Robert Redford Interviews

Here are some very useful points for producers, directors, cast and crew alike, to ponder (the bullet points in blue are my views):

Fame - that can lead you to be treated like an object, then make you behave like an object, then ultimately, becoming an object

• That's why we see some good actors dropping out abruptly after they reached 'stardom', as they shifted their focus to fame and decadent lifestyles, instead of their craft.

On picking a winner - that you can't apart from believing in the story of the character and do your best.

• That actors should remember that ultimately it is the script that counts and their own performance is what they have control over. We don't really know whether it will work with the audience or not until the film is screened. Film producers and investors ought to take note of this.

That he has not seen some of his own films, because of the belief of not looking back to his past as he doesn't want it to affect his future performance.

• This means not to be obsessive about the past. Enjoy it, but move on.

That he is selective and tough on what he wants to do.

• All too often, I see actors accepting any gig that comes by, without regard for what they really want to do. This is largely due to the fear of not being able to get enough gigs to make ends meet. However, fear is not going to get us anywhere we want in life. The result of such actors is that they become typecast to do many minor/extra roles, then find it hard to get out of their stereotype cast.
• The British actor Anthony Hopkins once said that he chooses  roles that gives him the opportunity to impress the audience.

That he didn't want to be merely a part of that representing something, but be something in a script. For that he asked for his character in "The Way We Were" to be modified to reflect that. He didn't want to be merely be a handsome model waiting for the girl to fall in love with.

• He put this very delicately. What he probably meant was that he didn't want to be just another 'pretty face'. All too often we see films filled with handsome actors just to cover up shallow characters existing in an empty plot with poor dialogues.
• A nice pair of legs can only walk you this far, after that you really need to perform. :)

Small films can be fun. They are simple to manage, not mired by bureucracy and big technologies like helicopters and cranes, that take the soul out of film making.

• And while some in Singapore moan about the small projects that are available here, being small can be beautiful. There is more room for creativity. Props, attire and movements can be decided on the go, if desirable, without having to fight the armies of different art directors, prop designers, costume designers, makeup artists, choreographers...etc. When too much money is at stake, spontaneity often has to give.
• As it is small, it is not viciously competitive and so everyone are friends and  here for the love of it. There are not many workplaces where you can find everyone there out of passion. So enjoy the small ones before the big ones take the innocence out of you. :)

That Sundance Film Festival is a commitment that took longer time that he expected to establish, but it is something that he wants to put back into the industry.

• We can give back to the industry in smaller ways if we are not up to starting something big. For starters, we can help out in student films.

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