PRESS CONFERENCE – Tommy Lee Jones: “I look for originality, that’s the main thing.”

The room was packed for the press conference of The Homesman. Tommy Lee Jones came to answer the journalists’ questions accompanied by his three actresses: Hilary Swank, Sonja Richter and Miranda Otto. They were also joined by the four producers Luc Besson, Michael Fitzgerald, Peter Brant and Brian Kennedy. Highlights.

Tommy Lee Jones on the research work into insanity, one of the themes addressed in the film: “We read a load of books including one in particular on madness, especially in women in the 19th century. We learnt about dealing with different diseases. They thought, back then, that in order to cure schizophrenia people had to plunge into freezing water for eight hours.”

Sonja Richter, one of the two mad women in the film,  on preparing for her role: “I tried to find a place in me where I could feel this madness. I also wrote books on the subject. I tried  to move from the inside to the outside then from the outside to the inside.”

The importance of portraying characters such as Mary Bee Cuddy, according to Hilary Swank: “Some of the characters I’ve played are deep, solid people. That’s certainly true of Mary Bee Cuddy. Today, the idea of virtue is far less understood. It’s important to portray such solid characters.”

Originality – primary driving force for Tommy Lee Jones: “I look for originality, that’s the main thing. When you find it you just don’t hesitate. Here, we were lucky enough to find something very original. You don’t feel like you’re in a system.”

The Homesman, a highly instructive film on US history according to Luc Besson : “This film portrays a vision of the United States which is little known in Europe. It’s a very exotic vision for us . We didn’t know that times were as hard as this. We all know about the American dream but it’s good to know what went on before the dream.”

Reported by Tarik Khaldi