Benedict Andrews interview: ‘I’m interested in people whose experience makes them strangers to themselves’

Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. It is a very confused emotional state.” His first instinct was to cast American actress Rooney Mara as Una, despite the British setting, “That meant asking her to do an accent, which I think she does a fantastic job of and Ben Mendelsohn, who plays Ray, he could be an Australian living in England.” Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free But for the other roles, there was a complete different philosophy; “The very small roles are filled with interesting British actors alongside really smart street casting,” says Andrews. The whole film is based on their chemistry.” open image in gallery Rooney Mara and Ben Mendelsohn in Una One adaptation that Andrews did make was in the rehearsal room, which was probably a good thing for the actors as Cate Blanchett, a regular collaborator with Andrews on stage has described his rehearsals as “muscular – brutal even”. There is sort of deep space in it and you know people would even talk about with their revolving set in Streetcar that it felt like it was forcing the audience to go into an experience of editing the piece in their mind as it went from long shot to close up.” Whether he is directing opera, theatre, film or writing poetry, he believes that there is a unifying factor in his work: “I’m interested in people whose experience means that they become strangers to themselves.