Actors Tye Sheridan and Olivia Cooke say that the whole experience of working with director Steven Spielberg in the film Ready Player One has been amazing as he is calm and prompt. By Team Viva
Tell us about the identity of ‘Wade’ and ‘Parzival’?
Tye Sheridan: Wade and Parzival are two very different people and Parzival is everything that Wade is not. When we meet Wade, he is kind of this kiddish guy who is an introvert and logs into Oasis, a game, where he expresses it all.
What would like to say on Motion Capture?
Tye: We shot everything that takes place in the Oasis first in Motion Capture studios. We were wearing these suits, headcams and there were dots all over our face so that they could record our facial expressions, put those on our avatars and create a new world around us. There is a real time monitor so that every environment that we walk around in the Oasis, what we shoot around was virtually created. A mocked-up version was there on the monitor to actually get a sense of what it may feel like. That was extremely helpful and at any point you were shooting, you could look in the monitor and you see yourself, your avatar walking around tracking your movements at every stage. So, you understand where you are in the space and who you are.
Tell us about the Stacks?
Tye: As it is based on a book, there are certain environments and scenes that you take away and are really excited to do that in the film. Stacks was everything that I expected it would be and its just great that the production has done some incredible work on the film. It was crazy to see expectations turning into reality in this film.
Who is Art3mis?
Olivia Cooke: She is Artemis, the Greek goddess of hunt. She is very determined and has her eyes on winning and taking control of the Oasis for the greater good. She is a loner and doesn’t have many friends. She is so striven to achieve her goal.
Tell us about the Gunters?
Olivia: Gunters is a slang for the egg hunters. They are kind of ruthless and rebellious. They really want to find the egg for the greater good. They are anti-establishment and want to win for the good of the Oasis and the World.
How was it working with Steven Spielberg?
Tye: He was very engaging with us. He loves actors and I think he is a great director. He is open to try different things and go to different places but most of the times, he knows exactly what he wants. The whole experience has been quite amazing. I’ve learnt maybe more on this film than my entire career.
Olivia: I first met him in the auditions, and I was so nervous, but he instantly knew that he has this effect on people within his working time. He is a genius and lovely, calm and soothing too. He works very quickly, I found that in the auditions. He thinks on the spot and keeps on telling things in between the scenes, this actually works. He is always on his toes to play the game. It was fun working with him.
Tell us more about the attraction between ‘Parzival’ and ‘Art3mis’?
Tye: Quite early in the story I meet this girl who Parzival or Wade is actually obsessed with. She is a pretty famous Gunter in the Oasis and a lot of people recognised her. He has a crush on her, and she pushes his buttons. There is something about her that he likes. And Olivia playing this character, it was really smart.
Olivia: It’s fun to explore the attraction and romance between them. It is not on Artemis’ radar at all. She has all these people around all the time but her eyes were on winning the competition and the egg so she can make a better future for everyone and help people in the future. Speaking to Parzival and the talking about things just takes her by surprise.
(The film premiers on PIX on July 12 at 1 pm and 9 pm.)