Tilda Swinton at SXSW: “Cinema is a magical carpet”
Deviating somewhat from the promotional schedule for the two movies she has out, Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive and Wes Anderson’s The Great Budapest Hotel, both of which are aptly premiering at SXSW, Tilda Swinton sat down with the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Eugene Hernandez yesterday at South By Southwest for an extensive, illuminating talk about the veteran actress’ fascinating career.
The interview spanned the gamut: She spoke about her early inspiration (“Herbie Rides Again“), auteur Derek Jarman (“He wasn’t chasing the center. He wrapped the center around him“) and her prolific, often offbeat, but always fascinating film career. Wearing a casual white shirt, Swinton was likeable, soft-spoken and commanding.
When asked what inspires her, Swinton spoke about being drawn to “difficult characters”:
“If there’s a point at which I’m prepared to take myself seriously as a performer, it’s the point at which I noticed I really have interest in acting out stories of people who are at a kind of precipice in their life. They make some kind of transformation… whatever it is, whenever I’ve talked to a filmmaker about a story–because it’s usually that, rather than reading a script, I’m normally talking around a kitchen table about a story–the point at which the performer in me gets interested is the point at which they say, ‘And then there’s this precipice, then there’s this moment when this person–and I don’t use the character, I’m sort of suspicious of the word character–the person focuses, their trajectory switches, and they have to choose another way of being in the world.’ I really love that.”
On cinema:
“My guides in this inquiry are my children who are now 16 — they’re twins. They’re like lab rats really, they’re very grateful. When I first started thinking about cinema for them, I started to really examine my own desires about cinema for myself… It was really to do with the children and seeing their eyes opening. And I started thinking about why cinema is good for the soul, and what it gives us. In a nutshell, what it is for me is this amazingly humane opportunity to put yourselves in the shoes of someone else. It’s no more complicated and no less powerful than that. You go in, it all goes dark, and you put yourself in someone else’s shoes and see through their eyes. That’s just mega, it’s so powerful. Even a painter, who can do it, only can do less. A painter at one time is showing you one frame, but a filmmaker can take you into an experience and an existential atmosphere that may be a trip for you. It’s like a magic carpet. This is how I feel about cinema.