Chatting with a brilliant British film director about the Oscars.

Courtesy of Ben Taylor

He’s mostly known for his National Stage production of The History Boys, but recently, Ben Taylor has been exploring the world of comedy by working on collaborations with Idiots of Ants and a sitcom taster for the BBC called Grippenschaaft. Together, we talked about who should win Oscar gold this Sunday, as well as what golden components make up a legendary film.

Pony: Give me the scoop on who should win best actor and actress.

Ben: Surely the Dude. It’s Jeff Bridges year I think, he was born to play this role and was awesome in it. Sometimes they give you the nod for your body of work too, success is long over due for Jeff as it’s his 5th nomination now with no wins to show for it. If not him then Colin Firth.

The actresses category shows what a weak year its been – Bullock in a made for TV movie, Mirren no one saw it, Mulligan good but very light weight, Streep best thing in an average film, Sidibe pretty decent. I bet they go for Bullock.

Pony: Ouch! Who should win the supporting roles?

Ben: I’d put a lot of money on the same duo who won the Bafta’s – Cristoph Waltz & Mo’Nique – both incredible performances.

Pony: Okay now onto your realm, best director.

Ben: Avatar isn’t my favourite film but it’s such a staggering achievement in terms of ambition & technical accomplishment… and sheer man hours, then Cameron probably deserves it. Though I still think lots of people think he’s a dick after his last performance at the Oscars and that it may stand against him. I don’t think there’s any one thing I’d look for with a director but any battle to make a film happen is pretty impressive, Bigelow sounds to have had a real scrap to make Hurt Locker so props must go to her too.

Courtesy of Avatar

Pony: What are your thoughts now on Best Picture? There are ten nominees.

Ben: Firstly, I hate that there are ten nominees, such a cringingly commercial move and again highlights how weak the films have been this year. I LOVED Basterds, easily my favourite from this bunch but it will never win. I thought Hurt Locker was great and I’d love her to beat her Ex to this Oscar. But if I’m being honest the only film from this list they’ll be talking about in 10 years time will be Avatar, it’s a landmark, whether you like it or not!

Pony: Now onto you, what do you think matters most when making a film?

Ben: It’s a very old adage but you can’t make a good movie out of a bad script, no matter what bells and whistles you wrap around it. This sounds like I’m just Cameron bashing but I think Avatar is a good example of this.

Pony: Agreed! What do you think about Baldwin and Martin hosting this year?

Ben: Very, very excited for this! It’s my ultimate double act. If they are given room to be a little bit naughty and close to the bone I think they’ll be brilliant. Steve Martin’s come back?

Pony: We’ll see! What do you think about the Oscars in general?

Ben: I love them, unashamedly. Everyone does. No matter how serious the film maker, if they say that winning this award doesn’t mean anything to them, they’re lying.

Pony: Nominations aside, who would you like to see win an Oscar? Or what film deserves to be recognized?

Ben: “A Prophet” & “Let the Right One in“, easily the best two films of this last year. The young actor from A Prophet gave one of the most mesmerizing performances I’ve ever seen.

Pony: As a director, what do you make note of when you watch a movie? What do you notice most?

Ben: To be honest I find it very easy to just switch off and take it all in, so I guess in broad terms it’s just a good story I look for. No technical thing could ever really distract me from enjoying a film.

Pony: Tell us about your upcoming projects.

Ben: Busy in the UK working on two comedy pilots but of course it’s still movies I’m gunning for.

To check out more of Ben’s work, visit his website here.
XoXo
– The Cowgirls