Emily Mortimer on Martin Scorsese's Set: It's "Classy as Hell"

At yesterday’s press junket for her new film, “Harry Brown,” Emily Mortimer discussed the difference between working on that project as opposed to working with Martin Scorsese recently on “Shutter Island.”

“It’s so different doing an independent film that doesn’t have a lot of money,” Mortimer began. “It just feels more chaotic, but in a good way. It’s exciting and kind of a miracle that it all comes off. You’re not even sure the day before you start shooting, even while you’re shooting, if it’s all going to work out, but it somehow happens.”

“The difference [on a Martin Scorsese set] is there’s just more time for everything. The chaos factor is infinitely reduced. You walk onto a Scorsese film and it’s just silent. Everything’s this well oiled machine, you can hear a pin drop. It’s old school and classy as hell.

“But the amazing thing about Scorsese is he has the same enthusiasm for what he does as a first time director and that’s what I think makes him a true genius. He hasn’t stopped loving what he does and getting such a kick out of it. He just can’t get over the fact that he’s allowed to make a shot like Hitchcock or a camera move like in a Michael Powell movie. He’s so alive when it comes to the business of making films."