(re)Search my Trash

<body> <div align="left"> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" width="800" cellpadding="0" height="100%"> <tr> <td width="100" rowspan="3" background="../stylepix/square.gif" valign="top">  </td> <td width="4" rowspan="3"></td> <td width="592" height="1%" valign="top"> <p align="center"> <a href="../research/resultactorlinks.shtml?Kate Patel">Films starring <b>Kate Patel</b> on (re)Search my Trash</a> <p align="center">   </td> <td width="4" rowspan="3"></td> <td width="100" rowspan="3" background="../stylepix/squareright.gif" valign="top">  </td> </tr> <tr> <td width="592" valign="top" height="99%">  <table border="0" cellspacing="0" width="455" align="right"> <tr> <td width="100%"> <p align="right"><img border="0" src="../stills/pigkiller-1.jpg" width="450" height="203"></td> </tr> </table> <p><b>Your new movie <a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml"><i>Pig Killer</i></a> - in a few words, what is it about, and what can you tell us about your character in it?</b> <p>  <p><b><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></b>, in my view, is not all that meets the eye. It’s really a collaboration of different stories and ideas, some fact, some fiction. It’s most obviously a loosely factual based story about Canada’s most horrific and prolific serial killer, William Pickton, turned into a rather kitschy horror (and love) movie. My character is a woman who has, in a sense, given up on any direction in her life, is addicted to heroin, and naively falls in love with men who end up hurting her.</p> <p> <p><b>What did you draw upon to bring your character to life, and how much Kate Patel can we find in Wendy?</b><p> <p>Although Wendy a not true-to-life character by any means, there are a few elements there that I have experienced in my own life. I drew from these pretty dark experiences in my past to bring to Wendy. It’s a cool experience to be able to use that.<p> <p><b>How did you get involved with the project in the first place, and how did you end up as one of the executive producers as well?</b><p> <p>Jeff Olan, a mutual friend, as well as an executive producer of the film, introduced director Chad Ferrin <i>[<b><a href="chadferrin(2-22).shtml">Chad Ferrin</a></b></i> <i><a href="chadferrin(2-22).shtml"> interview - click here</a>]</i> and I. We met in a dimly lit Chinese restaurant with a couple ideas that turned into <b><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></b>. I really wanted to make a film happen and invested myself heavily in it financially, emotionally, mentally, and with some leaps of faith.</p> <p> </p> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" width="455" align="right"> <tr> <td width="100%"> <p align="right"><img border="0" src="../stills/pigkiller-2.jpg" width="450" height="193"></td> </tr> </table> <p><b>What were the challenges of bringing <i><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></i> to life from a producer's point of view?</b><p> <p>One of the main challenges was with the content. As much as I would have loved to write, it would have taken me about 10 years. Chad wrote the script in two weeks. It’s not a dialogue or storytelling that I would have written, and there’s some pretty horrific and off-putting scenes to me, especially after first reading the script. Chad being a horror film writer and director, had a different viewpoint. I pretty much agreed to take a leap of faith with this one. Initially, I was involved in a lot of the nitty gritty of the pre-production. Thankfully, for me, Jeff took over much of the heavy lifting and nightmarish elements involved in production so I could focus on the role.<p> <p><b>To what extent can you identify with <i><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></i>'s brand of horror?</b><p> <p>In my view, <b><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></b> isn’t really a typical horror film (although I’m no expert on the subject). It felt like a bit of a rollercoaster that kept moving. In what sense can I identify with this brand of horror? I guess I was pleasantly surprised by some of the lighter and quirky elements (not to take away from the grave reality of the murders that took place) that ended up in the final cut of the film. In my opinion, it made what could potentially be a horrifyingly unwatchable story watchable.<p> </p> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" width="455" align="left"> <tr> <td width="100%"><img border="0" src="../stills/pigkiller-3.jpg" width="450" height="251"></td> </tr> </table> <p><b>Do talk about <i><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></i>'s director Chad Ferrin <i>[<a href="chadferrin(2-22).shtml">Chad Ferrin interview - click here</a>]</i>, and what was your collaboration like?</b><p> <p> <p>Chad’s got a pretty twisted mind. Now that that’s on the table, he’s a powerhouse of a one-man show. From start to finish. He writes, collabs, directs, edits, and is involved heavily in distribution. He’s a very talented guy, reliable, super easy going (except when he says “no”), and is incredibly open to new ideas and thoughts throughout the entire process. He’s simply great to work with. I had so much fun working with him. He also doesn’t have a cell phone (only a landline), but is strangely the easiest person in LA to get a hold of…</p> <p> <p><b>A few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?</b><p> <p>The on-set atmosphere was perhaps the best part of the whole movie for me. The bringing together of such incredible people from production to crew to cast… it was a dream for me. As producer I felt a deep responsibility for the film and the people involved. I really wanted everyone to be able to be in their element and enjoy themselves on set (as much as that is possible within the nature of long days and nights on set, and all the joys and pains that come with independent filmmaking). It was such a pleasure to be around so much great energy and creative forces and such hard-working talent.<p> <p><b>Any future projects you'd like to share?</b><p> <p>There are a couple on the horizon, and I’m looking forward to seeing what the future has in store.<p> </p> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" width="455" align="left"> <tr> <td width="100%"><img border="0" src="../stills/pigkiller-4.jpg" width="450" height="188"></td> </tr> </table> <p><b>What got you into acting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the subject?</b><p> <p> <p>Besides forcing my little sister to put on plays and do skits with me as a kid, I was never a formal actress. I’ve been a ballet dancer since I was three, had the most formal ballet training you can get, took many years off due to the intensity, and then I started dancing professionally with a small ballet company in Canada before I moved here. Acting is something I’ve snaked into and has become that raison d’être. The biggest challenge in that for me has been using my voice; in dance, it’s all movement and expression. Ballet is defying gravity and making it look like the most natural thing in the world. You are trained to harness emotion and pain. In acting, it’s so much about freedom of expression and letting go of that in many regards. I’ve been taking classes for a bit of time now, and am so grateful to have become recently involved with the <i>Actor’s Studio</i>.</p> <p> </p> <p><b>What can you tell us about your filmwork prior to <i><a href="../movies/pigkiller(2022).shtml">Pig Killer</a></i>?</b><p> <p>Well, this is my first acting role. I made a documentary for my master’s thesis on the subculture of dumpster diving (and food waste), but that was all behind the camera, nothing fancy, documenting stories that inspire messages.<p> <p><b>How would you describe yourself as an actress, and some of your techniques to bring your characters to life?</b><p>  <p>I’d say I appreciate the ability to live within the role as much as possible. I also want to soak up as much technique as possible! A lot of what I’m working on now is letting go of a self-consciousness that carries some perfectionist and judgmental mindsets. I love that feeling of getting lost in the character and there’s a whole other life that takes over. I want to hone that more and more.</p> <p> <p><b>Actresses (and indeed actors) who inspire you?</b><p> </p> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" width="205" align="right"> <tr> <td width="100%"> <p align="right"><img border="0" src="../stills/katepatel-1.jpg" width="200" height="284"></td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%"> <p align="right"><img border="0" src="../stills/phantom5x5.gif" width="5" height="5"></td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%">  </td> </tr> </table> <p>Ah gosh, growing up I loved Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, I remember having printed out their photos online and taping them to my dresser.</p> <p> </p> <p>There’s so many, too many to list, but I tend to always admire who I perceive to be thoughtful actors and actresses (even if they’re super comedic).</p> <p> <p><b>Your favourite movies?</b><p>  <p>Your spelling of favourite – where are you from? I love a lot of older movies, black and white films, and strange films out there on the periphery in different ways. <b>Sunset Boulevard</b> is epic to me. I also enjoy <b><i>Beavis and Butthead</i></b>, I find it an incredibly entertaining social commentary.</p> <p> <p><b>... and of course, films you really deplore?</b><p>  <p>I like your choice of wording there – nothing deplorable really pops into my mind, but I’m sure I could find one or two if I went looking!</p> <p> <p><b>Your website, social media, whatever else?</b><p> <p>I don’t actively engage with social media at this point. I used to use it a bit, maybe I’ll take it back up one day.<p> <p><b>Anything else you're dying to mention that I've merely forgotten to ask?</b><p>  <p>Thank you for your interest in the film and for hosting this interview! It’s been fun and enlightening to answer them.</p> <p> <p><b>Thanks for the interview!</b> <p>   </td> </tr> <tr> <td width="592" valign="top" height="1%">  <SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript"> currentyear = "2010"; </SCRIPT> <SCRIPT language="JavaScript" src="../scripts/endcreditsart.js"></SCRIPT> <SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript"> dosworsdonn(); </SCRIPT> </td> </tr> </table> </div> </body>