Tiscali Press Release - TISCALI TEAMS UP WITH FIVE US TO BRING EXCLUSIVE SCREEN TALKS ONLINE

27th November 2006

Dustin Hoffman, Tim Burton, Richard Linklater and Christine Vachon discus their film careers in depth

Tiscali, the internet and broadband company, has teamed up with Five US to bring its series of Screen Talks from this year's Times BFI 50th London Film Festival free online.

All four are available to watch on the Tiscali portal and include in-depth interviews with Dustin Hoffman, Tim Burton, Richard Linklater and Christine Vachon. The interviews provide an intimate insight into the lives and inspirations behind these film industry icons.

In his interview Dustin Hoffman discusses his new role as Professor Jules Hilbert in Marc Foster's Stranger than Fiction as well his groundbreaking role as Benjamin Braddock in The Graduate. Hoffman also provides viewers with a rare insight into his life as a budding actor and his early friendships with Robert Duval and Gene Hackman. Hoffman reveals that one of his earliest roles was as a dragon advertising talcum powder which made him sick while his friend Hackman, "moved furniture down 6 floor walk ups." Hoffman also talks about his struggles to cope with the "inherent racism" that he experienced in as a young actor in 1960s America.

Tim Burton whose 3D Nightmare Before Christmas had its premiere at the festival, explains how he finds the inspiration for his ideas and how he uses drawings to visualise his artistic concepts. In a frank interview Burton also discusses how he tries to fight the inevitable categorisation that people associate with his personal and artistic reputation. Burton admits how his reputation for being an outsider is something he has faced since he was a child.

The Tiscali site also features two further Screen Talks from the Festival with Richard Linklater and Christine Vachon . Linklater's most recent title Fast Food Nation had its UK premiere at the Tiscali Gala at this year's festival. The famed indie director talks about previous titles Slacker and Dazed and Confused and discusses the creative processes behind his film making.

Christine Vachon the producer of indie film classics such as Far from Heaven and Boys Don't Cry, talks about the controversy that surrounded Hilary Swank's Oscar for her role in Boys Don't Cry and also provides an insight into the reasons for her decision to work on the acclaimed film One Hour Photo.

You can see trailers for all of the films that featured at the Times BFI 50th London Film Festival, photo galleries, red carpet interviews and exclusive to Tiscali, Sally Potter's classic short film London Story at www.tiscali.co.uk/lff.

Access to all of the Screen Talks can be found free of charge at: www.tiscali.co.uk/screentalks