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Your new movie Bring
Out the Fear - in a few words, what is it about, and what can you
tell us about your character in it?
Bring
Out the Fear
is a movie about a couple who are struggling to fix their
doomed relationship getting lost in a nearby forest during a proposal that
goes very wrong. My
character Rosie is a very complex character with a troubled past. Rosie
feels trapped in a lot of aspects of her life and craves freedom from her
addictions, her relationship and now the forest.
What did you draw upon to bring your character to life, and how
much Ciara Bailey can we find in Rosie?
Great
question! I think the early scenes in the movie I drew from my own
experiences (not a fan of the cold and hill hiking!), but the actual
character is thankfully very different from myself. Rosie
is a flawed individual and to truly understand her life choices I really
had to understand why she did what she did, and what had made her rely so
heavily on alcohol and most importantly what made her want to overcome
this addition. These are all very big parts of her life that is so
important when I was working on developing her fully. Rosie wanting to
break free from every aspect of her life told me an awful lot about her
inner courage and strength.
How did you get
involved with the project, and what drew you to it? I
was lucky enough to have worked with both Richard Waters (director) [Richard
Waters interview - click here] and Ally
Scarff (producer) before on a comedy that I co-wrote. Richard had spoken
about his project and asked me to read the script - so I was intrigued! What
were your initial reactions when you read the script for the first time I
loved it. I loved how clear I could see the pictures and how I just felt
the story. Even though I loved the script and the story, to be honest I
was petrified at the thought of taking it on! (I even rang Rich to make
sure he wanted me as Rosie, as I was having doubts that I could do it!) I
never played someone so complex or flawed as Rosie and I was scared I
couldn’t find her truth and couldn’t find ‘her’, the character that
Rich so clearly envisioned for his story (I’m dyslexic – so for me to
bring a character’s dialogue to life and to actually remember my lines I
need to understand my character inside out). It was a huge responsibility
knowing that 95% of the time there’s just two of us on screen, and I
didn’t take that responsibility lightly. It was an honor to be offered
the role and work with the guys again but overall for me I didn’t want
to leave Rich down and I wanted to bring his script he wrote so clearly to
life.
Do
talk about Bring
Out the Fear's director Richard Waters, and what was your
collaboration like?
As mentioned above I luckily enough worked with Rich before on another
project, and he’s a dream to work with! As a director he gives an actor
freedom and confidence to explore their character and always makes you
feel so comfortable and relaxed on set. Rich is always open for questions
or queries on dialogue and his characters' purposes and objectives. I
trust his eye on takes and he makes sure an actor is very comfortable and
happy before we shoot. Rich always gets the best out of everyone he works
with including us actors! It really is such a pleasure being in his
company, and working with Rich is always an incredible experience.
What can you tell us about the shoot
as such, and the on-set atmosphere? Rich
and Ally are very selective who they have on set. They like a positive and
relaxed atmosphere throughout the shoot – and somehow, they always get
it right! We shot Bring
Out the Fear in November and it was absolutely
freezing and I have a ridiculous fear of spiders, so this was a challenge
in itself! But we had an absolute blast every day. We were like one big
happy family! We all worked together as a team and wanted to tell this
story as best as we could - and I think we did just that! Any future projects
you'd like to share? I
am in KIN 2 (Irish gangland TV series) which is due to be aired soon, and
I have two feature films also due to be out soon: The Hurler and
the new one directed by Richard!
From what I know, you've started
acting on stage at a rather early age - so what can you tell us about your
early days as an actress, and your education on the subject?
I was in a stage school called Stage Fright in Waterford from a very
young age which I absolutely loved. Following this I appeared in a number
of musicals. I took a break from acting for a number of years due to an
illness and then I was in exam years in school so that unfortunately had
to come first!
Over
the years, you've also done your fair share of modelling and beauty
pageants - so do talk about that aspect of your career?
When
I was sixteen, I was signed to a local modelling agency in Waterford and a
few years later I was selected to represent Waterford as Miss
Waterford in Miss Ireland that same year. On the judging panel of
Miss
Ireland was the creative director of a nationwide hairdressing chain and a
modelling agency based in Dublin who both wanted to work with me. I was
lucky enough to do a number of campaigns while working as a model (face of
Peter Mark for a year, Thomson Travel brochures, number of magazine covers
etc). Although I was extremely grateful with all the work, I longed to get
back on stage and play other more interesting characters than myself! So,
I wanted to get back into training and really put all my effort into
learning the craft. So, I started training with Conal Kearney for a number
of years, and then I went on to study in The Gaiety, Film Actors Studio
and did a number of workshops on character study, dialect, scene study,
and just recently I studied Psychology in Acting. Coming from a modelling
background I wanted to peel that layer back and embody the characters I was
auditioning for. With modelling in Ireland, I was in a lot of commercials
over the years which also kept my acting bug going while I was working on
my craft!
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What
inspired you to transition to movie-acting eventually, and how does it
compare to performing on stage?
I
did stage from a young age but I suppose with modelling I had more
experience being in front of a camera, so it was more of a natural
progression than stage. I still love stage and regularly go to the
theatre, but at present I get more TV/film auditions than stage. With
regards to the difference of a stage actor and a film/TV actor – I think
you learn a lot more by being on stage, but both are executed very
differently. In TV/film
it’s all in the eyes of the actor, every movement is so subtle and
understated. A simple look can tell an audience your characters
relationship with the other character on screen, their opinion of them etc,
whereas on stage you are using every part of your body to tell the story,
movement of the character, stance, and voice. A stage actor has to project
to make sure the audience seated at the back of the theatre can hear every
word whereas TV/film this is not needed. Similar
techniques are used for both but screen actors internalizes their thoughts
and feelings, which shows in their eyes and a theatre actor has to show
the audience their thoughts and feelings through movement.
What
can you tell us about your filmwork prior to Bring
Out the Fear? Before Bring
Out the Fear I had filmed a number of TV projects including Doctors
(BBC) The
Tudors, Maru (TG4) and a romantic comedy film called The Food
Guide To Love.
How would you describe yourself as
a actress, and some of your techniques to bring your characters to life?
Being
dyslexic I really need to understand everything about the character, or I
can’t remember the character's dialogue and struggle to bring them to
life! So, preparation for me is huge. Unfortunately, this can be
challenging when auditioning as a lot of the time there’s a very quick
turnaround!
I
always remind myself whatever character I work on for an audition that
they are human and most likely want to be loved (love themselves or be
loved by another character). I always look for their purpose in the story,
their challenges, their relationships with other characters in the scene
and what happened just before this scene as this can change the direction
of where the scene/story goes.
Actresses
(and indeed actors) who inspire you? There
are so many! But Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet are just incredible. I
also love Julia Roberts as she always brings likability to every character
she plays. Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks and Robin Williams also deserve a
mention here! I absolutely loved Robin Williams, he was such an incredible
character actor. Your
favourite movies?
Depending
on my mood! Closer
(school for actors!), Shawshank
Redemption, Pulp
Fiction, Django
Unchained, Good
Will Hunting, Bridesmaids, Blair
Witch Project, To
Kill a Mockingbird (also incredible on stage!).
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... and of course, films you really
deplore? I cant think of any I’m afraid! Your website, social media,
whatever else? Ciarabailey1 on Instagram, @ciarabailey1
on Twitter. Thanks for the
interview!
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