11/11/2011

Ewan in photos by Toby Canaham

11/10/2011

Ewan McGregor: Enter the consummate Hollywood performer

He's come a long way since 'Trainspotting' – and, it seems, he's not going back. Kunal Dutta meets Ewan McGregor

McGregor says the summer riots were an embarrassment

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Ewan McGregor is nearly an hour late. But there is no apology when he arrives. Instead, I'm love-bombed with Hollywood charm: diving on to the velvet sofa of the Mayfair Hotel, London, he checks my Dictaphone is running, rearranges our table, pours us glasses of water and throws in a joint cappuccino order for good measure.

An agitated publicist clutching a clipboard hovers. The interview looks close to sliding into the swamp of stage-managed press junkets. Then I mention the riots. "I just thought, fuck off, this is embarrassing," he recalls, hair perfectly parted, but demeanour briefly devoid of charm. While the nation agonised after the events of last August, McGregor took a different view. "I recently worked on a film with Waleed Akhtar, a famous Egyptian actor who had been involved in the protests in Tahrir Square. There you saw social unrest happening for a political reason; an attempt to try and force social change. Here, it was about nothing. It was just people smashing windows of shops and trying on sneakers to make sure they fitted before they stole them. All around the world it was a big embarrassment, with no motivation other than: 'I'm not very happy and I want things – so I'll just take them'."

Plainly such thoughts have been fermenting and catch fire on contact with air. McGregor becomes incensed: "It's probably more of a sign of how good we have it, and how easy things are over here; that people are more concerned with grabbing commercial goods than the way our society is structured."

One might argue that this is all very well for a wealthy, married father of four, who recently moved his family to Los Angeles, California, for a better life. He concedes that life there gives a skewed impression of the rest of the world. I remind him of Sean Connery – one of the few Scottish actors with a greater claim to fame – who once declared himself fed up with "the idiots" in Hollywood and the "ever-widening gap between people who know how to make movies and the people who green-light them". But McGregor will have none of it, insisting film-making is "no longer a nationality-led trait". But he concedes that the "lack of news" in the United States can result in feeling "quite cut off", making it hard to follow – or care much about – current affairs.

Perhaps this is no great loss. He admits to not having taken much of an interest in the recent party conferences. "I don't have a great deal of trust in politicians," he says bluntly. "The rare times I watch football, I'm struck by the bad acting, such as when players throw themselves to the ground when they blatantly haven't been tackled. Cheating has become part of football, and politics is now the same." His older brother's public statements critical of MoD defence cuts – Colin McGregor is an ex-RAF Tornado pilot – are unlikely to have done anything to improve his belief in political leaders of any stripe.

Which leaves the question: what does he believe in? He would be happy if we thought some of the answers to that lurk in Perfect Sense, his new film. Billed as a science fiction love story, it features McGregor as a Glaswegian chef who falls in love with an aloof epidemiologist played by Eva Green, as the world is close to collapse.

"As human beings, falling in love is one of the huge emotional journeys we experience," he says. Barely pausing, he clicks along in Hollywood mode once more: "I have always been interested in romance and exploring it in work. This is a story about two people reluctantly falling in love with each other. I thought it was a clever writer's construct – when we fall in love we lose our senses and here the world is losing its own senses."

The project reunites him with Ewen Bremner ("Spud" from Trainspotting) and director David Mackenzie, whom he first worked with on the impressive Young Adam, an emotionally driven esoteric movie that came out in 2003. But his latest effort, which is peppered with all kinds of hard-to-swallow premises (the apocalypse; a business-as-usual mentality despite disease, global deafness and permeating insanity), asks more questions than it answers.

Here is one of our finest actors, who gave unforgettable performances in Shallow Grave, Moulin Rouge!, and, for the geeks among us, the Star Wars trilogy. Yet in recent years he has featured in some spectacularly underwhelming efforts, and more than one stinker. They include Cassandra's Dream, Woody Allen's flatlining London-based crime comedy; Stormbreaker, the first and last of a planned series of British spy movies; Miss Potter, and Scenes of a Sexual Nature, which one critic dismissed as having only one discernable message: "Hampstead Heath is a nice place to be on a sunny day".

McGregor is smoothness itself on this one, insisting that price tag and star billing do not motivate him. He has five films in the pipeline – each sprinkled with promise – and insists he intends to "take his time" and not be swayed by the eternal quest for the next blockbuster. Looking studiedly earnest, he says: "I approach it as an actor tackling a character. Not a famous person doing the next thing that keeps us famous."

But he finds it hard to mask his annoyance at any suggestion that Trainspotting is his finest hour. It is a sore spot that people will not stop rubbing: last year it was rumoured that he is to reprise his role as Renton in a sequel. For that to happen McGregor would have to bury the hatchet with Danny Boyle, with whom he fell out after Leonardo DiCaprio was given the lead in The Beach. If they are back on terms, McGregor doesn't let on. Hollywood smoothness is pursued by a terse: "Does he say that is happening now?" Boyle, by contrast, was jovial last year when he insisted "it will happen", adding: "It would be a wonderful thing where they've all aged into a mid-life crisis."

By now the publicist is gripping her clipboard so hard her knuckles whiten. A young radio presenter with a comical-sized microphone head is itching to get in the ring. McGregor picks up his cue and slips back into Hollywood business mode, a man in a hurry. But, in case I am in doubt, he punctures any thoughts of a return to the heroin-ridden streets of Edinburgh, insisting he hasn't yet seen any script. "I would be worried of damaging Trainspotting's standing by making a poor sequel," he says. "The film is too important to me and British cinema. If we made a crap sequel, it would be a real shame."

And just as suddenly, I'm shunted to the door.

An actor's life

1971 Born Ewan Gordon McGregor on 31 March in Perth, Scotland.

1989 Attends the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.

1994 Comes to wider attention in Shallow Grave, Danny Boyle's directorial debut.

1995 Marries French production designer Eve Mavrakis.

1996 Stars as Renton in Danny Boyle's Trainspotting.

1999 Plays Obi-Wan Kenobi in first of the Star Wars prequels.

2001 Pairs with Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge!.

2004 Motorcycles around the world with Charley Boorman in Long Way Round, followed by Long Way Down in 2007.

2005 Takes lead of Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls in Donmar Warehouse, London.

2007 Plays Iago in Othello at the Donmar Warehouse.

2009 Features with Jim Carrey in I Love You Phillip Morris.

2010 Wins European film award best actor in Roman Polanski's The Ghost.

2011 Takes the role of Dr Fred Jones in Lasse Hallstrom's British comedy Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

05/10/2011

SALMON FISHING IN YEMEN

salmon fish...

CBS Films Dates ‘Salmon Fishing In Yemen’

By NIKKI FINKE | Friday October 7, 2011 @ 9:40am PDTTags: CBS Films, Film Release Date, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

CBS Films Closes U.S. Deal On ‘Salmon Fishing In The Yemen’
Salmon Fishing In The Yemen will be released by CBS Films on March 2, 2012 in a limited run. It stars Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt alongside Kristin Scott Thomas and Amr Waked (Syriana) in a tale of fly-fishing and political spinning, unexpected heroism, and late-blooming love. I hear the studio, which bought the film at Toronto last month, thinks it has awards potential but didn’t want to make it a contender this late in the year.

08/09/2011

Sneak Preview of Ouija Horror Film Shot Entirely on Super 8mm Draws Star Support From Ewan McGregor and Freaks 'em Out in Santa Monica

Indie stalwart One World Studios gave a sneak preview of their unique Ouija horror film I Am ZoZo, that was shot entirely on Super 8mm. The house was completely packed and Ewan McGregor showed up on his motorcycle to enjoy and support the film.

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Director Scott Di Lalla with Ewan McGregor at the I Am ZoZo preview screening

I Am ZoZo is a cautionary tale that will sit with people long after they've seen it.

Santa Monica, CA (PRWEB) September 07, 2011

After more than a year of work filmmakers Scott Di Lalla and Zack Coffman unleashed their newest film on the unsuspecting crowd gathered at Laemmle's Monica 4-plex for a sneak preview of Ouija movie, "I Am ZoZo." that was shot entirely using Super8mm. All the young actors were on-hand for the screening and Ewan McGregor even arrived on his motorcycle to support the film.
I Am ZoZo is a psychological horror film about five young people who play with a Ouija board and attract the attention of the malevolent Ouija demon ZoZo. The film is based on widely reported real experiences with this ancient and malevolent spirit that attaches itself to people exclusively through the Ouija board. The film was shot last Halloween entirely on location on San Juan Island, WA and Seattle and was shot entirely on Kodak Super 8mm negative film stock.
The film was crafted with a European sensibility (ala the Dardenne brothers) and the unique look of Super8mm harkens back to the golden age of horror. I Am ZoZo was intentionally made to be as legitimately scary as possible while steering clear of overt violence, sex, or language to maximize viewership potential; holding to the age-old maxim that, "That which is unseen is the most terrifying."
I Am ZoZo is the sixth feature from award-winning One World Studios toppers Scott DiLalla (writer/director) and Zack Coffman (producer). Their previous features having been docs, DiLalla and Coffman bring a unique verite style to the film while still maintaining the "fourth wall". On the making of the first legitimate Ouija movie since Witchboard, DiLalla had this to say, "So many young people are out there playing this for fun, I wanted to show the darker side of what can happen. A real horror film shouldn't be about selling toys, it should be truly frightening on a deeper level. I Am ZoZo is a cautionary tale that will sit with people long after they've seen it."
Film facts:
    *     I Am ZoZo features actor Caleb Courtney, the older brother of Super8 star Joel Courtney.
    *     Darren Evans of Oklahoma City survived a well-documented ZoZo attack and has since dedicated his life to warning people about the dangers of Ouija boards and this demon. The self-styled Zozologist travels the country meeting with other survivors and assisting them in disposing of their boards and eradicating the demon from their lives. Mr. Evans is featured as himself in I Am ZoZo.
    *     The music for the film features independent stalwarts such as Mark Kozelek (Almost Famous), Blood Warrior, and The Tragic Tantrum and the haunting score was composed by award-winning composer BC Smith (Smoke Signals).
From the I Am ZoZo website:
WARNING: this film is based on a real Ouija Board experience gone wrong. — Five young people play with a Ouija board on Halloween weekend and things take a terrible turn for the worst when they become the target of the malevolent Ouija spirit that calls itself ZoZo. Based on documented true events.
About the One World Studios Ltd.:
Founded 2002 One World Studios has grown into an award-winning, fully integrated independent film company specializing in the production and distribution of films, DVD, online movie streaming, music and associated original and licensed merchandise.
Their first motorcycle movie "Choppertown: the Sinners" focused on a renowned group of California bikers known as the Sinners. Produced in 2005 with a stack of credit cards, this award-winning documentary heralded a return to the values of a simpler time. The anti-Hollywood picture shows the true story of a young Sinner and his biker brothers as they help him build an old-school custom bike from the ground up. Their motto: "A bike isn't finished until you put some miles on it with your bros." Featuring several well-known Sinners such as rocker James Intveld, insane skater Jason Jessee, custom builder Cole Foster, and Kutty Noteboom.
The filmmakers are currently entertaining offers for "I Am ZoZo" from theatrical distributors.
UPDATE: Since the screening several audience members have actually reported night terrors and insomnia due to the disturbing mental imagery portrayed in the film.

GO GO Gala 2011

http://gocampaign.org/ourwork.php

Ewan to host this year’s GO GO Gala 2011

Ewan will host this year’s GO GO Gala Thursday, November 10, 2011. The GO GO Gala benefits orphans and vulnerable children around the world.
The event will take place at the London Hotel Rooftop in West Hollywood.

01/07/2011

Dream fulfilled

EWAN was ecstatic to have finally landed an acting part opposite his uncle DENIS , because the thespian has "inspired" the his career.

Lawson has enjoyed a varied stage, TV and film career and is best known internationally for his role as Wedge Antilles in the original Star Wars films.

He is set to appear with his famous nephew, who had a role in the Star Wars prequels, in new sci-fi movie Perfect Sense, and Ewan was thrilled to be able to act alongside the man who fuelled his interest in the craft.

He says, "He has inspired me all my life and yet I've never acted with him. It was quite unusual and lovely to be playing scenes with him, after 39 years of waiting it felt very natural and easy."

20/06/2011

Ewan at the Perfect Sense Premiere

Ewan McGregor's joy at working with uncle Denis Lawson

Scots actor Ewan McGregor has spoken at the Edinburgh Film Festival about the joy of starring alongside his uncle in his latest film.

The 40-year-old performed with Denis Lawson on sci-fi drama, Perfect Sense.

McGregor said of Local Hero star Lawson: "I was always waiting for something really special to do with him and this came to fruition."

Eva Green, Ewen Bremner and Alistair Mackenzie also feature in the film directed by David Mackenzie.

The movie, which had its European premiere at the festival, sees McGregor playing a chef who falls in love with a scientist played by Green as a global disease breaks out in which people begin to lose their five senses one by one.

McGregor said: "It's the first time I've acted with my uncle ever.

"I've been directed by him in a play in London and then we did a short film in Edinburgh called Solid Geometry and if he hadn't been an actor I'm sure I wouldn't have thought to be one.

"He has inspired me all my life and yet I've never acted with him and I was always waiting for something really special to do with him and this came to fruition and I was really really happy to do it.

"It was quite unusual and lovely to be playing scenes with him, after 39 years of waiting it felt very natural and easy, it was good."

The Scot told how he was drawn to the script and also wanted to work again with Mackenzie, who directed him in Young Adam.

He said: "I loved the story, I just thought the script was fantastic, a really strong story.

"It's an unusual story, a love story set against a very odd backdrop.

"I always felt reading it and certainly playing it that it was a hopeful film in an unusual way."

Green was not at the premiere of the movie, which was mainly shot in Glasgow.

Lawson, who played Wedge in the original Star Wars films, said: "Scotland is extraordinary as a location, the light is amazing, for instance on the west coast.

"Edinburgh is a phenomenal location for movies and should be used more.

"We shot this in Glasgow most of it, but Edinburgh is an incredible location, everywhere you look there's a great angle."

BBC NEWS MOVILE.

16/06/2011

Ewan is on the cover

My beloved Ewan is on the cover for Men’s Book Atlanta! It’s featuring the same photoshoot images from his recent cover of Angeleno, but nevertheless they are still simply stunning images! Enjoy!