Sound Bite: Iain Softley – what jumped out first book or script
Well it was the script that I read and then it had really great characters it had a lot of fun, very energetic and it was a great story this guy that can read characters out of books and trying to get family back together and when I went back to the book it was kind of just reinforced. The characters really were you know they weren’t talking down to kids um and it is a book that I think adults as well as a film can enjoy as much as uh their children. It really is for the whole family, I think that’s because it’s it tells it as it is, really. It’s got sort of danger and jeopardy as well you know fun and excitement and that’s what I think attracted the cast um.

Sound Bite: Iain Softley – on Hllen Mirren
Well she was very um, I mean I had the idea of casting Helen as soon as I read the script and also the idea of Dane Pool as ? and Jim Broadbent as Fenoglio, they just these characters popped into my head as who I wanted and Helen was at the beginning of the you know Oscar circuit um and there was an issue of her, but she became really excited by the idea and brought them really great um ideas to the table as well that the part of Helen is different from the way it is in the book and the way that it was actually originally in the script. She plays a more sort of eccentric character um but uh what I think Clinch did as I was talking to her um going over some scenes of the script on the telephone, she was in Los Angeles, I was actually winding up one of those ? on the way to scout one of these towns, and the car was followed by a guy on a motorbike, this old motorbike sort of buzzing up the bends, and I said uh I’m being followed by a guy on a motorbike, I’m gonna put you on a motorbike in this movie and that was the point she realized that we might be having some fun.

Sound Bite: Iain Softley – on Fraser
Well I think what’s interesting is that we stayed, you know, Brendan the Adventurer but we also see a couple of other sides to him. They appeal that he has to children as a storyteller but also there’s he plays sort of he’s a times sort of some scenes in a more introspective quite way because you know it’s not all roses the story, he actually lost his wife in the story and the story is about how he’s gonna try to get his wife back so we actually see different sides of Brendan which I think is a joy to see.