Disney sent me on an all expense paid trip for the Red Carpet Premier of The BFG. All opinions are 100% my own.
Have you always dreamed of meeting Steven Spielberg? I know I have and last week Disney made my dream come true by flying me to LA for the Red Carpet Premier of The BFG. We had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Stevn Spielberg and Ruby Barnhill who plays “Sophie” in the movie.
What was it like meeting and interviewing Steven Spielberg? I don’t have the words to describe it- it was beyond amazing! I am not a “Star-struck” kinda girl, but Steven Spielberg is way above a star! He has directed so many amazing movies, I felt like I was in the presence of greatness!
Photo credit: Coralie Seright – LovebugsAndPostcards.com
When Mr. Spielberg and Ruby entered the room, all Mr. Spielberg cared about was whether we could see and hear him and if Ruby was OK. He is such a kind and caring man, I think I might have fallen in love with him. 🙂
One of the first questions was to Mr. Spielberg: Why The BFG and why Ruby.
“I kinda believe in fate and I really believe that they save the best to last, because we were casting eight months and had not found Sophie after eight months of casting. I was about to compromise when all the sudden I saw the audition that Ruby Barnhill and her parents had sent in to Nina Gold. And my whole life changed for the better.”
Mr. Spielberg read The BFG to all his daughters. The BFG was an amazing book and Melissa Mathison adapted it into an amazing script. He fell in love with it all over again when he read the script!
Photo credit: Coralie Seright – LovebugsAndPostcards.com
Ruby is my favorite character in The BFG.
I love her spirit, courage and sweet smile! She was asked about how she feels to be the Princess for a New Generation! I loved her answer:
“Wow. I never thought of it that way? That’s quite cool, Disney princess maybe. It’s so exciting, because a lot of Disney films now have very like strong female leads. Like Brave, Star Wars and Frozen.”
- Photo credit: Coralie Seright – LovebugsAndPostcards.com
Both Mr. Spielberg and Ruby were asked about their favorite part of making the movie.
Mr. Spielberg said it was the interaction between Sophie and The BFG.
“Where Sophie’s courage was growing and her empathy for BFG’s problems with his older brothers and the horrible things they were doing all over the world. Sophie said we must find a way to stop the other giants. Any time they were engaged in any kind of conversation and even disagreement.” He loved their relationship!
Ruby loved coming on set everyday and seeing everyone. (Mr. Spielberg told us that she was always the first one there.) She said:
“I also got to be with Steven and Mark every day. It was always so exciting and fun. There’s such a magical feeling on set!”
What did Ruby learn from working with Mr. Spielberg?
Ruby was always afraid of making mistakes.
“But Steven really helped me realize that it’s okay to make mistakes, and being onset like making mistakes was okay and it was funny. Nobody minded at all if I had to do 100 takes. If just felt really good.” Mr. Spielberg called them Happy Accidents!
How did Mr. Spielberg feel about making a Disney Movie?
Mr. Spielberg’s Dream came true! His movie followed the Disney Castle!
“And that’s something I’ve been waiting for in a way all my life, and, and through BFG and through Ralph Dahl’s genius I got the chance to do it.”
Photo credit: Coralie Seright – LovebugsAndPostcards.com
The whole interview was magical, just like The BFG! There were a few things that surprised me.
One thing I learned was that Ruby’s Dad was in the movie. I can’t tell you where yet. I’ll just tell you he’s in the scene where The BFG crawls into the Queen’s Dining Room.
The other thing was the effect Disney had on Mr. Spielberg:
“Disney had such a profound effect on my childhood, because I was raised in the world of Walt Disney. His movies scared me to death, thrilled me to pieces, and made me laugh and made me cry, and I never cried in a movie before I saw Bambi.”
Photo credit: Coralie Seright – LovebugsAndPostcards.com
What do you want people to take away from The BFG movie?
I have to admit, I cried a little when Mr. Spielberg talked about what he wanted us to take away from the movie:
“I just, I just want people to understand how important it is to both give and receive hugs. And it doesn’t matter how different the person looks or how tall they are or how short they are or what color they are or what language they speak or what their different beliefs are! We all need to hug each other and we have to hug each other more when we’re so different from each other. “
Yes, Sophie and The BFG both learned how to let their love out! You will find out more about The BFG (Mark Rylance) in tomorrow’s Interview post!
I would like to thank both Mr. Spielberg and Ruby Barnhill for taking time out of their busy day to take group photos with us. You can see Mr. Spielberg’s affection for Ruby in all of them, but this one was my favorite! This interview was a dream come true for me and the other 24 human beans in the room!
Photo credit: Coralie Seright – LovebugsAndPostcards.com
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Be sure to read my Red Carpet Premier HERE.
