Veteran actor Tom Conti was special guest at this week’s FDA Autumn / Winter Showcase. Oscar Nominated for his role in REUBEN, REUBEN (1983), which co-starred Kelly McGillis, he is also the father of talented ventriloquist Nina Conti. Interviewed on stage by Alex Zane, he had some enlightening reflections on the state of the Film Industry.
ON WATCHING FILMS: “I watch all sorts of films. I like big American films like CAPTAIN PHILLIPS. In the end, it is all about story.”
ON CHOOSING PROJECTS: “If you don’t have someone you can worry about, then you won’t get it.”
ON GOOD SCRIPTS: “If you don’t see it initially and you have to spend two weeks getting it, then something has gone catastrophically wrong. You must answer two questions: ‘Will I enjoy it?’ and ‘Will anybody enjoy watching it?’ . If you cannot answer yes to either of these, then please stay away.”
ON STAGE VERSUS FILM: “Contrary to what you think, there is no difference, except in Theatre you speak louder. The same is true whether in front of eight-hundred people, or in front of a camera operated by one person. Most times we, as Brits, are not good at showing our emotions. In Movies, you see the world and are put up at the Ritz by a lot of ill-informed people making the decisions. In Theatre, there is nothing between you and the audience and you build up your performance over time, whereas in Film you only have one chance to get it right.
When I started the joy was the fact that you would be on a real tank or a ship, whereas today it is mostly in front of green-screen in Films. You did it back then for the tanks and the girls!”
ON THE OLDER CINEMA-GOERS: “There is nothing for the older generation, but they do like Tom Hanks films.”
ON WORKING WITH CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IN ‘DARK KNIGHT RISES’: “Nolan was calm, assured and easy. He likes to build reality. Most directors are scared to death and often it is the Director of Photography who will save the day.”
ON LOCATION FILMING: “I was working with Felicity Jones in Hawaii and they brought over an actor to do a scene. We had all these effects machines, the director yelled action – and the actor forgot his lines. After other attempts, he was sent home.”
ON BEING NOMINATED FOR AN OSCAR: “I was told I was nominated, but couldn’t attend because I was on location and for me to attend the ceremony would have meant shutting the film I was doing down for four days at a cost of $100,000. In any case, it was won by Robert Duvall for TENDER MERCIES (Academy Awards 1984)
ON WORKING WITH BOWIE IN ‘MERRY CHRISTMAS MR. LAWRENCE’: Bowie was very serious, but it wasn’t his home territory as an actor.”
All in all, Tom Conti was a very smart and knowledgeable actor who enlightened the FDA audience who showed tremendous gratitude at the end of the chat.
