Interview with Allan Starski

What time do you get up?
When I’m doing a film, at 05:30.

That’s too bad…
You know, to make films you have to rise early. The whole team must be on set early in the morning.

Even stars such as Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant can’t sleep any longer?
In a real film there are no exceptions. The bigger the film, and the more complicated, the more work. I’m really not a fan of getting up at dawn, but it’s a necessity.

You’ve done the set designs for many American films. Is it easier working in Hollywood than in Europe?
It’s quite funny really. I have an agent in the States, and I do American films, but on the whole they’re not filmed in the USA but in other counties. In America every artist or craftsman hired for a film has great opportunities for work as long as he works well. In Hollywood even the biggest professionals are checked every day, and good ideas are received enthusiastically. There’s a belief in American film that if one has the best team in the world, one has to look after it. In other cinema industries the work of individuals is rarely noticed.

An Oscar for the set design for ‘Schindler’s List’ is a major distinction. What has it changed in your life?
I’m now a member of the American Film Academy, and today I can do films all round the world. I have also been accepted into the elite trade union of American set designers, thanks to which I have permission to work in the States.

Anybody else with an Oscar in their pocket would buy a home in Florida or Hawaii. But you live in Warsaw. That’s not very original.
I like living here. If I’d received an Oscar aged around 25-30, than perhaps I’d have changed addresses. But I have my friends here, and this is where I can relax the best. I don’t think I’d relax in Los Angeles. You can work well there, but many people in the film world who arrived in Los Angeles from other parts of the States are unable to find their place in the city. So how would I?

You’ve won an Oscar, made major films, and you don’t shy away from commercials either. Do you consider yourself a superstar or a man for hire?
I’m always for hire, but I try to choose the films myself. When I choose badly, I can only blame myself. And do I feel like a star? I don’t think that comes into the question at all in my job. The greatest luxury I have is the fact that on the film set I have a chair with Allan Starski written on it.