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Your upcoming film Lady
of the Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire - in a few words, what
is it about, and what can you tell us about your character in it?
Lady
of the Dark
is not so much about vampires but
more about nature getting its own back against man. There is a line in the
film, “you have raped us for the last time man”, which I think sums it
up in one powerful sentence. Eve is symbolic to the bible and her
character is very peaceful and spiritual, which is why she was chosen and
the changes she goes through although sexual violent and bloody are all
just like nature would intend without human emotion dictating her
behaviour. With
Lady of the Dark: Genesis
of the Serpent Vampire being essentially a vampire film - is the
vampire a creature at all dear to you?
I
love vampire films, I think because although they come in many different
shapes and forms they all have the element of love and lust out of a need
for survival which I find fascinating and I would never say no to acting
in film which was based on this mythical creature, I think deep down
somewhere there is that little part of me that wonders what it would be
like if it was real. In the film, you
make a transformation from the slightly boring goody-two-shoes housewife
to homicidal vamp. Which can you identify with more, which was easier/more
fun to play? I
don’t think I can identify with any of the character traits Eve goes
through, in the beginning she is very spiritual where as I am very driven
and charged - but researching kundilini yoga for the role helped to bring
myself down to her level. I can 100% say for sure that the homicidal vamp
side was more fun to play and I also think easier in a way, for some
reason I find the roles that are furthest away from my own character
easier as it allows me to create a whole new person to become which is
what I love most of all about acting.
How did you approach the role of Eve
in Lady of the
Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire in the first place? Well,
director Phil Gardiner [Philip
Gardiner interview - click here] was nervous of asking me to start with as he knew the role was
extremely gritty, but there was no chance I was passing on this one. To
start with I had to shake off any nerves I had regarding the role as it
required a lot of realism. There was no room for even the slightest amount
of “holding back”, I really just had to get in the mindset of saying
goodbye to Mel and her life and saying Hello Eve, I’m home. I let go of
all my inhibitions and just went for it!! How
did you initially get involved with the project, and what can you tell us
about your director Philip Gardiner [Philip
Gardiner interview - click here]?
I
first met Phil on the set of Paranormal Haunting – The Curse of the Blue
Moon Inn, where I was only doing a small scene for the trailer, but then
Phil wrote me into the actual film. It was not till later I realised that he
had auditioned over 100 girls for Lady
of the Dark. I had an email asking
if I knew of anyone who would be interested at which I laughed my socks
off, He really was worried about asking directly as he felt this role was
asking a lot. Phil to me is an inspiration his vision, his drive and his
mind are fascinating, and his films are always a lot deeper and more
meaningful than what they appear to be to someone without the knowledge. From the looks of
it, making Lady of the
Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire seems to be a rather
intense experience. So what can you tell us about the actual shoot, and
the on-set atmosphere?
It was intense for me in regards
to it being the first film that required me to push myself to these levels,
and I think for Phil it was to prove he could create a visual, beautiful,
musical film all by himself from start to finish without any outside
interference.
The shoot itself was great fun and
very relaxed but extremely organised, when you take away the stress of big
crews and you are working in a comfortable environment it just doesn’t
feel like hard work, we were able to crack on with no fuss and no worries,
it was very easy to stay focused with no interruptions, and I can still
say this is my favourite set I’ve been on to date even after 8 features.
You're not only the lead
character, you are also the only character in Lady
of the Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire - is it at all
indimidating to you as an actress to pretty much carry the whole film on
your own shoulders? No
not at all in fact I didn’t look at it like that, I don’t believe I
carried the film at all, I think it’s all down to Phil’s artistic,
visual creation and the way he shot the whole film right down to the edit.
I want every role I take on to challenge me as I want to grow as an
actress, so I concentrated more about pushing myself to get this right
rather than thinking about being a lead.
With Philip Gardiner, you have
recently also shot Dark Watchers: The Women in Black
- a few words about that one, and
about your character in it?
Dark Watchers
was great fun, it’s
about 3 girls who house-share, 2 of them go UFO spotting, then some weird
stuff starts happening, it’s about alien abduction and “what is”.
I
play Alexis a UFO geek, obsessed by the whole thing, I was in my element
when her character started getting a bit more freaked out and things
started getting strange.
Your character in Dark Watchers: The Women in Black
is a staunch UFO-believer. Your own
thoughts on the subject?
Ha ha Unfortunately I believe there is a logical
explanation for everything somewhere, there is so much that goes on behind the
scenes of our everyday lives that just because we don’t know about it when we
get a glimpse of something we are unaware of, we take it as alien but it is just
really “unexplained”. How would you compare making Dark Watchers: The Women in Black
to shooting Lady
of the Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire - and which shoot gave
you more personal satisfaction? Dark Watchers: The Women in Black
was a great week with amazing cast and crew all
fantastic to work with but Lady
of the Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire is what I am still most proud of just
based on personal achievement. How did you get into
acting in the first place, and did you receive any sort of training on the
subject? Acting has always been my first
love it was my “A” in school, I continued with amateur dramatics after
leaving but I have no qualifications in the subject although May this year
I will be attending London met school on an advanced acting for film
course in the hope I can continue to improve and push myself to new
limits. What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to Dark Watchers: The Women in Black
and Lady
of the Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire?
My
first feature was called The Flirting Cub, an indie comedy where I
was cast as lead female by an X Factor-style vote out of hundreds of
applicants. I then went on to do Paranormal Haunting: The Curse
of the
Blue Moon Inn, and since filming Dark Watchers: The Women in Black
and Lady
of the Dark: Genesis of the Serpent Vampire I have been lead
in a further 4 films. Most
of the films you've made so far are of the horror variety - a genre
especially dear to you, and why (not)? To
be honest I have never really been into horrors, I kind of just fell into
them, but the roles involved suit me as they involve being extremely
creative. I do love the comedies and I would love to work on a good drama. Besides making
movies, you have also done quite a bit of theatre. What can you tell us
about your stagework, and how do stage-acting and movie-acting compare? Wow
what a difference acting on stage is to acting for film, I think stage
acting takes a lot of skill as you have to make a character believable but
be so much bigger vocally and physically - and the adrenaline well you
can’t beat it!, I have won a best actress award on stage for the role of
Cecily in the play The Importance of Being Earnest, which pushed me to
take the next step into film.
Any
other talents of yours you'd like to talk about? I
have started producing some movies and I have just finished my 4th
production, so I’m always on the lookout for script ideas than can be
made into a low budget, one location film like Lady
of the Dark. Any
future projects you'd like to share with us?
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Keep
an eye out for a film called Twisted – the Devil in her Mind. Actresses
(or indeed actors) who inspire you? Johnny
Depp is an actor I have the upmost admiration for, he takes on any role with
flare and style and he is not scared of being different. Your favourite
movies?
Oh my goodness I have so many, I
love Black Swan, Natalie Portman deserved that award, but I love
loads from all different genres. ... and of course, films you really deplore? I
can’t stand spoofs and films that make me cringe through stupidity. Anything else you are
dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Thank
you for the great reviews and this fab interview xx. Thanks
for the interview!
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