Deadline Hollywood - Oscar Preview/Actress - 11/25/15

PRESENTS

NOVEMBER 25, 2015 ACTRESSES/CRAFTS

SMALL WONDER Room’s modest beginning was no match for the powerful work of Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay and Lenny Abrahamson

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DEADLINE.COM/AWARDSLINE

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CATE BLANCHETT KATE WINSLET SAOIRSE RONAN JANE FONDA CAREY MULLIGAN

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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN ALL

CATEGORIES INCLUDING

BEST CAST • BEST PICTURE

“WONDERFULLY HUMAN. TIMELY IN ITS PORTRAYAL.

A talented cast led by Bryan Cranston’s intelligent and confident performance.

A deliciously malevolent Helen Mirren.”

LOS ANGELES TIMES

TIMES CHANGE. C O U R AG E I S F O R E V E R .

BleeckerStreetGuilds.com

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CONTENTS

PUBLISHER

Stacey Farish EDITOR

Anna Lisa Raya

NOVEMBER 25, 2015

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Craig Edwards

DEADLINE COEDITORS

Nellie Andreeva Mike Fleming Jr.

DEADLINE AWARDS COLUMNIST

Pete Hammond

DEADLINE CONTRIBUTORS

Anita Busch Anthony D’Alessandro Lisa de Moraes Jeremy Gerard Patrick Hipes Ali Jaafar David Lieberman Ross Lincoln Dominic Patten Erik Pedersen Denise Petski David Robb Nancy Tartaglione

AWARDSLINE CONTRIBUTORS

Antonia Blyth Chris Chapman Gabriel Goldberg Matthew Grobar Joe Utichi

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FIRST TAKE Behind the scenes on Anomalisa

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TABLE READ Composer Carter Burwell’s three chances for Oscar; Gold Derby actress charts; party pics and more

12 CHAIRMAN & CEO

Jay Penske

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

George Grobar

EXECUTIVE V.P., BUSINESS AFFAIRS

Paul Woolnough

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT

ROOM AT THE TOP How Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay and Lenny Abrahamson made cinematic alchemy with Room.

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V.P., FINANCE

THE DIALOGUE Cate Blanchett Kate Winslet Saoirse Ronan Jane Fonda Carey Mulligan

V.P., TV ENTERTAINMENT SALES

28

Craig Perreault

GENERAL COUNSEL & S.V.P., HUMAN RESOURCES

Todd Greene

V.P., CREATIVE

Nelson Anderson Ken DelAlcazar Laura Lubrano

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE, FILM & TV

BEST ACTOR HANDICAP Pete Hammond highlights the stacked category’s best shots.

ACCOUNT MANAGER

30

DIRECTOR, FILM & TV

Carra Fenton

Tiffany Windju

Brianna Hamburger

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR

BEST ACTRESS HANDICAP This was a packed year for strong femme roles.

Hammond makes his picks.

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES

32

AD SALES COORDINATOR

Malik Simmons

Natalie Longman

Stacey Farish 310-484-2553 sfarish@pmc.com

FOLLOW US! ★

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online

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THE VIZ BIZ The visual effects on The Martian, The Walk and Ant-Man keep things simple.

36

DOUBLE EXPOSURE A look at actress double nominees.

fa c e b o o k

facebook.com/DeadlineHollywood twitter

ON THE COVER: BRIE LARSON, JACOB TREMBLAY AND LENNY ABRAHAMSON PHOTOGRAPHED

BY CHRIS CHAPMAN

i n s ta g r a m

THIS PAGE: CATE BLANCHETT PHOTOGRAPHED

BY GABRIEL GOLDBERG

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★ | first take

detailoriented OCT. 31, 20 14, B U R BA NK, CA

Anomalisa had its genesis in a theatrical collaboration between director Charlie Kaufman and composer Carter Burwell in 2005, a “sound play” that featured David Thewlis, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Tom Noonan in only two performances. The film version— which focuses on typically Kaufman-esque existential themes of loneliness and love, and was codirected by Duke Johnson—is a stop-animation wonder, with Thewlis, Leigh and Noonan voicing the life-like puppets now standing in for them. The puppets were approximately one-foot tall, or one-sixth scale, and the film was shot at 24 frames per second. On a typical day, a team of 15 to 20 animators each would produce about two seconds of footage, working against an ambitious 90-minute runtime. The project ultimately took two years to complete.

Here, animator Dan Mackenzie gives us an idea of the scale and complexity of the project. —Matthew Grobar

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★ | table read

CHARTED TERRITORY

Man of

Gold Derby’s Oscar Odds

Distinction izing their scores in exchange for the drama

BEST ACTRESS

onscreen, but Carter Burwell always leaves the moviegoer with a sense of time, place and mood, especially in such films as the Coen brothers’ Miller’s Crossing or Spike Jonze’s Being John Malkovich. There’s a legacy sound to

Todd Haynes, after Velvet Goldmine and the

Burwell’s canon that triggers emotional recall:

HBO miniseries Mildred Pierce. Burwell begins

You can’t imagine his music in any other film

by watching a rough cut of the film rather than

than the one it’s in.

first reading the script. “Especially with Todd’s

With Carol, Burwell has created an affec-

films, the script doesn’t tell me everything I

tive set of rhythmic cello, contemplative piano

need to know,” he says. “Todd’s such a visual

and woodwind to capture the tortured 1950s

stylist. The way he shoots through glass or

romance between two women of varying ages

into mirrors, the way the subject is clouded or

in this feature adaptation of Patricia High-

distorted, is characteristic of the film.”

smith’s novel, The Price of Salt.

“The drama is largely internal and commu-

Burwell has an Emmy for his work on Mildred Pierce and received a Golden Globe nomination

nicated by the music,” he explains. “The music

for his Where the Wild Things Are score, but the

is forthright in telling you the importance of

Academy has yet to laud him despite his long

the emotions of what’s going on. Even if the

relationship with the Oscar-winning Coens.

theme doesn’t match what’s on screen, it

This year, however, Burwell’s odds are further

shows what’s in the eyes of these characters.”

bolstered by his music for three other awards

Carol marks the Long

contenders: Paramount’s adult animated

Island-based composer’s third

Anomalisa, Roadside Attraction’s Mr. Holmes

collaboration with director

and Universal’s British gangster epic Legend.

1á

Brie Larson (Room)

12

22

9/4

2á

Cate Blanchett (Carol)

4

21

4/1

3á

Jennifer Lawrence (Joy)

6

16

9/2

4á

Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn)

0

22

13/2

5á

Charlotte Rampling (45 Years)

0

11

16/1

6â

Carey Mulligan (Suffragette)

0

5

33/1

7á

Lily Tomlin (Grandma)

0

6

33/1

8á

Charlize Theron (Mad Max Fury Road)

0

3

66/1

9á

Emily Blunt (Sicario)

0

2

80/1

Maggie Smith (The Lady In The Van)

0

1

100/1

10 á

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Head Case

IT’S HATS GALORE IN THE PERIOD PIC TRUMBO.

per, 1963

As much a character in Jay Roach’s Trumbo as Bryan Cranston’s titular Dalton Trumbo are Daniel Orlandi’s lavish period costumes, in particular the giant hats worn by Helen Mirren’s Hedda Hopper. In real life the Hollywood gossip columnist was known to buy over 100 hats a year, so Orlandi had his work cut out for him.

“I think Hedda’s wardrobe was the most fun for Daniel,” Roach has said.

“It may seem like an exaggeration, but Hopper really dressed like that, and it’s fantastic.” At right are some of our favorite toppers worn by Mirren’s Hopper in the film. —Matthew Grobar

Hedda Hop

4

ODDS

Some composers obsess over minimal-

ODDS

BY ANTHONY D’ALESSANDRO

EXPERTS PREDICT TO WIN EXPERTS PREDICT NOMINATION

CARTER BURWELL BRINGS HIS UNMISTAKABLE SOUND TO CAROL.

EXPERTS PREDICT TO WIN EXPERTS PREDICT NOMINATION

At press time, here is how Gold Derby’s experts ranked the Oscar chances in the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress races. Get updated rankings and make your own predictions at GoldDerby.com

1á

Rooney Mara (Carol)

14

21

2á

Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl)

5

22 10/3

3â

Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs)

2

20

9/2

4á

Jane Fonda (Youth)

1

13

10/1

5á

Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight)

0

10

16/1

6á

Joan Allen (Room)

0

9

20/1

7á

Elizabeth Banks (Love and Mercy)

0

5

40/1

8á

Rachel McAdams (Spotlight)

0

3

66/1

9â

Ellen Page (Freeheld)

0

3

66/1

Helena Bonham Carter (Suffragette)

0

1

100/1

10 á

11/5

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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN ALL CATEGORIES INCLUDING

BEST PICTURE • BEST ACTOR EDDIE REDMAYNE BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS ALICIA VIKANDER

“E D D I E R E D M A Y N E G I V E S T H E GREATEST PERFORMANCE OF HIS CAREER. A C I N E M A T I C L A N D M A R K .”

P E TER DEBR U G E, VAR IETY

“A L I C I A V I K A N D E R C O N J U R E S SOMETHING DAZZLING A N D U N E X P E C T E D. S H E I S S T U N N I N G A N D E X T R A O R D I N A R Y.” CHRIS NASHAWATY, ENTER TAINMENT WEEKLY

WITH LOVE COMES THE COURAGE TO BE YOURSELF

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★ | flash mob

THE DANISH GIRL SCREENING, NOV. 19, LOS ANGELES (From left:) Deadline’s Dominic Patten, writer Lucinda Coxon, producer Anne Harrison and director Tom Hooper; Hooper with the movie’s poster; Harrison and Coxon during the Q&A.

SIVAS SCREENING, NOV. 16, LOS ANGELES (From left:) The Turkish film’s star Dogan Izci; director Kaan Mujdeci and Izci; Patten moderates the Q&A with Mujdeci, Izci and their translator.

DON’T BE BAD SCREENING, NOV. 11, LOS ANGELES (From left:) The Italian film’s cast and crew: Simona Giacci, Laura Tosti, Valerio Mastandrea, Camilla Nesbitt, Paolo Bogna and Simone Isola. Patten moderates the Q&A following the screening.

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“Carey Mulligan is a revelation.”

ANN HORNADAY, THE WASHINGTON POST

®

“It packs a punch. An Oscar -worthy performance from Carey Mulligan.”

ANNE THOMPSON, INDIEWIRE.COM

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN ALL CATEGORIES INCLUDING

BEST PICTURE • BEST ACTRESS CAREY MULLIGAN

For more on this film, go to www.FocusGuilds2015.com

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pete hammond

his Beverly Hills mansion. Alas, the movie didn’t make the shortlist in that category.

But the food was delicious.

Spotlight and Beasts of No Nation also had parties thrown in their honor the day after the Governors Awards, just in case you didn’t get enough partying with the contenders the night before. New distributor Broad Green has had a few soirees at A.O.C. for its slate, including the documentary hopeful Song of Lahore, which took over Palihouse for a nice concert by the musicians featured in the film.

Music events always are a good draw for Oscar voters, and when you have something like the Brian Wilson biopic Love & Mercy on your roster, you go for it, as Roadside Attractions did in staging a 40-minute concert from Wilson and his band at Vibrato Grill.

Fox has come up with other ways to push their films. I went to The Palm for an afternoon cocktailer in which we all watched The Peanuts Movie director Steve PARTY PLANNER Mr. Holmes star Sir Ian McKellan has been feted all over town this awards season.

open season The long journey to the Oscars involves a calendar-crushing spate of lunches, brunches and other munches.

Martino spend three hours painting a perfect Snoopy on the fabled star-laden wall of the restaurant. I also got invited to witness the Hollywood Walk of Fame Star unveiling for The Martian director Ridley Scott followed by, you guessed it, a lunch in his honor.

Of course, screenings and Q&As still dominate the season, with studios run-

November unquestionably has become the busiest, most

while they were in town for AFI and the

ning their candidates ragged from one

intensely populated campaign month of the entire six-month

Gov Awards. I would have attended but I

to another. And if a star isn’t available for

awards season. Why? Simple: Everyone still thinks they can win.

already had lunch and moderated a Q&A

a Q&A, no problem, as Focus proved by

The egos have landed. There are all the usual shindigs, including

with them.

satellite-ing in The Danish Girl star Eddie

the Governors Awards, AFI Fest, our The Contenders event and so

“Holiday parties” also have been big,

Redmayne from London, where he is on

on. But it goes way beyond that. A glance at my inbox tells the real

with many colliding into each other around

location on his next project. Beasts of No

story. There can be no other time of the year when I get emails that

the Governors Awards, when so many

Nation barely was a blip in theatres when

start, “Brunch with Sir Ian McKellan?” And it doesn’t stop there.

stars and directors are in town. Universal

it opened and closed within a two-week

I also have been invited to join the Mr. Holmes star for cocktails

spread good tidings with Straight Outta

period, but its movie theatre life has lived

and dinner, as well as a one-man show where he talks about all his

Compton and Steve Jobs at Ysabel while,

on with a series of hosted screenings from

female co-stars.

nearby, Fox Searchlight was feting Youth,

Sally Field and others, lending their names

Brooklyn and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

to the Netflix cause of breaking into the

the likes of the cast and filmmakers of Carol, and 99 Homes star

at The District. Further up Sunset Boule-

Oscar race. Of course, there were recep-

Michael Shannon, who got a dinner, too. Brunches are necessary

vard, A24 was celebrating the warmth of

tions with those showings, as there are for

because there are precious few lunch slots left for a campaigner to

the season with Room, Amy and End of the

so many screenings these days. It is the

lock in. I have never been to Craig’s restaurant so much in my life. It

Tour. The latter film’s Jason Segel has gone

way to get voters’ attention. One former

isn’t normally open for lunch, but it’s been an afternoon haven for

rogue with his own parties thrown by the

Oscar-nominated actress told me she

so many hopefuls to woo Academy members, including those from

likes of Ted Danson and Mary Steenbur-

wanted to see a certain film but, “There

Sicario, Trumbo, Black Mass, Spectre, Spotlight and I’ll See You in

gen, as well as Maroon 5 front man Adam

was no party.” So she resisted and went to

My Dreams. That is not to say that Spago and Spaghettini haven’t

Levine, who opened up his own home for a

something else that had a menu attached.

been just as busy with meals for the likes of Room, The Hunting

Segel celebration. I went to a house party

Ground and Suffragette. Of course, dinners are always popular. IFC

for a documentary short on the Tuske-

translates into votes is something else

had one for 45 Years stars Tom Courtenay and Charlotte Rampling

gee Airmen that Lionel Richie threw at

altogether.

Brunches, in fact, have become a new addition this year for

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It really is the season. Whether this

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D i s c ov e r

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD

Discover-Room.com

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ROOM AT THE TOP Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay and Lenny Abrahamson created gut-wrenching beauty onscreen that, on paper, was a risky proposition. Here’s the story of how the cast, writer and director of Room made cinematic alchemy.

BY ANTONIA BLYTH

PHOTOGRAPHS

BY CHRIS CHAPMAN 12

“YOU CAN IMAGINE the crass studio executive reaction to the pitch for Room: ‘Forget it,’ ” says director Lenny Abrahamson of his film that has commanded so much Oscar buzz since its September unveiling at the Telluride Film Festival.

Yes, Room is a hard sell when boiled down: A young woman is trapped in a garden shed for seven years by a sexual predator— along with the five year old son she bore from him in captivity.

It’s the epitome of bleak and claustrophobic fare.

So how, then, does Room have moviegoers stumbling out of screenings in awe, reporting a powerful, uplifting emotional experience that lingers long after they’ve left the theater?

Without giving too much away, there is a happy ending. And according to audiences and critics, Room is one of those films that does what art should: It changes you. “I saw grown agents crying,” Abrahamson says of early screenings. “Somebody said, ‘Have they not had their tear ducts surgically removed?’ No. If you, as a viewer, feel like you’re discovering it yourself, then it feels like a part of you, it’s personal. I think that’s why the film has so much power. Room also is about really fundamental things. It’s about love. It reminds you of your own childhood because it evokes the transition of that amazing state you’re in when you’re small, into this colder world we all live in as adults.”

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We’re not going to invite anybody into the development process.”

“There weren’t lots of executives keeping me at arm’s length,” Donoghue says. “It was me and Lenny around a kitchen table. Lenny’s just not scared by the odd aspects of the project. I remember him saying to me, ‘You know, we can get a mainstream audience for this film, but only if we do it fearlessly.’ ” “To be fair,” Abrahamson adds, “the people that we got onboard—Film Nation and A24—were people that absolutely loved the project. They didn’t want to change anything. Also, they weren’t pushing for big stars.”

SCREEN PRESENCE Despite this freedom, casting the film did present its share of hurdles. The film’s main characters, Ma and her son Jack, would be tough to get right. Then Abrahamson thought of Brie Larson as a possibility for Ma. “We were developing ideas about who we should approach, and then I saw Short Term 12,” Abrahamson says. “A really great actor has to have a heightened presence, that’s why they hold the screen. Brie has SELF-DEDICATED Novelist Emma Donoghue and director Lenny Abrahamson stuck to their guns in telling Room’s tough-on-paper, but ultimately moving story of familial love.

that star quality, but she’s able to fully integrate into the character, and I saw that in Short Term 12. There’s something incredibly vibrant and luminous about her, but she’s absolutely a real person in a real

The journey of Emma Donoghue’s best-selling novel from book to Oscar contender is a tale that is

world.”

For Larson, the connection at her first

as much about the magic that happens between

meeting with Abrahamson was instant.

the right collection of people as it is about great

“It was supposed to be a 30-minute

storytelling.

coffee meeting,” she says. “It turned into a

Donoghue, for her part, made the decision to

four-hour-long talk. We just immediately

sit down and write the screenplay the moment she

went so deep into our families. We

finished the book, tackling a subject matter that was

were talking about mythology and our

far from easy film fodder.

favorite films, about complication and

“I was writing it for myself with nobody looking

contemporary society—all of these things

and the book hadn’t even been published,” she

that the allegory in this movie had a great

says. “That was an ideal way to begin. I borrowed 20

opportunity to explore, and how much

books on screenplay writing from my local university library, tried to absorb their insights

deeper we could explore it. I left that

and then plunged in. I thought, ‘There’s no point in making some company hire me to do

meeting feeling like it was in my marrow

the first draft if they really don’t want it.’ I will write it and then when I talk to filmmakers I

that I needed to do it. I felt comfortable

can say, ‘Look, here it is. Do you like us? Shall we proceed?’ ”

that Lenny would come from a place of

In fact, once the book became a roaring success the novelist had many directors lining up to adapt it. Abrahamson won out when he wrote Donoghue a 10-page letter. “I think all directors should use this technique because, first of all, he showed how intelligent he was.

He just completely understood the book.”

Once Abrahamson had convinced Donoghue he was determined to do the book justice,

love and not from a place of torture and gratuitous drama.”

Casting a then-eight year old Jacob Tremblay, who previously was in Smurfs 2, was another triumph for Abrahamson.

the task of finding funding loomed large. The director was anxious to not allow financiers to

With the wrong boy, Room might have

dilute the creative process.

seemed cloying or forced.

“I didn’t have a profile in the States,” he says, “but I did already have a very strong

“The whole awards thing is a

working relationship with Film4, so that’s a great place to be; that’s a great place to say

fascinating thing,” Abrahamson says, “but

to a writer, ‘We will develop your film in a way that’s true to the essence of the novel.

it’s really hard for a little boy to get the

Then, when it’s ready, we’ll bring it to financiers and we’ll say, ‘Do you like this thing?’

sort of credit that he should get. Jacob

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demanded physical preparation. “I spoke with doctors and nutritionists about lack of vitamin D,” she says. “I figured Ma was constantly running around with Jack in that space, so I put on 15 pounds of muscle. Then I stayed home for about a month and had to stay out of the sun.”

“There was a camaraderie that allowed us to make something that was kind of difficult to shoot,” Abrahamson says. “It also allowed us to go to really quite deep places, because everybody really trusted each other. Ultimately, with Brie and Jake and myself on the floor, we felt like it was sort of a family.”

However, working in intense confinement for so long had its effects.

“When we got out it was exactly as it is in the film,” Abrahamson says. “Suddenly we’re on the outside and we felt like Jack, going, ‘You know what? Maybe we’d be POWER DUO The mother-son bond forged by Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay not only carried the emotion of Room, but also helped them through tough, confining days on set, below.

better off if we were back inside.’ ” William H. Macy, who plays Ma’s father, came to the set just as the shoot had left Room. “I walked on set telling jokes and

“To find a kid that age, who just about has enough stamina and confidence to deal with a huge role like this, was just amazing.”

whistling, and they had just been through is a brilliant actor and that’s a brilliant

first half takes place. In the film, Jack

a war,” he says. “I guess they shot four-

performance. To find a kid that age,

personifies every object as if it were a

and-a-half, five weeks in that room. The

who just about has enough stamina and

friend; so the room is Room, a lamp is

claustrophobia had almost overtaken

confidence to be able to deal with a huge

Lamp. Because the film was shot in a

them.”

role like this—to find a boy a little bit older

space as tiny as the story dictates—the set

who still looks five—was just amazing.”

was close to the 10-feet by 10-feet space

also started on the film after the Room

in the book—the audience effectively sees

scenes, but despite the toll the shoot had

performance is complemented by

not only the protective fairytale world

taken on the cast and crew, she knew they

Tremblay’s inquisitive, energetic Jack.

Ma carefully has curated for her son, but

were all part of something otherworldly.

The boy is remarkable, acting three years

also the physical and emotional restraint

“I had a very positive, hopeful feeling

younger than he was during filming, never

she must employ. “It was life imitating

because I believed in the way that Lenny

with an obvious tug on the heartstrings. As

art, being stuck in that small room,”

wanted to tell this story, and I believed in

Donoghue says, “Jacob was a revelation.”

Abrahamson says. “It’s as small as it’s

what Jake and Brie were doing. I was very

supposed to be.”

hopeful that it would turn out to be a film

Larson’s artfully pared down

Of playing a younger child, Tremblay, now nine, says: “I thought about when I

For Larson, Ma’s confinement

Joan Allen, who portrays Ma’s mother,

of the kind of caliber that it is.”

was a little kid that was five. I’d jump on the couch and run laps. I just remembered jumping around and getting bruises by accident.”

The relationship between Ma and Jack is certainly the crux of the film. Larson and Tremblay initially had forged a bond through pizza and Lego. “We immediately clicked,” Larson says. “We love Star Wars and Ninja Turtles. I would go over to his apartment and we would sit and play Legos. Then we would build all the toys that you saw in Room. It’s a tough thing because we needed to connect, but you never want to put pressure (on someone), and a kid can smell it a mile away.”

CLOSE QUARTERS Part of the movie’s power lies in the confinement of the main set, where the

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THE DIALOGUE OSCAR SEASON 2015

CATE BLANCHETT

CAROL (THE WEINSTEIN CO.), TRUTH (SONY PICTURES CLASSICS)

“Robert Redford is extraordinary. We would have these situations where they’d be setting up for the shot and he’d just start talking to me, and I’d have a sense of deja vu. And then it’d suddenly dawn on me that he was running lines.”

KATE WINSLET

STEVE JOBS (UNIVERSAL)

“When I googled Joanna Hoffman, straight away I thought, ‘Of course they wouldn’t think of me. I’m a busty blonde and she’s a five-foot, two-inch Polish-Armenian who doesn’t look like Kate Winslet.’ ”

SAOIRSE RONAN

BROOKLYN (FOX SEARCHLIGHT)

“Brooklyn was the first time that I’ve ever experienced playing a character whose emotional journey was running parallel to mine. I actually found it a lot more challenging. There’s kind of nothing to hide behind.”

JANE FONDA

YOUTH (FOX SEARCHLIGHT)

“If you’re going to light me for how old I am or older, yeah, that’s how I look. I don’t want people to think that I’m not going to appear in a movie unless I only look really good. If that’s what it call for, I’ll go for it.”

CAREY MULLIGAN

SUFFRAGETTE (FOCUS FEATURES)

“I try not to read everything out there, but I lost my cool when one critic said that what happens in Suffragette, ‘isn’t real. It isn’t possible that this would happen to one person.’

That’s ironic because these things really did happen.”

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Cate

and you almost lose your balance because it goes so quickly. I knew about the story but I did not know about the fallout.

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What kind of research did you do? Did you go to 60 Minutes or to a newsroom?

I didn’t. I’ve been in newsrooms and I’ve been sort of hauled over the coals in my own small way, so I know personally what

The Aussie actress is coming off a stellar year to make her presence doubly-known this awards season.

that feels like but in a much smaller, lesser degree than Mary experienced. So I felt like that was something I understood.

BY PETE HAMMOND And now you have Carol coming out a month later. You and Rooney Mara are so great together.

She and I gravitate to similar filmmakers.

She’s had such a great creative relationship

A

fter winning the Best Actress Oscar for Blue Jasmine less than two years ago, Cate Blanchett got busy. She had been spending much of her time doing theater projects in her native Australia or appearing in smaller parts in such blockbusters as The Hobbit trilogy and How to Train Your Dragon 2. But this year has been a virtual Blanchett-fest, starting in March with her role as the stepmother in Disney’s Cinderella, and contiuing this fall with leading roles in the 1950s lesbian romance Carol, and as 60 Minutes producer Mary Mapes in Truth. Both latter roles have won wide praise and yet present a quandary for Oscar voters. They are both leads—and Academy rules state that only one acting performance can be nominated in the same category, which means the votes for both roles could split. But this is a good problem to have, especially for someone who already has two Oscars on her mantle—the first won 10 years ago for her role as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator. It’s been a great decade for today’s Great Cate.

with David Fincher and Steven Soderbergh and Todd (Haynes, Carol director), and she just worked with Joe Wright. So I felt like we were very sympatico creatively.

That was an interesting period in our history, the early ’50s.

What’s interesting about the film that Todd’s made, and also about Patricia Highsmith’s novel, is that in the end it’s about falling in love. And it’s as much about the age gap between the women as it is about the outsider nature of their love. And so he’s made a beautiful film about falling in love and heartbreak and maturity.

How long do you have to make a film like this?

What a year you’re having between

It must have been interesting to work

There were times when we barely had time

Cinderella and Carol and now Truth.

with Robert Redford. This is the first

to do one take. Todd is like no other director

Yes, it’s funny. Truth we made really quickly;

time that you worked with him, right?

I’ve ever worked with. He’s a master making

it was like a freight train. I made Cinderella

Yeah, but hopefully it’s not the last. He’s

a student film, in the sense that he has that

two or three years ago, and Carol I made

extraordinary. We would have these situa-

sort of danger and hunger that a student

at the beginning of last year. So it’s sort of

tions on set where they’d be setting up for

filmmaker has but this incredible finesse

everything coming out at once.

the shot and he’d just start talking to me,

and expertise and facility and insight that

and I’d have this terrible sense of déjà vu,

an auteur has. And the intersection of those

Do you like that?

thinking, “We had this conversation before.”

two atmospheres is really unique.

It’s a little confusing. You hope that one film

And then it’d suddenly dawn on me that he

doesn’t end up getting lost because both

was running lines. We seemed to be talking

Actors are the only artists who can’t

Carol and Truth, I think, are really interesting

about things around the scene, and then

be nominated twice for an Oscar in the

stories by two very interesting filmmakers.

the lines would just be drip-fed in.

same category. You’re a member of the

I saw Truth in Toronto, where it was

What got you involved in Truth?

have two great performances this year.

well-received. I got to meet Dan Rather.

I had (the script) for a little while. My life is

I’m not a lobbyist, so I don’t get tied up in

Isn’t he something? Both he and Mary

very full with the amount of children that

those machinations. Perhaps that stuff

(Mapes) are cut from the same cloth in the

we have and my husband running a theater

matters more to producers than it does to

sense that they have this searing intel-

company. Often by the time I get into bed

me. To simply be in that dialogue is more

ligence, this fiery sense of fighting injustice

at night and read a script it’s like taking a

than enough, and, I mean, it seems a bit

and a hatred of hypocrisy, and they’re also

sleeping pill. I just fall asleep. It has nothing

hubristic to be having this conversation.

deeply emotional people. It’s a really inter-

to do with the writing and everything to do

The first port of call is that the films find

esting combination. I mean, no wonder they

with my age. But when I read this, I just ate it

an audience. So that’s the bit that I feel a

gravitated towards each other.

alive because you step on this conveyor belt,

responsibility towards. The rest is outside.

actor’s branch of the Academy and you

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Kate

make-up on… I was not comfortable with the sudden movie star status that

WINSLET

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was being thrown at me. It was also largely created by the success of the film. I didn’t want to make big films.

It wasn’t me. It was my instinctive response to the situation. I remember thinking then, “Wow, I can choose the roles I want to be in.” Up until then I had

Even with her pick of roles, the Brit fought hard for “the girl part” in Steve Jobs.

been running around to auditions with a backpack, and you were lucky to get the gig you could get.

B Y A N T H O N Y D ’A L E S S A N D R O Did you ever rack your brain wondering why the Academy passed over you five times in 13 years before they finally gave you an Oscar for

A

cademy voters relish a riveting behind-thescenes story when it comes to a contender. If there is one this season it’s about how Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet—who, since her first nomination for Sense and Sensibility at the age of 21, has sifted through a sea of offers—fought for the role of Joanna Hoffman, Steve Jobs’ feisty PolishArmenian head of marketing at Apple Computer.

During Winslet’s work on the Australian film The Dressmaker, she learned about “the girl part” in Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs through her hair-andmakeup artist, and was promptly piqued. She googled Hoffman, found some black wigs, and emailed a photo of herself in character to producer Scott Rudin. Her agent told her there already was an offer out to another actress, but fate set in: Three-and-a-half weeks later, Winslet found herself in a rehearsal room in San Francisco.

The Reader?

After being nominated the first time, that was completely surreal. It was so otherworldly, I never imagined that I would win it then and I was never disappointed (over not winning). You have to be a good loser. I don’t think it would have been good for me winning at a younger age. I would then feel the pressure of having done something and maintaining that level of a winning streak. Rather, I could keep working and trying hard. Also, walking into the room on each of those five occasions, you know if you’ll win or lose. You really do. Knowing that I wasn’t going to win made it quite sensible and practical

Regarding the great lengths you took

him, was another big fat box I could check.

to land the part of Joanna Hoffman,

Throw in Fassbender, and I gotta get in

But when The Reader came around, I

what made it worth the fight?

that room.

wanted to win that one because it was

As an actor, you constantly hear about

Joanna wasn’t just a hotheaded

and got me through those moments.

a difficult part. I did find it really hard

films that are in the works. It’s not unusual

Eastern European woman screeching

to sometimes give (the director or

at Jobs. She was a sister, his friend, and

producer) a nudge. It was about being in

a little bit of a mother. Her recognition

Jennifer Lawrence recently spoke

the room with those creative people, that’s

of who he was as a person and her

out about the pay discrepancy

the way you grow and change as an actor…

acceptance and love of him, warts and all,

between actresses and actors. Has

When I googled Joanna Hoffman, straight

was an admirable quality. I’ve spent time

this ever vexed you?

away I thought, “Of course they wouldn’t

with people like Jobs, and just because

I have never concerned myself with

think of me. I’m a busty blond and she’s a

people are tricky doesn’t mean they don’t

monetary matters. I almost feel like

five-foot, two-inch Polish-Armenian who

have a heart and soul. (The real) Joanna

I can’t comment on other people’s

doesn’t look like Kate Winslet.” When it

came into the rehearsal space and I got

comments, but I admire people who

came to throwing my hat in the ring and

to spend time with her. I didn’t want to try

publicly stand up for themselves. I’ve

emailing Scott Rudin my photos, I didn’t

and do an impersonation, but I wanted to

never been in the situation where I

have an ego about that. Lucky for me, a

honor the essence of her spirit.

feel the need to make those types of

script landed in my inbox a few hours later.

playing Hanna Schmitz.

comments. I’m fortunate. I have a nice After Titanic you made a point not to

life and career and I’m blessed to be

the script was that there weren’t that

be cast as the “It Girl” or ingénue in

40 years old and still doing it. However,

many people in it. How clever to make a

Hollywood films. Do you ever think

it reminds me of the comments that I

film about this man, who had achieved

differently about that decision?

made on women and body image. At 40,

everything, and to keep it as a play. The

After Titanic, as all of this was happening,

I’m still getting asked questions about

fact that Aaron Sorkin wrote these words

I just trusted my instinct. I always made

those statements that I made years

was an exciting prospect. Danny Boyle

sure that I marked my line in the sand.

ago. At 45, Jennifer Lawrence will still be

directing, even though I hadn’t worked with

I could go to the corner store with no

asked about the pay issue.

What intrigued me when I first read

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Saoirse

it did. When it comes to being on set, Domhnall and I work in a more similar way, but

RONAN

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with Emory and me, we work in very different ways. He does an awful lot of preparation for a role, and I don’t. Now I do, but I focus on the script and I don’t break anything down, whereas he tends to do that a bit more. It was great, ultimately, to have that yin and yang dynamic between us because the two characters needed to be different and

The Irish actress’s latest film, Brooklyn, hits close to home.

attracted to each other because of it.

BY M AT T H E W G R O B A R

Was there a day or scene that was more challenging than others to shoot?

They were all pretty challenging. We had so much to do every day; we had 35 days to shoot everything. We would prob-

B

y age 13, Saoirse (pronounced “seer-shah”) Ronan had her first Oscar nomination for her role in the film version of Ian McEwan’s bestseller, Atonement. This year, another popular literary adaptation—Colm Toibin’s Brooklyn, scripted by Nick Hornby and directed by John Crowley—could bring Ronan back to Oscar’s door. Brooklyn is an age-old immigrant story—in this case, Ronan’s Eilis leaves Ireland for New York, where she starts anew and finds love, until she’s drawn back home—and it’s as timeless and timely now as during the 1950s when it takes place. The film rests squarely on Ronan’s shoulders; it’s through her expressive eyes and understated performance that Eilis and this well-loved story come to life.

ably do two or three big, heavy scenes per day, which is a lot. In Enniscorthy (Ireland), it was mad because that’s where we began the shoot, so we were still finding our feet. Locals would come out every single day to watch us work, so we’d have 50 to 100 people—which is a lot for Enniscorthy—on the side of the road watching us and looking out their windows when we were shooting. They were so excited that we were all there, but that was pretty intense because you were telling their story and they were there watching it happen. With the

How did you get involved with this

journey, and so many people have. I think

whole thing there was no letup. But we

project?

that’s where the real responsibility came

knew (the film) was something that was

I had read the book in my mid-teens. I

from. It’s that you knew you were repre-

special to us, so that was what got us

loved Colm Toibin’s writings, especially of

senting millions of stories, whether they

through it. By the end it just felt like we

women. The script came to me—it was

were Irish or not.

were running a marathon.

Nick Hornby, so of course, you’re immedi-

By the time we made the film, I had

ately interested. I knew this was the first

moved to London and so I was really

You have several close-ups in the film

Irish project that I wanted to do. It was

homesick. It was the first time that I’ve

that convey a lot, like in the Christmas

really important for me to find the right

ever experienced playing a character

scene. Did you work with Crowley on

first one, and it would have to be strong

whose emotional journey was running

those or work instinctively?

and mean something to me. A couple of

parallel to mine, and that was really differ-

It’s a combination of both. At that stage

weeks after that, John (Crowley) flew over

ent for me. With something like this, you

we were shooting in Montreal, so we were

to Dublin to meet me, and we chatted

may think it would be easier because it’s

about five weeks in and had found our

about it in relation to his life and moving

a similar kind of story to your own, or the

rhythm. John and I knew how the other

away from home, and I was just about to

feeling of it is, but actually I found it a lot

one worked and were very much a team.

move away from home. It’s been one of

more challenging. There’s kind of nothing

He was always the leader and so any

those things that has become more and

to hide behind.

notes he would have, of course, I would

more personal as it’s gone on.

go with them. But when (singer) Iarla You had two romantic leads in this

O’Lionaird, who is famous back home,

You were born in New York and raised

film—Emory Cohen and fellow Irishman

gets up to sing (in the scene)—that was

in Ireland. Was that personal connec-

Domnhall Gleason. What was that like?

something. We were all away from home,

tion to the film purely coincidental?

I knew Domhnall before. There were a few

the hair and makeup girls, the crew. For all

It was absolutely coincidental, but initially

things we were trying to work on together,

of us to be there on this film—to be tired

that was the attraction for me. The two

and also the community back home is so

and just trying to make sure we got every-

locations that make up the film are the

small that you kind of know everyone any-

thing in the one day—and then have him

two locations that make up me, and so it

way. The first time I met Emory was during

singing in the middle of it, just silenced us.

was personal straightaway, just because

rehearsals. They didn’t do chemistry reads or

It was overwhelming. It was easy to get

mom and dad had made such a similar

any of that stuff, so it just had to work, and

into that space.

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Jane

people will come to see J.Lo and they will either rediscover me, or, if they’re young,

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they’ll discover Fonda,” which is absolutely what happened.

And then you did TV. It was Newsroom. It was Aaron (Sorkin), bless his heart, giving me the role of Leona Lansing that kind of said, “She’s back.”

The film and TV superstar brings her wattage to a tailor-made role in Youth.

BY PETE HAMMOND

And there’s that line in Youth about your character Brenda going into TV, which used to be verboten.

If you wanted to be a movie star you never could do television. But for reasons that you know as well as or better than I do, it’s kind of where you want to be now, especially if you’re an older woman, because

A

fter more than 50 years in the biz, Jane Fonda is looking, and, I suspect, feeling more youthful than ever. So it seems entirely appropriate that Italian director Paolo Sorrentino’s perfectly titled Youth should bring her roaring back into the Oscar conversation. It’s been almost two decades since Fonda’s last nomination in 1986 for The Morning After, in which she played an actress—just as she is in Youth. Fonda’s Brenda Morel, a ball-buster who nearly steals the show in just eight-a-half-minutes of screen time, blew everyone away when the film first showed in Cannes. Fonda won two Oscars in the 1970’s (Klute and Coming Home) and has been nominated seven times. Youth could bring an eighth nom, but Fonda doesn’t like to talk about that prospect, just the role itself. It’s one she knew she was born to play.

it’s much more forgiving. We wrapped our second season of Grace & Frankie last night—at midnight. We shot a nine-page scene that should be in a Broadway play.

Some people cried and then it was really, really funny. It just felt really good.

In the opening shot in Youth your character has a classic screen entrance.

Yeah, she’s looking at that terrible piece of sculpture on the wall. What did you think about the knife?

You know, I liked that.

It was me. Paolo had me doing some-

What was your reaction when this role

Does acting still do that for you? You

thing different and I said, “You know, us

was offered to you?

gave it up for a long time…

women—when we’re waiting for some-

Well, I had heard about the film from Al

Oh, it totally disappeared for me as some-

body—sometimes just kind of check our

Pacino, who said there’s this role that feels

thing I cared for or was passionate about.

teeth in a knife.” And he liked that, so we

like it’s written for you, so I immediately

I took a 15-year break. I was 49 and I was

did it.

called my agent. It had already been cast

really unhappy. I remember I was making a

with Shirley MacClaine. I have not confirmed

film with De Niro called Stanley and Iris in

What did you think about the way the

this with her. A few weeks went by and then

Canada. I sat on the edge of my hotel room

film was shot? In person, you don’t

we heard that she was no longer attached.

bed and I was trying to envision a future

look anything like Brenda. Is that a

I said to my agent, “Go after it.” When Paolo

for myself, and I couldn’t. I thought, “I can’t

startling thing to see on screen?

offered the role to me I was just ecstatic,

keep doing this.” I can’t act if I’m miser-

Well, if you’re purposely going to light me

without having read it.

able and so I thought, “Well, I’m just going

for how old I am or older, yeah, that’s how

to stop.” I bought some property in New

I look. It’s all in the lighting. I loved what

Did you base Brenda on anyone?

Mexico and I was going to become a full-

they did—I had a wig that really looks like

No. I mean, I came into the business just at

time environmental activist. And then Ted

a wig, and you see all my wrinkles. I don’t

the tail end of the era of the women that

Turner came into my life. People think I gave

want people to think that I’m not going to

she was talking about. But I didn’t base it on

up acting because of him. The fact is that I

appear in a movie unless I only look really

anybody. I just tried to be her.

was on the way out. I had 10 years with him

good. If that’s what it calls for, I’ll go for it.

that were fabulous and then I had five years There’s no punches pulled with her…

writing my memoir, which was very cathar-

Actresses you knew, some who had

She knows what she wants.

tic. It’s hard to know who you want to be

worked with your father, like Barbara

if you don’t know who you’ve been. At the

Stanwyck and Bette Davis, came to

And you seem to know what you want.

end of that process I got offered Monster-

mind, seeing you in this role.

You have that passion that seems to be

in-Law. I was now 62. Even though it was a

When you know those great divas, and I

in all phases of your life.

popcorn movie it was transformative for me

did, without saying I’m going to base the

Right, but I don’t know what tomorrow will

in terms of my career. It was the only strate-

character on anyone, they’re kind of in your

bring. I just want to stay curious.

gic career thing I ever did. I thought, “Hmm,

DNA. Do you know what I mean?

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C a re y

that they had to fight against a law that dictated, “You can’t vote.” To hear that

MULLIGAN

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in places like Saudi Arabia women can’t exercise their right to vote is a novelty, and it’s a real reminder to these young girls to take the right seriously.

How did Jennifer Lawrence’s statement on the discrepancy in pay

The British actress’s latest period role is anything-but-dainty in Suffragette.

B Y A N T H O N Y D ’A L E S S A N D R O

between male and female actors ring with you?

I think it’s a good thing for someone like Jennifer to speak out; it means an awful lot to women. Sure, there’s been cynicism toward her speaking out and the fact that she makes a lot of money, but she is completely and selflessly rising above that.

(The discrepancy) is inherently unfair and

I

n the wake of receiving her first Best Actress Oscar nomination for 2009’s An Education, Carey Mulligan realized that she had the fortunate opportunity to choose roles. She easily could play a leading man’s foil in any Hollywood blockbuster—in fact, she beat out a slew of actresses for the highly coveted role of Daisy Buchanan opposite Leonardo DiCaprio’s Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby. However, since coming to Hollywood’s attention, the British actress largely has balanced a resume of socially-conscious parts—her Tony-nominated turn in Broadway’s Skylight is more about the British class system than the fling between an older man and younger woman—and lost herself in a canon of edgy damsels. When Mulligan first heard about Abi Morgan’s script for Suffragette, about the women’s suffrage movement in Great Britain, she dismissed the 1900s period drama. “I naively had this idea it was teadrinking ladies chatting, but by page three I was so invested and shocked by all the things that these women did,” she says.

she has an enormous platform to speak out against it. Men in Hollywood look up to her because she is powerful. She’s using that platform to correct something that isn’t right. It’s a long overdue conversation and it’s admirable what she has done. This is an age-old issue that’s in every part of society.

Have there been movies purporting to be about female empowerment that weren’t?

There are, and young people today are bombarded with images that I didn’t have when I was growing up. There are some that pertain to female empowerment and others that do not. Young kids are looking to these characters as some sort of a role

While you play a fictionalized char-

Are you finding in your travels with

model. However, there are great ones,

acter in Suffragette you largely drew

the film that different nations define

such as Jennifer Lawrence’s character

inspiration from Hannah Mitchell.

feminism differently?

in The Hunger Games. What she does

My mom found Hannah and brought her

Sarah (Gavron, the film’s director) has

with that role is incredible in terms of the

story to my attention. She was born into a

traveled with the film more than I have. I’ve

subject for young adults. For teenagers

farming family in the northern part of Eng-

been between America and London with it

that character is an incredibly strong

land and was taught to read by her father.

and I don’t think the definition of feminism

female role model.

She left home at a young age and became

is different between the two locations.

a seamstress. She had an inherent feeling,

Recently, it has felt like a new word…

Following your Oscar nomination

unlike my character Maud, that something

People are afraid of labels and I think this

you’ve exercised the power to choose

wasn’t right (in society). She met other

year they’re starting to reclaim what the

roles and you’ve selected smart

suffragettes who inspired her in the move-

word originally meant, in a positive way

material. That said, have there been

ment. She had a marriage breakdown and

that’s interesting.

opportunities to star in tentpoles and franchise films?

lost her family, and her life became this movement. I try not to read everything

You’ve mentioned that girls are going

Those films have come my way in the

out there (about me), but I lost my cool

to see Suffragette in packs in the U.K.

past. The style doesn’t appeal to me. The

when one critic said that what happens in

I’m happy to see that what the film meant

Marvel films—while I enjoy watching these

Suffragette, “isn’t real. It isn’t possible that

to me also speaks to these young girls.

movies—the material doesn’t speak to me.

this would happen to one person.” That’s

Life was incredibly hard then. Women had

With these types of franchise films there’s

ironic because these things really did hap-

to fight for every single thing they had. To

always the conversation of starring in

pen. There was a lot of sexual abuse in the

have a reminder of that, to recognize that

more than one film and I’m not interested

workplace. Some women were sectioned.

and be grateful for that—these girls are

in playing the same character in more than

Suffragettes faced violent and illegal reac-

seeing the strength of women who took

one film. What’s appealing to me is playing

tions, and Hannah went through it all.

pride in being women and all that power

different characters.

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★ | oscar handicaps

BEST

ACTOR

Every year this category is overstuffed with potential nominees.

Who stands to make the cut this season?

By Pete Hammond

Two years ago the Best Actor race

in To Kill a Mockingbird and James

was so crowded that such surefire

Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Wash-

contenders as Robert Redford (All

ington. But guess what? What hap-

Is Lost) and Tom Hanks (Captain

pened to Hanks two years ago could

Phillips) saw their hopes dashed

repeat itself. His work is so stoic and

right out of the gate when both

understated that it easily could be

were overlooked for even a nomina-

overlooked against more obviously

tion. Competition was lethal, as it

flashy contenders. That would be a

has been for the past few years in

shame. Still, he is definitely up there

this category. Unlike what is usu-

in the first tier of contenders, one

ally the case in the Best Actress

where several Best Actor candidates

race—though not this year—it seems

with past nominations—but no

there are just too many great male

wins—could make a strong case for

performances fighting for one of

themselves.

those five coveted nominee slots.

28

LEONARDO DICAPRIO The Revenant

JOHNNY DEPP Black Mass

That list is led by four-time nomi-

This year, in fact, Tom Hanks is back

nee Leonardo DiCaprio, who goes

with another heralded turn in Steven

through the ringer, physically and

Spielberg’s Cold War spy drama,

emotionally, in Alejandro Gonzalez

Bridge of Spies. Critics praised this

Inarritu’s The Revenant. DiCaprio is

subtle and striking role as one of the

well-respected by his fellow actors

two-time Oscar winner’s best ever,

and almost certainly would have won

even comparing it to Gregory Peck

two years ago for The Wolf of Wall

WILL SMITH Concussion

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Street had he not run into the Math-

jumped to the top of many pundit’s

Tom Courtenay (Doctor Zhivago,

hew McConaughey juggernaut from

prediction charts. However, weak

The Dresser), who is outstanding in

Dallas Buyers Club.

boxoffice for the film and portray-

45 Years as a husband with a secret

Another frequent visitor to the

ing a roundly unsympathetic person

that now threatens his four-decade

category who is back in the run-

makes him a slight question mark.

marriage to his wife, played by

ning is Johnny Depp; his chilling

Still, the performance is awesome

Charlotte Rampling. Courtenay could

turn as Whitey Bulger in Black Mass

and he also might be able to impress

make the cut as a dark horse, espe-

is making waves—and not just for

voters with the upcoming Macbeth.

cially if voters see this penetrating

the make-up job. Depp’s portrayal

EDDIE REDMAYNE The Danish Girl

Oscar winner for his Good Will Hunt-

pop up as the three-time nominee’s

ing screenplay, Matt Damon has

race could be Emmy- and Tony-

best shot at the gold in years. The

been making a steady climb toward

winning Bryan Cranston for his

hang-up might be that some voters

the magic five, right in concert

searing role as blacklisted screen-

think he has been squandering his

with the enormous success of The

writer Dalton Trumbo in the biopic

talent in tentpoles like Pirates of the

Martian. Damon spends 90% of his

Trumbo. Mixed reviews out of the

Carribean and the upcoming Alice

time in the film alone on screen and

Toronto International Film Festival

in Wonderland sequel. But Depp’s

makes it funny, poignant, suspense-

dampened enthusiasm for the film

Bulger should remind anyone of the

ful and entirely satisfying. Damon

among some pundits, and middling

great actor he is.

could be a sleeper.

boxoffice in a limited run could hurt,

Stirring the pot and making the

but my gauge is that the industry

Best Actor race all that more inter-

seems to really enjoy the film and

find himself front and center again

esting is a trio of British veterans,

the ever-likeable Cranston.

for his dead-on portrayal in Concus-

all Sirs, getting a rare lead role in

sion of Dr. Bennet Omalu, whose

the autumn of their careers. With

the list include Son of Saul’s Geza

work linked football injuries with

perhaps the best chance to break

Rohrig, who is devastating as a Hun-

brain damage. Smith is winning high

into the top five is two-time winner

garian Jew forced to help the Nazis

praise—even if the film has received

Michael Caine (Hannah and Her

during World War II. The film was a

more mixed reviews—and has a

Sisters, The Cider House Rules), who

sensation in Cannes and is Hungary’s

secret weapon in Omalu, who has

is going for his seventh nomination in

entry into the Foreign Language

roundly endorsed his performance.

Youth, portraying a retired com-

Film race. Distributor Sony Pictures

poser/conductor on a spa vacation

Classics is going to qualify the pic in

Oscar win for his role as Stephen

in Switzerland. Youth is an English-

other categories including this one,

Hawking in The Theory of Everything,

language film from Italian director

where Rohrig, a non-pro actor who

Eddie Redmayne is back as a trans-

Paolo Sorrentino, who won last

lives in Brooklyn and also is a poet,

gender pioneer in The Danish Girl.

year’s foreign language film Oscar

has a compelling life story to sell on

The transformative nature of the role

for The Great Beauty. Caine’s 1966

the campaign circuit.

is rich stuff for voters, and some are

breakthrough role in Alfie gave him

predicting Redmayne could be the

his first Best Actor nom, although

ham Attah, is a longshot here for

first actor in 20 years to win back-

both his wins came for the two times

the intense Netflix hopeful, Beasts of

to-back Oscars. Who did it last? You

he was nominated in a supporting

No Nation. Out of the large ensemble

guessed it: Tom Hanks, for Philadel-

role.

cast of Quentin Tarantino’s western,

phia and Forrest Gump.

Also back from last year is Steve MATT DAMON The Martian

Past two-time nominee Ian

Other possibilities further down

Another film novice, young Abra-

The Hateful 8, Samuel L. Jackson

McKellen is only in his 70s yet

is hoping to rack up his first and only

Carell, who was a standout in

superbly plays the 90-something

nomination since 1994’s Pulp Fic-

Foxcatcher and is again in The Big

Sherlock Holmes in the summer

tion. Joseph Gordon-Levitt nailed

Short, as a Wall Street operator who

indie hit, Mr. Holmes. This would be

a difficult challenge in playing the

finds himself in the heart of the 2008

his second trip to the lead category

French-born tightrope walker Phillipe

economic collapse. With a cast that

following 1998’s Gods and Monsters,

Petit in The Walk. And, finally, it might

includes Brad Pitt, Ryan Gosling and

which also was directed by Mr.

be nice to remember Jake Gyl-

Christian Bale (all excellent), it is

Holmes helmer Bill Condon. In Gods

lenhaal’s striking performance as

Carell who is being campaigned in the

McKellen played the director James

a troubled boxer in July’s Southpaw.

lead category and has the best shot

Whale in his 70s, even though the

Gyllenhaal was clearly robbed last

to repeat for a second year in a row.

actor was only in his 50s then. It

year for his brilliant work in Night-

seems like adding 20 years to his age

crawler, another season that was

has been a blessing for Sir Ian.

impossibly crowded with Best Actor

Nominated once previously for 12 IAN MCKELLEN Mr. Holmes

One other major possibility in this

(Ali, The Pursuit of Happyness) could

Coming back from last year’s big

MICHAEL FASSBENDER Steve Jobs

marital drama.

digs way beneath the surface to

Two-time nominee Will Smith

STEVE CARELL The Big Short

Two-time acting nominee, and an

Years a Slave, Michael Fassbender, in the titular role in Steve Jobs, has

Then there is two-time nominee

prospects. Just like this one.

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★ | oscar handicaps

BEST

ACTRESS

This year the women give the Best Actor category a run for its money with an abundance of strong, award-worthy performances.

By Pete Hammond

A quick look at how the Best

home the Oscar in 2013 for Silver

Actress race is shaping up this year

Linings Playbook; her latest role as

reveals one of the clearest divides

the title character—a highly success-

between young and veteran stars

ful businesswoman—looks like pure

ever. What’s more, this contest is

Oscar material. Add in the fact that

rivaling the Best Actor race for a

she is once again working with direc-

change, offering some of the stiffest

tor David O. Russell (responsible for

competition the category has ever

two of her three previous nomina-

had. Usually voters are struggling to

tions) and you have the recipe for

find even five women to fill out the

success. Unless, at age 25, Lawrence

list of nominees, but this year the

might be considered too young to

choices include several intriguing

own two Oscars.

possibilities. On top of all this is the

head of this impressive class of

Best Actress Oscar winners vying to

women is Room’s Brie Larson. She

compete again.

turned in a powerful and emotional

30

performance that is winning raves

is Jennifer Lawrence, who is looking

as Ma, a young mother held captive

for her fourth nomination for Joy. I say

who, under dire circumstances, tries

“possibly” because, as of press time,

to make a beautiful life for her five

the film still is in post-production

year old son.

and remains unseen. Lawrence took

BRIE LARSON Room

Also vying from a perch at the

fact that there also are several past

Possibly at the head of this class

JENNIFER LAWRENCE Joy

Add to the mix of frontrunners

SAOIRSE RONAN Brooklyn

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Saoirse Ronan, who earned a Sup-

sticky. There are several deserving

be no match in that department

porting Actress nomination when

veteran stars, with performances

for previous Best Actress winner

she was just 13 for Atonement. Now,

of a lifetime, that could trigger

Charlize Theron’s explosive work

at 21, she looks to break into the big

the sentimental factor. Charlotte

in Mad Max: Fury Road. Theron kicks

race with the lovely romantic drama

Rampling really is drumming up

ass—and more—in this summer hit

Brooklyn.

serious Oscar talk for her transcen-

that brilliantly revived the Mad Max

dent performance in 45 Years, as a

series. It might be her best role since

this list of young stars trying to

woman celebrating her 45th wed-

grabbing that Oscar, and every other

woo Oscar is former Best Actress

ding anniversary just as a dark secret

award in sight, for Monster.

nominee and BAFTA winner (for An

from her husband’s past emerges.

Another former winner, Sandra

Education), Carey Mulligan, who

She won the Silver Bear at the Ber-

Bullock, is looking for a third nomina-

this time is a rock-solid reason to see

linale and is nominated in the Best

tion for her complex, funny and right-

the period women’s rights drama

Actress category at the European

on political consultant in Our Brand Is

Suffragette.

Film Awards. The incredible fact that

Crisis. Sadly, the fact is that this pas-

Rampling never has been nominated

sion project was a box office bust not

pair of young stars looking to crash

for an Oscar probably will help her

helped by mediocre critical response.

the party: Alicia Vikander in The

gain further traction.

That could dim Bullock’s chances.

Also not to be overlooked among

CAREY MULLIGAN Suffragette

Complicating the race is another

Danish Girl and Rooney Mara in

ALICIA VIKANDER The Danish Girl

ROONEY MARA Carol

ation of having so many deserving

blip at the box office might not mat-

award in Cannes over her co-star

vets in the running, including two-

ter, but it just makes the mountain

Cate Blanchett, and the Swed-

time Oscar winner Maggie Smith,

a little steeper to climb. Also on that

ish sensation Vikander is an equal

highly amusing in the true story The

uphill battle: Sarah Silverman as

partner to Eddie Redmayne in

Lady in the Van; Blythe Danner in

a depressed suburban housewife

her film. The Hollywood Foreign

her first-ever leading role in the indie

in I Smile Back; Jennifer Connelly

Press Association has ruled both

hit I’ll See You in My Dreams; the irre-

as a homeless woman encounter-

women as contenders for the Lead

sistible Lily Tomlin as the irascible

ing romance and personal troubles

Actress in a Drama category for this

title character in Grandma, looking

in Shelter; the terrific Patricia

year’s Golden Globes, but there’s a

for her second Oscar nomination

Clarkson as a newly-divorced

problem—their respective studios

40 years after her first for Nashville;

woman learning life lessons from Sir

instead are campaigning both in the

and Helen Mirren, hoping to add

Ben Kingsley in the lilting Learning

Supporting Actress race. This could

another Oscar to her mantle as an

to Drive; and the wonderful Brazilian

cause confusion for Academy of

Austrian looking to reclaim a famous

star Regina Case as a live in-house-

Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

painting the Nazis stole from her

keeper whose daughter suddenly

voters, who could split their votes

family. Her film, Woman in Gold,

shows up to complicate her life and

and thus knock Mara and Vikander

requires some memory-jogging on

job in The Second Mother. The lat-

out in both categories.

the part of voters—the film opened

ter’s foreign language status is not

way back in April, but remains the

something that has traditionally hurt

Blanchett has her own problem,

top independently-released movie

actresses from being nominated

albeit a nice one. She has two lead

so far this year.

here. Consultants just have to make

roles, in Carol and Truth, and is

But we’re not done yet. The list of

sure voters pop that screener into

excellent in both films, which are

Best Actress possibilities goes on in

being campaigned equally by their

this banner year for women, old and

distributors. However, Academy rules

young. If voters are in the mood for

pened last year when past Oscar

state that she only can be nomi-

comedy—which they rarely seem to

winner Marion Cotillard (La Vie en

nated for one role in the Best Actress

be—then look out for Amy Schumer

Rose) picked up a surprise nom for

category. It is a dumb rule that has

from the summer hit Trainwreck. A

the Belgian film Two Days, One Night.

outlived its time, especially since the

comedy actress Golden Globe win

The popular French star is back in

restriction doesn’t apply in any other

could boost her chances considerably,

contention this year for Macbeth,

category. Nevertheless, voters will

but Schumer more likely could land a

playing opposite Michael Fass-

have to make a Solomon-like choice

writing nom instead for her screenplay.

bender. The combination of a great

between these two fine Blanchett

CHARLOTTE RAMPLING 45 Years

In a less competitive year, being a

Carol. Mara won the Best Actress

On the other hand, Cate

CATE BLANCHETT Carol & Truth

But she has to deal with the situ-

Emily Blunt is looking for her first

their DVD players.

In fact, that is exactly what hap-

Shakesperean role like Lady Macbeth

turns, and, by splitting votes

Oscar nomination as the idealistic

and the Academy’s demonstrated

between them, the great Cate could

FBI agent introduced to the horrors

admiration for Cotillard could pro-

be left with nothing. Except the two

of the drug wars in Sicario. It’s one of

duce yet another surprise in a race

Oscars she already has, of course.

the more physically challenging roles

promising much more suspense

Now here is where it really gets

in the category this year, but it might

than usual.

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★ | crew calL

VISUAL EFFECTS

THE

VIZ BIZ

In a banner year for showy, VFX-heavy tentpoles, several films stood out for keeping things simple.

By Ross Lincoln

It’s been a transformative year for the art of visual effects, demonstrated not only by the increasingly ordinary and realistic depiction of advanced technology or destructive superpowers, but also the elaborate recreation of mundane details like office curtains, or space station floor tiles. Two-time Oscar nominee Richard Stammers was tasked with both the mundane and fantastic as visual effects supervisor on Fox’s The Martian. Kevin Baillie faced entirely different difficulties for Sony’s The Walk, using an enormous number of effects to recreate normal life in the 1970s. Meanwhile, Industrial Light and Magic’s Russell Earl, a three-time Oscar nominee, had the opposite job of delivering highly visible effects for two critical scenes as VFX supervisor on Marvel’s Ant-Man.

32

NASA-Approved

says Stammers. “Mars... is so much

The Martian

more subjective.” While there are thousands of photographs taken of

Adapting Andy Weir’s novel The

different parts of the planet, they

Martian came with challenges

were all shot with different cameras

beyond hitting narrative beats. The

over decades, and the film was given

story of stranded astronaut Mark

widely different treatments when

Watney (Matt Damons), struggling

developed. The result is that despite

to survive the harsh Mars environ-

the documentation, a clear idea of

ment for three years while awaiting

what it’s like on the planet is difficult

rescue, is notable for its rigorous

to nail down with precision.

scientific accuracy. That’s something

“Even simple questions like,

the film’s VFX team strived to live up

‘What color is Mars’ sky?’ (were diffi-

to, consulting with NASA scientists

cult),” says Stammers. “Mars has an

and other experts in creating plau-

atmosphere that is laden with dust

sible depictions of Mars and of the

and, depending on how you treat the

future of space travel. “Getting there

photographs, that sky can be yellow,

involved a number of challenges,”

sometimes gray, sometimes almost

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★ | crew calL

VISUAL EFFECTS

blue.” Ultimately the decision came from director Ridley Scott to split the

needed to match for the sky.”

Less technically challenging for

difference between strict accuracy

The Martian VFX team was creating

and audience expectations and

the Hermes space ship that rescues

opt for more familiar red and gold

Watney. “The references we could

colorations.

call upon there are more tangible,”

“That gave us a better starting

Stammers says. “We know what the

point,” Stammers says, citing as

International Space Station looks

a reference the Jordanian desert,

like, we’ve seen so many differ-

where several weeks of establishing

ent pictures taken there. Creating

photography took place. “The color

a realistic or plausible view with

is very similar to some of the ground

scientific accuracy that is worthy of

on the Mars photos. Once we could

NASA approval is probably the most

match the ground, it told us what we

rewarding part.”

A Tiny Blockbuster

up to immense size. “Here you have

Ant-Man

these weird things where it doesn’t feel like he’s shrinking or moving. You

The effects team at Industrial Light

completely lose that whole sense of

and Magic came to Ant-Man well

perspective you would get. It’s hard

Recreating History

image on the screen supporting the

after filming was completed, called

to wrap your head around it, and

The Walk

story rather than being the story.”

in to create the effects for two of the

once we got into laying out the shots

film’s most iconic scenes: the battle

it became apparent that it was a

Kevin Baillie has spent much of

“built 1974 New York from the ground

between Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and

very tricky thing to sell.”

his career making super-charged

up—every hot dog vendor and so on

effects on such franchise films

had this sort of hand-touch.”

Falcon (Anthony Mackie), and the

The battle with Falcon, in

To accomplish this, he and his team

trippy “Quantum Realm” scene,

which Ant-Man grows and shrinks

as Pirates of the Caribbean and

which was an exciting prospect for

multiple times, required different

Transformers, but for The Walk he

the tiny details. Photos from the

veteran Russell Earl. “For us, that

techniques. Mostly, Earl’s team

and his team instead worked to

lifespan of the buildings were exam-

was a big opportunity to try different

drew from the aesthetic of macro-

make those effects as invisible as

ined, along with original blueprints,

things, to create something people

photography—which captures tiny

possible. The task not only was to

yet the VFX team quickly discovered

haven’t seen before,” he says.

objects at larger-than-life-size—to

recreate 1970s New York City, but

that if the blueprints were followed

create the scene’s look and feel.

also its most iconic buildings: the

exactly, the resulting digital recre-

so small that he essentially falls

“Everyone’s familiar with shots of

World Trade Center’s Twin Tow-

ation looked obviously fake. “There

between the cracks in the universe.

insects, or close-ups on flowers,” he

ers. The film is about the real-life

is a certain amount of humanity in

“Ant-Man is shrinking but also travel-

says. “How you do that is you take a

story—also told in James Marsh’s

architecture,” Baillie says, adding

ing towards the camera,” Earl says. “If

bunch of photos and rack through

Oscar-winning documentary

that it’s due to everything from the

you were making size and perspec-

the focus on the camera because

Man on Wire—of how Frenchman

time of day a component was made

tive a part of it, he would be further

the macro lenses can only take so

Philippe Petit walked a tightrope

to the technique of a given construc-

away the smaller he got, and as he

much detail at such small distance.

he illegally hoisted between the

tion worker. The production factored

grew he would get larger.” Ordinarily,

Those pictures then get combined

then-unfinished buildings in

various imperfections, as well as

scale would be created by depth of

and you layer them together to get

1974. “Recreating the Towers was

such mundane details as the drapes

field or using ordinary objects blown

the sharp image.”

one of the most nerve-wracking

and couches in the World Trade

things we had to do because of

Center offices—visible, incidentally,

the cultural and emotional hold

only in the 3-D version of the film—to

they have for people,” Baillie says.

make the rendering of the buildings

In the scene, Ant-Man becomes

Another overarching challenge was to achieve realism in

34

The process even extended to

feel real.

“In order to make you feel some-

The Walk without the effects

thing, you can’t draw attention to

becoming a distraction for the

the fact that it’s fake,” Baillie insists.

audience. Citing films from his

“It was a unique pleasure being in a

childhood that used effects more

place to not only create seamless

sparingly than is the norm now,

visuals, but also have the film so

Baillie says his goal for The Walk,

completely transport people that

“was to let (the effects) live in the

they’re reacting and getting sweaty

background... It’s all about the

palms while watching.”

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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

BEST ACTRESS OLIVIA WILDE

2015 OFFICIAL SELECTION

HAMPTONS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

“Olivia Wilde is electrifying.

She delivers the finest acting performance of her career.”

-Clayton Davis, AwardsCircuit.com

“Wilde’s turn in Meadowland deserves to be talked about for years to come.

It’s the best work she has done yet... and it’s nothing short of remarkable.”

-Kate Erbland, FilmSchoolRejects.com

A FILM BY REED MORANO

MEADOWLAND /MEADOWLANDFILM

Untitled-38 1

@MEADOWLANDFILM

@MEADOWLANDFILM

#MEADOWLAND

11/19/15 5:41 PM

★ | final frame

DOUBLE EXPOSURE While rare, an actor receiving dual Oscar nominations in both lead and supporting categories has occurred more frequently among women than men (eight incidents to three, respectively).

The first double nominee was Fay Bainter in 1938, nommed for lead in White Banners and supporting for Jezebel, which she won. The most recent female double nominee was Cate Blanchett in 2007—lead for Elizabeth: The Golden Age, supporting for I’m Not There. It so happens that Blanchett again is the most talked about candidate for double noms this year for her inspired turns in Truth and Carol, the latter of which reunited the actress with her I’m Not There director Todd Haynes. Will Haynes be her lucky charm again this year? We’ll see. In the meantime, here are the other members of this exclusive women’s club. —Matthew Grobar 2007 CATE BLANCHETT Lead Actress: Elizabeth: The Golden Age Supporting Actress: I’m Not There 2002 JULIANNE MOORE Lead Actress: Far From Heaven Supporting Actress: The Hours 1993 HOLLY HUNTER Lead Actress: The Piano* Supporting Actress: The Firm 1993 EMMA THOMPSON Lead Actress: The Remains of the Day Supporting Actress: In the Name of the Father 1988 SIGOURNEY WEAVER Lead Actress: Gorillas in the Mist Supporting Actress: Working Girl 1982 JESSICA LANGE Lead Actress: Frances Supporting Actress: Tootsie* 1942 TERESA WRIGHT Lead Actress: The Pride of the Yankees Supporting Actress: Mrs. Miniver* 1938 FAY BAINTER Lead Actress: White Banners Supporting Actress: Jezebel*

Cate B lanche t t Carol

*Oscar win

36

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I L L U S T RAT I O N BY

Bram Vanhaeren

11/20/15 12:35 PM

Untitled-37 1

11/19/15 5:40 PM

“AS ENLIGHTENING AS IT IS ENTERTAINING, AS SOBERING AS IT IS EXHILARATING, ‘STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON’ REMINDS VIEWERS NOT ONLY WHO N.W.A WERE AND WHAT THEY MEANT, BUT ALSO WHY THEY MATTERED–AND STILL DO.”

“‘STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON’ AIMS TO CROSS CULTURES ANDITSANCTIFY THE WISDOM OF THE STREET. MAKES A UNIVERSAL UNDERDOG STORY AND IT SUCCEEDS ON A VISCERAL LEVEL. AMONG THE MOST POTENT RAGS-TO-RICHES SHOWBIZ MOVIES EVER MADE.”

“AN EXULTANT RAP-TO-RICHES STORY. IT’S A STORY DRIVEN BY CLASSIC TENSIONS: STRUGGLE AND

TRIUMPH, DIVISION AND CONQUEST, GROUP AND INDIVIDUAL.”

“A POWERFUL, ENGAGING AND COMPELLING STORY OF HOW AMERICA CHALLENGED AND CHANGED

FIVE YOUNG BLACK MEN, AND HOW THEY IN TURN CHALLENGED AND CHANGED AMERICA. IT NEVER LACKS FOR SOMETHING TO SAY OR TO SHOW US.”

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

BEST PICTURE Untitled-39 1

© 2015 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS

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