This picture of Saoirse Ronan was taken at the Palm Springs International Film Festival Gala on Saturday where she was presented with the International Star Award. You can see her dress below. It’s Duro Olowu and has too many competing florals for my taste. The shoes are TO DIE FOR but sadly, I can’t find the designer ID.
My first exposure to Saoirse as an actor was Atonement. Few things can distract me from James McAvoy but by gum, she did. Saoirse navigates her career well and consistently turns in solid performances in varied roles. She is clever and engaging in interviews and appears fairly grounded; I wish she held workshops on how to adult. This awards seasons, Saoirse has already been nominated for Critics Choice, Screen Actors Guild and Golden Globe awards for her role in Brooklyn and is expected to receive her second Oscar nod. She recently did a THR Awards Chatter podcast, you can read it and download the podcast here:
On Her Name: “When I was a child and nobody else was called Saoirse — for the record, it’s ‘Sir-shuh’ like inertia, although people in Ireland actually pronounce it ‘Seer-shuh,’ so take your pick — I thought, ‘Oh, I’d like a normal name,’ just because I was a kid. But the older I got, I decided I was never gonna change anything for anyone.”
On her role in Brooklyn: “I felt a huge responsibility to not mess it up for everyone, for the first couple of weeks especially. There was nowhere to hide. I wasn’t in heaven, I wasn’t a vampire, I wasn’t an assassin. This was the hardest thing for me, to be able to play someone whose identity was so similar to mine. I mean, this felt like it was my identity, and I was still kind of coming to terms with that myself.”
On the nominations for Brooklyn: “It was the first time I felt fear, I really didn’t think that I’d get through it most days. That’s why it’s so amazing that this [the celebration of her performance] is going on! To be able to walk through that fire and have all of this happen? I’m still pinching myself and I’ll continue to pinch myself.”
On her transformation on film: “I got to wear dresses and sunglasses and lipstick. Probably for the first time people actually went, ‘Oh, she’s female! She’s a woman! She’s a girl!'”
It’s an interesting point about recognition for a role that took a toll rather than one that didn’t. Saoirse received her first Oscar nomination as Supporting Actress, along with several other nominations, for Atonement at age 13. I know some actors worry that award recognition too young can be detrimental to child actors so it is especially poignant that she feels she can really enjoy this moment in her career. I imagine as long as Saoirse is making movies, her name will come up during awards season.
Saoirse recently credited Ryan Gosling for getting Americans to pronounce her name correctly, calling him “a Blond Canadian Jesus.” I kind of love the idea of water being turned into maple syrup.
Photo Credit: WENN, PRPhotos, Fame Pictures and Getty Images
