Thanks again to M for the heads up.

In just a few short years, Saoirse Ronan has made a name for herself. After winning over many critics as a petulant pre-teen in “Atonement,” Ronan appeared in the family adventure, “City of Ember,” and then took the lead role in Peter Jackson’s production of Alice Sebold’s “The Lovely Bones.” Ronan’s role as the title character in “Hanna” gives her a literal opportunity to flex her muscles, as she plays a pint-sized assassin who squares off against Cate Blanchett. Speakeasy sat down with Ronan in Los Angeles, where the 16-year-old actress offered a few insights about her artistic process, as well as her professional ambitions.

Speakeasy: “Hanna” director Joe Wright has mentioned that you were attached to this even before him. What position are you in now to be having to audition or pursue roles as opposed to being offered them because people like what you’ve already done?
More of the latter, which is amazing. I mean, there are a few projects that I have to audition and sometimes persuade people I can do it, but luckily most of the time people come to me with these scripts and just want me to do it straightaway, I guess because they’ve seen what I’ve done in the past and it’s sort of like a show reel that they’ve all been given – which is wonderful. It’s fantastic, you know, especially if it’s a project you’re interested in; the whole audition process is kind of awkward – you’re never really fully comfortable when you do them.

Are you being primarily offered these more unique or unusual projects, or are you just choosing them from a broader selection that includes more conventional material? And how interested are you in pursuing more conventional material?
I would like to do both. I mean, the characters that I’ve played are really interesting and different and weird – and very different to me. But it’s just kind of turned out that way; I would like to play more of a normal girl, of course, but the character would still need to be interesting and not boring, and the scripts would need to be clever. And I have read a few of those that are floating around right now, and it’s great that people want to introduce proper American teen comedies again, like “Juno,” and the films in the ‘80s like “Ferris Bueller” and “The Breakfast Club,” that are clever and they kind of fight for teenage-hood, instead of making it all pretty or glamorous. Or do it the other way, the other extreme, which is that we’re all miserable and we want to slit our wrists and stuff. So I would like to find a character who is just a normal girl, but the story is very cleverly written.

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How few and far between are those kinds of scripts?
I’ve found a few, and I’m so glad I have. My agent just knows not to send me the other crappy things, because I just don’t like that. And it’s fine for some people – I mean, they’re very popular – but I’m just not into those kind of films, even as an audience member. I don’t think I’d like to, not right now, anyway, do something like that. So luckily my agent knows what kind of things I’m looking for, and he’s looking for, and he sends me really interesting things and we all talk about it and it’s a real group decision between me and my parents and my agents.

Eric Bana described your relationship as more of a brother and sisterly one. Do you find that you get along more easily with older performers, or do you prefer kids your own age?
I’m pretty comfortable around everyone. I mean, I’m around adults so much it’s nice to spend time with people my own age as well, and I think when you find the right ones, kids my own age are quite interesting. Because we’re forming our own opinions and we feel very strongly about certain things and so it’s great to be around people like that as well.

How do you make sure that as you take on these new projects, the art that you create does mean something?
Just be truthful, I think, and the only person I can do that for is myself. If I’m doing a scene and it doesn’t feel right, I just have to stop – I say wait, can I start again. Because if you don’t feel like you’re telling the truth, there’s not much point, and sometimes people won’t even read it that way; sometimes a director will think it’s amazing, but you don’t really feel it in your heart.

I understand that one of the things you’re doing next is “Snow White.”
That’s what they say!

Is that not true?
No, not really. It’s one of the projects that’s out there at the moment, but we’re luckily very busy, and there’s a few projects that are floating around.

Do you know what’s immediately next for you?
No, I don’t – I wish I did! I wish I could have something to confirm that yes, I’m doing that. But I don’t. But I did a film called “Violet & Daisy” last year, and Alexis Bledel is in that, and James Gandolfini, and that should be out sometime this year.

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