The future isn’t a place we’re going. It’s something we’re making, it can be anything … — Raffey Cassidy
If you are new to the site you may not be aware that earlier this month I traveled to Los Angeles, courtesy of Disney, for the Tomorrowland press junket. To say that my trip was magical would be an understatement. I had never been to Disneyland, never been to Los Angeles, and never been to California. There I was, experiencing all three, and that wasn’t even the best part of the trip.
In addition to previewing Tomorrowland, during this visit, we also had the opportunity to sit down with the talent from the film for an exclusive interview. It is mind boggling to think about being in the same room and talking with the genius behind the film, Brad Bird and Damon Lindelof; leading man, George Clooney; and the female talent of Britt Robertson and Raffey Cassidy. Even now, my mind is blown. It’s difficult to even rationalize meeting just one of them.
As one could imagine, I was nervous for each interview that we conducted. What may seem strange is that the interview I found most nerve-wracking was the one with Raffey. Why? It’s simple, she is 13-years-old. When is the last time you sat down and tried to hold a conversation with a 13-year-old? For me, it is almost daily because I have a 13-year-old niece. Not only do I have to gain her attention, I have to work to hold it, and even then, most of the responses that I receive are one word. Seriously, it is like pulling teeth! From watching Tomorrowland I knew that Raffey could read and definitely act but I had no idea what to expect of the real her, the one that I was about to meet. Let’s be honest, one word answers could result in a really short interview or a really long one; depending on how you look at it.
Needless to say, when Raffey walked in the room, smiled, and immediately started a conversation all of my nervousness faded away and I was left in awe of her intelligence, zest for life, and optimistic outlook of the future. As an added bonus, she is absolutely adorable and I love her accent. I was completely enthralled by her answers to our questions and I walked away feeling a little more confident about our future and the direction that it is headed in. Here is what Raffey had to say!
Photo Credit: Louise Bishop of MomStart.com
Question: How long were your days, your work days and the hours that you worked?
Raffey Cassidy: I probably got picked up at maybe 6:00 or 6:30 AM and then I’d finish around about 5:00 PM.
Question: How did you feel about your costumes in the movie?
Raffey Cassidy: I loved them. The blue dress, if you look closely, that was actually algorithms and algebra. You can see them if you look close.
Question: What was your favorite scene to shoot?
Raffey Cassidy: My favorite scene to shoot was probably the Blast from the Past sequence. I really like that because there was a lot of action in it.
Question: You had a lot of action scenes where you had to do martial arts. Did you have to train for that or how did you learn?
Raffey Cassidy: I trained for two months in gymnastics and martial arts. Then, I went to Canada and did another month of martial arts and a bit of gymnastics. Then, throughout the six month of filming, I did another couple of days every week or so.
Question: What was your take away from the movie? If there’s one thing you took away from it and want everyone to think about.
Raffey Cassidy: That everybody should be very optimistic and feel that there’s a way around situations if they’re in a bad situation. There’s always a bright side.
Photo Credit: Louise Bishop of MomStart.com
Question: What is your takeaway when it comes to Athena?
Raffey Cassidy: I love how wise she is. She is like an old soul inside of a young body.
Question: What was the most challenging part of filming the movie for you?
Raffey Cassidy: I kind of had to create a background for Athena because she didn’t really have one. It was fun because that was something that I created for Athena.
Question: What traits of Athena do you see in yourself?
Raffey Cassidy: If I had to choose something, it would probably be optimism, because I think that I feel that I’m quite optimistic and always look on the bright side of a bad situation.
Question: How did you train to play the role of Athena? You did such a good job of playing a robot. How did you train for that?
Raffey Cassidy: Athena has so many different qualities. She’s optimistic. She’s intelligent. She’s wise. I just kind of put all of those together. I always had an image in my head for a scene, so it was never just going into it cold and trying to create one in my head. I always had an image that would just help me and I’d always be able to think of it to get me through.
Question: What was your hardest scene to film in the movie?
Raffey Cassidy: My hardest scene would probably be my end scene. There were a lot of lines, but once I’ve learned them, it just flowed. And, George had a lot of eye contact with me, so it was easy to perform. It would have been hard if George wasn’t so good. It was easy because he was just so professional and kept eye contact the whole time.
Question (from yours truly): Because of your age, you are the future. When you were filming did you look at it and say okay, this may be how the future’s going to be, were there certain aspects that you thought no, not too much? Did it seem like it flowed for you for what may happen?
Raffey Cassidy: Yes, there was so much technology in the actual Tomorrowland and I think that that’s how it’s going to be in, I don’t know, 60 years’ time or something. So, I think that will be the future.
Photo Credit: Louise Bishop of MomStart.com
Question: Do you feel like the movie changed how you view the world now and the future? Did it make you more optimistic?
Raffey Cassidy: Oh yeah, there was so much more optimism and it made me think. Even talking about it now makes me think about the future and how optimistic we can all be and how we can make it what we want.
Question: Did you find it challenging at all to portray emotions but also remain kind of stoic a little bit with your character, since she’s a robot?
Raffey Cassidy: Well, it was Athena that didn’t really want to show any emotion because she’s always alert and she always just wants to attack people. I found that she would never want to show emotion but maybe sometimes she wanted to show that she did care and was doing something to protect them.
Question: How was it, almost having to be the adult in the film?
Raffey Cassidy: Athena is kind of the mom of the whole thing. She looks after Casey and Frank and tries to bring them together to help him save the world. Through their adventure, they kind of become family.
Question: Do you see yourself staying with acting or do you want to pursue something else?
Raffey Cassidy: At the moment, I’m definitely so grateful for what I’ve had the chance to do and everything, and maybe I’ll carry on doing this. At the moment, I want to go into it but I might change my mind.
Question: What’s your favorite thing about acting in general?
Raffey Cassidy: How close the set becomes, like the cast and crew, everybody becomes so close. It’s like a family. Everybody helps each other out.
Question: Who were your role models; the people that you look up to and maybe inspired your acting career?
Raffey Cassidy: I think Britt Robertson. She’s somebody to look up to and admire because she’s a good person, she’s done so much and, she’s just so kind and I really, really like her.
To say the least, I think Raffey is fabulous and I can’t wait to see her career blossom. In this day and age we are often bombarded with so much negativity that it has become difficult to look at the future with promise. Raffey is a breath of fresh air that has reinvigorated my hope for tomorrow. She reminds us that tomorrow isn’t a place that we visit; it is something that we create. And that, my friends, is what hope (and hopefully the future) is all about.
If you haven’t had the opportunity to take your family to see Tomorrowland, I encourage you to go tonight or make plans for the weekend. The movie is rated PG and carries with it a message of hope … what better way to start the summer?
There is still more to come from our journey so stay tuned for the coming days. Be sure to follow #TomorrowlandEvent for all of the latest news and everything #Tomorrowland. In the meantime …
TOMORROWLAND IS PLAYING IN THEATERS EVERYWHERE!
From Disney comes two-time Oscar® winner Brad Bird’s “Tomorrowland,” a riveting mystery adventure starring Academy Award® winner George Clooney. Bound by a shared destiny, former boy-genius Frank (Clooney), jaded by disillusionment, and Casey (Britt Robertson), a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity, embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space known only as “Tomorrowland.” What they must do there changes the world—and them—forever.
Featuring a screenplay by “Lost” writer and co-creator Damon Lindelof and Brad Bird, from a story by Lindelof & Bird & Jeff Jensen, “Tomorrowland” promises to take audiences on a thrill ride of nonstop adventures through new dimensions that have only been dreamed of.
The film also stars Hugh Laurie as brilliant scientist David Nix, Raffey Cassidy, Tim McGraw, Kathryn Hahn, Keegan-Michael Key and Thomas Robinson.
“Tomorrowland” is produced by Damon Lindelof, Brad Bird and Jeffrey Chernov and directed by Brad Bird, with John Walker, Bernard Bellew, Jeff Jensen and Brigham Taylor serving as executive producers. “Tomorrowland” opens in U.S. theaters on May 22, 2015.
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Disclaimer: I was sent on an all-expense paid trip to Los Angeles, California courtesy of Disney to experience Tomorrowland and a series of other adventures surrounding the movie. Regardless, all opinions expressed are still 100% my own.
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