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Your upcoming film Little Bi Peep - in a few words, what is
it going to be about?
Little Bi Peep is an indie feature comedy about the myriad of
relationships of a 23 year-old bisexual who seems incapable of connecting
with another person or telling the truth. I'm sure you've been asked this
before, but: Why did you choose a porn shop as one of your film's central
locations? Sex is funny. Porn is funny. It’s an unusual
location for a black comedy because it’s only used for seedy films. The
lead character is stuck in a dead end job, and blow-up dolls under
fluorescent lighting are much more entertaining than staplers in an office
cubicle. What were your main inspirations when writing
Little Bi Peep, and is any of it based on personal experience? And
come to think of it, how much of the film is based on Little BO Peep?
Art
should be personal. Since this is my first feature film, I drew from
people and situations from my life and friends that I have encountered.
How does sex affect people’s relationships? How honest are we with each
other and ourselves? What is with these new, malfunctioning Kureg coffee
machines? The script was untitled for a long time. We tried every horrible
idea you can think of and the Cinematographer, Tracy Cring, hit on Little
Bi Peep. The rhyme does have a theme of loss and confusion. One
difference is Bo Peep doesn't hook up quite as much as Bi Peep. Other than
that, we will let the audience make their own fairytale comparisons. How
would you describe yourself as a writer, how would you describe Little
Bi Peep's writing process, and what can you tell us about
your writing prior to Little Bi Peep? I’ve always
written stories, and figured as an actor, my writing would be more useful
in the form of screenplays. I had started another project and I sent some
pages to my friend and director Jon Russell Cring [Jon
Russell Cring interview - click here], and he told me to burn
them that it was Hollywood fluff. Then he said that he wanted to see me in
a story. I finished Little Bi Peep 3 days later. It was inside and
I just didn't know it. What
prompted you to take the next step and actually put Little Bi Peep
into production? That was really not my call. People just
wanted to make this as soon as they heard it. I am flying on borrowed
wings here. To say this has been a whirlwind would be a serious
understatement.
As far as I know, Little Bi Peep
is as of now still raising funds - so what can you tell us about your
fundraising campaign? It’s hard but necessary. People
have to believe you want this film to be successful. All you want to do is
make a great movie but they want to skip to the bottom line. Indie GOGO is
great because you can find fans and people that want to see the kind of
film that’s important to you. Needless to say, there will be no Filet
Mignon at our Craft Services Table... Or no table either, but who’s
really keeping track of that?
http://www.indiegogo.com/littlebipeepmovie
You are producing Little Bi
Peep together with Jack Skyyler [Jack
Skyyler interview - click here], in whose Infested Ship and
Night Aboard the Salem you also appeared/will be appearing. So what
can you tell us about the man and your collaborations? Jack
Skyyler is an amazing director and producer, as well as a good friend of
mine. We first met awhile back on the USS Salem, where we filmed Infested
Ship. After setting one foot aboard the ship, I could immediately tell
that it was a friendly environment and that the cast and crew had a great
dynamic going on. Since then, Jack and I have kept in contact, and he’s
been an enormous help in the production of Little Bi Peep. He is a
true artist who is always more than willing to help out a fellow artist,
which is an invaluable quality. I look very forward to working together
again on Night Aboard the Salem.
A
few words about your director Jon Russell Cring [Jon
Russell Cring interview - click here], and how and why did you
get him on board? I met Jon a while back at an audition for
his feature film, Creeping Crawling. Upon meeting, I could tell
instantly tell we had chemistry, even in movie tastes alone. I had a great
experience filming Creeping Crawling
with him (he did give me the
part), and from then on, he and I have been great friends and have
seriously considered getting BFF bracelets made… Not sure why that
hasn’t happened yet. Anyway, Jon was the first person I showed my script
to, after I was only halfway done writing it. He was supportive from the
beginning and was the one to tell me to finish the script. There was never
any question of him being the director.
You play the lead in Little Bi Peep
- so how do you approach your character? I have a general
approach to any character I play. The first thing I do is look for
similarities between myself and the character, whether they be dead-on or
a bit of a stretch. This particular approach is especially useful for this
character, because I believe this character is, for the most part, me on
my worst days. The only thing is, since the character is arguably
unpleasant, (think Charlize Theron in Young Adult), my biggest
challenge will be making sure she is still likeable to an audience, even
after all the crap she pulls in the movie. Time to turn the charm on! Anything you
can tell us about the rest of your cast yet? We have put
together an extremely solid cast that I’m very excited about working
with. For instance, Leigh Strimbeck, who recently played opposite Bruce
Dern and Kristanna Loken in Love Orchard, will be playing my
character’s off-beat, yet still loveable mother in Little Bi Peep. The
$64-question of course: Any idea when and where the film will be released
onto the general public? I would say early 2013. I really
believe in this group of people and we have experience in getting things
done fast, while at the same time maintaining the high quality. Who says
you have to choose between fast and good? It’s our job to defeat that
rigid way of thinking. Let's go back to the beginnings
of your career: What got you into acting in the first place, and did you
receive any formal education on the subject? Although it
sounds clique, I truly have been acting my entire life, and I blame my
mother’s extensive collection of VHSs and trips to the local movie
rental places for that. However, I’ve only recently within these last
couple of years made the transition from theater work to on screen acting.
Although I do enjoy both forms, I’ve always known movies were what I
wanted, or rather needed, to end up in. As far as education, I did an
internship at the Berkshire Theater Company, where I worked
one-on-one with Jayne Atkinson of Criminal Minds, and took
several classes at Barrington Stage Company, where I studied with
Debra Jo Rupp of That 70’s Show. I’m currently finishing
up my theater degree at Russell Sage College in New York. Any past
films of yours you's like to talk about? Any future projects?
Keep
your eyes peeled for Begin the Beguine! I’m currently shooting
that feature film with student Oscar-winning, as well as Sundance Film
Festival-screened director Ari Gold. The movie has several big named
actors, but I’m not permitted to release the actual names yet. Stay
tuned and find out! (I promise they are exciting.)
As far as future projects, (besides Little Bi Peep and Night
Aboard the Salem), be on the lookout for a short film I’ve recently
finished. It’s called Chiaroscuro and was written, directed,
edited, composed, and basically completely done by Will Rogers and is
currently being entered and considered in several different festivals. How
would you describe yourself as an actress? I’d describe
myself as brilliant! No, all kidding aside, I’d say I’m a rising young
actress, looking for some challenging roles. Although ingénue roles can
be great, I’m more interested in the difficult, more complex roles.
I’m looking forward to that kind of acting in Little Bi Peep. Actresses (or
indeed actors) and filmmakers who inspire you? Charlize
Theron is a huge inspiration to me. Anyone who can pull off both comedy,
tragedy, and play an unattractive serial killer, all while still being
considered as a sex-pot in the public eye is a true hero. James Spader is
also one of my favorites, because I swear to God that man can communicate
anything just through his eyes. Your
favourite movies?
Oh, dear I’m terrible at this one. As
of this particular second, I guess my favorite movies would be: After
Hours, Withnail and I, Crash (the 1996 James Spader one,
not the 2004 Sandra Bullock one), Ghostworld, Tuff Turf
(trust me, it’s actually good), Wet Hot American Summer, Bad
Santa, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, What’s Eating
Gilbert Grape, and... I think Heathers. ... and of course, films you really
deplore?
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Wow, this one’s even harder… I guess Gigli
and The Room. Wait, no The Room
is so bad it’s good, so
forget that one. Your/your movie's website, Facebook, IndieGoGo,
whatever else? IndieGoGo:
http://www.indiegogo.com/littlebipeepmovie
IMDb:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262078/
Anything else you are dying to mention
and I have merely forgotten to ask? Nope, this was a great
interview. Thanks and don’t forget to look out for Little Bi Peep
in early 2013! Thanks for the
interview!
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