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Through a thoughtful interview, Miranda Otto reflects on topics ranging from her latest role as Queen of the Cuttlefish to the profound lessons learned through theatrical mistakes and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Sea Creature for a Day

Your latest role is Queen of the Cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; if you could be a fish for a day, which one would you choose and why?

Without hesitation, the blue groper residing near Clovelly beach – because it’s a local landmark, and people go there specifically to spot it. I just think it’s cool that there’s a local fish that folks genuinely seek out and discuss – it’s a special fish.

A Film Staple to Return To

Which movie do you repeatedly watch, and why?

The 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I love this picture. During my childhood, it would air on television occasionally, and once I videotaped it. I just thought it was hilarious. It’s Carole Lombard and Jack Benny. Recently they were showing it at a cinema and I discovered that it was also the favourite film of an acquaintance, and so we attended and just laughed repeatedly. It’s such great piece of comedy and all the actors in it are superb. The director Mel Brooks did a remake in the 1980s – that wasn’t as effective. But the original film is an exceptional farce, to be watched regularly.

A Priceless Lesson Learned From a Fellow Actor

What is the most valuable lesson you learned from someone a colleague?

I was doing A Doll’s House with Pete – now my spouse, but at the time we were not a couple. We were playing as scene partners and during the premiere I stumbled – I jumped ahead a few lines in the script. I didn’t know what I’d done but I suddenly realised things were off. I remember looking at him, and he expertly rescued the moment, and then our performance regained momentum and went really, really well. But I think the insight gained in that moment was, first, always trust the people in your scene. If you don’t know where you are, by looking and look at the people sharing the stage with, you can rediscover your correct position somehow. It’s such communal thing, acting on stage. And next, to maintain a lighthearted attitude regarding it. Sometimes when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a really great way provided you are fully engaged then. It may become an unexpected boon when things go completely the wrong way.

Heartening Interactions with Admirers

Can you describe your most touching encounter with a fan?

There isn't just one specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I hear a lot of accounts about what Eowyn impacted them when they were younger … events that occurred in their lives and how much Eowyn meant to them and was a form of support to them in those times.

Which questions get asked most frequently by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed question is invariably regarding that infamous meal that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Was the stew as terrible as it looked?” It’s become a running gag, the entire episode involving that dish, and everyone wants to know what was in the stew, and how was it made, and do you think her skills improved now, or do you believe she really is a poor chef? Fans seem, in my view, obsessed with the humour of that situation. And I provide great detail listing the ingredients that made up the concoction – as I recall the efforts made; like they even put bits of red cotton to make it look like blood vessels in the meat. The crew employed extreme measures to make it look as unappetizing as they could.

An Awkward Celebrity Meeting

What’s been your most cringeworthy run-in with a famous person?

I attended a pilates class and there was a woman on a mat exercising, and the teacher said to me, “Oh, Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I attempted a lighthearted remark about, “oh, are you a journalist?” Because it’s an uncommon moniker and most of the time when I meet another Miranda, they work in media. I wasn’t really seeing who it was. And when she got up, it was the actress Miranda Richardson. Then I didn’t know what to say. I was obliged to complete my class, and I felt intense awkwardness. I wished to explain: “Goodness, I do know who you are!” I consider her talent is immense and I was simply too awestruck to utter a syllable.

The Source of a Name

It’s been confidently claimed that you were given your name from Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet you've mentioned stating otherwise – can you settle the matter definitively?

Yes – I was named after a district in Sydney. My mother learned via broadcast that they were inaugurating a shopping centre at Miranda, and she thought seemed a pleasant choice.

Pandemonium on Set

What’s the most chaotic thing that’s ever happened on set?

When I was working in Brazil for the film Reaching for the Moon that was the least organized set of my career, and yet the film turned out brilliantly. But the local crew operated in a distinct manner. The sense of time there is unique. Typically, you normally have a schedule and you have to be on set by a certain time. But this was rather open ended – one would appear whenever you happen to be ready. It was a really different way of working for me. The elements were being assembled at the very last minute, and at times they wouldn’t know where they were shooting or the methodology. And then I would be in the middle of a scene and be like, “What was that noise that disturbed the scene? Oh, it’s a crew member opening a bottle on set, to start a party.” The result was great, but goodness, it’s a really different style of film-making.

A Secret Skill

Do you have a secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I memorise numbers easier than I memorise words a lot of the time, I’ve just got that kind of a brain. So I believe if I hadn’t ended up in acting, I likely might have entered a field something to do with numbers, like mathematics or accounting.

The Finest Piece of Advice Given

What is the greatest piece of advice you have ever received?

During my time in high school, someone came to speak as we were graduating and they said, “have no fear to fail” … an idea I consider is the best piece of advice, since one gains so much more from failure than you learn from success. Success, you never really comprehends exactly how it happened. With failure, the lessons are abundant.