WAILEA – Two 29-year-old “Rising Stars” in the film world launched the 16th annual Maui Film Festival Wednesday evening, when Scott Eastwood and Teresa Palmer accepted plaques “for daring to dream big dreams and then delivering brilliant performances when opportunity knocks.”
The awards were presented by festival Founder and Director Barry Rivers at twilight in front of the festival’s signature Celestial Cinema screen at the Wailea Golf Course. The festival continues tonight through Sunday evening in Wailea and at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center.
The award for the young Eastwood came 13 years after the festival honored his father, Clint Eastwood, in 2002 with its Silversword award. Scott wasn’t able to attend. “I was working on a film at the time. It was right when I started acting,” he said.
But the award completed a circle and was something of a homecoming for the actor.
“I was born in California, but my mother has lived on the Big Island for 25 years and my dad had a house just down the street,” he said from the Grand Wailea where the interview was taking place.
He called the festival honor “an awesome opportunity to get back to Hawaii. The islands have always been an important part of my life – the aloha spirit, the being in touch with nature, the surfing, the fishing, the diving have always been a big part of my life.”
The actor can currently been seen playing a rodeo bull rider in “The Longest Ride,” adapted from a Nicolas Sparks novel, and will soon be seen as part of the all-star acting ensemble directed by Oliver Stone in “Snowden,” based on the revelations of the former National Security Agency analyst.
He is top billed in two more action films now in post-production – “Mercury Plains,” about fighting drug cartels in the Mexican desert, and the Civil War-era Western, “Diablo.” He is currently filming another action-adventure, “Suicide Squad.”
” ‘Snowden’s’ a smart movie, super intelligent. It’s like a great ’90s drama. Then I’m doing ‘Suicide Squad,’ which is a little more like a comic book. They’re different kinds of movies. They’re both entertainment. I like to shift it up.
“It comes in waves,” he said of his current surplus of films. “There’s a guy who’s in and gets some heat. Then there’s another guy. A year from now, you’ll be talking to someone else.”
Asked about his father’s role in his own life choices, Scott said, “He definitely inspired me to be in the film business. He didn’t push me, but inspired me in terms of seeing the films he did. It affected me growing up, it shaped my career.”
Eastwood appeared in a number of films directed by his father, including “Flags of Our Fathers,” “Gran Torino” and “Invictus,” but he had to audition for each of them. There were lots he auditioned for that he didn’t get – “a ton of them,” he said with a laugh.
For fellow Rising Star honoree, the Australian-born Teresa Palmer, being recognized at this point in her career “feels really flattering. It feels like we’ve been doing this for a while. We laugh sometimes. I’ve been called an ‘up-and-comer’ for about 10 years. I never did the coming part.
“So I had a good chuckle at the Rising Star award, but it’s so flattering in terms of the actors who have come before me and been awarded with the Rising Star. They are actors I have great admiration for, so being included in that bunch of people is really amazing.”
The actress, best known at this point for her role in the zombie romance, “Warm Bodies,” was planning on a career in journalism when she was cast by an 18-year-old film student in a short titled “2:37.”
“I finished my journalism diploma and really wanted to get into television journalism and do some reporting, but then my film ended up getting picked up and it premiered at Cannes.” she recalled with a laugh.
“That really changed my life because one moment I’m going from door knocking to get money to make this student film, I’m doing my own hair and makeup, we’re writing our own lines, and then the film got seen at Cannes. I got a certain amount of attention from that. The American agents plopped me out of nowhere and brought me to America.”
America has a tremendous influence on culture in her home country, she said. “We follow American films, television, style. America’s really saturated in Australia, so for me it was quite an easy transition, moving from Australia to Los Angeles, because I knew so much about LA from watching TV. I started doing an American accent when I was 8 years old.”
There are far more opportunities in this country’s film industry, she pointed out. She stars in the upcoming remake of the 1990s hit film “Point Break” with Edgar Ramirez and Luke Bracey, the crime thriller “Triple Nine” in an all-star cast including Kate Winslet, Casey Affleck and Woody Harrelson; and Lionsgate’s “The Choice” starring with Benjamin Walker.
Ironically, the climactic surfing shot in “Point Break” was filmed at Maui surfing beach Peahi, also known as “Jaws.” She wasn’t here for the filming, though.
“We filmed in 10 different countries, four continents; it was a hugely epic-scale movie,” she said.
“I didn’t actually get to come to Hawaii,” she went on. She did her own surf footage in Tahiti, although not really.
“I was on a mechanical surfboard. In the trailer, it looks like I was surfing this huge wave, but to be honest, I’ve never surfed in my life.”
Actor Colin Farrell and Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Louie Psihoyos will be honored with tributes tonight, actor Adam Driver will accept his award Friday and Laura Dern will wrap things up with her tribute Sunday night.
For detailed information about the Maui Film Festival schedule, ticket and passes, visit www.mauifilmfestival.com.
* Rick Chatenever can be reached at rickchatenever@gmail.com.
