Carole Derrien Interview

Was it difficult to both act and produce?

Definitely, yes. On NM Paul and I did everything from set designs to catering, continuity, prompting...everything. I could still be looking for Laurent’s (Lec’s) misplaced jacket seconds before a close up of him and Blanche, which of course was me. It also proved quite tricky to be getting into make up whilst keeping an eye on the extras who were drinking all the beers, even the ones that were props! It was hard work. Definitely worth it though, I am very proud of the result.

Do you like you character, Blanche?

I love Blanche! A life of passion, debauchery, wealth, decadence. I feel very lucky that I got to wear her clothes, drive her cars, what good taste she has! I admire her loyalty, she is so devoted to her lover, Lec, although I must also thank her for giving me the opportunity to kiss Morrigan Hel, which was nice

Which scene do you look back on most fondly from an acting standpoint?

The drug scene is definitely my favourite. We had such a good laugh filming it. We shot silent so Paul kept giving us instructions like “sniff it”, “pour it all over you”, “someone pour it on his face”… We were using coffee-mate and by 39 degrees and 90% humidity it’s not easy to either sniff or pour any of it. We kept the camera rolling for so long, the actors, that’s Laurent, Troy and I, tried to remain serious but the crew could not stop laughing, so we were cracking up too. Ryan did an excellent job operating the camera in the middle of all this nonsense and the scene is my favourite to remember and now to watch.

And from the other side of the camera?

We decided to refilm the opening scene at the very end of the shoot (April 2006) and we cast two new actors : Michelle and Romain. Michelle took me completely aback when she went for the scary tortured screams. She was really impressive. I was in the room with her and the DOP, the rest of the crew in the next room. When we called action she just went for it and it sent shivers down my spine. We didn’t call cut for a while because I think we were all in shock. Her performance was really strong, and I believe it translates in the edit.

What’s next for Carole?

Now that the movie is completed, I am out of the editing room and putting on my PR hat. We hopefully will be attending a lot of festivals and meeting people interested in Nature Morte. But making a new movie soon, that’s really what I am looking forward to. Paul is already working on his new project, “The Torture Slide”. And I’m prepared to sleep with the Director to get a part.