Finding someone who truly understands, and supports, your passions, desires and need for independence is difficult for adults, let alone teenagers. But the two teens in the new coming-of-age romantic drama ‘The First Time,’ Dave Hodgman and Aubrey Miller, have an undeniable instant connection. Their natural chemistry makes them realize they had to go through the pain of their past relationships to truly discover what it means to be loved and appreciated by each other.
The First Time’ follows Dave (played by Dylan O’Brien), a high school senior who spends his time pinning over his friend, Jane Harmon (portrayed by Victoria Justice), who has no romantic interest in him. But when Dave meets Aubrey (played by Britt Robertson), a junior with artistic aspirations, outside of a house party on a Friday night, their casual conversation sparks an instant connection. Over the weekend, their romantic feelings towards each other intensify, despite the fact that Aubrey already has a boyfriend, Ronnie (portrayed by James Frecheville), who doesn’t quite understand, or care about, her. Aubrey and Dave discover what it’s like to fall in love for the first time, despite her initial hesitance to start a new, meaningful relationship with Dave.
Robertson generously took the time to sit down in New York City recently to discuss ‘The First Time.’ Among other things, the actress spoke about what attracted her to the role of Aubrey; her natural chemistry and working relationships with O’Brien and writer-director Jon Kasdan; and what she brought from her own past romances and life experiences into the role.
Question (Q): You play Aubrey Miller, a junior with artistic aspirations, in ‘The First Time.’ What was it about the character and the script that convinced you to take on the role?
Britt Robertson (BR): What I really liked about the character of Aubrey was how smart she was, and also how confused she was. I also liked how many opinions she has that don’t make sense with all the other opinions that she has. (laughs) She’s constantly conflicted, I think. It was just a really dynamic role to play, in a really simple way, which I thought would be a pretty big challenge.
I had a great relationship with Jon (Kasdan) after meeting with him and auditioning. I also had a great relationship with Dylan (O’Brien), so it felt like all the pieces were coming together really nicely.
Q: Jon both wrote the screenplay for, and directed, ‘The First Time.’ Do you think the fact that Jon wrote the script for the film helped him in his directorial duties once you began shooting the film?
BR: Yeah. I don’t know how I feel about most writer-directors. I’ve had mixed feelings about some-not with any I’ve worked with, but just watching films and being aware of it.
But working with Jon, I think no one else could have directed this film. He has such a strong vision for what this movie is, and how he wants it to be perceived. He also had a strong vision of what he wanted to do with Aubrey and Dave, and how he wanted their relationship to develop.
Honestly, I did all my work as an actor, but I almost feel like I threw it all away once I was on set. He was giving me everything that I needed. He was able to communicate exactly what he wanted at every moment and second of each scene. It was a really great experience.
Q: How did you prepare for the role of Aubrey? What kind of research did you do?
BR: I didn’t do a lot of research, necessarily. I worked with Jon a lot-we had a three-week rehearsal period. I watched 25 films that Jon wanted me to see before we started filming. So that was the majority of my research, per say.
But just speaking with him, and getting to know Dylan, was important. One of the most important things for the film was us getting to know each other, and getting comfortable with one another.
When we got on set, we had a very small time frame to film these scenes, and quickly execute any issues we were having. Those issues were easy to solve, because of how comfortable with are with one another. Rehearsal was a big part of that. We really got to know each other.
Q: What was your working relationship with Dylan like while you were filming? Did you have any rehearsal with him before you actually began shooting?
BR: We didn’t rehearse necessarily a lot with the script. I mean we did, we read it a lot. But for the most part, we just talked. We talked a lot about his past relationships. We talked a lot about mine. We gave a lot of advice to one another.
We became really good friends, which was good. I felt like we needed to know how each other worked in that way. So it was a lot of talking.
Q: Did you bring any of your own past relationships into the role?
BR: Probably, I can’t remember at this point in time. But I’m sure I did, and he did as well. I think we all did, but mostly Jon. Jon has more experience than both of us combined. He’s a tad bit older than us.
Q: Aubrey’s room was the most unique set in the film, especially with the wave mural behind her bed. Did you have any input in the production design of Aubrey’s room, and put your own style into the setup?
BR: Yeah, that was actually a really big thing for us. The art department was creating different things. One of the things I wanted to do, which I don’t really know if it was truly shown or represented, was that I wanted to take pictures of everybody. I had just gotten a camera two months beforehand, and I wanted to take pictures of my own family, of my mom and my dad, and make a collage out of them myself.
Which I did-I ended up working with the guy who did all the incredible collages, like up against the back of the board, and on the walls. So I worked with him to collaborate on those specific pieces.
Q: Aubrey is struggling with which career path she wants to pursue. She’s hesitant to study art in college, even though it’s her passion and she’s talented in it. Did you come up with a backstory or reasoning to explain why she’s afraid to pursue that?
BR: Yeah, of course. I think Aubrey is this girl who enjoys a lot in life. Like she mentions, she took up the drums, she’s into collage. I also assumed she tried photography. She’s really into music. Those are four huge things. So to do everything would be a little silly.
She loves them all, but I don’t think she found a specific passion in any of them. I think they were an outlet for her. Music and art and creating and envisioning things are all outlets. But I don’t think any of those things captivated her in a way that made her want to pursue them further.
She’s just that girl-she’s confused. I’m very similar. Photography interests me, but I lost my camera two months ago. (laughs) I love photography, but I hate bringing the camera around. It’s always things you wish you could do, but sometimes you just don’t.
Q: In the film, Aubrey and Dave meet and get to know each other over one weekend. Do you think she progressed because of her new relationship with him?
BR: No, I don’t think so. Not in that day, not in that moment. But I think he’s the guy who motivates her a bit. If there’s a movie that took place the day after, and see the rest of their lives, I think you’d find Dave motivating her not in a way of, this is what I think you should do. But he inspires her to do her own things and to find what she loves. Whatever that may be, go for it.
Q: Would you be interested in filming a follow-up to show how Aubrey and Dave’s lives have progressed?
BR: Film ‘The Second Time?’ (laughs) No, no. I think we’ve done enough. (laughs) I mean, we always joked about it when we were filming. We would always talk about the second time. But I think the movie that we filmed made its point. I don’t think there are any more points to be made.
Q: ‘The First Time’ is a modern look at the anticipation and hopefulness of young love. Were you able to bring anything from your first relationship to the role?
BR: Yeah. The big thing about growing up and being young and being in love and falling in love at a young age is that it feels infinite. It feels like it’ll stay that way forever. I think Aubrey feels that way a little bit. There’s a moment where Aubrey thinks, this is what my life will be like with Dave. It will just be me and this boy. She then checks herself back in.
I think that’s all young love. I remember my first experience being exactly that. There were moments where I’d be like, okay, we’re going to get married, and we’re going to have kids. We’re going to go to my chapel, and my family will be there, and his family will be there, but his family’s Jewish. Then literally 10 minutes later, you’re just like, I’m 17. (laughs) Life goes on.
So there are all those things that go on. There are those moments where you think about them and talk about them, and you realize how silly they may seem.
Q: One of the more interesting scenes in the film is when Aubrey finally confesses her feelings about Dave to her parents. Did you ever confide in your parents the way Aubrey did?
BR: No, I’ve always been uncomfortable talking to my parents about people who I’ve liked. I just think it’s a weird thing. It’s such a personal thing. My parents would be like, she thinks she’s in love, ha ha ha. So I don’t know, I like to keep it to myself.
If it ever means something, then yeah, sure, we’ll talk about it. But in this stage in my life, I’ve got some years to go before I’m like, mom, guess what? I’ve got a boyfriend! We’re getting married! (laughs)
Q: Speaking of moms, Christine Taylor plays Aubrey’s mother in ‘The First Time.’ While she has a smaller supporting role in the film, what was it like working with her?
BR: She’s beautiful, she’s a really sweet woman. She was really giving, and had a lot of stories. She was really sweet to play off of. She did a really good job in the movie, actually. I enjoyed her.
Q: ‘The First Time’ premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January. What was your reaction when you found out the movie was going to play at the festival? How did audiences react to the movie when it played there?
BR: I was mostly excited for Jon and (production company) Castle Rock, just because it felt like it was an accomplishment, and we didn’t do them wrong. (laughs) There were so many great people who wanted to be a part of this film, and I was so lucky I was the one that they chose.
After it was accepted, it kind of felt like, okay, I didn’t completely mess this up. So I was excited for Jon and Castle Rock. I was excited to be able to go for the first time and actually have a film there, and not wandering around, wondering if I could get into a movie. I was actually participating in it. It was really exciting.
Q: Since ‘The First Time’ was your first movie that you got to see at Sundance, did that make it more special?
BR: Yeah. Actually, a few years before, I actually did another film, called ‘Mother and Child,’ and it had gotten into Sundance. But I was unable to go, because I was working. So it was fun to be a part of another film that got in, and actually be able to go.
Q: What was the public reaction to the film when it screened at Sundance? Did it generally receive positive reviews?
BR: Yeah, really positive, actually. I don’t know, I was so in my own world that I didn’t really take away anything from the audience. A lot of it was my own reaction, because I was seeing it for the first time. I was just seeing certain performances that were chosen, and remembering certain inside jokes that actually played in the movie.
I actually had a really good time watching the film myself. So it was hard for me to be aware of what was going on around me. But it did feel really positive.
Q: Was that the first time you saw the film, at the festival?
BR: It was.
Q: The film also looks at the awkwardness of first love. Were there any scenes that were awkward to shoot while you were shooting the movie?
BR: The very first time Dave and Aubrey had one of their hard-core make-out sessions, that was awkward. (laughs) That was definitely awkward, because it was the scene where we’re up against Dave’s car, and he’s dropping Aubrey off at her house after a movie. We really had to go at it.
I went up to Jon, and this was a testament to how close we are, and said, this is not working. This is really weird, I feel really weird about this. We’ve got to do this again. I feel like he doesn’t even like me, and this is weird. Jon was like, okay, let’s do it again. So we did it again, but it still felt really weird.
The next day, we ended up re-filming the scene, because Jon was like, you were right. (It was) bad. I re-watched it in dailies last night, not good. Then we actually re-shot, and it was much better. So that was awkward. (laughs)
Q: Was that at the beginning of shooting?
BR: Yes, that was in our first week, and it was the first time we had kissed. So it was just weird. (laughs) I think we had gotten too comfortable at that point, and we were literally best friends. We’d hang out, and then it was like kissing your best friend. It was kind of strange.
Q: Are you still in touch, and friends, with Dylan?
BR: Yeah, we talk all the time. We had a press event together recently, so I saw him there. He’s in Atlanta, filming, and I’m here (in New York), so we don’t see each other that much. But we talk a lot. It’s good to stay in touch.
