Dazed went to L.A. to take Kristen Stewart away from the glare of the paparazzi and exclusively speak to her about dealing with fame and life beyond the Twilight saga. Photographer David Benjamin Sherry and stylist Katie Shillingford also took Kristen on a psychedelic shoot, from which Dazed Digital have extra shots here, not seen in the magazine. On the shoot, Sherry says "I have never seen ‘Twilight but I was
researching lots of images of her. I was inspired by the paintings of
Patrick Nagel. I was reminded of a young Jodie Foster or Winona Ryder.
I tried to portray a new way of seeing this blossoming teenage actress.”
Here is an excerpt of the interview with Kristen where she speaks extensively about her role in Jake Scott's upcoming film Welcome to the Rileys.
See the full feature on Kristen Stewart in Dazed's September issue out tomorrow.
Dazed Digital: You are in the midst of becoming a huge star. There’s a truckload of paparazzi outside the door right now.
Kristen Stewart: Yeah, but you can’t think about it too much because if you think about it too much it is this weird and dreamy fantasy land – you think – ‘ what the hell absurd thing are we doing at 3 o’clock in the morning, with 300 people- pretending to be other people, what the fuck are we doing?
DD: The paparazzi thing is only since Twilight, right?
Kristen Stewart: Yeah since Twilight. That’s the only reason they’re out there. They find out where I am from the Internet - from Twitter, man! Anyone who wants to know where I am at any given time just has to go on Twitter, it’s so ridiculous!
DD: I assume playing Joan Jett is a lot different experience from Twilight?
Kristen Stewart: It’s so much fun. She’s the ultimate badass. She was the first woman to start her own record label. Everybody threw her out after the Runaways and was like, ‘Sorry girl, your shticks over’, she was like ‘No, the message stays the same people still want to hear it.'
Who the fuck did that before her? The music industry is brutal. Once there’s one wave, one explosion of a type of music, everyone jumps on the bandwagon and tries to emulate that, so there’s a bunch of shitty versions of other bands. So there’s like shitty versions of everybody!
(Sweater by Marc Jacobs)
DD: You identify with this role in more ways than one, I’m sure. The film and music industry are not so far apart.
Kristen Stewart: Yeah, it’s been awesome working on this. I’ve gotten to do a lot of great roles recently. I just made a film in New Orleans- and its going to sound funny because I play a 16 year old street kid prostitute stripper – but it’s the one film so far I mostly identify with. I play such a child, like she has the emotional stability of a 5 year old; she’s in her own little world that she had to close off at a certain point. She’s at that point where she’s not quite over the edge like a lot of those people, and I met a lot of them in New Orleans, talking to people who had done the job for so long.
They’re gone. Like I hate to say that, there is a part of them that is dead inside and it is so sad they can still live a happy life or whatever, but that part is. So she’s not dead, she’s still whole. She’s just really broken and she needs to be put back together, and she needs this guy. James Gandolfini plays this plumber who is grieving the loss of his daughter and is dead inside as well, so she is sort of the catalyst of his awakening and subsequent reuniting with his wife, like she comes out of the house after 8 years. Like this vulgar really fully kid who has her own problems greater than theirs ends up helping to get them to a place where they can continue their lives.
It was the greatest experience on a movie I have ever had. Everyone was tight and it was the greatest crew, Jake Scott, the director, is Ridley Scott’s son. For some reason on that one, I didn’t stop thinking all day. Now, keep in mind, I had a perfect upbringing, but I know what that feels in some way, to be this character. It was really hard. But they’re really funny and they make the most of it. They’re really great characters.
DD: Is that the best thing about being an actress, playing roles like that.
Kristen Stewart: That and also I meet so many amazing people and I get to work with my friends.
DD: You have any aspirations to do anything else?
Kristen Stewart: I know that will just naturally become other things, other than just acting in movies. I don’t know what the fuck I’m going to do. I write shit or whatever. I am going to make my own movies with my friends, absolutely, and I might not only act in them. But really? I love this, I love what I do, I am definitely going to keep doing it if I feel this way about it. That could stop, but until then, I’m just going to just write, make movies, play music.
(Jacket by Y-3)
(Hooded top by Mark Fast)
(Shirt by Ann Sofie Back, rings by Dominic Jones)
Hair Adir Abergel at The Magnet Agency
Make-up Jillian Dempsey at The Wall Group
