Post by annee on Sept 29, 2007 12:09:22 GMT -5
Thanks to muvid.
Iris highs for Matthew
Sep 29 2007
by Gavin Allen, South Wales Echo
IN one sense Matthew Rhys and Ioan Gruffudd haven’t really moved very far apart since their days as flatmates in London. The best friends don’t live together now but there is still just a mile or so between their new homes – in Los Angeles. “He lives in West Hollywood and I live in Hanthingy Park,” said Rhys, who fights Gruffudd for clay pigeon shooting over golf in their sparse social time together. “We do see each other but we’ve both been busy lately.”
When the pair were united as starry-eyed youths, both dreamed of being in this position. While Gruffudd has soared to box office success in films such as Fantastic Four and Amazing Grace, Rhys has made a considerable mark on the small screen in hit drama Brothers & Sisters. It is his role as gay lawyer Kevin Walker in the Emmy award-winning ABC programme that saw Berwyn Rowlands approach him to become a patron of The Iris Festival, a major international gay and lesbian short film festival which launches in at Cardiff Cineworld on Thursday. “I was approached by Berwyn because of my connections through Brothers & Sisters and I thought it was a good tie-in,” said Rhys. “I’m a fan of filmmaking in general but something groundbreaking like this in Cardiff has to be good.”
With the second series of Brothers And Sisters launching in the US at the end of this month, Rhys is filming in the winelands of Santa Barbara. But in May this year he was enjoying the rolling fields of Wales again as he returned home to film Edge of Love, the first movie to be made about Dylan Thomas, with Keira Knightley and Sienna Miller. In it, Rhys plays genius Thomas and, as a Welshman taking the role of one of our nation’s greatest talents, scrutiny will be thorough. “I’ve never felt so pressured in my life,” he snuffled through a deep cold, the result of his recently taking up surfing. “I put an enormous amount on myself but you would get little comments from people when you told them who you were playing. “They’d just look at you and say ‘Oh. Don’t mess that up’.” With the filming now wrapped how does he feel he did in hindsight? “I don’t know,” he groaned. “I’ve never been one to be able to look at my work objectively. “I’ve looked at a few scenes and winced and thought why didn’t I do that differently? Ultimately, it’s up to other people to judge.”
With one huge career role wrapped, Rhys headed back to America to fulfil a major social engagement – best man to Ioan Gruffudd’s when he married his long-term love Alice Evans on September 14 at Palmilla Hotel in Los Cabos, Mexico. “It was fantastic,” said Rhys aptly. “It all went according to plan which is the greatest achievement and there was a great enclave of Welsh out there for the ceremony.” Did he go easy on Mr Fantastic at the stag do? “We were good boys and that’s all I can say,” he laughed wolfishly. We made a pact before going, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. “His brother and myself split best man duties and we had to think very carefully about what we were going to include in the speech at the wedding because, well, we just had to,” he said cryptically, before reflecting on the journey on which their friendship has taken them, and may yet take them.
“We started coming to America from quite an early age and Ioan enjoyed a degree of success so he made the bold move to come out here permanently. “I was happy to just come out for a few weeks in TV pilot season for auditions but it had got to the point where I was thinking, ‘actually this is just a waste of money every year’, and I was approaching what would have been the end of the LA trips. “Then I got my break.”
Does he ever get homesick? “I always miss Cardiff,” he said longingly. I don’t know how long this adventure will last, for long or short, but I’m still trying to embrace all this, the California lifestyle.” Touch wood it doesn’t happen but if Brothers And Sisters was cancelled tomorrow would he head back to Wales? “I have a three-year visa and I would stay until the end of that because it’s too good an opportunity to waste. But I could definitely see myself moving back to the UK, not specifically London, and then going where the work is. “That’s the dream.”
The Iris film festival runs from October 4 to 6.
icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0900entertainment/0050artsnews/tm_method=full%26objectid=19864979%26siteid=50082-name_page.html
Iris sees more than stereotypes
Sep 28 2007
by Karen Price, Western Mail
After winning over audiences as a gay lawyer in American drama Brothers and Sisters, Matthew Rhys is now patron of a Welsh festival celebrating gay and lesbian film. He tells Karen Price he’s proud his character goes against stereotypes
WHILE Brokeback Mountain helped introduce mainstream audiences to films with a gay theme, many movie fans are still unfamiliar with big-screen features on the subject.
Now a wealth of lesbian and gay movies from across the world will be shown in Wales next week as part of the inaugural Iris Prize Festival.
A total of 30 short films will compete for the award and there will be screenings at two venues in Cardiff.
The festival is promoted by photographs – like that on our cover – of a fictional young woman, Iris, who is meant to have travelled the world to uncover the film-making talent.
Among the people lending support is Welsh Hollywood star Matthew Rhys. The Cardiff-born actor agreed to become a patron of the event after winning critical acclaim as gay lawyer Kevin in American TV drama Brothers And Sisters.
He is currently in Los Angeles filming the second season of the popular series, which can be seen in the UK on Channel 4 and S4C.
“Berwyn Rowlands (festival director) approached me about it because he thought my profile as Kevin and the fact I’m Welsh were the perfect combination for me to help,” says the 32-year-old.
“I would advocate anything that nurtures film-makers. It’s great that they are making films that are relevant to them.”
Kevin is not the first gay role which Rhys has landed. He played a homosexual in his first play Cardiff East, in which he had to appear naked on stage. And, along with his best friend Ioan Gruffudd, he was one half of the camp couple Hob and Nob in Very Annie Mary, which was directed by Sara Sugarman, who is also a festival patron.
“Sara wanted us to be 100% cliched,” laughs Rhys.
But the actor has won praise for portraying Brothers And Sisters’ Kevin in a non-stereotypical way.
“I had a long chat with the creator and one of the writers. They said, ‘Don’t go off and research gay people.’ He’s just a guy who happens to be gay. He’s not governed by his sexuality. He has none of the cliched feminine traits. He’s a regular guy.”
Rhys has had a positive reaction from fans, particularly from members of the gay community.
Brothers And Sisters also won a Glad award (Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders) for the way in which Kevin is portrayed.
Rhys receives many letters from gay men, particularly from small American towns, saying that the character Kevin has really helped them in their situations.
But he admits that fans often come up to him to ask him if he’s gay in real life.
“I occasionally get women coming up to me and asking if I’m really gay, whereas men just assume I am.”
It’s not just his portrayal of a gay man that’s impressing fans – with his convincing American accent, many are also surprised to learn he’s Welsh.
Rhys admits that perfecting the accent has been the most difficult part of the job.
“I have a voice coach who sends me a CD with my lines on each week so I can play it in the car and if I’m struggling I call her. It’s more difficult when you are tired as your accent slips. In the first episode I shouted ‘Justin’ and it came out sounding so Cardiff!”
Rhys is clearly relishing life in America and is even learning to surf.
“I bought my first surf board yesterday. I’ve had a few lessons – I even stood up.”
But he still returns to his beloved Wales to visit his family as often as he can and he is considering buying a house in Cardiff.
In fact, despite his hectic filming schedule, Rhys keeps in close contact with his friends at home. He is currently lending support to the next Trust PA ball, which takes place in Cardiff on October 27 in memory of his friend PA Blundell, who died at the age of 26 after becoming paralysed while playing rugby. The ball will raise vital funds for those with spinal cord injuries.
And, of course, he is supporting the Iris Prize Festival.
The three-day event, which opens on October 4, will include feature films, masterclasses and screenings of the 30 short films which have been selected to compete for the Iris Prize.
The festival got its name because Iris is the goddess of rainbows, communication and represents the power of speech and truth. And as the iris is linked with the eye, it was felt it was appropriate for an event showcasing film.
Organiser Rowlands is pleased with the films that have been selected for the festival.
He says, “Recent films like Brokeback Mountain have demonstrated that gay films with universal themes like love are enjoyed by everyone regardless of their sexuality. We’re determined to make sure Iris is relevant to a cross-section of the film community – gay and straight. If we don’t we will have failed.
“Half of the 30 short films nominated for the prize have been selected by festivals in Sydney, New York, Hong Kong, Manila, London and Toronto, among many others.
“This global following has allowed us to generate international media attention and recognition for Iris over the past 12 months.”
Judged by a panel of filmmakers and artists, the winner of the prize will be invited back to the UK to make their next short film with a budget of £25,000.
Competitors from across Europe, the Bahamas, Canada and the US will all be present at the closing night award ceremony when the winner of the inaugural prize will be announced.
Among those who have made the shortlist is Welsh performance artist Marc Rees. His film, The Dancing Marquis Diaries, is taken from his new stage show, Gloria Days, which is inspired by the eccentric fifth Marquis of Anglesey, Henry Paget.
The film is the link between acts one and two of the production, which will be premiered at the Swansea Festival next month before a run at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff.
Rees says, “I think it’s fantastic to be involved in the first Iris Prize Festival.”
As well as the short films, festival-goers will be treated to a programme of feature films, including The Gay Bed and Breakfast of Terror, a tongue-in-cheek romp for all lovers of camp horror being given its first screening outside of America.
Other programme highlights include the European premiere of Holding Trevor introduced by its writer and star Brent Gorski, and the Welsh premiere of Tick Tock Lullaby introduced by London-based film-maker Lisa Gornick.
Rhyl-born Sugarman, the festival’s fellow patron, says, “I believe passionately in short film competitions as somebody whose film-making aspirations was supported by winning the DM Davies Award many years ago. I’m glad the tradition of supporting new talent continues in Wales and I’m thrilled that through the Iris Prize, the support offered is extended internationally. I am so looking forward to seeing the Iris Prize developing as a festival to become a popular global event.”
The Iris Prize Festival will be held at Cineworld and Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff from October 4 to 6. Tickets can be purchased online at www.irisprize.org or from Chapter box office on 029 2030 4400
For details of Trust PA, visit the website at www.trustpa.com
icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0900entertainment/0050artsnews/tm_headline=iris-sees-more-than-stereotypes&method=full&objectid=19859170&siteid=50082-name_page.html
Iris highs for Matthew
Sep 29 2007
by Gavin Allen, South Wales Echo
IN one sense Matthew Rhys and Ioan Gruffudd haven’t really moved very far apart since their days as flatmates in London. The best friends don’t live together now but there is still just a mile or so between their new homes – in Los Angeles. “He lives in West Hollywood and I live in Hanthingy Park,” said Rhys, who fights Gruffudd for clay pigeon shooting over golf in their sparse social time together. “We do see each other but we’ve both been busy lately.”
When the pair were united as starry-eyed youths, both dreamed of being in this position. While Gruffudd has soared to box office success in films such as Fantastic Four and Amazing Grace, Rhys has made a considerable mark on the small screen in hit drama Brothers & Sisters. It is his role as gay lawyer Kevin Walker in the Emmy award-winning ABC programme that saw Berwyn Rowlands approach him to become a patron of The Iris Festival, a major international gay and lesbian short film festival which launches in at Cardiff Cineworld on Thursday. “I was approached by Berwyn because of my connections through Brothers & Sisters and I thought it was a good tie-in,” said Rhys. “I’m a fan of filmmaking in general but something groundbreaking like this in Cardiff has to be good.”
With the second series of Brothers And Sisters launching in the US at the end of this month, Rhys is filming in the winelands of Santa Barbara. But in May this year he was enjoying the rolling fields of Wales again as he returned home to film Edge of Love, the first movie to be made about Dylan Thomas, with Keira Knightley and Sienna Miller. In it, Rhys plays genius Thomas and, as a Welshman taking the role of one of our nation’s greatest talents, scrutiny will be thorough. “I’ve never felt so pressured in my life,” he snuffled through a deep cold, the result of his recently taking up surfing. “I put an enormous amount on myself but you would get little comments from people when you told them who you were playing. “They’d just look at you and say ‘Oh. Don’t mess that up’.” With the filming now wrapped how does he feel he did in hindsight? “I don’t know,” he groaned. “I’ve never been one to be able to look at my work objectively. “I’ve looked at a few scenes and winced and thought why didn’t I do that differently? Ultimately, it’s up to other people to judge.”
With one huge career role wrapped, Rhys headed back to America to fulfil a major social engagement – best man to Ioan Gruffudd’s when he married his long-term love Alice Evans on September 14 at Palmilla Hotel in Los Cabos, Mexico. “It was fantastic,” said Rhys aptly. “It all went according to plan which is the greatest achievement and there was a great enclave of Welsh out there for the ceremony.” Did he go easy on Mr Fantastic at the stag do? “We were good boys and that’s all I can say,” he laughed wolfishly. We made a pact before going, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. “His brother and myself split best man duties and we had to think very carefully about what we were going to include in the speech at the wedding because, well, we just had to,” he said cryptically, before reflecting on the journey on which their friendship has taken them, and may yet take them.
“We started coming to America from quite an early age and Ioan enjoyed a degree of success so he made the bold move to come out here permanently. “I was happy to just come out for a few weeks in TV pilot season for auditions but it had got to the point where I was thinking, ‘actually this is just a waste of money every year’, and I was approaching what would have been the end of the LA trips. “Then I got my break.”
Does he ever get homesick? “I always miss Cardiff,” he said longingly. I don’t know how long this adventure will last, for long or short, but I’m still trying to embrace all this, the California lifestyle.” Touch wood it doesn’t happen but if Brothers And Sisters was cancelled tomorrow would he head back to Wales? “I have a three-year visa and I would stay until the end of that because it’s too good an opportunity to waste. But I could definitely see myself moving back to the UK, not specifically London, and then going where the work is. “That’s the dream.”
The Iris film festival runs from October 4 to 6.
icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0900entertainment/0050artsnews/tm_method=full%26objectid=19864979%26siteid=50082-name_page.html
Iris sees more than stereotypes
Sep 28 2007
by Karen Price, Western Mail
After winning over audiences as a gay lawyer in American drama Brothers and Sisters, Matthew Rhys is now patron of a Welsh festival celebrating gay and lesbian film. He tells Karen Price he’s proud his character goes against stereotypes
WHILE Brokeback Mountain helped introduce mainstream audiences to films with a gay theme, many movie fans are still unfamiliar with big-screen features on the subject.
Now a wealth of lesbian and gay movies from across the world will be shown in Wales next week as part of the inaugural Iris Prize Festival.
A total of 30 short films will compete for the award and there will be screenings at two venues in Cardiff.
The festival is promoted by photographs – like that on our cover – of a fictional young woman, Iris, who is meant to have travelled the world to uncover the film-making talent.
Among the people lending support is Welsh Hollywood star Matthew Rhys. The Cardiff-born actor agreed to become a patron of the event after winning critical acclaim as gay lawyer Kevin in American TV drama Brothers And Sisters.
He is currently in Los Angeles filming the second season of the popular series, which can be seen in the UK on Channel 4 and S4C.
“Berwyn Rowlands (festival director) approached me about it because he thought my profile as Kevin and the fact I’m Welsh were the perfect combination for me to help,” says the 32-year-old.
“I would advocate anything that nurtures film-makers. It’s great that they are making films that are relevant to them.”
Kevin is not the first gay role which Rhys has landed. He played a homosexual in his first play Cardiff East, in which he had to appear naked on stage. And, along with his best friend Ioan Gruffudd, he was one half of the camp couple Hob and Nob in Very Annie Mary, which was directed by Sara Sugarman, who is also a festival patron.
“Sara wanted us to be 100% cliched,” laughs Rhys.
But the actor has won praise for portraying Brothers And Sisters’ Kevin in a non-stereotypical way.
“I had a long chat with the creator and one of the writers. They said, ‘Don’t go off and research gay people.’ He’s just a guy who happens to be gay. He’s not governed by his sexuality. He has none of the cliched feminine traits. He’s a regular guy.”
Rhys has had a positive reaction from fans, particularly from members of the gay community.
Brothers And Sisters also won a Glad award (Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders) for the way in which Kevin is portrayed.
Rhys receives many letters from gay men, particularly from small American towns, saying that the character Kevin has really helped them in their situations.
But he admits that fans often come up to him to ask him if he’s gay in real life.
“I occasionally get women coming up to me and asking if I’m really gay, whereas men just assume I am.”
It’s not just his portrayal of a gay man that’s impressing fans – with his convincing American accent, many are also surprised to learn he’s Welsh.
Rhys admits that perfecting the accent has been the most difficult part of the job.
“I have a voice coach who sends me a CD with my lines on each week so I can play it in the car and if I’m struggling I call her. It’s more difficult when you are tired as your accent slips. In the first episode I shouted ‘Justin’ and it came out sounding so Cardiff!”
Rhys is clearly relishing life in America and is even learning to surf.
“I bought my first surf board yesterday. I’ve had a few lessons – I even stood up.”
But he still returns to his beloved Wales to visit his family as often as he can and he is considering buying a house in Cardiff.
In fact, despite his hectic filming schedule, Rhys keeps in close contact with his friends at home. He is currently lending support to the next Trust PA ball, which takes place in Cardiff on October 27 in memory of his friend PA Blundell, who died at the age of 26 after becoming paralysed while playing rugby. The ball will raise vital funds for those with spinal cord injuries.
And, of course, he is supporting the Iris Prize Festival.
The three-day event, which opens on October 4, will include feature films, masterclasses and screenings of the 30 short films which have been selected to compete for the Iris Prize.
The festival got its name because Iris is the goddess of rainbows, communication and represents the power of speech and truth. And as the iris is linked with the eye, it was felt it was appropriate for an event showcasing film.
Organiser Rowlands is pleased with the films that have been selected for the festival.
He says, “Recent films like Brokeback Mountain have demonstrated that gay films with universal themes like love are enjoyed by everyone regardless of their sexuality. We’re determined to make sure Iris is relevant to a cross-section of the film community – gay and straight. If we don’t we will have failed.
“Half of the 30 short films nominated for the prize have been selected by festivals in Sydney, New York, Hong Kong, Manila, London and Toronto, among many others.
“This global following has allowed us to generate international media attention and recognition for Iris over the past 12 months.”
Judged by a panel of filmmakers and artists, the winner of the prize will be invited back to the UK to make their next short film with a budget of £25,000.
Competitors from across Europe, the Bahamas, Canada and the US will all be present at the closing night award ceremony when the winner of the inaugural prize will be announced.
Among those who have made the shortlist is Welsh performance artist Marc Rees. His film, The Dancing Marquis Diaries, is taken from his new stage show, Gloria Days, which is inspired by the eccentric fifth Marquis of Anglesey, Henry Paget.
The film is the link between acts one and two of the production, which will be premiered at the Swansea Festival next month before a run at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff.
Rees says, “I think it’s fantastic to be involved in the first Iris Prize Festival.”
As well as the short films, festival-goers will be treated to a programme of feature films, including The Gay Bed and Breakfast of Terror, a tongue-in-cheek romp for all lovers of camp horror being given its first screening outside of America.
Other programme highlights include the European premiere of Holding Trevor introduced by its writer and star Brent Gorski, and the Welsh premiere of Tick Tock Lullaby introduced by London-based film-maker Lisa Gornick.
Rhyl-born Sugarman, the festival’s fellow patron, says, “I believe passionately in short film competitions as somebody whose film-making aspirations was supported by winning the DM Davies Award many years ago. I’m glad the tradition of supporting new talent continues in Wales and I’m thrilled that through the Iris Prize, the support offered is extended internationally. I am so looking forward to seeing the Iris Prize developing as a festival to become a popular global event.”
The Iris Prize Festival will be held at Cineworld and Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff from October 4 to 6. Tickets can be purchased online at www.irisprize.org or from Chapter box office on 029 2030 4400
For details of Trust PA, visit the website at www.trustpa.com
icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0900entertainment/0050artsnews/tm_headline=iris-sees-more-than-stereotypes&method=full&objectid=19859170&siteid=50082-name_page.html