Jake - 'There are movies that have changed me and the way I’ve looked at the world'

Thanks to IHJ, we now have further pictures from Jake Gyllenhaal's appearance at the LA Conservation Corps Spring Luncheon held on 19 March, including photographs of Jake with Maria Shriver. It's interesting to hear that Jake has been visiting the Corps recently and getting to know one of the young people (one of the two Jake gave an award to) for research for a future film role. I am completely intrigued by this and wonder what film role Jake has in store for us. It doesn't sound like the kind of research one would carry out for Nailed.




Jake's interest in the Corps set me off on this windy holiday Friday thinking about the involvement of Jake and his whole family in another cause, ACLU, and the influences that Jake's parents have had on his social conscience, which, in turn, has affected Jake's view of the power of movies.

That Jake himself has been put up for auction (well, for dinner) by ACLU on more than one occasion is well known and almost seems like a regular means for the organisation to raise funds. What I didn't realise was that back in the early days of 2003, Jake and Kirsten Dunst were ready to set themselves up as the leaders of a political forum for young celebrities: '"Spiderman" star Kirsten Dunst is heading up a new group of young Hollywood stars who will meet to discuss political issues and try and encourage their peers to take world issues more seriously. The actress and boyfriend Jake Gyllenhaal will front the celebrity forum, which plans to highlight the need for youths to get involved in politics to help make change possible.'


It sounds as if Jake may have been a major political influence on Kirsten who admits to not even having voted in the 2000 election. 'I didn't even vote in 2000. I think it was just laziness. I wasn't raised in a family that was real political and I'm just now becoming aware of these issues. I just want to be more informed. This is so important and if we can get anyone to be more political, then that's a good thing.'


By contrast, Jake's parents have been heavily involved with ACLU for a considerable length of time and were honoured by the organisation on 19 May 2003 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel with the Torch of Liberty. 'The ACLU/SC believes that Naomi Foner-Gyllenhaal and Stephen Gyllenhaal have set an incredible example for their children, Maggie and Jake, with their strong support of the ACLU and countless other political organizations. This family is demonstrating what it means to pass the "torch of liberty" from one generation to the next, and we honor them as a family that embodies true American family values. The family's activism has been manifested in so many ways over the years that what is provided here is just a sampling... Maggie's interest in Central American issues was encouraged when her parents helped her make a documentary on the subject, and Jake is an outspoken proponent of the film industry's responsibility in addressing political issues... This is a family that understands the important role films can play in exposing audiences to messages that build support for the principles of liberty and justice. The ACLU Foundation of Southern California is proud to honor the Foner/Gyllenhaal family for making activism a family affair.'


However, although proud, both Maggie and Jake have said that they believe that this award was really to honour their mother. Maggie: 'The award really went to my mother who's been really active with the ACLU in a lot of ways... But I think Jake and I were included because we'd had such explosive years.'



In October 2005, Jake told Out magazine: 'My mom’s been a member of the ACLU for years. Sometimes I was dragged to all the dinners before I even knew what the ACLU was. A few years ago, they honored my family, and they gave us the Torch of Liberty award, which was supposed to represent people who fought for freedom of speech. I think in a way it was more for my mother than for the entire family. We definitely have been taught that movies are a powerful medium and what you say with them can influence people, and I believe that. And people can think that’s pretentious—and even I think it’s a little pretentious—but I think it’s true. There are movies that have changed me and the way I’ve looked at the world...'


In 2003/2004, Jake lent ACLU his face and not-inconsiderable swaying power in an advertisement for the organisation. For this campaign, Jake took part in one of my favourite photoshoots - the Goodlooking Revoluntionaries set of photos - and his two-page glorious advert appeared in the May 2004 issue of Paper magazine (click and it shall be bigger). Where do I sign up?


On 4 October 2004, the ACLU Freedom Concert took place at the Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center in NYC. 'Teen-dream hottie Jake Gyllenhaal, one of a handful of megawatt actors performing spoken-word adaptations of liberal-friendly Supreme Court decisions, was forced to endure the weight of his propped-open PowerBook through several bouts of hoots and hollers.' All this was aimed at 'commie lawyers', as Jake referred to them in this review of the concert. Maggie was another one of the 'megawatt actors'. You can read a fuller account of the event here.


Jake's excitement in being included in the event is clear in this brief interview: 'I’m the youngest among all of them. It’s like Paul Simon and Patti Smith and Lou Reed and Mos Def and Jessica Lange and Robin Williams, and s**t man, just to be amongst them is pretty cool. To be sandwiched in today at rehearsals between Robin Williams and Mos Def and Nanci Griffith, you know, that’s pretty exciting.' Jake also makes it clear he's there 'cause my mom would kick my ass if I didn’t show up tonight. She’s been an ACLU member for like 25 years.' And then there's the famous Gyllenquote: 'Like I think buying porno & smoking cigarettes, as exciting as it may be to kids, I think voting should be just as exciting, if not more exciting.'

You can see more pictures from the concert's after party at the Mandarin Orient here. This picture from the after party includes Anthony Romero, the Executive Director of ACLU.


And finally

Maggie Gyllenhaal has been lined up to feature on the cover of the May issue of Interview magazine. The cover photograph was, apparently, taken in London when Maggie was over filming recently (one assumes for The Dark Knight).


The one sure name attached to Nailed, Jessica Biel, was supposed to have met last night with Nailed's production team in the Clubhouse restaurant in Columbia, South Carolina. This film continues to be very much Jessica's project.

Includes pictures from IHJ.