Milla chatted live with fans about Stone at the Los Angeles Times website, October 5, 2010:
How was to work with Edward Norton?
Milla_Jovovich: working w edward was so incredible. he is one of the most
generous, friendly, intelligent and well spoken people! he gave me a few
great tips on working w bob de niro as well! lol!
whats it like working with robert de niro?
Milla_Jovovich: working with de niro was such an amazing experience because
he is always searching for the truth in his character. no matter what the
script says he should do, he needs to find the honesty of his actions. so
being on the other side of that process made it kind of like a dance. i had
to be aware of him and what he needed from me in the moment, or else the
scene wouldn't move forward.
Milla, how do you select the roles you eventually take?
Milla_Jovovich: i select the roles i end up playing in lot's of different
ways. sometimes its based on what character interests me, what haven't i done
yet... i like that my films have a lot of diversity in the characters.
especially now that RE has become such a franchise, its important to do show
parts of my personality that i haven't shown yet.
what was your first thought when you got the call that you would be working
with DeNiro and Norton?
Milla_Jovovich: to say i was happy to work w norton and de niro is a bit of
an understatement! i actually started to cry! lol!
In Stone you play a very demanding role how do you prepare for it pryer to
filming
Milla_Jovovich: preparing for my role in "stone" was a lot of thinking about
who this girl is and what all the different facets of her personality are all
about. once i zeroed in on where she's coming from educationally, it was all
about creating a multi layered human being. also, not being scared of her
flaws and being prepared to not judge her for the mistakes she ultimately
makes. knowing that i'm not just playing a "femme fatal" or a sexual
manipulator, but a real person who can be joyful, light, animal, dangerous,
ominous... all those things had to show for me to be happy w Lucetta.
Did you shoot Stone at a working prison? How was that experience?
Milla_Jovovich: yes we shot in a partially functioning prison in michigan.
the experience was very creepy, at times stifling. it felt like the air was
dead when we would walk in and the thought of spending a life there was
absolutely terrifying.
Is Directing in your future?
Milla_Jovovich: at the moment, the thought of directing is OUT!!! lol! being
married to a director and making as many films as i have, give me an inside
view of what a directors day is like and let me tell you, it takes a certain
type of personality to do that job. you have to make yourself available to
people 24 hrs a day and i mean, when u have a moment to take a breath, you
have 12 people running up to you going "oh, u have a moment?! can i ask you a
question?!" and i would flip out from that kind of daily harrassement! lol!
directors are the first people on set -aside from transport- and the last to
go home, clocking in 18 hr days EASILY. at the moment i just want to be a mom
and juggle the career i already created! directing would send me over the
edge!
Hi Milla, Talk a little about working with a lesser-known director in John
Curran on Stone. Initial impression of him? What convinced you he was up
for the task?
Milla_Jovovich: john curran is a rare talent. he really always goes for such
"fringe" subject matter and one of the few directors in hollywood that isn't
scared of flawed personalities in his films, as well as grey areas in people.
he really embraces such subtleties and is fascinated by the hypocrisy in
human nature. people projecting a certain image to the world around them,
their communities, spouses etc... while leading very different lives behind
closed doors. i really respect him for taking on such hefty subject matter
since its almost impossible to get films financed if they aren't wrapped up
in a perfect little package at the end or spoon feeding ideas to an audience.
So what other projects are you working on?
Milla_Jovovich: hey batman! i have a wonderful little coming of age comedy
called "dirty girl" coming out next year with the incredibly talented juno
temple (who is also starring in "the three musketeers" w me at the moment!)
also, william h. macy, margaret steenburgen, dwight yoakum, tim mcgraw and i
round of an excellent supporting cast for her. i did a dramady written and
directed by famke jansson called "bringing up bobby" earlier this year, as
well as a hitchcockian thriller called "faces in the crowd" written and
directed by an amazing young french director named julian magnat. and yea,
i'm shooting "three musketeers" in germany at the moment! phew!
Most of my friends believing that you are so popular because u're russian. I
mean your personal inner world is so deeply and beauty! What do you think
about this? This is true or not?
Milla_Jovovich: i definitely feel like you need to have a very deep, personal
world that is filled with beauty! lol! what a great way to describe it! i do
feel like i need to feel a sense of mystery and magic in my personal life, as
well as a good dose of great books to read and research! i always say, ala
oscar wilde, there is no such thing as being bored, just being boring! so i
like to always keep myself interested in ME! because if i'm not interested in
myself and the things i love, why should anyone else be interested? i wanna
keep myself inspired and i do that by spending a lot of time with my
daughter, reading, working, always keeping my interests open... well, i could
probably go on, but that's enough for the moment i guess! lol!
can you explain what you mean by where she was coming from "educationally"?
Milla_Jovovich: when i talked about the education of my character in "stone",
it's because a person grows through reading, studying, learning from others.
they get a sense of strength and confidence because of their education. my
character lucetta isn't book smart, she doesn't have an education to fall
back on, so she gets her confidence from her sexuality, being needed,
desired.
Milla, really liked The Fourth Kind. With that and Stone, your dramatic repertoire(?) is expanding. Is this planned?
Milla_Jovovich: well, i do have a few other dramatic pieces i've done in the
past. michael winterbottom's "the claim" luc besson's "the messenger-the
story of joan of arc", ".45", wim wenders "the million dollar hotel"... as well
as "4th kind" and "stone"!
Your husband seems to be really relaxed. How does he handle the pressure of
making these expensive films?
Milla_Jovovich: its true, my husband is an incredible well rounded, balanced,
calm, respectful human being. he's definitely got the perfect personality for
dealing with pressure in general and the pressures of being a director in
particular! and being married to me at the same time! lol! i can be a moody
martha at home sometimes! lol!
Milla, Afterlife is the Best looking 3D movie I have seen. Would you like to
be in more 3d Movies? I'm glad you shot it with the Pace/Cameron system
instead of using the fake post 3d process.
Milla_Jovovich: thank you so much! we are so happy that RE was shot w the
PACE cameras and are so happy that people like you notice the immense
difference using reall 3D technology makes in the end product of as movie.
shooting with these cameras is very challenging due to there size and weight,
so most of the standard equipment off the shelf that you would use i.e.
cranes, dolly track just can't carry these huge contraptions! my husband paul
-who is OBSESSED w 3D BTW! lol!- had to sit with all the different
departments and literally create new ways and techniques for moving these
monoliths around. we are actually shooting the "the three musketeers" with PACE'S
new 3D cameras right now!
You know what would be great, Milla? If you got your own talk show. yes.
MILLA IN THE MORNING!
Milla_Jovovich: you haven't seen me in the morning! moody martha!!! lol!
Milla_Jovovich: anyway, i gotta run guys! you've asked some EXCELLENT questions and its a real pleasure to talk to you directly like this! all the best to you all and i hope you get a chanced to see "stone" when it comes out in theaters this friday! only in ny and la though for the moment! hopefully you like it!
