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Kenneth Branagh in the Homework High Chat Room
transcribed by The Homework High Team.
I put my own remarks on it in red colour.
Kenneth Branagh : Hello everyone I'm Ken. Thanks for logging on and I'm
happy to answer any questions you may have.
Paula : Who is your favourite Shakespearian character?
Kenneth Branagh : I think it would be Hamlet because he's so varied and
having played the part many times it changes as you get older and you see
different things each time. It's like your favourite music... if you go back to it when
you are older you hear and see different things. It's the most complex and
complete of characters that I've played. Plus you get to wear black, which is very
slimming (grins)
Dtyson : Hello. I am a 12th grade English Teacher. Are you working on a screen
play for MacBeth?
LadyM : Mr. Branagh, can you give us an update on the MacBeth project?
Kenneth Branagh : I have been working on a screenplay for MacBeth.
Fluffball : Wow that's my favourite play!!!!
Kenneth Branagh : What I hope to do this summer is to have a private
workshop on the play with some actors to work on the screen adaptation.
And I hope towards the end of next year we will get to film it.
Justicerulesok : How do u feel shax relates to the modern world?
Kenneth Branagh : This refers to Ernest Shackleton who I am about to
play in a film for Channel 4.
Nice PR!
He was one of those characters who never gave up.
We tell the story of his endurance expedition. Where largely due to his
leadership, 28 men survived in the Antarctic for 2 years. I admire his
compassion and detailed understanding of human beings. And the fact
that survival in the end was more important than winning the race. But these
days, corporate leadership programmes use Shackleton as an exemplar. I
would like to have been led by him.
isashax : Please, ask him when he is going to the poles to film
Shackleton and if he is ready for that, thanks!
Kenneth Branagh : We go to the Arctic to pretend we are in the
Antarctic, reasons being the infrastructure to support a film crew is just more
developed in the Arctic. If anyone gets sick we can get them out quicker. If
I slip on the ice we have a doctor with us. I have been training for
it. But it's very hard to imagine quite how cold it will be. Currently, my
research is stopping short of actually eating seals and penguins...chuckles...
LadyM : Oh your so like Shackleton you never give up!
Jude : So your retirement from Shakespeare is exaggerated?
Kenneth Branagh : Once again, the media seem to have made up my mind
for me...reports of my premature retirement are grossly exaggerated.
Julia : What thought processes do you go through when choosing a
Shakespearean play to adapt into a film?
Kenneth Branagh : It seems to take a long time, a period of years
really, where themes in the play start to develop as visual images....sometimes
for particular scenes, sometimes for settings, and I start to do a sort of
primitive storyboard. With Hamlet, for example, I have storyboard drawings
of my own from 10 years before the film was made...that's where the
idea for a hall of mirrors first occurred... It took me 10 years with the help
of Tim Harvey (the designer) to fill in the rest of the castle. It changes
with each film.
Dtyson : I can't wait 10 years for MacBeth!!!!!
Kenneth Branagh : With MacBeth, I'm trying to develop the screenplay by
workshopping the play with live actors.
maeve : When did u start acting???
Kenneth Branagh : My first performance was at about 10 years old.
Playing Dougal in the Magic Roundabout. It probably really started when I was
about 15, in school plays. I'm not from a very theatrical background, but I
really enjoyed it and was astonished to find that I might be able to make a
career out of it.
Shakespearesson :I know you're impressed with Shakespeare and so am
I. But I wondered whether you will adapt plays by others authors some time?
Kenneth Branagh : I'm very interested in the work of Chekov and other
classic authors. So it may be that if I have the opportunity I will
adapt.
MR T : do you find theatre more fun to do than the usual camera work?
Kenneth Branagh : For the last 10 years almost, I've been almost
exclusively making films and I still enjoy it enormously, but more and more I enjoy
going to the theatre. But I find myself wondering every time - how on
earth do they learn all those lines.
Jane : Will you ever return to the stage, whether in Shakespeare or
something else?
Kenneth Branagh :I will, I'm sure. There has been no conscious
decision not to be acting in the theatre. But I have really enjoyed the opportunity
to do the kind that I have been doing over the past 10 years and being able
to make it available to a larger audience than a theatre can allow. But I
do miss the live experience, but I'm sure when I do go back I'll be
extremely nervous.
Rach_Mu : Your performance as Henry in 'Henry V' is amazing and in some
scenes I was positively scared of him. Was this your intention?
Kenneth Branagh : There are several scenes in Henry V where the
character does seem to unleash enormous passion, including anger and sometimes
fury. There is a scene at the siege of Harfleur where threatening the
governor of the town he suggests that he will impale people in spikes - you feel
that he has the capacity for terrible violence and Shakespeare's language does
not avoid this - it makes him a really complex personality and very rewarding to
play. But I agree, sometimes terrifying.
Rach_M : We're studying 'Henry V' for our A level english lit, any tips
or ideas to include within my coursework?!!!!!
Kenneth Branagh : Our film chose to emphasis Henrys youth, his sometime
doubt about his campaign, his guilt about the way his father acquired the
throne and in broad terms looking at the differences between the treatment
of Henry in our film and in Lawrence Olivier's film, is quite a useful way
of examining a character that can be interpreted so differently. Likewise
the treatment of the play itself.
Dtyson : What do you think about schools and universities removing
Shakespeare from the curriculum?
Kenneth Branagh :You'll think it's sad, personally. But I think
Shakespeare will survive regardless. Not being an educator, I'm not best placed to
understand their reasoning. But whether in school, University, or elsewhere in life,
think it's sad to lose the opportunity to experience it and make up your mind for
yourself whether or not, as I believe, he can be a life changing author. I have
always believed it need not be force fed. Nor should it be canonised at the expense
of other writers, but enjoyed alongside them, as a living contemporary.
Sarah : I've noticed that your Henry was very much a Hamletian
character, while your Hamlet is an action hero like Henry. Was this crossing of
genres intentional?
Kenneth Branagh : There is a lot of reflection in Henry V. I was really
intrigued to bring this to the surface. Similarly there is more than
melancholic reflection in Hamlet, who is described so often by others
and indeed himself, as a man of action. As a complete renaissance man, 'The
soldiers scholars tongue eye sword' in both cases I wanted to express as
many of the apparent contradictions in the characters as my limited actors
understanding could find.
HeatherAngel : Do you feel that offering the accessibility of
Shakespeare (and other great literary work - Frankenstein) are a sort of substitute
for reading the play / book in our technological age?
Kenneth Branagh : My experience is that whether people enjoy or hate
the film they are more not less likely to read the original, I hope so. I
think the film adaptations help keep the literature alive. They are not a
substitute, but hopefully a lively alternative.
Splitsplot : Do you think you ever compromise and lose some of the
subtleties of Shakespeare's text in your efforts to make it easier for
the for the modern audience to appreciate?
Kenneth Branagh : I hope not. But, I'm sure that compromises occur, not
intentionally, or consciously, but in my case through pilot error. I feel
strongly that it's possible to give the audience complete and utter
credit for intelligence and openness. I think they have it and I'm sure that
sometimes we stumble. Our intention is to never de-value. It becomes
debatable at various points when you transfer a work from one medium
into a different one.
George : As a British literature teacher in the US, I, along with my
colleagues praise your productions of Shakespeare's plays. Do you have
any plans for film versions of MacBeth or Lear?
Kenneth Branagh : Thank you George. We talked a little about MacBeth so
yes to that. At some point in the future, if as my mother would say, God
spares me, it would be marvellous to think of doing King Lear.
HeatherAngel : I read that you were very disappointed with the public
response to Loves Labours Lost. Do you think this might be modern
discomfort with Shakespeare, and even more so when seeing it in a different
setting/style?
Kenneth Branagh : All of us involved were disappointed, but in a way,
not surprised. There is no argument with people simply disliking something
but I am tempted to think that the use of the musical genre did put a number
of people off in advance.
ferrisbueller :What inspired you to include Cole Porter and friends in
your fabulous production of 'Love's Labours Lost'?? Do you have any more
cross-era productions planned?
Kenneth Branagh : The genre of film/musical, particularly romantic ones
is full of songs that have the kind of wit and heart of Cole Porter. His
spirit as a composer of songs about romance seemed to be very much in tune
(forgive the pun) with Shakespeare. I will use cross-era ideas in future
productions, if I believe it can truly illuminate the play.
Arlynn : Does the disappointment lead you away from further
adaptations? Because everyone that I have shown simply adores it!
Denise : Is there another Shakespeare play you'd like to do as musical?
Kenneth Branagh : At present there isn't. But music in our Shakespeare
films was and will remain very important. As it seems to me that music was
crucially important to Shakespeare. As far as disappointment goes, it
can't really linger in a negative way when one does hear of how many people
were really touched by this version. As someone said earlier about
Shackleton, I'd like to think that I am a man, who tries at least, to never give
up..
LadyM : Can you tell us something about The Periwig Maker since it was
just nominated for an Oscar (by the way CONGRATULATIONS again!)
Kenneth Branagh : A German brother and sister team worked for 3 years
unpaid to complete this fascinating and highly original stop frame animation
film of a haunting episode in the life of a periwig maker during the great
plague of London. It is tender, and imaginative and I was so impressed by
their talent and dedication and am absolutely thrilled to bits that all their
hard work has been recognised.
Justicerulesok: I love your film How to Kill your Neighbours Dog...do
you have any other just acting films coming up soon?
Kenneth Branagh : I appear in a film for HBO called Conspiracy. It's an
account of the conference held at Wansee in 1942, where the holocaust
was begun when Rheinhard Heydrich gathered together a group of fellow Nazis
to begin the implementation of the final solution. It airs in May on HBO
and on BBC in England. Additionally I appear in Phillip Noyce's film Rabbit
Proof Fence - an Australian story which will be released later this year.
ferrisbueller : Could you describe the challenges involved in
personifying the Woody Allen 'character' in Celebrity, while being directed by Woody
Allen himself?
Kenneth Branagh :Challenging!... Very challenging...but in many ways a
dream come true. I have always admired his writing and found him to be
a tremendous comic actor and an under-rated dramatic actor. I took my
inspiration from him.
caroLAWC : can we look forward to another film along the lines of 'In
the Bleak Midwinter'? (One of my favorites, BTW)
Kenneth Branagh : I loved making that film. I had complete creative
freedom, having paid for it myself thanks to Frankenstein. I sometimes imagine
making another movie featuring the same fictional group of actors, various
scenarios suggested themselves to me - possibly making a film together
or an open air production. Any suggestions gratefully received!
Deb : At one point, it was hoped you would do a project based on the
Pepys Diaries. Any hope of such a project?
Kenneth Branagh : For a time, there was a TV series planned with which
I was involved. For a number of reasons it didn't happen. This diary covers a
period of nearly 10 years... therefore compressing the material for a
screenplay is immensely difficult. But I would love to play Sam who is
one of the great figures of that time, and I believe a great figure in
literature. Also one of the funniest men I have ever encountered on the
page.
Steve :Why change Frankenstein so much from Mary Shellys novel model?
Kenneth Branagh : We were trying to do the opposite. And in many ways I
think we were more faithful to the book than previous versions. But
inevitably the need for some adaptation does occur. But I still think
moreof the book remains in our version than any other.
Steve : So why so gory?
Kenneth Branagh : The book itself is vivid in the way it suggests gore.
You have to decide how much you show, but we were very keen to address the
issue of physically constructing a human being from parts of other human beings.
The horror of doing that is vivid in the book that is why we felt it to be legitimate
to make it vivid in the film. But I appreciate it is not to everyone's taste.
Sarah : I especially love Patrick Doyle's score for Frankenstein. Was it your
idea to have a score so bold and romantic?
Kenneth Branagh : Patrick and I share those sensibilities in relation to
films where the subject matter allows for it. His Celtic personality is bold and
passionate and that is reflected in his music. Where profound themes are
concerned, he meets the challenge of providing music that matches in size and
intensity where required.
Jude : Do you hope to make more interactive CD Roms, like the glorious
version of The Little Prince?
Kenneth Branagh : I enjoyed working on that. The story, as many have
found, is magical. The imagination behind the interactive CD Rom was very
inspiring. I felt it connected in a very organic way to the spirit of the book. If there
are other equally imaginative opportunities, I'd be happy to be involved.
Homer : What is your most memorable moment?
Kenneth Branagh : Tough question! My most recent was bringing my new
dog home from Battersea dogs home and seeing the look of relief and happiness
on her face, matched by my own due to the fact that she has still not poo'd in the
house
HH Chat Ed : he he he
HH Chat Ed : bless :)
HH Chat Ed : Well folks, unfortunately our hour is nearly up - so last three
questions now, thanks!
blomestyle : In Much Ado About Nothing (my fav. film of yours) what did u
actually write on the paper when Benedict wrote something to Beatrice, if anything??
Kenneth Branagh : If I'm thinking of the right scene it was a piece of
Shakespeare from the play beginning with the words...the God of love if it was
another scene then probably a piece of nonsense
ferrisbueller : What words of advice do you have for a young actor pursuing
formal education in theatre?
Kenneth Branagh : If you want to act then at some point, I do recommend
drama school if it is possible, practically/financially. Also as much practice as you
can get. Much is learnt by actually 'doing'. Supplement this as much as you can.
Any chance you get to act, act.
Ladyhawk : If you could talk to William Shakespeare today, what questions
would you have for him?
Kenneth Branagh : So many, the first would be, is your name really William
Shakespeare or are you any of the other people that may have written your plays?
Then I would say...How on earth did you do it? The...What on earth do you think of
what has happened to him and his work since he left us? And finally would he
explain to Ben Elton why there are no jokes in As you Like It.
HH Chat Ed : And lastly - about your dog :o)
Ladyhawk : What kind of dog?
justicerulesok : What kind of dog is it?
Jude : What have you named your dog?
Kenneth Branagh : Her name is Susie, she is 7. She is a Jack Russell
terrier and she is very nice. She already runs my life.
HH Chat Ed : That's it!
HH Chat Ed : Thanks for joining us, Kenneth, that was fabulous
blomestyle : We love u kenneth!!!!!!!!
LadyM : Thank you very much for all you do and keep up the good work!
Arlynn : Thank you!
homer : Bye!!!!!! thanx very much
justicerulesok : Thank you for great films
Rach_M : Thanks for the help with my course work!
Kenneth Branagh : Thanks for all your questions
HH Chat Ed : Chuckles
Ladyhawk : Thanks, and good luck!
Kenneth Branagh : More importantly a big thank you for all the support,
cliche though it is, it is true to say that without YOU, we couldn't do what we do.
p : Thanks very much
Kenneth Branagh : We do appreciate it very much.
isashax : Thanks for your films!!!
Kenneth Branagh : Be like Shackleton! Never give up!
Sarah : Ken, you're the best!
Kenneth Branagh : Cheerio.... |