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Friday 9 January 2009

Out of the ordinary

Carolyn Bartholomew talks to Tilda Swinton, an actor who has made a career out of being unconventional

Tilda Swinton is undoubtedly one of the great artists of her generation, although it is only relatively recently that she has become more conspicuous with mainstream films such as The Chronicles of Narnia and Michael Clayton (for which she won an Oscar for best supporting actress). But Swinton has been in the profession for an unbelievable 23 years, embracing all aspects of film-making. She is highly regarded for her arthouse films of the Eighties and Nineties, initially in collaboration with the great Derek Jarman. She is an exceptional human being who challenges convention on every level, whether it is in her androgynous roles in films such as Orlando (1992), or her art exhibit piece The Maybe in 1995 where she slept in a glass box for a week, or even in how a film star usually looks and behaves.

She is quoted as saying that she has always felt that her career would develop and be more prolific in her forties but she is adamant there is no ‘plan’. ‘I can tell you hand on my heart that I am making it up as I go along and that is all there is to it. I am surfing the wave and whatever it’s doing to me, I’m trying to keep breathing. I’m not conscious of having a career but I do have a life.

‘I don’t choose roles, I choose people to work with. Someone might meet me to talk, either it’s someone I know and we might drum up something together or it’s someone I don’t know who will approach me. If we have a good conversation and I can feel my curiosity aroused I think “Oh, it would be interesting to play that out.” If there is a hidden treasure along the trail that I think I might be able to find then I’m in. But if I can see the whole trail, I’m not so interested.’

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