Elizabeth Banks dishes on 'Hunger Games,' 'Pitch Perfect' sequel

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- Elizabeth Banks was sad to wrap production on the last installment of the Hunger Games saga, but she opened up about her upcoming projects during a recent interview with ABC News.

The 40-year-old actress recently said that her last day filming Mockingjay Part 2 was sad because "no one else" was done filming that day.

"It was really sort of lonely and depressing," she joked.

Banks played the colorful Effie in the cinematographic adaptation of author Suzanne Collins novels, a character she "cherished," but in the wake of the film's culmination she's left with two new projects on the table: a role as a judge in the Frito-Lay Super Bowl commercial contest and directing the Pitch Perfect sequel.

"Everybody has to start somewhere in this business and what I really love about this contest is that they're gonna really give somebody their start in the entertainment industry," she said. "I just felt like it was a really amazing opportunity to be supportive of young filmmakers ... who want to submit their material and get seen by industry professionals."

The creator of the winning commercial will win a "dream job" with Universal.

As for her also-new director role in the upcoming Pitch Perfect 2, Banks said it was a "big responsibility" she was very excited to take on "and try to do it confidently."

"[The original] was lightning in a bottle and it was such a surprise to see how the movie was received," she continued. "The whole 'Cups' phenomenon was a surprise to all of us. It came from the authenticity of the movie, and this time around we were really aiming to do that again and be pure in our intention to tell more of the story of these characters that people have fallen in love with."

Pitch Perfect 2 is slayed for a May 15, 2015 release. The upcoming Hunger Games films Mockingjay Part 1 and Mockingjay Part 2 are due in November 2014 and 2015 respectively.