The actress Shares Insights on Acting, Devoted Fans, and Unexpected Gifts.

Through a thoughtful interview, Miranda Otto opens up on subjects as varied as her newest character as a regal sea creature to the profound lessons gleaned from theatrical mistakes and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Sea Creature for a Day

The most recent character portrays the monarch 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 found at a specific shoreline – since it is like an institution, and individuals visit to see it. It strikes me as remarkable that a resident aquatic creature that people actually seek out and talk about – it’s a special fish.

A Film Staple to Return To

Which movie do you repeatedly watch, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 film To Be Or Not To Be. I adore this picture. During my growing up, it used to come on the ABC occasionally, and once I recorded it. I found it was so funny. It stars the legendary Carole Lombard and Jack Benny. Not long ago they were showing it at a cinema and I discovered that it was also the favourite film of a friend of mine, and so we went and just laughed and laughed. It is a great piece of comedy and the entire cast in it are superb. The director Mel Brooks remade it in the 1980s – which was not as effective. But the original film is an exceptional farce, worth viewing often.

The Best Insight Learned From a Co-Star

What’s the best lesson you took away from someone a colleague?

Years ago I performed in A Doll’s House with Pete – my husband now, but at the time we were not together. We were playing as scene partners and on opening night I tripped up – I skipped forward some dialogue in the script. I was unaware what I’d done but I suddenly realised things were off. I recall glancing toward him, and he expertly rescued the moment, and then the scene regained momentum and went really, really well. However, I believe what I learned then was, firstly, consistently rely on the individuals in your scene. If you don’t know your place, by looking and look at the people you’re with, you will find your correct position somehow. It is a profoundly collaborative endeavor, acting on stage. And next, just to have a sense of fun about it. Occasionally when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a wonderfully positive way if you’re fully engaged then. It can be an unexpected boon when things go completely awry.

Memorable Exchanges with Fans

Can you describe your most memorable interaction with a fan?

There isn't a single specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, particularly women, I am told numerous stories about how that character meant to them when they were younger … events that occurred in their lives and how much that character meant to them and was a form of support to them during those periods.

What do you get asked about the most by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed question is always about the stew that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Was the stew really that bad?” It has evolved into a running gag, the whole thing about the stew, and everyone wants to know the contents of the stew, and its preparation method, and do you think she’s a better cook now, or do you believe she really is a poor chef? Fans seem, in my view, fascinated by the comedy of that situation. And I provide great detail listing the ingredients that made up the concoction – because I remember the efforts made; like they even put bits of red cotton to make it look like blood vessels in the meat. They went to extreme measures to make it look as bad as they could.

An Awkward Celebrity Encounter

What was your most embarrassing run-in with a famous person?

I attended a fitness session and there was a woman lying down exercising, and the instructor remarked, “Hello Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I attempted some joke about, “might you be a journalist?” Since Miranda is an unusual name and most of the time when someone’s a Miranda, they work in media. I wasn’t really seeing who it was. And when she got up, it was the actress Miranda Richardson. At that point, I didn’t know words. I was obliged to complete my class, and I felt intense awkwardness. I wanted to say: “Oh my gosh, I am aware of your work!” I think her talent is immense and I was simply too awestruck to utter a syllable.

The Origin of a Moniker

It’s been confidently claimed that you were named after Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet I’ve read you saying otherwise – can you clarify this once and for all?

Indeed, I was named after the Sydney suburb. Mum heard on the radio that they were opening a mall at that location, and the name seemed a pleasant choice.

Pandemonium on Location

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 I experienced the most chaotic set I’ve ever worked on, and yet the final product emerged incredibly well. But the local crew operated in a distinct manner. Their concept of time there is really different. Typically, you normally have a schedule and must arrive on set punctually. But this was sort of flexible – one would appear whenever you happen to be ready. It was a really different approach for me. All aspects were being assembled at the final moment, and at times they wouldn’t know where they were shooting or the methodology. And then you’d be in the middle of a scene and be like, “What caused that sound that just interrupted the scene? Ah, it was the producer opening some champagne during filming, because he’s making a party.” The result was excellent, but goodness, it’s a really different approach to film-making.

A Secret Skill

What are you secretly good at?

I naturally possess an aptitude for numbers. I retain numbers more readily than I memorise words a lot of the time, I simply have a numerically-oriented mind. So I think had I not ended up in acting, I probably would have worked in something to do with numbers, like math or accounting.

The Best Guidance Given

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

When I was in secondary school, a speaker addressed us when we were graduating and they said, “don’t be afraid to fail” … which I think is supremely valuable counsel, since one gains so much more from setbacks than you learn from triumph. With success, you never really understand exactly how it happened. Failure, the lessons are abundant.