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Through a thoughtful interview, Miranda Otto opens up on subjects as varied as her newest character as a regal sea creature to the invaluable wisdom gleaned from onstage mishaps and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Fish for a Day

The most recent role is the monarch of the cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; if you could be a fish for a day, which one would you choose and why?

Without hesitation, the blue groper residing near Clovelly beach – because it’s like an institution, and people go there specifically to spot it. It strikes me it’s cool that there’s a local fish that people actually go and see and discuss – it’s a special fish.

A Cinematic Favorite to Revisit

What film do you repeatedly watch, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I love this film. When I was childhood, it used to come on the ABC every now and again, and one time I recorded it. I found it was so funny. It’s Carole Lombard and Jack Benny. Recently they were playing it at the Ritz and it turned out that it was also the favourite film of an acquaintance, and so we went and just laughed and laughed. It is a great piece of humor and the entire cast in it are superb. The director Mel Brooks remade it in the 1980s – which was not successful. But the original film is an exceptional farce, to be watched often.

The Best Insight Gained Through a Fellow Actor

What’s the best lesson you learned from someone you’ve worked with?

Years ago I performed in A Doll’s House with Pete – now my spouse, but at the time we were not together. We portrayed characters as scene partners and on opening night I tripped up – I jumped ahead a few lines in the script. I was unaware of my error but I abruptly sensed something wasn’t right. I recall glancing toward him, and he expertly rescued the moment, and then our performance regained momentum and went really, really well. However, I believe the insight gained then was, first, consistently rely on the people in your scene. When you lose where you are, if you turn around and toward the actors you’re with, you will find your correct position in some way. It is a profoundly collaborative endeavor, performing live. And next, just to have a sense of fun regarding it. Sometimes when something goes wrong, things can ignite in a wonderfully positive way provided you are fully engaged then. It can be an unexpected boon when things go absolutely awry.

Heartening Exchanges with Fans

What’s been your most touching interaction with a fan?

It’s not just one particular interaction but when I encounter devotees of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I hear a lot of accounts about what Eowyn meant to them when they were younger … things that had happened in their lives and how much Eowyn signified for them and was a form of support to them in those times.

What do you get asked about the most by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed question is always about that infamous meal her character prepares for Aragorn. “Did that stew taste as terrible as it looked?” It’s become a running gag, the whole thing involving that dish, and all fans wish to know the contents of the stew, and how was it made, and in your opinion her skills improved now, or do you think she really is a bad cook? Fans seem, in my view, fascinated by the comedy of that situation. And I provide great detail describing the components that made up the concoction – as I recall what they did; such as put bits of red cotton to simulate the appearance like bits of veins in the meat. They went to extreme measures to make it look as unappetizing as possible.

An Awkward Celebrity Encounter

What’s been your most embarrassing run-in with a famous person?

I was at a fitness session and another participant lying down doing pilates, and the instructor said to me, “Oh, Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I made some joke inquiring, “oh, are you a journalist?” Since Miranda is an uncommon moniker and most of the time when I meet another Miranda, they’re a journalist. I hadn't properly seeing who it was. And when she got up, it was the actress Miranda Richardson. At that point, I was at a loss for words. I still had to complete my class, and I felt intense awkwardness. I wanted to say: “Goodness, I do know who you are!” I think she’s so fabulous and I was just too starstruck to say anything.

The Source of a Moniker

Articles have confidently claimed that you were given your name from Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet I’ve read you saying otherwise – can you settle the matter once and for all?

Yes – I was named after the Sydney suburb. My mother learned via broadcast that they were inaugurating a shopping centre at that location, and she thought seemed a nice name.

Pandemonium on Set

What was the chaotic thing that’s ever happened on set?

When I was working in Brazil for the film Reaching for the Moon I experienced the least organized set I’ve ever worked on, and yet the final product emerged brilliantly. But they just work in such a different way. The sense of time there is unique. In Australia, you receive a schedule and must arrive on set punctually. But this was rather flexible – you come on set at one's convenience. It was a really different way of working for me. The elements were all coming together at the final moment, and sometimes the plan was unclear the next location the next day how we were going to do it. And then I would be in during a scene and wondering, “What was that noise that disturbed the scene? Oh, it’s a crew member popping open some champagne on set, to start a party.” It turned out great, but goodness, it’s a really different style of film-making.

A Secret Talent

Do you have a secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I memorise numbers more readily than I learn dialogue often, I’ve just got a numerically-oriented mind. So I believe if I hadn’t ended up in acting, I probably would have entered a field something to do with numbers, like mathematics or finance.

The Best Guidance Given

What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received?

When I was in high school, a speaker addressed us when we were graduating and they said, “don’t be afraid to fail” … which I think is the best piece of advice, since one gains far more from setbacks than is gained from triumph. Success, you never really understand precisely why it happened. Failure, the lessons are abundant.