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It's easy to forget that we're watching a movie sometimes, and even easier to forget what goes into making a movie. We only see what's going on in front of the camera's and not what's behind them. That's why, in an exclusive — never done before — edition of Entertainment Weekly, we have invited Miss Briar Cohen, otherwise known as Marvel's best assistant, to have a chat with us and help shed some light on what happens behind the scenes on set of some of the top grossing films of the decade.
"Miss Cohen, what pushed you to become an assistant?" "I have always been someone that likes organisation, even when I was a child, and I loved helping people. My bedroom was never messy and that was something that made me happy. I was also a major social butterfly. I had a natural knack for keeping things together and organised, as well helping people, so why not make a career out of it?"
"Why Marvel?" "To be honest, the opportunity to work with Marvel kind of fell into my lap and I will be forever grateful for that. I had just arrived in the States, I was nineteen and had used the last of my money to get here, when I quite literally stumbled across a casting call for assistants. It was just before filming for the first Avengers movie took place, and with so many big names coming together for such an amazing film, I guess Marvel was looking to hire a few more assistants."
"How did you get the job?" "Chris Hemsworth, actually. Believe it or not, we had both starred on the same soap opera back in Australia, called Neighbours, and we quite literally bonded right then and there. Marvel saw how comfortable I was around him and decided to hire me. Unfortunately, Chris and I are yet to work together on a film but I'm always hopeful."
"So, you're an actress yourself?" "I definitely wouldn't say that, no. I entered a competition and won a small spot on the show. It's nothing compared to what the guys at Marvel do, though!"
"What exactly does an assistant do?" "An assistant is someone that handles the small details of the larger picture. For example, I make sure that Tom gets to set every morning on time by booking his car — if he needs or wants to go somewhere, I organise the transportation and accommodation. I also handle all of his interviews and photo shoots, and I schedule them for him. I always try and make sure that the stars I'm working for have at least two or three full days off every two to three weeks, otherwise they're just exhausted and that really shows in their work. It's important to remember that acting is an exhausting job."
"What was it like, going straight onto a set filled with celebrities when you worked on the first Avengers?" "At first, it was extremely overwhelming and stressful. I had no previous assistant experience, only what I had picked up on over the years, but I must have done an okay job because Tom Hiddleston, who I was working with at the time, gave me an amazing review and that basically threw me into the deep end of working with Marvel. Since then, I have really been able to fine tune my abilities and I've found that the stress I felt at the very beginning no longer exists."
"Speaking of Tom, you're now working for Marvel's newest superhero — Tom Holland. What's that like?" "It's been great. Tom is very friendly and down-to-Earth, and I think we understand each other a bit better because of how close we are in age."
"Do you have a favourite celebrity that you've worked for so far? Perhaps Tom?" "Which one? But, no, I try not to have favourites, I find it creates conflict in the workplace. Nevertheless, every person that I've worked for so far has been unique in their own way and every experience has been different from the last. I've been able to work on my strengths and weaknesses and become a better assistant every time."
"We know that you were present on the Guardians of the Galaxy set when you worked for Chris Pratt. What was that like, and how was it different to the Avenger's cast members and sets?" "It was very different compared to when I had worked with the Avengers cast members. It was a brand new cast and I was a bit nervous going in, but Chris was extremely friendly and made me feel very welcome. The other cast members were very warm and welcoming as well. Everyone had quite the sense of humour, and was always down for a joke and that made working on the set of Guardians of the Galaxy a real treat. The sets were really different, as Guardians is set outside of Earth, but I'm extremely grateful to Marvel for having given me such a wide variety of movies to have worked across."
"And what movies have you worked on so far, and who with?" "The first was Avengers, with Tom Hiddleston, and then I worked with Robert Downey Junior on Iron Man Three. The next was Guardians of the Galaxy, with Chris Pratt, and then Avengers: Age of Ultron where I worked for Chris Evans. After that was Captain America: Civil War where I worked for Sebastian Stan and that brings me to my current job with Tom on set of Spider-Man: Homecoming."
"Which was your favourite movie to work on?" "I loved them all equally."
"Do you think you will continue to work for Marvel?" "Absolutely. Marvel is such an outstanding company and they're always working on new movies. As long as Marvel is making movies and is happy to have me, I will be there for them. I definitely wouldn't be where I am today without them."
"Finally, what tips would you give to any aspiring assistants out there?" "This might sound cliche, but patience and time management are your best friend. Never do tomorrow what you could do right then and there. There will be days where you feel swamped with stuff and just want to scream, but you need to remember to pace yourself and that you're not working for yourself, you're working to help someone else. That's the whole reason of this job: to help another person. You need to want to do that, otherwise you're going to be miserable."
Miss Cohen certainly didn't hold back with her answers and we're very thankful for that. After reading this, many of our questions were answered and we hope the same goes for you. We want to take a moment to say a massive thank you to Miss Cohen, for taking time out of her day to come and do this interview, and we hoped you enjoyed this exclusive edition of Entertainment Weekly.
That magazine cover is the extent of my editing skills ah I have also basically finished this book, but I had so much fun writing it :/ would you guys read a side book if I focused more on Harrison and Olivia?
