Oscar winner, actress and writer Emma Thompson talks to Raisingkids.co.uk about her new film Nanny McPhee and how being mum to five-year-old daughter Gaia fits in with the mayhem of moviemaking.

RK: It took a long time to bring Nanny McPhee to the big screen – how delighted are that you’re finally on the point of its release?
Emma Thompson: I am, as they say, cock-a-hoop. Also apprehensive about reviews and praying that people will go. I love the film so much and feel rather tenderly about its reception.

RK: What was the hardest part about adapting this series of children’s books into a feature-length movie?
ET: Creating a plot – also finding real reasons for the children to be naughty.

RK:Have you sat and watched a screening of it with children present? How do they react?
ET: Children are the most wonderful audiences. What’s struck me most is that that they watch it so silently, until the end when they shriek and shout and clap. It plays like a drama when there are only children in the theatre. But when it’s a mixed audience there’s a lot more laughter. And children have so many imaginative ideas about what’s going on behind the magic.

RK: How does the life-work balance work with you? Do you bring your daughter on to the film set? What happens if you have to shoot on location?
ET: I didn’t have to juggle much because I don’t work much. If it’s a film shooing at home, then all is well and Gaia comes to visit once a week or so. If, as happened this year, I have to go to Chicago for three weeks then I just go alone and Gaia puts up with it. Her dad and Granny are on hand, so it’s okay but it’s not ideal and I travel less and less because of that.

RK: Was it important for you to be involved in something your daughter, Gaia, could watch?
ET: Yes it was, but I started writing the story four years before she was born. What was important was trying to create something that families could watch together and enjoy together. I hate the way market forces try to separate us out in to the appropriate demographic – basically in order to sell us things. We need to find stories that we can enjoy together, not separately.

RK: Your character in Nanny McPhee uses her magical powers to help persuade the children of the benefits of good behaviour. Do you have any tips, that those without supernatural powers could follow, which have worked for you?
ET: Indeed – judicious, consistent parenting is a dream of mine. No judgements, learning space and listening carefully are my goals. No shouting (that’s so tricky because I get very worked up sometimes but it never pays off and you only end up feeling appalled with yourself) And trying to resist giving endless advice. Children don’t need much advice but they really do need to be listened to and not just with half an ear.

RK: What are you up to next?
ET: Next I’ll be making a film here in Britain – next year I hope. It’s a romantic comedy called Fast Forward. Nick Hornby and I have been working on it for five years!

RK: You're a supporter of Raisingkids.co.uk's campaign, Back To The Table this year. What does that mean for you?
ET: Any problem, big or small, within a family, always seems to start with bad communication. Someone isn't listening. Meal-times are brilliant for talking and listening, because you can let a mouthful go down while you talk, and chew while you're listening. It's the perfect arrangement.

www.backtothetable.co.uk
www.nannymcphee.co.uk