This Friday, September 1st marked the kick-off of the Deauville American Festival. Who says festival says films, but who says festival also says press conferences. It is therefore Laura Dern who opened the ball on Saturday, September 2. Relaxed and smiling, the actress answered many questions and discussed many topics related to the 7th art. Small summary made in Justfocus!
The first question focused not on Laura Dern the actress but on Laura Dern the writer/producer. The idea was to understand what relationship the actress had in relation to creativity, in addition to her acting abilities:
"If there are so many actors and actresses who become directors, I think it's because you fall in love with the art of telling a story. The lines blur a little […] And if you have the ability to do it in a slightly different way than as an actor or actress, then you want to go for it."
An unsurprising answer from the actress, screenwriter and Hollywood producer, who seems particularly happy with this possibility of versatility in cinema.
Following this, a more serious and particularly topical subject appeared: that of women in the Hollywood industry. The question focused in particular on wage inequalities, which are still very present in Hollywood (as in many sectors). Laura Dern's-for-tat response, who seems to have been interested in the subject for a very long time:
"As you know my mother was an actress, so I was raised by an actress. All my life I have heard about this subject concerning gender equality which affects all sectors. […] We hear more and more about it in the United States […]And when we see that Meryl Streep received about 1/5th of Johnny Depp's salary for the same number of days of shooting, we notice all the work that remains to be done… "
A question then evoked the Hollywood machinery as a whole and its evolution in recent decades. Laura then told us about her vision of Hollywood in recent years, as well as her feelings about "evolutions":
"It's like politics! It's always changing, but not always evolving. […] When I was young, I saw my parents get involved in films made by revolutionary filmmakers. Then, blockbusters began to evolve and today, we are a bit in a new world that also leaves room for independent cinema. […] We are in a new generation that leaves room for new creators a little like in the 70s."
Among the following questions, the inevitable topic came to the conference room: that of Star Wars VIII – The Last Jedi. The question focused in particular on what had pushed the actress to accept such a role in the galactic saga:
"Star Wars… How to say no? When I was seven, I was playing in my room with a lightsaber and now I'm called and asked to do the same for real. It was just amazing! Acting in a Star Wars is like acting in a David Lynch movie. When you look around you can't believe your eyes. And I really like director Rian Johnson. He is a very ingenious young director."
This is an undisguised enthusiasm on the part of Laura Dern, who seems impatient for us to discover this new opus of the Star Wars mythology. Funny little detail, she said that not only did she play with a lightsaber when she was a child, but especially that she was called to do "the same thing". So it could involve a lightsaber in the hands of Laura Dern. Should we expect to discover a new follower of the Force in this character? We do not know more and this is not the time for theories!
Let us instead move on to the very last question of this conference, asked by your servants at home Justfocus.fr!This question was about Laura Dern's future aspirations. Indeed, having toured with the greatest directors and in iconic saga (Star Wars, Jurassic Park), it is interesting to know what projects could still excite the 50-year-old actress. She answered us in a way that was as direct as it was amusing:
"Why didn't I learn Spanish…? If that were the case I could ask Almodovar to offer me a role in one of his films. Since I work in the film industry, why not one day be part of his universe, of these women I admire. He is also a director who knows me well and who would be able to make me give the best of myself. […] I would dream of working in European cinema."
So many topics discussed with Laura Dern that deserved to be amply more developed (the interview had to be cut in places). But one thing is certain, the actress knows what she wants for her career and for her happiness as an actress. All we have to do is discover it in December in the highly anticipated Star Wars VIII: The Last Jedi.
