(Left) Marianne Jean-Baptiste. Photo: Thin Man Films Ltd. (Center) Mike Leigh. Photo: Myrna Suarez. (Right) Michele Austin. Photo: Michael Shelford.
Opening in theaters in wide release on January 10th is the latest movie from acclaimed filmmaker Mike Leigh (‘Topsy-Turvy’) entitled ‘Hard Truths’. The new movie reunites Leigh with his ‘Secrets & Lies’ cast members Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Michele Austin, and in addition stars David Webber (‘Captain Phillips’), Tuwaine Barrett (‘Back to Black’), Ani Nelson (‘Crooked House’) and Sophia Brown (‘Beauty and the Beast’).
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Mike Leigh and actors Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Michele Austin about their work on ‘Hard Truths’, the unique way Leigh makes movies, reuniting with Jean-Baptiste and Austin on set, why they love working with Leigh, their approach to playing their characters, and Leigh’s working relationship with his crew.
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(L to R) Michele Austin, filmmaker Mike Leigh and Marianne Jean-Baptiste discuss ‘Hard Truths’.
Moviefone: To begin with, Mike, can you talk about developing the idea for this film and the themes that you wanted to explore as a director?
Mike Leigh: Well, it’s a difficult question. I mean, like all my films, apart from the historical ones, and even that’s not entirely true, it taps into ongoing preoccupations of all kinds. It’s impossible to talk about developing an idea, because it’s quite a complex film. The truth is, as you may or may not know, is that we make these films by embarking on a journey to find out what the film is on the journey of making the film. So, there isn’t an answer to the question really, as such. But you think, oh, that’s what this is. It just grows, really, because you see people say to me, “Where’d you get your ideas for your films?” Well, literally, I’ve only got to walk down the street and walk past ten people I don’t know and there are ten films there. For me, films come from life out there.
MF: Has your process of making movies changed at all over the year or is it the same as it’s always been?
ML: Basically, the same since 1965, films and stage plays. I mean, it changes in a way, in subtle ways for each project, because different things have different requirements. It obviously changed in obvious ways when I made those various period films, although it’s still the same process with no script. So no, it hasn’t really changed fundamentally. I mean, we’ll have days when we’ve got days in the location without the crew where we’ll create the scenes, then the crew will arrive, and then we’ll look at it, share it with the cinematographer and the gang, and then we’ll work out how to shoot it and we’ll shoot it. So, the real point about what you’re talking about is that what we shoot is very precise. It comes out of improvisations, out of months of improvisation, and we improvise. We go to the location, we create the scenes scene by scene, sequence by sequence, location by location, in the location, because I can only visualize a scene by being in the actual place. We script through rehearsal. So, we arrive at something very precise through a rehearsal process. I don’t go away and write a script and bring it back.
Marianne Jean-Baptiste in ‘Hard Truths’. Copyright: Thin Man Films Ltd.
MF: Marianne, you’ve worked with Mike before, what do you enjoy about working with him and the specific way that he makes movies?
Marianne Jean-Baptiste: I feel that I’m at my most creative when working with him. It’s collaborative. It’s freeing. It’s great to be working with somebody that you really trust and can trust as a director that also trusts you. I mean, it’s collaboration in the truest sense of the word. You get to use your imagination. Nobody works like that. I mean, it’s a very efficient way of working, because everybody knows exactly what they must do. You’re not trying to find out what your character’s motivation is in the middle of the day of shooting. There are not multiple takes of things. So, it’s an efficient way of working.
MF: Michele, can you talk about what it is like to be an actor on a Mike Leigh project?
Michele Austin: Oh, my goodness. What’s it like? Well, I was going to say it’s much the same, but it’s not, I suppose. The way we create the scenes, when Mike writes the scenes, they tend to be done in the morning, usually, on set. Everything’s always on set on location. So, you sort of have this dual time on the set where you are creating in the morning and honing it and then showing it to the crew maybe in the afternoon, and then it’s shot. We always get home in time for dinner.
(L to R) Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Michele Austin in in ‘Hard Truths’. Courtesy of Simon Mein. Copyright: Thin Man Films Ltd.
MF: Marianne, can you talk about your approach to playing Pansy and was it difficult to find the character’s depression and anger and to stay in that state throughout filming?
MJB: No, not particularly because again, of the process and the way that we create the character. We’re also very strict about, or rather, Mike is strict about it, and we become strict about coming out of character. There’s a process where we warm up and we get into character and then we warm down, if you like, and come out of character. So, there’s none of this sort of method style of living with this tortured character.
MF: Michele, can you talk about Chantelle’s relationship with Pansy and how she tries to relate to her and help her out of this situation?
MA: Well, obviously it comes out of all the months of creating their family history. She does adore her sister, I think. I think what is interesting about Chantelle is that she is very positive. She wants to make things better, but not in a kind of sacrificing way. But yeah, she wants her sister to be better and to feel better, but she just doesn’t necessarily have the tools to do that. But I think what I’m struck by with their relationship is that I think in every family, there are difficult relationships that people are trying to make better, they don’t want to give up on, or they want their families to work, and they want people to be happy. I mean, I know that’s one of those awful words, but they do. They want people to be secure and happy and they’re trying their best. I think that the tension, I suppose, is when you have a sister who finds life easy, and you have a sister who struggles a bit and how they sort of rub up against each other. I think that’s her character. Her characteristic is she wants to help, and she wants people to be content. She has a certain level of contentment that she lives with. It was quite a nice state to be in. It’s quite a nice character to inhabit because I’m not like that. I think that it was very interesting to play somebody who is pretty much content and looking for the good things in life and people and having a laugh, and not being as cynical as I am.
(L to R) David Webber, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, and Tuwaine Barrett in ‘Hard Truths’. Courtesy of Simon Mein. Copyright: Thin Man Films Ltd.
MF: Marianne, can you talk about the improvisation process and do the relationships and backstories for these characters come out of those improvisations?
MJB: Oh, yeah. I mean, the whole world and everything comes out of improvisations, discussions, and movements. It is all about exploring and discovering who these people are.
MF: Finally, Mike, as a filmmaker, do you think that you ultimately find the movie in the editing room, or is it in your head on set while you’re filming?
ML: This kind of film is not the kind of film which you discover in the editing room in the sense that you shoot a lot of wild footage and try and figure it all out afterwards. It’s not one of those. It’s very disciplined. So, in that sense, what you take to the cutting room is very disciplined. I mean, there’s a structure and all of that. However, all films of every kind, be they features or documentaries of any kind, all films are made in the cutting room. That is a fact of filmmaking. That’s to say you take all kinds of variable versions of things and put them together, and then when you put them together, you realize that, well, that can go, or that should be like this, back to front, or that bit’s better than this bit, and you distill it. So, in that sense, of course, like all films, yes, my films are made in the cutting room, but not in the sense of trying to work out what the hell to do with all this wild spaghetti that has been shot in an undisciplined manner.
Pansy is a woman tormented by anger and depression, hypersensitive to the slightest possible offence and ever ready to fly off the handle. She criticises her husband… Read the Plot
What is the plot of ‘Hard Truths’?
Set in London, the plot follows the plight of depressed middle-aged woman Pansy (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) and her relationship with her close ones—including the crumbling relationship with her jovial sister, Chantelle (Michele Austin) – who is opposite in terms of mood, and the state of her other interpersonal relationships.
Who is in the cast of ‘Hard Truths’?
- Marianne Jean-Baptiste as Pansy Deacon
- Michele Austin as Chantelle
- David Webber as Curtley Deacon
- Tuwaine Barrett as Moses Deacon
- Ani Nelson as Kayla
- Sophia Brown as Aleisha
- Jonathan Livingstone as Virgil
‘Hard Truths’ opens in theaters everywhere on January 10th. Photo: Thin Man Films Ltd.
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