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Your new movie Le Monstro
- in a few words, what's it about?
Simply put, Le Monstro is an unrequited love story. It’s inspired by the
true tale of Julia Pastrana and her husband and manager Theodore Lent, who
toured her globally as “The ugliest woman in the world.” It was made to
address the dark side of female exploitation, explore life’s cruel beauty
standards, and to epitomize the healing power of art.
Le
Monstro is based on the life of sideshow performer Julia Pastrana
- so what can you tell us about her, what kind of research did you do on
her, and how did you happen upon her story in the first place? I discovered Julia’s story online and spent a great deal of time
researching her. The more I learned, the sadder her story became. For
those who don't know, Julia Pastrana was born in 1834 in Mexico with a
rare condition called hypertrichosis (aka excessive hair growth). At the
time, scientists had little understanding of such conditions, and one of
the prevailing, though inaccurate, theories was that she was the product
of her mother mating with an ape. This led to her being labeled the "Ape
Woman", a term popularized by her husband, Theodore Lent, who exploited
her condition for financial gain, even unto death. When both she and their
child died from complications of childbirth, Lent had them
embalmed/taxidermied and continued to parade them around the world for
profit. Other sources of inspiration while writing Le
Monstro? It’s hard for me to make a movie unless I’m really in love with the
characters. There was something so tragically beautiful about Julia–the
fact that her life existed in the public space and yet was fraught with so
much private loneliness really hit a chord. The big question for me was:
Did he love her? After many conversations with journalist and Ukrainian
refugee Artem Zaiets, who is writing a revolutionary book about her and
who was kind enough to share insights into her real life with me, I sadly
came to understand the answer was: No. What can you tell us about your
directorial approach to your story at hand?
This film was very story driven, but I did try a few new things. Some of
my shots turned out the way I wanted, or better, thanks to my
cinematographer Ben Heald; and others, not so much, haha. For example, I
wanted a very high jib shot during the dance scene, and I wanted to work
with double exposure. Our jib operator got a higher paying gig at the last
minute so we used a tall ladder instead, and the edit got a cross fade.
But this wasn't anyone's fault. In the end, we only had so much time and
money, and… there’s always next time. You also
play the lead in Le Monstro
- so what can you tell us about your character, what did you draw upon to
bring her to life, and how much Gabrielle Rosson can we find in Juliet?
Good question. I almost hesitate to be honest. Ya know, I could have
easily given the role of “Juliet” to someone more talented or deserving.
But I needed to play her. It was a sort of therapy for me. For months
leading up to it I didn't shave, I forced myself to stay in a very dark
place mentally–a place of rejection that I played over and over again in
my mind to the point of nightly tears–because somehow I felt that if I
fully gave myself over to the pain I could come out on the other side of
it. The whole process was leading up to a rebirth for me–so that when I
finally shaved, recolored my hair and finished the film–I could finally
let go. And I think it worked, for the most part. Do
talk about the rest of your cast, and why exactly these people?
I have always wanted to work with Damien Chinappi. Not only is he a great
actor, but he’s also very handsome and I thought that juxtaposed well with
my character (and me, frankly). I made him audition for the role of
“Jonah” along with everyone else. It was very interesting to work with
other, equally talented, actors during that process. Each person brought
an entirely new angle to the story. Some came across as more of a creepy
uncle haha, and others were too fatherly. But in the end, what felt best
was to work with someone who played him as vain and arrogant–the complete
opposite of my character.
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We also had Deb Del Negro play the wardrobe mistress. Deb is an
up-and-coming actress, probably best known for my film She, Who Dared
and Kris Salvi's Woman Under An Inferno
Sky [Kris Salvi interview
- click here]. She’s also a dear friend
and sister to me. She executive produces almost all of my films and truly
believes in the work. This role didn’t come with much dialogue, but she
didn’t need it. In this story, just as in real life, she was a witness and
a friend—and I think that really comes across. A
few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? We shot the entire project in a single day. The night before, we loaded
in, blocked out all the scenes, and then filmed nonstop until the very
last second before loading out. This tight schedule was possible thanks to
Ben Heald, who helped produce the film and assembled an incredible crew of
industry professionals. We also relied heavily on the New England indie
film community to get this done. From the producers behind-the-scenes, to
the amazing MHU, special FX, and art team–we just got so lucky. And God,
did we have fun! Also,
do talk about your movie's score for a bit, and about the recording
session of Juliet's aria! Ian Rashkin, is a brilliant,
brilliant, musician, who not only selected the opera I sang, but also
composed music for the open and close of the film. Originally, I wanted
music during my monologue, but it was his idea to have silence, and
looking back I think that was a stroke of genius. In order to pull off the
vision, I took opera lessons under John Murelle, and spent time with a
dialect coach. French is a very hard language to master, and singing it
no less! But once I got it down I flew to LA, we recorded it and then I
lip-synched to it on the day of the shoot (also, not easy!). Overall, the
whole experience was amazing and I am so happy we took the time to make
this film as real and as authentic as it could be. I also now have a great
party trick…
The $64-question of course,
where can Le Monstro be
seen? Le Monstro was conceptualized as a black and white film that has a color
flashback sequence, but we're screening an exclusive FULL color edit on
December 12th, 2024 at Cinema Salem as part of the Greater
Boston Film Collective’s (GBFC) annual holiday film mixer. RSVP here:
www.facebook.com/
share/
e7LcwdV1AfiwEEn6/. It’s also waiting for
word from a few festivals. But I hope to have it online by Summer 2025 on
my @JoanOfArtFilms page: www.youtube.com/@JoanOfArtFilms Anything you can tell us abouit audience and
critical reception of Le
Monstro? I think it’s been well received, but one never knows haha. All I can ever
hope for when someone watches one of my films is that it piques their
curiosity. If someone googles Julia Pastrana, or if they take a minute to
think about the true meaning of beauty, then I did my job.
Any future projects you'd like to
share? I’m currently working on a very dark comedy called
Smother with Deb Del Negro and Kris Salvi. It’s a coming-of-age 1970s
period film about an accidental hitman. Think 40 Year Old Virgin meets
Napoleon Dynamite meets Goodfellas. It’s also a love letter to disco and
I’m planning lots of musical numbers. So, if anyone wants to become an
investor, now’s the time to step right up haha. But seriously, we’ll need
all hands on deck for this one because it’s going to be a feature film
with a huge cast and serious need for costumes, cars and locations! Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever
else?
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Feeling lucky?
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The links below
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Here’s my website: www.gabriellerossonfilms.com, and I’m on all the
socials, except X. Cause, ya know, f*** the oligarchs. Also, please check
out the full cast/crew lineup and trivia for Le Monstro on IMDb:
www.imdb.com/title/tt32205904/
Anything else you're dying to mention and I have
merely forgotten to ask? I guess I’d just like to say to whoever reads this that you are enough.
You are good, you are deserving, and you are loveable. And don’t ever let
anyone make you feel that you are not. There is only one you, and there
will only ever be one you. So give yourself a hug. XO
Thanks for the interview!
No, thank YOU, Mike! Love ya! behind-the-scenes
photos by Rick Chandler
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