Examiner has a one and one chance to get an exclusive interview with ‘How To Be’ director.

Fledgling director Oliver Irving produced a melancholy comedy, How To Be, featuring Robert Pattinson as a bumbling young man going through a quarter-life crisis. With an infectious smile poking through a mushroomed mop of chestnut hair, Rob, prior to his dashing Edward Cullen days, used his prowess as a method actor to become Art and charm audiences worldwide. Robert received an award for best actor in his role as Art at the Strasbourg Film Festival.

I had the incredible opportunity to query Mr. Irving as to Rob, his character, along with a plethora of interesting tidbits behind the scenes of How To Be:

What was the inspiration behind the plot of How to Be? Was it based upon factual events in your life?
I was inspired by observations of the people around me at that time. Lots of peers were a bit lost after leaving university – also an interest in self-help books. I thought what a funny combination – young English guys in existential crisis together with this kind of American self help culture.

How was Robert Pattinson chosen for the role of Art? Did his musical ability play a role in his casting?
We found him after a year and a half’s worth of casting calls. He just seemed the right person for the job. He was interesting to look at – but down to earth enough to play the part. He really seemed to “get it” – he knew people like the characters in the script, and understood the main character ‘ART’. Not having gone through drama school, Rob’s acting and response to direction fit in well with other main cast members who were not trained actors either. Rob actually underplayed his musical ability in the auditions, as he knew the character was meant to be rough around the edges when it comes to musical ability – but it actually was invaluable in the end that he understood the music references and had the technical ability to pull off what we were asking from him.

How much of the film tour’s success do you attribute to Pattinson?
A massive amount – he brought a huge audience to our film which is all you can ask of a lead star. I think also the amount of festivals we had played up until that point and the strength of support from our fans really made it all possible.

Read the rest of the interview over @ the examiner interview page.

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