Steven Soderbergh

Steven Soderbergh managed to keep a clear head despite being called Steven Spielberg not once, but twice by the moderator during the press conference for Solaris. In fact, far from having an identity crisis, he deftly answered questions about his multiple roles of writer, director, and cinematographer for the film. But he was also careful not to give too much away. When I asked him what one idea did he want audiences to come away with, he said the film was “purposefully open-ended. Ulrich [Tukur, who played ship captain Gibarian in the film] has a line, ‘There are no answers, only choices,’ and that was...the theme of the film. These are large questions, and I certainly didn’t feel that I had any definitive conclusions. I always felt the experience of the film was half [about] watching the film and half [about] talking about it afterwards.”

But he also acknowledged that this ambiguity did make the film a difficult sell in the U.S., especially given that it was released during the Christmas season, where American audiences tend to flock either to Oscar contenders or “popcorn” flicks. In fact, because it is a more slow-paced, thought-provoking film, Soderbergh felt that Solaris might find more of an audience in Europe than it did in the U.S., saying that “of all the films I’ve made, it’s the most European in its aesthetic. [But] we may find that people over here find it too American, and people in America find it too European.” Regardless, the press conference for Solaris was an interesting and entertaining visit with a highly-acclaimed director. (KG)

George Clooney

George Clooney obviously had a lot of fun directing Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, despite the pressures of it being his directorial debut. When I asked how he chose this to be his first at the helm, he said that it was not so much a desire to find a "debut", but more an effort to not let the idea for the film die. The film had had many different leads and directors attached to it over a period of several years, but after languishing for a while, Clooney decided to pitch his idea for how to tell the story to Miramax. Although Miramax really liked his ideas, they still met with several "A-list" directors before deciding to let Clooney have a shot. But now, the rest is history (just like the story in the film – wink wink!). (KG)

Nicole Kidman

Nicole Kidman couldn’t stop raving about Virginia Woolf, even though she originally thought she was reading for the part of Laura Brown in The Hours. “I would not have cast myself in the role if I were casting the film,” she said. “When I first read the script I thought…I was reading it to play Laura Brown. Meryl thought she was reading it to play Virginia. [Director] Stephen [Daldry] actually had far more faith that I could do it than I did.” In the production notes for the film Kidman said that the character of Virginia had a particularly profound effect on her and that at that time in her life, she needed to play her. Knowing that, I asked her what exactly did she learn from Virginia Woolf? Kidman responded, “I got to discover her and her profundity and her genius. I [was] fascinated by Virginia…; she has this incredibly strong intellect and also this emotional fragility, and the combination of that makes her an extraordinary creature.”

Ironically, though, Kidman didn’t like Virginia Woolf novels when she first read them in school. “I hated her; I thought she was boring,” said Kidman. “But that was because I was drawn to the romantics…and poetry. I think that’s why I was lucky to have this role at this time because I got to discover her at a time in my life when I was open to understanding what she was talking about.” Obviously, the result was a good one, with Kidman receiving wide acclaim for her performance – winning the Golden Globe for best actress in a dramatic role and being nominated for the Oscar for best actress. (KG)

Spike Lee

25th Hour features an unusual main character – a drug dealer. But having a drug dealer as your protagonist allows for powerful statements to be made about the consequences of an individual’s actions, explained director Spike Lee. When I asked him about a particularly powerful scene in the film in which Monty, the main character, goes on a rant complaining about all the groups of immigrants in New York City and why that scene was included, Lee shared that, “this scene was about Monty lashing out, venting rage at, supposedly, the people who were responsible for the predicament that he was in…But at the end of the scene he’s really come to that moment [of realization] that no one else is responsible for where he is. Not the cab driver, not the guy playing basketball, not anyone else. He’s the reason he’s going away to prison.”

This idea was also important to Edward Norton, who played Monty, since Monty is someone who does unsavory things and who might not be the first choice of a character for an actor to play. “You can’t judge the potential of a film or a character based on whether someone in it is making choices that you wouldn’t make in your own life,” said Norton, but at the same time, the idea that there was an important message to the film helped seal the deal. “For me…the message.., if there is one, is that there are consequences to…not examining the morality of what you’re doing. I think [the script] would have had a very different impact on me…if he had gotten off the hook.” (MW)