Giovanni Ribisi
by George Everit for SuicideGirls (http://suicidegirls.com/)

Giovanni Ribisi is definitely one of the most exciting young actors out there. No matter what his role is in any movie, big or small when he is onscreen your eyes go right to him. He is just electrifying and even though he’s got the sidekick role in Sky Captain & the World of Tomorrow you can’t help but marvel at his work. It is amazing acting that becomes even more unbelievable when you find out that every actor’s scenes were shot in front of a bluescreen and that the enemies, most of the places and the sets were all added later with CGI.

George Everit: In the press notes it says that you are very dedicated to the craft of acting.

Giovanni Ribisi: It does? I don’t even read that stuff.

GE: What was it like for an actor that uses strong methods to deal with sets and props that weren’t actually there?

GR: There are a lot of misconceptions about method acting. It’s such a vast thing with so many different techniques. I think actors are pretty much going for an experience and through that it makes the viewer have an experience as well. Sky Captain is right up Stanislavsky’s alley with the idea of an imagination and doing something that’s different and new. Something that requires technique because everything was blue. You have to develop a technique for that otherwise it’s going to be actor that looks like he’s looking at something that’s CG.

For me it was a strange experience because I was called up three days before the shoot and thrown into the movie. It was two weeks work, they asked me to make it really simple and to be familiar with the words because the character has a rapid fire confidence type style in the speech.

GE: One of the coolest things about your character is that in all the old serials there is a boring scientist and a quirky scientist and you get to play them both.

GR: I guess so. Maybe I should think about someone’s position in a genre or cast. For me it’s, what is the story about and who is this character.

GE: Just by some coincidence your first episode of Friends as Phoebe’s brother was on last night.

GR: Well when I was first on Friends I was playing a different character.

GE: It could have been Phoebe’s brother but we just didn’t know that yet. You usually play the quirky characters but in Sky Captain you’re like Q from the James Bond movies. Were you looking to play a more normal person?

GR: Yeah but I don’t know if I say that I want to play a normal guy now. Maybe I should but I think I my character was just sensible. I wanted to be eccentric and I talked about that with [producer] Jon [Avnet] and [writer/director] Kerry [Conran] but they said they wanted somebody who is just doing their job. Someone could say “Where’s the wrench?” and he’s the guy with the wrench. He’s calm, present and just smart. Maybe I do think in relative terms because it could be a good thing in contrast to previous stuff.

GE: Did you have any hesitation in doing a big studio film even though it feels like an independent film?

GR: That’s what was so great about it. I think that’s why it’s going to be really popular and predominant in filmmaking to make movies like this. The architecture was there to make this movie for $10 million which is nothing compared to what films are being made for nowadays. There are films which cost $200 million. For me that makes me feel it’s about an ego. The craft service on those movies must cost more than most independent films. On Sky Captain we were doing something like 60 setups a day. I could be wrong but it felt like 60. On a normal film you do like 12 setups a day which is a still a lot.

GE: Do you have desire to write or direct?

GR: Yeah to direct. I don’t know about writing. People have talents with certain things and I don’t know if I have that with writing. But I am definitely interested in directing and I have aspirations to that. Actors sometimes have success and can abuse that privilege. It takes work and passion and the idea that it might not happen. Somebody might not like the idea and that makes you hunger for it more. If I direct I really want to step out and do something great. I don’t want to be like “Ok everyone, Action, I guess, I think, right?”

GE: Were you a fan of science fiction and comics before you took this role?

GR: No. When I was younger I think I had comic books and I was into collecting them a little bit. For me I think what was appearing was the style of filmmaking which is the noirish Orson Welles, Metropolis feel.

GE: How helpful was the fact that you and Jude had worked together before on Cold Mountain?

GR: It was great. Jude is perfection. Sometimes I think he is some renegade alien who came down and decided to act. He’s such a magnanimous guy so even if we hadn’t worked together before it would have been great.

GE: Did it give you a shortcut though?

GR: A little bit.

GE: Were you surprised by the success of Lost in Translation and were you sorry you didn’t have any scenes with Bill Murray?

GR: In every movie I do I’m always sorry I don’t have scenes with Bill Murray [laughs]. That was a really small movie. Hardcore in the trenches, it was Japan but in the trenches. We were in a small room with the camera and all the crew. The success was great and it’s definitely because Sofia Coppola is so smart, such a sweetheart and it’s a great film.

GE: Laurence Olivier makes a holographic appearance in Sky Captain. What was that like?

GR: It was interesting. I don’t feel anything because obviously he wasn’t there. Also I haven’t seen the movie yet but I would love to see what they did. How does he look nowadays? [laughs]

GE: As an actor did you find it convenient to work all in bluescreen instead of traveling to locations?

GR: In the middle of doing Lost in Translation I realized I did five films in a row overseas. I went from Romania to Japan to Australia with just a one day break to go home to my family. It was all back to back. It’s nice to go to a soundstage because you can concentrate. It depends on the film. Every film is a brand new enterprise so you’re going into something and each time it’s like a new life. It’s not like you’re working in office with the same people all the time. Sometimes it’s nice to go out of town to leave your life and do something different. But recently it would be nice to do a film in Los Angeles.

GE: Who did you study acting with?

GR: Milton Katselas in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hills Playhouse. It’s a big school and as for acting schools in Los Angeles it’s the best.

GE: As you said you did five films in a row so it seems like you are always working. Do you ever think you should turn something down?

GR: All the time. I like to work. It’s not like I’m trying to compensate for anything. I like a set. That’s where I grew up. Maybe it’s a Russian existentialist thing but this is what I do and who I am. There was a moment before the five movies where I had a year off. That’s a long time to not do anything and now it’s time to get back to work. It’s just sort of a moment to moment thing for me.

GE: Do you ever get worried that it’s going to stop?

GR: Yeah I think even people like Tom Hanks wonder if they are ever going to work again. That’s part of the thing because it’s not a solid job. There is repetition to some degree but it’s not cyclical.

GE: I got to speak with Adam Goldberg not too long ago.

GR: I’m going to see him later today.

GE: He said that after working with Steven Spielberg you get a one year window of time where he accepts all your calls then that window expires. Did you find that out?

GR: I didn’t have a year. Steven is just a sweetheart, great and unassuming. My daughter was born over the course of Saving Private Ryan and they made sure I was able to get home just in time for it. For me that’s just the way it is. This sounds cold but I’m really not in this business to make friends. I want to make good movies. Sometimes you go to a remote location, meet people and get close to people then it’s over. Then you have to go back home. That’s the way things happen.

GE: What’s next?

GR: I’m doing a thing in Pittsburgh called 10th & Wolf. It’s a mobster movie but it’s different. Chazz Palminteri wrote the script. It’s sort of similar to the Sean Penn movie State of Grace. I’m really excited about it. It’s so good that I was surprised they let me be in it.

GE: Did you get to keep any of the props from Sky Captain?

GR: The only thing there was the laser gun. I wanted one of those!

web address: http://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Giovanni+Ribisi/