Sandra Bullock, Kathryn Bigelow and others riff on a day of Oscar
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It’s been one of those days when the calls keep coming in from Oscar nominees – producers, directors, performers (although more from actresses than actors, curiously). We’ve been collecting them all day – from how Sandra Bullock really felt about “The Blind Side” when she first heard about the film to the advice Tom Hanks gave Gabourey Sidibe. A few choicer statements:
Kathryn Bigelow on, essentially, enough with the female-director talk: ‘I long personally for the day when that modifier [women director] is a moot point. I anticipate that day will come. I think we’re close. If ‘The Hurt Locker’ or the attention that it’s getting can make the impossible seem possible to somebody, it’s pretty overwhelming and gratifying. At least we’re heading in the right direction.’
Sandra Bullock on why ‘Blind Side’ was so resonant: ‘I have no idea. No one wanted to make the film. We made the film for a little amount of money. [When I was first approached] I didn’t see it. I didn’t know how to make it my own. That’s why I kept saying no. The reason there’s this monumental chord that’s been struck is because of John Lee Hancock. He knew the story he wanted to tell. He wanted to tell a story of a mother and son.’
And producer Andrew Kosove on Bullock: ‘Sandra] or Meryl Streep will win best actress. The problem with best actress is that you can give it to Meryl Streep every year. She’s the best actress in the world. It’s like Tiger Woods in a golf tournament — eventually someone else has to be allowed to win.’
‘Up’ writer-director Pete Docter has been nominated four times – but it still gives him butterflies: ‘I’ve been to the Oscars before. It’s always a little nerve-racking. Half your brain is going. ‘I can’t believe I’m here. I’m just a geeky kid who likes to draw cartoons, and here I am among the Hollywood elite.’ And then there’s the other part, the pit in your stomach hoping against hope that you can win.’
Gabourey Sidibe on what it’s like to be nominated for an Oscar in her first feature: ‘I think it’s a crazy world we live in. Anything is possible in America. And possibly Canada too…. The best advice came from Tom Hanks. He told me [award season] is a series of silly parties. And that I should get comfortable shoes. He was right. I do need them.’
Vera Farmiga on whether actors in ‘Avatar’ or performances in other motion-capture pictures deserve Oscar recognition. ‘I’d actually have to study a process or be a part of a film like that and [see] how much more is embellished computer-wise. I don’t see why not. I think it’s legitimate performance. I don’t discredit it in any way because it’s translated by a computer.’
-- Steven Zeitchik, Chris Lee, Rachel Abramowitz and Amy Kaufman
