Rose McIver stars as Lindsey Salmon in "The Lovely Bones."
New to the big screen is Rose McIver, a 21-year-old New Zealand native who plays the sibling of the murdered girl at the center of The Lovely Bones. This could very well be McIver's breakout role, acting alongside the likes of Susan Sarandon, Saoirse Ronan, Mark Wahlberg and Rachel Weisz, but McIver says she won't be scrapping her plans to continue her university studies just yet... In our exclusive interview, McIver shares her thoughts on working with Peter Jackson and the rest of The Lovely Bones cast.
Q. In the film, you do a lot of jogging. What was your audition process like?
McIver: I went dressed in my sweat pants and t-shirt already on my way to the gym, and no make-up. A few weeks later, maybe a month later, when I got the call from Peter [Jackson] saying, "Come down to Wellington, we wanna call you back," I was so surprised, and it turned out that it worked in my favor that I was in a t-shirt and sweat pants. I thought it was too good to be true.
>Q. Are you a Jackson fan, and did you feel intimidated at all working with him?
McIver: I am a huge fan of Heavenly Creatures. It's one of my favorite films. I knew he could deal with the drama and the intensity of The Lovely Bones—I was really proud when I heard he was making it. Peter is probably the least intimidating person you could ever work with. He's so down to earth and personable and friendly.
Q. What helped you in the process of transforming from an 11-year-old to 18?
McIver: The make-up and costume team were incredible. The hair wigs, braces, and the costuming, all of those things really set you up for playing each of the ages. It helps you get outside yourself. And then also, having somebody like Peter to direct you. He knows exactly what he wants and he'll tell you when you've done it.
Q. Was there anything you did to prep yourself for portraying all the different ages?
McIver: They're all ages I've been through before and it's not like I was trying to play something older than myself. I kept diaries all the way through high school, so that was a very useful resource...the things that matter at each age, the things I found myself writing about or focusing on—that was really memorable and really helpful. Also, listening to music of the era, watching films of that period, all those kinds of things helped me to really establish myself in the '70s, which is obviously something I haven't gone through.
Q. What was your favorite scene to film?
McIver: I had a lot of fun with Susan Sarandon [filming] the scene where she made me over. She cracked eggs on my head and rubbed oatmeal on my face. I remember just the actual shooting of that was quite ridiculous. It was one extended take where she kind of just got messier and messier and still had the cigarette hanging out in one hand and a drink in the other. I was really just trying not to laugh.
Q. How did you relieve the tension you felt during intense moments on the set?
McIver: Peter's big thing is that the subject matter is dark enough, and really, the focus for the whole film was finding the light. There's so much hope and inspiration in the story. People deal with death in different ways. There's a lot of laughter, actually, around funerals, and this heightened emotionality that kind of makes everything bigger. So when we were on set, we just had a lot of fun with it and made sure we enjoyed it because I don't think we could have created a dynamic, interesting film if we hadn't done that.
Q. Were you and Saoirse Ronan able to create a sisterly bond off set?
McIver: I'm definitely a family person. I actually don't have a sister, and Saoirse doesn't either. We took to each other pretty naturally. We hung out a lot, and we've just been so excited to see each other again for the promotion of the film.
Q. Did you miss anything from home while you were filming?
McIver: It was my first time living away from home. I lived for three months in Philadelphia. In Auckland, we live between two coasts, so we're very close to so many beaches. I missed being able to go bushwalk (hike) and swim, but I got plenty of that when I went home.
Q. What was most memorable for you in this whole experience?
McIver: There are so many things I've taken away...it was really rewarding. I think just working around people with such a high caliber was really, incredibly informing for my work.
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