Girl with a Pearl Earring: The director talks

by Ronita Dutta

Peter Webber, director of Girl With A Pearl Earring talks about his experiences making the film, his love of Vermeer's paintings, and the tough job of editing a feature film

You studied art history, were you a fan of Vermeer's work?
Yes, very much so. When I first started looking at painting, I preferred modern painters. The first stuff I ever really enjoyed was pop art. When I started delving back into all that old stuff, it was a bit difficult - it's all crucifixions and Mary Magdalene - pictures which I've since grown to love and cherish. But Vermeer was one of the first of the older artists who had a simplicity and directness and a mystery and sensuality that I could appreciate. There was a long time between my studying History of Art and doing this film. For a lot of people, it was an unlikely commission because of the kind of work I'd done before.

Colin Firth and Scarlett Johnansson star in Girl With A Pearl Earring You've mainly worked in television before, are you nervous about your feature film debut?
I'm not anymore. I was deeply nervous, partly because I've spent most of my adult years slagging off period movies. I was a bit worried that I might betray myself in some way. It was a really good lesson in how you can find relevance and make quite a tough film, but do it in a way that appeals to a larger range of people than books often do.

So what are the key differences between working for TV and making a movie? And which do you prefer?
I started off as an editor and then worked as a documentary maker. In that field, you have commissioning editors who get the material together and create the story in the cutting room. Then if you go to work in drama, like I did TV drama for the last five years, you realise that the shows are run by producers and writers - the director is in some ways a necessary evil. But it's a very good place to learn because you have a small budget and short schedule, so you have to think on your feet. And then you get to make your first feature and, suddenly, everyone treats you like you're the boss. It's much more a director-led medium. And you have more time and you have more money. Plus you're working with, frankly, people from the top table. It's a bit like playing fantasy football. You can hire whoever you like.

What was it about the novel that captured your imagination particularly?
To begin with, it was the painting that captured my imagination, and then it was the screenplay. I'd been wary about reading the novel. I'd seen it had good reviews, I liked Vermeer but wasn't sure if I'd enjoy that kind of book. Obviously, I was wrong. I read the first half of the script and thought this is well done, but not for me. And then about three quarters of the way through, I read the ear piercing scene, and the paradigm shifted - it was a completely different film and that there were strong undercurrents of sex and eroticism and obsession; all the dark, nasty stuff that makes a film interesting. I realised then that it wasn't all that different to the stuff I'd been making before, but just wrapped up in sugar coating.

Was it hard to edit the movie? Were there any scenes that were really heart-wrenching to drop?
You always have a hard time editing a movie. Anyone who thinks a film just falls together is kidding themselves. Films have to be bludgeoned, beaten and bullied into shape, and it's a terrible process because you're taking things that you really cherished and loved when you were shooting them and pulling them apart to make it work. There are many days you come home from the edit suite hanging your head in shame, thinking you're terrible, but it's all part of the process. The edit suite is where you really create the film - for me anyway.

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Girl with a Pearl Earring: The director talks