Your upcoming movie The Scarehouse
- in a few words, what is it
about, and what can you tell us about your character in it?
The Scarehouse is about revenge. Two hopeful sorority girls are blamed for a prank
gone wrong. Instead of getting mad they get even. Well… they’re pretty mad
too. I play Corey Peters. She’s not your typical ‘sorority girl’. I
would say she’s a badass bitch. She does want answers from these girls but
ultimately she wants to see them suffer.
You have come up with the story of The Scarehouse
together
with your husband and director Gavin Michael Booth [Gavin
Michael Booth interview - click here] - so what were your
inspirations, and did you create your character with yourself in mind?
Originally
it was going to be an all male cast. A fraternity. I know… what the hell
were we thinking? So when Gavin told me that it was going to be all female
I was determined to sit over his shoulder and tell him all my devious
ideas. I actually wanted to play Lisa. We wrote her with myself in mind
but after the first draft I started to really like Corey. I also thought
‘Hey… when was the last time you played a lead in a feature for Universal?!?…’ So Corey was the obvious choice. They did make me
audition though. I like to tell people that so they don’t think I get
parts by sleeping with the director.
What
did you draw upon to bring your character to life, and how much of Sarah
Booth can we find in Corey? Besides
all the people I’ve also killed? I think Corey has a sense of humour
even in dark situations, I have the same habit of laughing during
inappropriate moments but I think it’s refreshing. Speaking of sense of
humour, I did co-write the movie so mine was sort of injected in all the
girls; which is fun. Corey and I are both sort of surprising people, in
different ways but still. And really, I like that Corey talks about poop.
Shit happens.
What was your on-set
collaboration with your husband/director Gavin Michael Booth [Gavin
Michael Booth interview - click here] on The Scarehouse
like - and since we're talking about him, how have the two of you first
hooked up, actually?
Wow
Mike. That’s a really personal question… but we hooked up in a hot tub
with too much red wine. As for
collaborations we are pretty much the same person. We have a lot of the
same impulses and share a brain. My mom calls him the male version of me.
But when we do disagree about something I win. That’s why we’re still
happily married.
Since you were also involved in the
production side of things, what were the major challenges here? I
love producing but sometimes you find yourself in the middle of a scene
thinking “If lunch hasn’t arrived yet I am gonna kill the caterer!”
or “Can’t this girl get her lines right? We are almost 2 hours behind
schedule!” Things you should not do while performing stunts or are
trying to be emotional on camera. You have to remember that even though
you own two hats (producing/acting) you can never wear them at the same
time. It’s ugly. It’s a blessing to have the awareness of worlds both
in front and behind the camera but sometimes it’s TMI. When you know
your behind schedule but you as an actor know you need another take you
have to be selfish and ask for it. No matter how much you aggravate the
director…
What
can you tell us about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? It
was tough. Not gonna lie. Some people create the best of a hard situation
and some people make it worse. It taught me a lot about myself. Overall I
think I am more than ready for the next film.
Making The Scarehouse
has taught me valuable lessons about dealing
with difficult people and situations. Any
future projects you'd like to share?
Right
now I am working on the 2nd season of Helix for SyFy
Network.
I’m not allowed to say anything about it but it’s going to be pretty
sick. It’ll be on air in January. Gavin and I have a few projects on the
go right now, we’re waiting to see which one takes off first. I’m also
producing a play here in Toronto in December, my costar and director
(David Ferry) was in Boondock Saints – so that’s pretty cool too!
What got you into
acting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject?
I
grew up loving dance. I had
been practicing ballet since I was four. So I always knew I loved being on
stage. When I was introduced to theatre in high school I realized that
acting seemed like a more natural fit for me than pursuing dance. I
studied professional theatre at Dawson College in Montreal before trying
out the real world on my own. I’m self-disciplined for the most part and
have never stopped learning – acting classes, stunt classes, making my
own short films to acting, reading books on different techniques.
Never stop learing! What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to The Scarehouse? I
did smaller projects immediately after school, daily roles on TV shows and
film sets. The first big star I acted opposite was Eric Bana in Deadfall
- he
rescues me in that film; it was awesome. I did a French Canadian soap
opera called 30 Vies which helped get me my French actor’s union card.
I’m kind of like a unicorn for having both French and English cards.
I’ve also really enjoyed putting on my producer hat to help make low
budget features (Ben’s At Home), a short (To Hell, With
Love) and now
would like to continue with both like I did on The Scarehouse.
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How would you describe
yourself as an actress, and some of your techniques to bring your
characters to life?
I
don’t have a single technique, every character is different.
Writing about characters for some really helps; others I need to
figure out how to embody physically; it’s all different. You really find
your character when you’re with the other actors – then you get to see
how they treat you - which informs you so much more about yourself as the
character. It all has to come together.
Actresses (and indeed actors) who
inspire you?
Anne
Dorval, she’s in Xavier Dolan’s films and you just never doubt her for
a second, she plays these great big, believable characters. I would just
love to do stuff like that. Robert Downey Jr. for his perfect comedic
timing. I don’t know… it changes every day. There are so many amazing
actors out there. Your favourite movies? Jawbreaker,
animated movies like Shrek and Toy Story – made for kids but also
adults –, Scream, The Craft, and I love simple dramas like
C.R.A.Z.Y. too.
...
and of course, films you really deplore?
I
just don’t like super predictable movies. In the audience, I want to be
surprised. Your/your
movie's website, Facebook, whatever else?
http://www.scarehousemovie.com
http://www.facebook.com/scarehousemovie
http://www.twitter.com/scarehousemovie
http://www.youtube.com/scarehousemovie
Anything else
you are dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Nope!
That’s it! Thanks for
the interview. It’s been fun
to reflect on The Scarehouse
and my career thus far! Thanks
for the interview!
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