Lots of new stuff in this one.
What surprised you about being an executive producer on this film?
I wasn't a proper producer. I only came on at the end. I always liked what Allen and Nick's idea for the whole movie was, and at the end, I didn't want it to be messed about with, by the studio or by whoever. Whatever I could do to help protect that.
What led you to take this project?
I read it just after Twilight, in the summer, and there was just something about it. I liked the way it didn't fit into any formulaic structure, and it didn't seem like a teen movie. The period in-between the second and third Twilight films was only two months, and you can't shoot that much stuff. It seemed like the perfect movie to put in there.
Do you agree with Tyler's worldview?
I don't think Tyler really had a worldview. That's kind of what I liked. He's sort of rebelling against nothing. He doesn't have any particular desires, no one's taking anything from him. It's almost the reason why he wants to rebel, because there's nothing to rebel against. I felt relatively similar to him in a lot of ways, just being desireless. Especially when I first read it. I wasn't doing anything when I first read it.
Are you a chain smoker like Tyler is?
I'm now chain eating Nicorette gum. I'm furiously addicted to that now, which is very annoying. On planes and things, it does not help at all. It just makes you desperately want a cigarette.
[Director] Allen [Coulter] and [screenwriter] Will [Fetters] were saying it can be hard for young people to play young characters and see beyond that age. How were you able to do that?
Maybe it's bad, [but] I think the only way to make anything truthful is to try and relate as much of it as you can to yourself. I think I related tons of it to how I thought I felt about stuff. I was saying to people before I started shooting that it's the closest to myself, and I'm trying to play myself in it.
It sounds like filming in New York was stressful, but what was enjoyable about it?
It's the fantasy idea of living in the East VIllage. It's the kind of life I would have wanted to have if I was a student. It's a very active culture-- even the extras in New York, everybody's got an opinion about everything.
How much of that did you get to experience yourself, though?
My sister used to live here, for five years, and I'll be honest, I experienced a lot more of New York then. I was kind of stuck in a hotel room a lot of time [filming Remember Me].
Was it hard to act with all those people around the set?
Just at the beginning. It's strange, in New York you can't shut down streets. It is weird, you've got like 40 people taking photos on the other side of the street, and there's nothing you can do.
What can people expect from you musically in the future? Do you see yourself doing a music movie?
Yeah. I'd really like to. I've been talking to people about stuff for ages, about various different things. it's quite difficult to do. I think it's a bit risky as well.
Has your songwriting process changed for you in recent years?
I used to write a lot by just doing gigs, and just turning up to open mics with two lines of a song, and the pressure would force you to make something up. And I can't really do that anymore. That was my main process of writing songs, get songs that are totally uninformed by self-consciousness. When I sit down and try to write some lyrics, it just looks like rubbish. I can't function with two things at the same time. I don't even listen to music when I'm doing [films]. I think after doing another movie after this movie now, then I'll try and write some music, hopefully at the end of the year.
Have they asked you to do any more songs for the Twilight movies?
No. They'll never ask me ever again!
Are you enjoying your career right now?Are the acting opportunities worth the craziness and the fame?
It's annoying not being able to meet people, thinking that someone's going to sell something or Twitter things. You need that, just to be a person, just to be able to talk to someone in a normal way. You see all these actors holing themselves up and not doing anything ever because of that. That's the only frustrating thing about it.
Do you see this movie as an important step to show people you're more than Twilight?
I think it's an important step. I don't think it's to show people I'm more than Twilight. I have the same mentality about [the Twilight sequels]. I try to make a Twilight film to show I'm more than Twilight, whatever that means. You try and improve, you try and take things from each job you get. I've just sort of fallen into it. I'm just trying to figure out how to do things.
You've made a lot of distinctly independent films to kind of counterbalance Twilight. Do you plan to keep seeking these out?
Not necessarily. I just liked the script of this. The next few things I'm doing, I just liked the script. I'd be way more nervous doing a big kind of blockbuster which would go into the marketplace saying, "This has to be huge." I like doing ensemble things with established actors who are really good, and scripts that are kind of different, and hope people will be interested in them.
Cinemablend
What led you to take this project?
I read it just after Twilight, in the summer, and there was just something about it. I liked the way it didn't fit into any formulaic structure, and it didn't seem like a teen movie. The period in-between the second and third Twilight films was only two months, and you can't shoot that much stuff. It seemed like the perfect movie to put in there.
Do you agree with Tyler's worldview?
I don't think Tyler really had a worldview. That's kind of what I liked. He's sort of rebelling against nothing. He doesn't have any particular desires, no one's taking anything from him. It's almost the reason why he wants to rebel, because there's nothing to rebel against. I felt relatively similar to him in a lot of ways, just being desireless. Especially when I first read it. I wasn't doing anything when I first read it.
Are you a chain smoker like Tyler is?
I'm now chain eating Nicorette gum. I'm furiously addicted to that now, which is very annoying. On planes and things, it does not help at all. It just makes you desperately want a cigarette.
[Director] Allen [Coulter] and [screenwriter] Will [Fetters] were saying it can be hard for young people to play young characters and see beyond that age. How were you able to do that?
Maybe it's bad, [but] I think the only way to make anything truthful is to try and relate as much of it as you can to yourself. I think I related tons of it to how I thought I felt about stuff. I was saying to people before I started shooting that it's the closest to myself, and I'm trying to play myself in it.
It sounds like filming in New York was stressful, but what was enjoyable about it?
It's the fantasy idea of living in the East VIllage. It's the kind of life I would have wanted to have if I was a student. It's a very active culture-- even the extras in New York, everybody's got an opinion about everything.
How much of that did you get to experience yourself, though?
My sister used to live here, for five years, and I'll be honest, I experienced a lot more of New York then. I was kind of stuck in a hotel room a lot of time [filming Remember Me].
Was it hard to act with all those people around the set?
Just at the beginning. It's strange, in New York you can't shut down streets. It is weird, you've got like 40 people taking photos on the other side of the street, and there's nothing you can do.
What can people expect from you musically in the future? Do you see yourself doing a music movie?
Yeah. I'd really like to. I've been talking to people about stuff for ages, about various different things. it's quite difficult to do. I think it's a bit risky as well.
Has your songwriting process changed for you in recent years?
I used to write a lot by just doing gigs, and just turning up to open mics with two lines of a song, and the pressure would force you to make something up. And I can't really do that anymore. That was my main process of writing songs, get songs that are totally uninformed by self-consciousness. When I sit down and try to write some lyrics, it just looks like rubbish. I can't function with two things at the same time. I don't even listen to music when I'm doing [films]. I think after doing another movie after this movie now, then I'll try and write some music, hopefully at the end of the year.
Have they asked you to do any more songs for the Twilight movies?
No. They'll never ask me ever again!
Are you enjoying your career right now?Are the acting opportunities worth the craziness and the fame?
It's annoying not being able to meet people, thinking that someone's going to sell something or Twitter things. You need that, just to be a person, just to be able to talk to someone in a normal way. You see all these actors holing themselves up and not doing anything ever because of that. That's the only frustrating thing about it.
Do you see this movie as an important step to show people you're more than Twilight?
I think it's an important step. I don't think it's to show people I'm more than Twilight. I have the same mentality about [the Twilight sequels]. I try to make a Twilight film to show I'm more than Twilight, whatever that means. You try and improve, you try and take things from each job you get. I've just sort of fallen into it. I'm just trying to figure out how to do things.
You've made a lot of distinctly independent films to kind of counterbalance Twilight. Do you plan to keep seeking these out?
Not necessarily. I just liked the script of this. The next few things I'm doing, I just liked the script. I'd be way more nervous doing a big kind of blockbuster which would go into the marketplace saying, "This has to be huge." I like doing ensemble things with established actors who are really good, and scripts that are kind of different, and hope people will be interested in them.
Cinemablend
RPLife
