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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 06 May 2013

Star Trek Into Darkness is a highly anticipated sequel and when he was recently in Australia, I spoke with director JJ Abrams to talk about the film and his life outside of Hollywood. You can listen to / download an audio by clicking here. My review of the film can be found here.

Matt:  I had the chance to speak to this guy a couple of years ago about Super 8, which made my top 10 list in 2011, and I say hello once again to JJ Abrams.  How’s it going?

JJ:  Very very well.  How are you?

Matt:  Very well.  The details of so many of your projects are kept very quiet in the lead up to release.  The plot is kept under wraps.  The trailer gives very little away.  How do you manage that?  With so many people working on the film, how do you stop the leaks from getting out?

JJ:  A lot of threats (laughs).  The truth is that we ask everyone involved to please try and respect the moviegoer’s experience by keeping things as quiet as possible and let the first time people see the movie truly be the “first time” and not feel like a repeat viewing because you’ve read or heard or seen too many spoilers.

Matt:  So are there are limited number of scripts that are out there?  Do you keep control over that sort of stuff?

JJ:  Yeah, we try and limit the script distribution and try to keep things coded so that we’re not inadvertently having things marked on either wardrobe or props.  There’s a lot of silliness.  In fact when you get to the very end of the experience, you have to change the codes to make the credits at the end of the movie, because everything has crazy names, and you have to switch it back to what it really is.  It’s a little bit of a headache.

Matt:  Do you hold test screenings with a film like this?  Or do you avoid them to keep things under wraps?

JJ:  We didn’t do any large research test screenings but we did a number of friends and family screenings where we’d bring people in.  Not just friends but also friends of friends.  We asked them to fill out forms anonymously telling us what they really thought because there’s nothing worse than having the director of a movie look at you and say honestly what you thought.

Matt:  I know there are some directors who like to do one-off projects like what Sam Mendes did with Skyfall and he said it’s the only Bond film he wants to do.   Others like to be part of a longer-running franchise.  You’re back here again with a second Star Trek movie.  Is it something you weigh up?  The thought of doing something different as opposed to revisiting something you’ve done before?

JJ:  The key for me is to do something that interests me – something that makes me laugh or gasp or scream or cheer.  I don’t really look at it from the outside in and say “let’s mix it up and make it different” but I do try to do as much as I can to make it authentically interesting and fun.

Matt:  Critical to any good action film is a great bad guy.  I think there’s been a lack of them recently with films like Die Hard 5 and GI Joe: Retaliation.  Here you’ve brought in Benedict Cumberbatch who I think is terrific.  There’s a lot of greyness to his character.  Was that always your intention – to avoid a simple black & white villain?

JJ:  100%.  I love a villain who you start to feel sympathy for at a certain point.  It’s the weirdest and oddest and scariest kind of thing where you start to consider this person as a person and not as an adversary.  Benedict Cumberbatch is an extraordinary actor for those who don’t know him.  He’s an amazing performer.  One of my favourite things about him in this movie is that he does an extraordinary job without a crazy mask or bizarre make-up or ridiculous facial hair or a silly costume.  He’s just a man with a story and he’s incredible.

Matt:  I look at a movie like this as you can see there’s so much going on behind the scenes – the costumes, the make up, the look of other planets, the interior design of the spaceship, the choreography of the battle scenes.  How do you stay on top of it all?  Is it you making the call across all these areas or do you put your faith in the crew members to make a lot of the decisions?

JJ:  Hearing you describe it just exhausted me (laughs).  The truth is that I work with an extraordinary team.  A lot of the ideas that are the best of the movie were created and invented by the people with whom I work.  Of course as a director, I’m ultimately choosing what will be seen on screen but I’m so lucky to be working with production designers like Scott Chambliss or costume designers like Michael Kaplan or composers like Michael Giacchino.  Our casting directors, April Webster and Alyssa Weisberg, found these great actors.  This is a huge collaboration and I’m honoured to be a part of it.

Matt:  You’ve become synonymous with the use of lens flare in movies and I’ve seen a few parody images and videos on the internet.  Does that sort of thing bother you or do you kind of wear it as a badge of honour? 

JJ:  You know, I don’t know what you’re talking about (laughs).  I love the idea of lens flares and I acknowledge that I overuse them.  I know I need to cut back a little bit and I’m working on it.

Matt:  When I look at the IMDB and see all the projects you’re working on, I picture you as one of the busiest people in Hollywood.  Is it like that reality?  Do you have a work-life balance or is that something that you give up when working in the industry?

JJ:  As in having a life?  Well Katie and I have three kids and I love them more than I could ever say.  Obviously they are the priority.  Having three kids, as any parent will tell you, is infinitely more exhausting than any professional position.  As much as I know that I do work a lot, I would argue that the hardest job that Katie and I have is being parents to these wonderful kids.  I don’t work on weekends and I take the kids to school almost every day and the reason that I am able to work on as many things as I can is because I work with an amazing team.

Matt:  Do you get the time to go the movies as often as you’d like?

JJ:  No.  Katie and I so rarely get to go out that when we do, we spend most of the time talking about we can’t believe that we got out (laughs). 

Matt:  Are there plans for any future Star Trek movies going forward or are you not sure at this stage?

JJ:  There are no plans.  If there’s demand for one, we’d be thrilled to have that conversation.

Matt:  I normally finish by asking people what they have in the works but it’s well documented that you’ll be at the helm for a new Star Wars movie.  Given the ridiculously critical fan base and the tough reception that the last 3 films received, what’s made you take on the challenge of trying to appease everyone with a new instalment?

JJ:  The opportunity is enormous and the people involved are spectacular.  I hope to learn from them and I really look forward to starting the process.  It’s very early days. 

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 21 April 2013

Song For Marion was chosen to close the 2012 Toronto Film Festival and is now getting a cinematic release here in Australia.  I had a quick chat with British director Paul Andrew Williams about his film…

Matt:  I believe this story is a personal one for you.  Is it based on something in your own life?  Can you tell us how this story came about?

Paul:  It’s personal to me in lots of different ways.  It’s not necessarily the whole story but there are elements that relate to my grandparents and observing the way they dealt with cancer – the love of a different generation is much stronger and determined and respectful.  That’s what really made me want to tell the story.  The idea of a choir was something that would bring an old man out of his shell.

Matt:  With the success of films like The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel there seems to be a sudden interest by studios in projects that look at the lives of the elderly and they’re targeted at the same demographic.  Do you think there’s a void in that area?

Paul:  I actually wrote this film 6 years ago when I’d never heard of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Quartet.  For me, it’s about a family.  Yes, the central characters are of a certain age but I wasn’t really thinking about what audiences are looking for at the moment.  If I can make a film and people go and see it, I’ll be happy.

Matt:  You mentioned that you wrote the script 6 years ago.  Was it difficult to find financiers to help get it off the ground?

Paul:  There were lots of difficulties.  There were times too when I was busy.  I wrote it just before I started another project.  There were a number of reasons why it took a little longer to come to fruition.  That’s just the world of film. 

Matt:  You’ve got a quality cast here headlined by Terrence Stamp and Oscar winner Vanessa Redgrave.  How did you get your script in front of their noses?

Paul:  The script when to Terrence via someone else and I didn’t realise it had even gone to him.  The fact that he read it and both he and Vanessa really wanted to do it was great.

Matt:  There’s a large group who make up the choir that we see in the film.  Are they actors or do they form part of an actual choir?

Paul:  There were some actors but the majority were just from local choirs in the area.  We tried to find people who just enjoyed singing as opposed to those who were great singers or great actors.  We just wanted real people who could string a tune together.

Matt:  It’s an interesting group of songs that you’ve picked for the choir to sing.  Was that your choosing or did they have a little input to the songs?

Paul:  It was always the idea that they would sing more unconventional choir songs.  That said, these were the sort of songs that we saw choirs singing when we were auditioning. 

Matt:  The film screened at the Toronto Film Festival.  Is that right?

Paul:  Yeah.  It was chosen to close the Festival so we were very fortunate.

Matt:  I went there a couple of years ago and I remember it being such a busy, insane place.  What was the experience like for you in Toronto? 

Paul:  It’s the second time I’ve been there with a film.  The first time was with my first film and no one had heard of me.  It was actually more hectic then because so many people wanted to meet me and offer to represent me.  This time, we went for a few days and we got to enjoy it a little bit more.  Closing the Festival and having a film that the audience really liked… we were really lucky.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 21 April 2013

Guy Pearce is one of Australia’s most accomplished actors with a wide range of credits including two films which won the Oscar for best picture – The Hurt Locker and The King’s Speech.  There’s also Prometheus, Memento, L.A. Confidential and Animal Kingdom.  He can currently be seen in Iron Man 3 and I recently had a 10-minute chat with Guy to talk about the movie and some other stuff he’s been working on. You can listen to / download an audio by clicking here. My review of the film can be found here.

Matt:  We saw you Prometheus last year, well, we kind of saw you beneath all the make-up, but this is about as a big a blockbuster as it gets.  How did you get approached about the role of Aldrich Killian?

Guy:  I’m not sure to be honest.  I don’t know if they were keen on me or my agent pushed me onto them.  By the time I heard about it, it was an offer so someone must have thought it was a good idea.

Matt:  What’s it like inside Hollywood in the sense that you are already an accomplished actor but do you still have to audition for a role like this?

Guy:  I didn’t in this case, no but it does depend on the situation.  I’m sure if Martin Scorsese was interested in me or something he may want to do an audition.  With the majority of roles though, if people realise that you’re capable of doing something then you’re in.

Matt:  You’ve made some wonderful low-budget films and Memento comes to mind but here you’re working on a film with a big $200m budget.  Does it feel any different on set or is just another movie?

Guy:  It only feels different on set because you’re filming at the studio.  You’re there in a big studio with 20 visual effects artists behind you who are creating images on their laptops.  It feels bigger in that regard but on the other hand, you’re there with the same group of people – a bunch of actors, the director, the cinematographer, the camera team and the prop guys.  So there are times when it doesn’t feel all that different at all.

Matt:  Once upon a time, comic books where things that nerdish kids read at school.  Now days, movies based on comic books seem to be all the rage.  Audiences are flocking to them, they’re pulling in billions at the box-office and studios are making more and more of them.  What’s going on here?  Why are comic book / superhero movies suddenly so popular?

Guy:  I don’t know.  I never read comic strips as a kid.  They did nothing for me whatsoever but I can imagine for a lot of people they are a wonderful fantasy.  To see that stuff come to life on screen is exciting for a lot of those comic book nerds out there.  It’s not just nerds though.  There are many people looking for a bit of escapism.  Some comic book films are done in a standard kind of way and then you have some like the recent Christopher Nolan Batman series that are very dark, cerebral and powerful.

Then you’ve got something like Iron Man which I think treads a beautiful line between campy humour and serious story, primarily because of Robert Downey Jr.  He brings something to this character and these films that most other actors could not.  He avoids the typical serious, “clenched jaw” hero that is out to save the world.  You kind of never know what he’s going to do next and it’s exciting to watch.

Matt:  I’ve only had a chance to see part of the film so far.  Do you interact a lot with Robert Downey Jr in the film?

Guy:  We had a few scenes together but I haven’t seen the finished film myself so I don’t know how much of what I did is still in there.  We have a bit to do with each other but we spend much of the film trying to track each other down.  I also worked with Gwyneth Paltrow and Rebecca Hall.

Matt:  We’ve mentioned the comic books already and you said you didn’t read them as a kid but with this particular role, did you have to do some background reading of the comic books or are you more relying on the script and director for inspiration?

Guy:  I was just relying on the script as I feel that’s someone else’s job to pull the best bits from the source material and make a great script.  If I read the script and it works for me then great.  If it doesn’t work for me and I still want to do it, then I might go and do a bit more reading to see if there’s something missing about this character. 

I did have a look at some of the comic books, not because I thought the script was bad but just out of interest.  I was curious to see how he appears and how Aldrich Killian looks while trying to get a sense of his manor and demeanour.  What we’ve put in the film is a mix of the best bits and pieces of his life.  If you stick too closely to the source material, you’re only going to get confused and disappointed because things aren’t there. 

Matt:  A lot goes into the promotion of a Marvel movie.  Do you have to do a lot of travel in the next few weeks to talk up the film?

Guy:  Not a lot.  I’ll go to the States to do the opening and press over there but that’ll probably be about it.  Robert’s already in Asia now promoting it.  I don’t have a really big role in the film to be honest but I have worked on films in the past where you’re travelling non-stop around the world for about 18 months trying to get something off the ground.

Matt:  I’ve been reflecting over the past few days about the life of Roger Ebert, the world’s most influential film critic who passed away last week.  As an actor, are you someone who reads a lot of reviews?

Guy:  I don’t read a lot of them.  I used to but then I got burned really badly once and it left me thinking that I don’t really need to see reviews.  Having said that, I watch David and Margaret all the time.  If there are reviewers like Siskel & Ebert that have a great credible history, then sure, I’m curious to know what they have to say but I won’t necessarily rely on them when determining whether to see a film or not.

Matt:  Much is made about the state of the film industry here in Australia and how we struggle to come up with many of our own big hits at the box-office?  Do you get approached with a lot of scripts from Aussie filmmakers?

Guy:  Not a lot.  There are not a lot of films that get made in Australia unfortunately.  I’m always trying to seek things out.  I think sometimes I don’t get approached because people think “oh, he’s a Hollywood actor now and we wouldn’t be able to afford him so don’t bother” or they’ll go “we want someone who is unknown and bring a bit more mystery to a role”.  I hate the fact that I might get overlooked for a role because they think it’ll be difficult for the public to believe that I am this simple Aussie character.  I’d love to do more Australian stuff than what I actually do.

Matt:  And where can we expect to see you next?  What projects are in the works?

Guy:  I’ve got a couple of things in the can.  I’ve just finished David Michod’s film, The Rover.  I did a film in New Orleans after Iron Man with Kristen Wiig which I think is now called Hateship Loveship.  I also did Drake Doremus’ movie which we took to Sundance this year called Breathe In.  Those films all need to come out.  In May this year, we’re going to shoot the third Jack Irish film.
 

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 18 April 2013

The 2013 Gold Coast Film Festival kicked off tonight and a few stars are in town for the opening weekend of films.  I caught up with writer-director Jason Trost and star Lucas Till (X-Men: First Class) to talk about a film they've put together, All Superheroes Must Die, which screens on Friday night.

Matt:  Jason, this is your baby – you wrote it, directed it, produced it and starred in it.

Jason:  It’s definitely my bastard child.  It’s my fault one way or the other.

Matt:  You’ve come all the way to Australia.  What’s the purpose?  What are you trying to get out of the experience here at the Gold Coast Film Festival?

Jason:  It’s to raise awareness for the movie and to get our Australian DVD release in order. 

Lucas:  And we get a free Australian trip too! (laughs)  This film is the little engine that could and we never really had any huge expectations.  It had such a low budget.

Matt:  So when you’re making a film like this do you know that this is the path you’re going to take – trying to build a bit of interest through the film festival circuit and hope to get a bit of cash out of DVD sales?

Jason:  Yeah, you never really know what’s going to happen until it happens.  It never happens the same twice – that’s the best way I can sum up independent movies.

Matt:  What budget were you working with on this film?  How much did you raise?

Jason:  We shot it for $20,000.

Lucas:  I don’t know what the union laws are like here in Australia but you can get into some real binds with low-budget independent filmmaking that make it impossible to shoot.  $20,000 would be your craft service budget on any other film.  This was a bare bones, “money in our pocket” movie.

Jason:  The term “sweat equity” comes to mind.

Matt:  Lucas, you’re a producer on this film as well.  For someone who’s 22, that’s pretty impressive.  What did that entail?

Lucas:  Not to toot my own horn but I was actually 19 at the time. (laughs)

Matt:  Well that shows how long it’s taken for us to see this film.

Lucas:  It’s been a hell of a journey.  Back then, I was frustrated with where my career was going.  I was auditioning for a lot of superhero things and not getting very far.  Jason then came to me with this idea and the rest moved from there.  We got a release in America and we were able to pay ourselves back so I guess the gamble paid off.

Matt:  Comic book and superhero movies are so popular the moment.  There are so many of them.  What’s happened?  Where has the sudden interest come from within Hollywood?

Jason:  I think there’s always been an interest in them.  The reason they make so many now is because they make money and are marketable.  There’s a huge demand out there and they’re still only making a small number each year.  It’s not a lot if you’re a huge comic book fan.  I think that’s why there’s such a thirst, even when they happen.

Matt:  So what are the plans with the film going forward?  Are there other film festivals you are trying to target?

Jason:  I wish I had a firm answer.  We’re trying to lock up our distribution deal at the moment for Australia, New Zealand and the UK right now.  Beyond that is all up in the air.

Matt:  Lucas, I have to ask a question about Stoker.  I heard a lot of raves coming out of the Sundance Film Festival and the film has a big Aussie connection with Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska and Jacki Weaver.  Can you tell us a little about the film?

Lucas:  Is it not out here?

Matt:  No, we don’t get it until August.

Lucas:  Wow, that’s insane.  Are you a fan of Park Chan-wook’s movies?

Matt:  Everyone keeps telling me to watch it but I’ve never seen Oldboy.

Lucas:  Oh man.  Don’t watch it with the dubbed English.  Make sure you put yourself through the hard work of reading the subtitles.  The performances are phenomenal.

As for Stoker, it was fantastic to be a part of it.  I worked with Mia but I didn’t have a lot to do with Jacki Weaver or Nicole Kidman.  How can I describe it without spoiling it?  A lot of people will assume that it has something to do with Bram Stoker but that’s not the case.  It’s about a girl who loses her father and her mysterious uncle comes to town and helps her out.  I’ll be honest – the less you know, the better.