Host Maaika Westen interviews actress Octavia Spencer and director Tate Taylor about “The Help” (as well as actress Emma Stone), a provocative and inspiring story of a 1960’s Mississippi town’s unspoken code of rules on race relations that are shattered by three courageous women and their unlikely friendship.
Mini-Biographies:
Born in Montgomery, Alabama, actress Octavia Spencer made her film debut as a nurse in “A Time to Kill.” She is best known for her TV roles in “Halfway Home” and “Ugly Betty.” Octavia has been seen in films “Seven Pounds,” “Dinner for Schmucks,” “Halloween II,” “Love at First Hiccup,” “Never Been Kissed,” “Pretty Ugly People,” “Big Momma’s House,” “Bad Santa,” “Spider-Man,” and “Coach Carter,” as well as guest appearances on TV shows “Raising the Bar,” “CSI:,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “ER,” and “Dharma & Greg.” She has been in are “The Trials and Tribulations of a Trailer Trash Housewife” and Tate Taylor’s short feature, “Chicken Party.”
Tate Taylor is an actor-turned-director, who also wrote the screenplay of “The Help” and is childhood friends with Kathryn Stockett, the author of the novel. As an actor, he has appeared in series including “Six Feet Under” and “Queer as Folk.” In 2003, Tate made his directorial debut with the short film, “Chicken Party” (co-starring Allison Janney and Octavia Spencer), which he wrote, directed and starred in. Previously, he directed the 2008 feature, “Pretty Ugly People,” which again co-starred Octavia.
[bliptv AYLQlF8A 600 450] Video Content: Tate Taylor and Octavia Spencer (2011): SIDEWALKS host Maaika Westen talks to director Nate Taylor and actress Octavia Spencer, who plays Minny Jackson, about making “The Help” and working with the cast.INTERVIEW: Watch an interview with Emma Stone.
Studio Synopsis for “The Help”:
Based on one of the most talked about books in years and a #1 New York Times best-selling phenomenon, “The Help” stars Emma Stone (“Easy A”) as Skeeter, Academy Award®–nominated Viola Davis (“Doubt”) as Aibileen and Octavia Spencer as Minny—three very different, extraordinary women in Mississippi during the 1960s, who build an unlikely friendship around a secret writing project that breaks societal rules and puts them all at risk. From their improbable alliance a remarkable sisterhood emerges, instilling all of them with the courage to transcend the lines that define them, and the realization that sometimes those lines are made to be crossed—even if it means bringing everyone in town face-to-face with the changing times.
Film Trailer:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eajzW3XW7Q&feature=relmfu[/youtube]
The Help – Mary J. Blige “The Living Proof” VNR:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_issFDMUoYE[/youtube]
Links:
Interview Credits:
Recorded: July 11, 2011
Host/Segment Producer: Maaika Westen
Editor: Richard R. Lee
Special Thanks To: Touchstone Pictures, DreamWorks, Terry Hines & Associates