he's not supposed to be a high-level player," Schaaf explains. "But after just one or two sessions, he was already returning 10 or 12 balls, which isn't easy. He was an absolute sweetheart - smiling the whole time." Tyler, the Creator and Timothée Chalamet in Marty Supreme. A24 While the training took place in Los Angeles, Marty Supreme is set in 1950s Lower East Side Manhattan. Since both Safdie and Chalamet are from New York, capturing the city's ping-pong culture was another priority. "I don't play in New York, but I've met a lot of New York players," Schaaf says. "It felt very accurate. There's more gambling, more of an underground vibe. When New York players come out West, it's a different kind of energy." Though the film follows Marty's hunger for success in table tennis, the fast-paced, anxiety-fueled intensity that the Safdie brothers' films like Good Time (2017) and Uncut Gems (2019) are known for, remains front and center - even as Marty Supreme marks Safdie's first solo feature without his brother Benny. "I watched the movie and almost forgot there was tabl