Amelia - Mira Nair interview
Interview by Rob Carnevale
MIRA Nair talks about some of the challenges of filming Amelia, why Amelia Earhart became such an American icon, capturing the flying sequences on film and what she plans to do next…
Q. What appealed to you about making a film about Amelia Earhart?
Mira Nair: Well, when I was offered the film I began by looking at 16 hours of footage of the real Amelia and I immediately became intrigued by her because despite being an icon in her lifetime she had this consistent humility… an almost goofy humility that I find quite un-American. I then read her story and read her own writings, which are very particular to her… very modern, funny and brave. She must have been the first person to write what I jokingly call the pre-nup. I believe she was such an utterly modern woman.
Q. What enabled her to capture people’s imaginations at the time?
Mira Nair: Well, she took chances and had a great style and flair while doing it. She really wanted to live beyond herself. She wanted to have meaning to more people beyond herself. When not flying she was a great activist, who taught students and went to the White House to ask for amendments to women’s rights. She was also able to balance her passion with the responsibility that came with her fame, and I was intrigued by how she did that because she always followed her heart as well.
Q. Was Hilary Swank already attached?
Mira Nair: She chose me. She was with the film when they came to me. But I thought that was great because she’s really just someone who has the spirit of Amelia in the sense that she’s a daredevil who has also refused to accept any boundaries to her own dreams… and she loves to fly!
Q. How did Richard Gere become involved?
Mira Nair: Just a couple of weeks prior to shooting we approached him and he really loved the role. He loved the fact that he started off as a businessman and ended up as a man who found his love. He was also intrigued by the fact that George Putnam was really the first publicist of the times. I think he also liked Hilary’s work and my work, so that’s how it happened.
Q. How did you go about capturing the brilliant flying sequences?
Mira Nair: That was really like a ballet because we were in the hands of a master – [Second Unit Director] Marc Wolff, our aerial director of photography. He really knew the camera, so the dance between the two – camera and plane – was extraordinary to behold. My mandate was real planes in real places – not to make a computer graphics fest. The idea was to really make it feel like you’re in the cockpit with her as she traverses the waistline of the world.
Q. How easy was it to get the archive footage that you use?
Mira Nair: It wasn’t too difficult accessing archive material but the trick was you had to find the right stuff – and that took months! Fortunately, thanks to George Putnam [her husband] there’s so much of Amelia that does exist!
Q. Given the mystery and theories that still surround Amelia’s disappearance, were there any that surprised you while making the film?
Mira Nair: There are endless theories surrounding the circumstances of her disappearance. There’s always a new theory each day almost. But I was less interested in that. I was dealing with her life and the impact of it rather than the aftermath of her death.
Q. Do you think there are many female icons in society today, like Amelia Earhart?
Mira Nair: There are so many now but most of them are unsung. Most of them don’t have the publicity machine that Amelia had. But yes, of course, there are so many, from policewomen I know to Nobel Prize winner Wangari Maathai, who is internationally recognised for her persistent struggle for democracy, human rights and environmental conservation. There are so many women who have followed Amelia’s idea of living life as fully as possible and not having boundaries to their dreams. That’s what’s important.
Q. How was the experience of being part of a Hollywood blockbuster for you? Has it changed much over the years?
Mira Nair: This is actually my third experience… I made The Perez Family and Vanity Fair but it’s always the same when you make films with studios – you have to be prepared for the dance and to navigate all the voices while keeping your own voice as much as possible. But if you don’t embrace the dance, you slit your wrists!
Q. What’s next for you?
Mira Nair: I’m actually preparing Monsoon Wedding as a musical for Broadway. It’ll take another year or more, but we’re preparing it and it’s going to be spectacular. So, I’ll be directing that. The next movie I’m directing, meanwhile, is a thriller called The Reluctant Fundamentalist, which is based on the book by Mohsin Hamid. That one will take me to New York, Pakistan and Chile.