Archive for February, 2006

Dealing with fame – or not

Sarah Polley “I think you have to keep your distance from mainstream Hollywood in order to be a normal human being,” Sarah Polley [left] once commented. [imdb.com] She continued, “I mean, I work there, and I like being there, but I love having an anonymous life. I think there’s definitely such a thing as being [...]

Acting and image – ethnicity and casting

Navi Rawat One of the pleasures of the tv series “Numb3rs” is a character [Amita Ramanujan - played by Navi Rawat] who is not only a math whiz, but a woman of exotic beauty, not the standard blonde [as appealing as many blonde actors may be]. Navi Rawat was born to a German mother and [...]

Perfectionism – Samuel L. Jackson on pursuing excellence

> excerpt from article: “This top grossing actor has strict code – Samuel Jackson sees his stardom as artistic capital, something he’s unwilling to have frittered away.” By Patrick Goldstein, Los Angeles Times, February 14, 2006 He is intensely disciplined and purposeful, a combination that has made him much in demand as an actor, though [...]

Ian McKellen on Hollywood Homophobia

“The film industry is very old fashioned in California. It is very, very, very difficult for an American actor who wants a film career to be open about his sexuality. And even more difficult for a woman if she’s lesbian. “It’s very distressing to me that that should be the case. It’s not true of [...]

Anxiety and acting – dealing with an ‘enemy of art’

The enemy of art Commenting about her feelings this morning and her best-actress Oscar nomination for “Transamerica,” Felicity Huffman [left, as Bree in the film] said, “I woke up in fear and anxiety – which I know is the enemy of art, and in general.” [CNN Showbiz Tonight Feb 13 2006] Nicole Kidman admits, “Every [...]