Interviews
Raise
Your Voice
From Rebecca Murray
On
Relationships, Singing, and Making Movies
What’s it like to be the unpopular new kid in town? Hilary
Duff admits she doesn’t have much experience in that regard.
But in the teen drama “Raise Your Voice,” her character
goes through that and more in her quest to follow her dream
of being a singer.
The idea for "Raise Your Voice" came from New Line
music executive Mitch Rotter. "We had wanted to do a truly
music-driven film, something just short of a 'sing at the drop
of a hat' musical, where the music was as much a part of the
narrative as any of the other elements,” says Rotter.
Hilary
Duff was approached for the starring role in "Raise Your
Voice" before cutting her first album, and after finishing
her "Lizzie McGuire" movie. Producer Sara Risher feels
the camera really loves Hilary and says, "She has such
a dynamic screen presence and it was just very serendipitous
that it all came together and we were able to cast her in this
film." Once Hilary was onboard, the film, which had been
stalled in the pre-production phase, began picking up speed.
Co-stars, including Oliver James, John Corbett, and Rita Wilson,
were cast and filming began in January 2004. While filming,
Duff had the difficult task of balancing her acting career with
her singing career, but managed to handle both despite her seemingly
non-stop schedule.
INTERVIEW
WITH HILARY DUFF ('Terri'):
Is
it normal for you to have so many projects going on in one year?
You know what? It seems kind of normal now. I think that there’s
really no way to prepare yourself, to say, “Oh, I’ve
got all this going on.” You just do it. It’s like
I want to be able to do all of these things, and I have to be
really prepared to do it. It doesn’t really bother me,
every day thinking that I’m going to have to switch modes
to singing or acting or traveling, or this, that and the other.
You just kind of do it. It’s just kind of natural.
Is
it the nervous, raw energy that keeps you going?
I think so. The energy is addicting almost. Even though it’s
really hard work, I don’t think you could do it unless
you loved it. I love it, but it definitely keeps me going. A
new place every night – doing this, doing that –
it’s crazy.
In
“Raise Your Voice,” you’re playing the outsider.
In real life, you’ve been a star a while. How do you get
those feelings of not belonging to come out for an acting job?
It was hard. People have been asking me today like what the
most challenging part of the movie was, and it wasn’t
the crying scenes. I think that’s much easier than trying
to make people laugh. Crying on command is not that difficult.
But the parts that were harder for me were after the tragedy
happens to Terri in her life, it’s kind of like just like
a closed-off, numb feeling. She doesn’t feel any emotion
– no happiness, no sad. She’s kind of like nothing.
That was the hardest thing for me. And then going to the school
and feeling like the outsider, I kind of learned how to do that
a lot with Lizzie McGuire because she was the dork that didn’t
really fit in. And everybody kind of made Terri feel very unwelcome
at the school at first.
Do
the singing scenes reflect your real process as far as what
you go through to get to a certain point with your voice?
I think so. It’s a little more difficult in this movie
because I was singing arias and stuff I never have to sing for
the type of music that I sing. But there’s definitely
times that I get that frustrated when I can’t sing something
that I want to or I can’t hit a certain note that day.
There’s definitely a process where I’m writing and
I’m like, “This is stupid. Why did I write this?
Let’s start from the beginning.” And I’ll
end up throwing something away that I really did like, just
because it didn’t sound that great that day. There’s
definitely some challenging parts.
Are
you active in lessoning to tapes or are your producers so good
they find your material on their own?
On the second album I worked with a lot of people that I worked
with on the Metamorphosis album. And when I worked on Metamorphosis
I was so nervous and shy about going into the studio and working
with people, they eventually toward the end made me feel so
comfortable and so secure with myself. I loved working with
them. I have a great relationship with them. I talk to them
[all the time]. When we started talking about the second album,
I was like, “I want to work with all the same people.”
They knew what was going on in my life, what I was going through.
I would call them and say, “I feel like this right now.
I want a song about this…” I never really felt like
I had enough time to write my whole album and I don’t
know if I’m secure enough with myself to do that. But
I wrote three songs on the album, one I wrote with my sister.
It’s so personal and these people really got what I was
going through and how I feel inside. I think that’s what
makes it good and that’s what makes me relate to them.
Is
your relationship with your mother similar to the relationship
your character has with her mom in this movie?
My relationship with my mom is so amazing. We never got to have
that stage that people go through, like when you’re 13
and you think you’re too cool for your parents. When you’re
embarrassed by them and stuff. We never went through that because
I was constantly working and she constantly had to be there.
We just because best friends. I tell her everything. She’s
really my role model and my inspiration. She’s such a
good person and such a strong person. A lot of people give her
flack for being strong and being smart, but I think I envy that
in her.
Did you have curfews growing up?
I still have curfews and sometimes I get grounded, which I is
kind of weird to me.
For
what reason?
Like if [my mom's] asked me to do something more than once or
twice. I always get in trouble for not pulling my car into the
garage, because if I don’t pull my car in, her car won’t
fit. So I get in trouble for that, but it only lasts for a day.
Usually it’s an excuse so I’ll stay home and hang
out with her (laughing).
What time do you have to be in?
It all depends. It depends on where I am, it depends on what
I’m doing. It depends on if I have to work the next day.
She gives me a lot of freedom and I think that it must scare
her, you know? Having me leave the house by myself, with my
car. I don’t take security around with me just because
it’s like I don’t want that. I want to be able to
be free. She has to have a lot of faith in me and trust in me
to be able to do that, even though it must scare her. But she
does. She gives me so much freedom. I can be home at 1 or 2
sometimes. And if I’m working the next day, I’ll
be really good and come home at 10.
What
did you learn from working with Rita Wilson?
So much. She’s amazing. Most of my scenes with her were
more dramatic and literally she would take a breath and it would
all come and show on her face. I would look at her and it would
just make me start crying because she’s so talented and
so beautiful, and such an inspiring person. [She’s] just
really honest and really real, and I love that.
You
have good onscreen chemistry with Jason Ritter. What’s
your relationship with him?
I loved working with Jason. He’s really good at making
everybody laugh. He’s really fun, really lighthearted
on set. We really did have a good time together. We didn’t
get to work together that much, but I think it came across good
onscreen. Kind of like the sneaky brother and sister relationship.
I think the scene in the car, even though it was really sad
because he doesn’t end up sticking around for long, was
really fun. Singing together – I totally do stuff like
that with my sister in the car.
How
important is it to kids to pick up musical instruments now?
I think so much of that has gone away. So many schools are getting
rid of music programs and it’s really sad because I know
that when I started singing and stuff it was something that
I always wanted to do and I never believed in myself to be able
to do it. I think it’s so important. It opens someone
up and you’re able to learn about yourself. You feel worth
something when you can learn how to do something that’s
so… I know that when I got into music, I started feeling
very motivated because I wanted to achieve this challenging
thing. I think it’s really important if it’s the
piano or the guitar or the bass or drums or singing or anything,
it’s so important to have music in your life.
Do
boys approach you like Oliver James does in this movie, or is
it more complicated because you’re famous?
I hate that word – the ‘f’ word – but
I guess it’s more complicated because of that. It’s
really sad. I don’t have a boyfriend and I’m not
dating anybody. I read that I’m dating new people all
the time but I’m definitely not.
Like
the singer from Good Charlotte.
Actually we’re good friends. I like his band and everything.
It really sucks that people say I’m dating this person,
I’m dating this person… and make accusations that
aren’t true with my personal life. Then of course everybody
has their opinion on what’s right and wrong. It’s
hard some times, you know? I’m not dating him and I don’t
have a boyfriend. I’d like to date someone normal but
how am I supposed to date someone normal when I don’t
go to regular school, I’m never in town, and I’m
always traveling? Nobody normal will ever come up and talk to
me.
Why
is the ‘feud’ between you and Lindsay Lohan still
big news to people?
I have a feeling that if I was a normal girl that went to a
normal high school, the high school would probably talk about
it for two days and then it would be over. But just because
people know who I am and people know who she is, everybody loves
to talk about it. I don’t know her. I don’t care.
If you read all the interviews, I haven’t said anything
about it. I try and keep my mouth shut. That’s all I can
say.
Hilary
Raises Her Voice
by Paul Fischer
Hilary Duff is the hardest working teen actress in Hollywood
these days, it seems, having gone from Cinderella Story to the
musical drama Hear my Voice. Following the death of her brother
in a car accident, a teenage girl (Duff) from a small town spends
the summer in Los Angeles studying at a performing arts school
which exposes her to a whole new world and way of life outside
the sheltered existence and social circles she's always known.
The acteress says it was tough to identify with this character,
more than anyone she's ever played, reports Paul Fischer.
PF:
Is this a lot for you to have so many projects going on in one
year, or is kind of standard?
HD:
You know what? It seems kind of normal now. I think that there's
really no way to prepare yourself, to say, "Oh, I've got
all this going on." You just do it. It's like I want to
be able to do all of these things, and I have to be really prepared
to do it. It doesn't really bother me, every day thinking that
I'm going to have to switch modes to singing or acting or traveling,
or this, that and the other. You just kind of do it. It's just
kind of natural.
PF:
Is it just the nervous, raw energy that keeps you going?
HD: I think so. The energy is addicting almost. Even though
it's really hard work, I don't think you could do it unless
you loved it. I love it, but it definitely keeps me going. A
new place every night – doing this, doing that –
it's crazy.
PF:
Do you like making movies?
HD:
Yeah, I really like this one. It was really short. We filmed
it very quickly and I loved everybody that I worked with on
it. It made it really easy. But sometimes the movie process
is very slow and I don't really like that, you know?
PF:
In "Raise Your Voice," you're kind of playing the
outsider. In real life, you've been a star a while. How do you
get those feelings to come out for an acting job.
HD:
It was hard. People have been asking me today like what the
most challenging part of the movie was, and it wasn't the crying
scenes. I think that's much easier than trying to make people
laugh. Crying on command is not that difficult. But the parts
that were harder for me were after the tragedy happens to Terri
in her life, it's kind of like just like a closed-off, numb
feeling. She doesn't feel any emotion – no happiness,
no sad. She's kind of like nothing. That was the hardest thing
for me. And then going to the school and feeling like the outsider,
I kind of learned how to do that a lot with Lizzie McGuire because
she was the dork that didn't really fit in. And everybody kind
of made Terri feel very unwelcome at the school at first.
PF:
Do the singing scenes reflect your real process as far as what
you go through to get to a certain point with your voice?
HD:
That's a cool question. I think so. It's a little more difficult
in this movie because I was singing arias and stuff I never
have to sing for the type of music that I sing. But there's
definitely times that I get that frustrated when I can't sing
something that I want to or I can't hit a certain note that
day. There's definitely a process where I'm writing and I'm
like, "This is stupid. Why did I write this? Let's start
from the beginning." And I'll end up throwing something
away that I really did like, just because it didn't sound that
great that day. There's definitely some challenging parts.
PF:
Are you active in lessoning to tapes or are your producers so
good they find your material on their own?
HD:
On the second album I worked with a lot of people that I worked
with on the Metamorphosis album. And when I worked on Metamorphosis
I was so nervous and shy about going into the studio and working
with people, they eventually toward the end made me feel so
comfortable and so secure with myself. I loved working with
them. I have a great relationship with them. I talk to them
[all the time]. When we started talking about the second album,
I was like, "I want to work with all the same people."
They knew what was going on in my life, what I was going through.
I would call them and say, "I feel like this right now.
I want a song about this..." I never really felt like I
had enough time to write my whole album and I don't know if
I'm secure enough with myself to do that. But I wrote three
songs on the album, one I wrote with my sister. It's so personal
and these people really got what I was going through and how
I feel inside. I think that's what makes it good and that's
what makes me relate to them.
PF:
Is the relationship with your mother similar to the relationship
your character has with her mom in the movie?
HD:
My relationship with my mom is so amazing. We never got to have
that stage that people go through, like when you're 13 and you
think you're too cool for your parents. When you're embarrassed
by them and stuff. We never went through that because I was
constantly working and she constantly had to be there. We just
because best friends. I tell her everything. She's really my
role model and my inspiration. She's such a good person and
such a strong person. A lot of people give her flack for being
strong and being smart, but I think I envy that in her.
PF:
Did you have curfews growing up?
HD:I
still have curfews and sometimes I get grounded, which I is
kind of weird to me.
PF:
For what reason?
HD:Like
if she's asked me to do something more than once or twice. I
always get in trouble for not pulling my car into the garage,
because if I don't pull my car in, her car won't fit. So I get
in trouble for that, but it only lasts for a day. Usually it's
an excuse so I'll stay home and hang out with her (laughing).
PF:
You still get grounded?
HD:
She'll be, "You're grounded," and most of the time
she's kidding. But sometimes if I do something bad, you know,
like if I talk back to her or are disrespectful, I get grounded.
PF:
What time do you have to be in by?
HD:It
all depends. It depends on where I am, it depends on what I'm
doing. It depends on if I have to work the next day. She gives
me a lot of freedom and I think that it must scare her, you
know? Having me leave the house by myself, with my car. I don't
take security around with me just because it's like I don't
want that. I want to be able to be free. She has to have a lot
of faith in me and trust in me to be able to do that, even though
it must scare her. But she does. She gives me so much freedom.
I can be home at 1 or 2 sometimes. And if I'm working the next
day, I'll be really good and come home at 10.
PF:
What did you learn from Rita Wilson?
HD:So
much. She's amazing. Most of my scenes with her were more dramatic
and literally she would take a breath and it would all come
and show on her face. I would look at her and it would just
make me start crying because she's so talented and so beautiful,
and such an inspiring person. [She's] just really honest and
really real, and I love that.
PF:
You have good rapport with Jason Ritter onscreen. What's your
relationship with him?
HD:I
loved working with Jason. He's really good at making everybody
laugh. He's really fun, really lighthearted on set. We really
did have a good time together. We didn't get to work together
that much, but I think it came across good onscreen. Kind of
like the sneaky brother and sister relationship. I think the
scene in the car, even though it was really sad because he doesn't
end up sticking around for long, was really fun. Singing together
– I totally do stuff like that with my sister in the car.
PF:
Are you a fan of Three Days Grace?
HD:I'm
such a big fan actually. We started filming the movie before
the band was chosen. I love Three Days Grace. I have their CD
and everything, before they even [signed] on.
PF:
How important is it to kids to pick up musical instruments now?
HD:I
think so much of that has gone away. So many schools are getting
rid of music programs and it's really sad because I know that
when I started singing and stuff it was something that I always
wanted to do and I never believed in myself to be able to do
it. I think it's so important. It opens someone up and you're
able to learn about yourself. You feel worth something when
you can learn how to do something that's so... I know that when
I got into music, I started feeling very motivated because I
wanted to achieve this challenging thing. I think it's really
important if it's the piano or the guitar or the bass or drums
or singing or anything, it's so important to have music in your
life.
PF:
Do boys approach you like Oliver does in the movie, or is it
more complicated because you're famous?
HD:
I hate that word -- the 'f' word -- but I guess its more complicated
because of that. It's really sad. I don't have a boyfriend and
I'm not dating anybody. I read that I'm dating new people all
the time but I'm definitely not.
PF:
Like the singer from Good Charlotte.
HD:
Actually we're good friends. I like his band and everything.
It really sucks that people say I'm dating this person, I'm
dating this person... and make accusations that aren't true
with my personal life. Then of course everybody has their opinion
on what's right and wrong. It's hard some times, you know? I'm
not dating him and I don't have a boyfriend. I'd like to date
someone normal but how am I supposed to date someone normal
when I don't go to regular school, I'm never in town, and I'm
always traveling? Nobody normal will ever come up and talk to
me.
PF:
Why is the 'feud' between you and Lindsay Lohan still big news
to people?
HD:
I have a feeling that if I was a normal girl that went to a
normal high school, the high school would probably talk about
it for two days and then it would be over. But just because
people know who I am and people know who she is, everybody loves
to talk about it. I don't know her. I don't care. If you read
all the interviews, I haven't said anything about it. I try
and keep my mouth shut. That's all I can say.