Read the Aug. 17, 2007 interview in The Desert Sun.
Alfred Molina has been rejuvenated. The 54-year-old thespian recently acted in 26-year-old Bryce Dallas Howard's short, "Orchids," and felt invigorated by the young crew.
"For old farts like me, it's a shot in the arm," Molina told The Desert Sun. He clarified that shorts often provide the opportunity to work with "young directors with great energy and enthusiasm. It's good for the soul."
As a star of stage and screens big (The Hoax, Spider-Man 2) and small, Molina has kept himself open to new opportunities.
"It's one of the many strokes of luck that I've enjoyed in a 32-year career. As a character actor, I allow myself to be driven by my character rather than maintain any kind of image," Molina reveals. "There is a certain amount of freedom in not topping a film, and the trade off is that I get to play interesting roles in different kinds of text."
"Orchids" reunites Molina with Howard, with whom he had filmed the upcoming HBO production, "As You Like It." He recently worked with her father, Ron Howard, in The Da Vinci Code, and thus felt part of a family affair.
"When she phoned me, I felt like my goddaughter had called me and wanted to be in her movie. I said yes, but she insisted that I read the script first," Molina divulges.
Molina was impressed by director Bryce Dallas Howard's humility and taste. He did not feel that this film, produced by Glamour magazine's Reel Moments film series, was a vanity project for the actress. Molina felt she had something to contribute from the other side of the camera.
Molina costars in the short with Katherine Waterston. "She is another example of the apple not falling far from the tree," Molina says in regards to family talent by way of her father, actor Sam Waterston. Hollywood progeny "have to prove themselves twice over and have to really earn it. It's a ballsy thing to do," Molina acknowledges.
In preparing for the role of a housebound agoraphobic widower, Molina reveled in the fact that all he needed to know about his character was on the page. "That's gold dust to an actor. It becomes a matter of staying true to the story and circumstances," Molina admitted.
As to any future prospects of working with Howard again, Molina confesses, "I would certainly be more than happy to lurk in the doorway for her."