Exclusive interview: Gil Birmingham talks Eclipse, Love Ranch, Rango and more

Photo courtesy Gil Birmingham

Ever delightful and heartwarming to speak with, Gil Birmingham is the perfect choice to play Billy Black in The Twilight Saga. With the release of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse on the brink, Gil is enjoying the imminent release of another of his projects as well.

With today’s release of Rango’s official website, tonight’s premiere of Love Ranch, and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse premiere slated for Thursday, Gil is a busy actor these days. He recently took time from his busy schedule to chat with me about his projects.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE, NEW MOON, AND, OF COURSE, TWILIGHT.. AND WORKING WITH ROB, TAYLOR AND KRISTEN

K: Can you talk at all about your role in Eclipse or the film in general? How did this experience differ from the others, and how would you characterize the different directors and what they brought to each film?

G: When filming Eclipse, it was still cold, and always rainy. We filmed Eclipse back to back with New Moon so there wasn’t too much time separation. It was just like coming home. The different directors have different set environments- during Eclipse we had to put big shields up and make more of an encampment to protect against long shots and paparazzi.

The progression of the story becomes darker; all these werewolves are running around without their shirts. I felt bad for them. In the film, while I can't transform, I can forsee what's going to happen.

David Slade works at a faster pace. He’s definitely hilarious in a very dry English sort of way, which I resonate with. He was very good at communicating what he wanted to get out of the scenes.

It's still a great ride to be on, but you feel a little of the pressure now. Filming still has the same feel-- jumping back into the skin of the characters. It really creates bonds that make you feel like you're part of a family. We worked cold, long hours. The casting was so perfect; the chemistry from day one with the new wolves. I called them the puppy pack because they were all hyped up and energized. They did some really great work.

K: Which Twilight movie was your favorite to film and why?

G: Twilight will always be my favorite movie because there was a great innocence with it. Because the initial popularity resided with the books, and then into this indy film, it was just a great initiation into it that will always be in my heart.

Even from Twilight, in my first meeting with Kristen Stewart, we had a great chemistry. The casting was so perfect, and the people are similar to their characters- it was easy to want to embrace her as a daughter. She and Rob have a great talent; I’m very proud of them. Rob is the same sweet guy now as he was when I first met him.

K: How was the New Moon premiere compared with the Twilight premiere and how have the Twilight premieres differed from other movie premiere events?

G: The Twilight premiere was pretty spectacular. I had an idea of what to expect, but it was even bigger. It was different from others because of the fans; it's awesome to see. Most other premieres are much smaller.

The fans are very enthusiastic. The fan base never gets old. It’s rare that you get to see the people that make the movie a success; I just enjoy and join in with them. For New Moon, even though the fans were camping out for five days, they were fresh as daisies.

Author’s note: For specific information about camping out before the Eclipse premiere, Summit has set up a special website- you can visit it and get all the details here.

K: How has the overall success of Twilight impacted your life- convention appearances, more recognition, etc.?

G: It’s been a privilege. I remind myself that very few actors get to be involved in something of this magnitude. It’s a joy to see teenagers recognize you and their eyes get big as saucers. But beyond that, in Twilight circles it’s amazing to be able to feel that love that they have for the characters.

Conventions get to display my personality. Billy Black is similar to me-- very conscientious and wise. I don't have kids but the relationship I have with Taylor/Jacob is inordinately natural- I could've raised this boy. He’s been able to encounter these experiences at such a young age and still be grounded, which is amazing.

LOVE RANCH

K: Tell me a bit about Love Ranch.

G: I got to work with two of my favorite actors, Helen Mirran and Joe Pesci. The story is based on a true story about the first legal brothel back in 1975. I play Sheriff Johnny Cortez- the right hand man of Pesci’s character. Helen Mirran's husband directed the film; he’s one of the last old school directors around.

RANGO

K: Can you discuss your role in Rango (coming out in the spring of 2011) and how it differs from traditional acting roles?

G: Rango is an animation film with Johnny Depp. They've had this concept for a number of years. In filming an animated movie, you usually go into a booth, but this was a case of coming together and doing it live. I got to work fact to face with Johnny Depp for several weeks. Doing it this way gave us more of a spontaneous reaction to things than trying to conjure it up in a room by yourself. There are a lot of different subtleties.

My character is Wounded Bird. He’s somewhat of a sidekick to Johnny's character. I’ve seen a little bit of footage. Johnny is one of my favorite actors. I was so excited to go to work. He’s so personable; it was an honor to be in the presence of someone with that amount of talent.

BACK TO HIS ROOTS

K: What Native American functions have you been able to become involved in? (ie… the Colorado Indian Market, NAMMY’s, etc…) Do you attribute your involvement to the success of the Twilight Saga?

G: I've been involved with native projects since before Twilight. I recently hosted the Nammy's (Native Americans in Music). This year was their 11th show, and there was some extraordinary talent there. I want to lay down some tracks and put some cd's out.

I play guitar and sing; I've been playing since I was 10. It was my first creative introduction to acting; a lot of creative acting is musical in nature. The picture of dialogue is a musical portrait as well, and it’s all connected to the soul. It’s a personal expression of whatever is inside of you.

K: What kind of guitar do you play?

G: I play both acoustic and electric guitar. I like to rock the electric to Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton- mostly rock and blues. The acoustic guitar is more intimate to me. I write a lot of originals off of acoustic- more subtle a deeper place

SOCIAL MEDIA

K: How often are you able to dedicate time to social media- Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc.?

G: Getting in contact with fans is the best part of it. I love talking with fans on Twitter. It makes me feel more connected and focused.

But a lot of misinformation gets posted, and there’s no way to moderate it. It’s an open venue, and there are so many people posing as others. There are 100 Rob Pattinsons out there.

Sincere thanks to Gil for the chat and insight into Eclipse and his other projects!