Kate Winslet says 'ambitious' is a 'negative' word for Hollywood women ~ DEVI MAG

NEW YORK − Before "Goodbye June,"Kate Winslethad no grand ambitions to direct a movie.

"I don't know that I even could have done it before this time in my life," the Oscar-winning actress says over tea on a recent afternoon. "Alongside being a mum, I've always had this (acting) career to juggle as well. The sheer time commitment for a director is just so much more."

That all changed when Winslet's 21-year-old son, actor Joe Anders, brought her his script for "Goodbye June" (in theaters now,streaming on Netflix Dec. 24), which he started writing as a college class assignment. The Christmas family drama follows a cancer-stricken matriarch, June (Helen Mirren), as she spends her final weeks in the hospital surrounded by her husband, Bernie (Timothy Spall), and their four grown children, all of whom have unresolved issues between them.

Toni Collette, Andrea Riseborough and Johnny Flynn co-star with Winslet in the film, which is partly inspired by the death of her mother, Sally Bridges-Winslet, 71, from ovarian cancer in 2017.

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"It was impossible to completely separate myself from my own situation, having gone through that," Winslet says. The low-budget movie was filmed on a tight 35-day schedule, and "I definitely found myself in moments where I'd be like, 'Come on, Mum, come on! Tell me it's good. Tell me I'm doing OK.' "

She was especially moved watching scenes between June and Bernie, who struggles to convey how much he'll miss her.

"I felt like I was reliving something I never actually witnessed," Winslet recalls. "I was never in the room when my parents were having those conversations, so I felt like I was living through that, in a weird way."

The cast and crew all brought "their own separate experiences with loss, so there were days that were really challenging for everybody, which is why we had to laugh a lot. You have to be able to get it out, dust yourself off and move on."

She wouldn't have 'even considered' directing before 'Goodbye June'

Kate Winslet directing on the set of Netflix drama

Winslet, 50, is one of a slew of actresses to make their film directorial debut this year, alongside Scarlett Johansson ("Eleanor the Great") and Kristen Stewart ("The Chronology of Water"). Over her more than 30 years in Hollywood, she's noticed the unconscious biases that exist in how people discuss men and women as directors.

"If you use the word 'ambitious' and you're describing an actor who's turned to directing, it's positive," Winslet notes. "But with a woman, it's immediately negative. Just the way that word alone is used and applied to women doesn't sound very nice, because somehow we're not allowed to have dreams. We're not allowed to reinvent ourselves and grow and change and aspire for something more, or be capable of occupying that role that has historically been dominated by men.

"This is not something I thought, 'Oh, I could try my hand at that,' " she says. "I am not the kind of person who does something by half. I would never have even considered it if I didn't feel ready. And I'm not talking about just taking a deep breath and going, 'Yes, I'm ready.' I mean, actually f------ ready: knowing the technical stuff, knowing how to construct a scene visually, and really giving a s--- about telling the narrative."

Kate Winslet, right, and son Joe Anders pose on the red carpet at the New York premiere of their new film

She was heavily inspired by filmmakers she's worked with: Stephen Daldry ("The Reader") and Todd Field ("Little Children"), for the collaborative environments they created, as well as Jocelyn Moorhouse ("The Dressmaker") and Jessica Hobbs (HBO's "The Regime"), for their preparedness before cameras started rolling.

"Goodbye June" marks Winslet's third project with Riseborough, and the actresses lived across the street from the hospital where the movie was filmed. Riseborough remembers rehearsing a particularly emotional scene two months ahead of time on location, so Winslet could get a sense of the space and start planning camera setups.

"She's so competent in ways that are unbelievable, as a multitasker and a leader," Riseborough says. "That this is her first film seems quite ridiculous, but I hope it's the first of many, many more to come."

Kate Winslet learned these words to live by from her 86-year-old dad

The put-together Julia (Kate Winslet, right) visits her mom, June (Helen Mirren), in the hospital.

Winslet is eager to direct another movie, although hopefully with "a little bit more time" in the schedule. She prides herself on being "quite good under pressure," both as an actress and filmmaker.

"When the chips are down and suddenly it's raining outside and you were going to shoot a six-page scene in the park – I'm the one going, 'Everybody calm down. We're going to sit down, have a nice cup of tea, and make a plan,' " Winslet says. "That's something I've learned to do across many decades, and that bled into how I wanted to be as a director. You don't want people to feel anxious or stressed. Compassion and softness matter enormously."

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