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Your new movie Heartbeat
- in a few words, what is it about, and what can you tell us about your
character in it?
Heartbeat
is a really special nod/merci to film noir with a modern twist - murder
mystery keeping you guessing.
What
did you draw upon to bring your character to life, and how much Lisa
London can we find in Gretchen?
I
try to always bring a big element of my essence to every character I
play. I loved this role because it shows so much human behaviour so
clearly. I never played someone with
this type of agenda/secret. I drew on the Deep Throat character in All
The Presidents Men. How
did you get involved with the project in the first place? I
was in the middle of shooting and producing Choke
with Gregory Hatanaka
and the Cinema
Epoch/CineRidge
Entertainment film family. Greg thought it would be
cool experiment to shoot 2 films with the same cast/crew simultaneously - so we
did! What
can you tell us about Heartbeat's
director Gregory Hatanaka, and what was your collaboration like? It's
effortless working with him! Pure joy and mutual respect. We see and aim
for creative angles that excite and disturb and amuse and delight with
the same lens. Sometimes magical simpatico vibes simply happen between
actor/director.
Gregory Hatanaka gets me - my talent/my brain/my heart as an artist.
Heartbeat
wasn't the first time you worked with Gregory Hatanaka - so what can you
tell us about your previous collaborations, and how did the first of you
first meet even?
I
first met Greg when he came to check out actors in Sal Landi's cold
reading class. He loved my work and soon hired me for Darling Nikki
(soon to be released) I've been his muse ever since really - love every
minute of being his target of his frame! That movie was put on hold...
then I did Samurai Cop 2 which became instant cult classic.
Body Electric, Holy Terror, Body of Night, Choke,
Heartbeat, Acrylic and
Quarantine Girl followed. All on Amazon Prime and TubiTV - Quarantine
Girl out soon. Very proud of them all - so diverse, every genre and role...
and Choke and Body of Night made top Amazon Prime
lists - grateful and
thrilled for that! Back to Heartbeat
- what can you tell us about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? We
know each other so well that there is always a great flow of
communication on set. Heartbeat
wasa challenge that we all rose to -
as Greg and Nicole D'Angelo would write our scenes and lines the night
before each shooting day - and we were also shooting Choke same time -
so a bit schizophrenic for actors to remember who they were, lol... Any
future projects you'd like to share? Pre-COVID Greg, Nicole, Shane Ryan (star of many of Greg's films and producer)
[Shane Ryan interview - click
here] and Rich Mallory (director of Holy Terror/Greg's partner too) were on such
a roll and I with them - hoping to get back into that rythym - had two
films about to start when virus chaos affected everything
globally let alone in Hollywood. My sci-fi series I star in with Lorenzo
Lamas, Corbin Timbrook and Shelby Janes airs Aug 17 on kvqt21.com,
you can
view. I'm supposed to shoot more episodes in Texas in August. I'm
shooting Bigfoot or Bust with Jim Wynorski [Jim
Wynorski interview - click here] at the helm and Becky LeBeau
co-starring in October. I'm in the final episode of award winning Apple TV+'s
The Morning Show and in Lifetime Channel's
The Wrong Teacher
directed by David De Coteau. David is another wonderful director I work
with lots. And you can see me all over as featured babe in Ed
Sheeran/Justin Bieber's music video for their hit song I Don't Care.
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What got you into
acting in the first palce, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject? I wanted
to act since birth lol. I was dating someone super famous, and his agent
sent me on a coveted audition for a female version of Animal House - I
booked it - H.O.T.S., a cult classic to this day. The rest is
history... I've
studied hard and for many years. Tony Barr's Film Actors Workshop -
invaluable on camera training. And I first met Lorenzo Lamas in that class
btw... then Playhouse West, Sanford Meisner gave me technique. David
Proval after that. He gave me tools to rely on and the confidence to
be fearless with intention. And
got to star in amazing original play with him! And my longest mentor is Sal
Landi. I've been in his cold reading class for decades. I had a 5 year run of acting
and producing hit theater for The Actorhood theater company he ran
with Jaimyse Haft. Sal taught me to be still and know I am capable of
filling a screen or a stage. What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to Heartbeat? I
love my celluloid journey; I have grown, learned and lived so much
everytime I step in front of a camera. And the travel I've done across
this great big beautiful world and the people I've met - lucky girl I
am! Your
career spans quite a few years now - so how has the filmworld changed over
the years?
It changed
the most when video replaced film itself. Key is to keep adapting and
embracing the change. I know my career thrives now because I have never
fought change - I relish it - I get bored so easily and have
little patience so I actually enjoy jumping into new ways/things/places
etc. And now we are really in for some new rules/protocols and methods to
shoot for safety & health COVID reasons. Hopefully those won't be permanent but we artists will rally and it will definitely breed
creativity! Greg already employed ingenuity to shoot Quarantine Girl
safely, and it addresses important
mental health issues...
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How would you describe yourself as an
actress, and some of your techniques to bring your characters to life?
I'm
fearless in the sense that I will try anything to make it
real/believable/honest. I'm all about what reads from the eyes. I work
off the other actor but always have my secrets about my characters that
make them intriguing. I also give much detail to utilizing hair, make up,
wardrobe, environment - I pull from every element... I listen before I
react... Actresses
(and indeed actors) who inspire you? Ryan
Gosling, Marlon Brando, Charlie Hunnan, Denzel Washington, Idris Elba, Vivien Leigh, Jessica Lange, Cate Blanchett, Marion Cotillard, Monica
Belluci, Kerry Washington - SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much talent past &
present! Your favourite
movies? Dr Zhivago, Rust and Bone, Cinema
Paradiso, Braveheart, It's a Wonderful Life - and all of mine lol! ... and of course, films you really deplore?
Tree
of Life - only film I can remember walking out on, lol.
Your
website, social media, whatever else?
On
FB lisalondonfan and thepinupslive
On
Instagram @lisalondonla
On
Cameo Lisa London IMDb
has all my stuff always up to date. Anything else
you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Passport
ready to shoot anywhere! Thanks
for the interview!
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