British-born Gemma Arterton has quickly been rising through the ranks since
breaking out in St Trinian’s six years ago. Her latest role, as a sexed-up
vampire in Neil Jordan’s Byzantium, sees her try something completely
different.
Byzantium centers on two mysterious
women, Clara (Arterton) and Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan), who seek refuge in a
run-down coastal resort. However, when Eleanor reveals their secret, that
they’re 200 year-old vampires, to Frank (Caleb Landry Jones), it’s not long
before their past catches up on them with deadly consequences.
You’ve done period
drama, action adventure and Bond. What was it about Moira
Buffini’s script
that made you decide it was a vampire film you wanted to do next?
Well, the original script I read was
much more about the mother and daughter relationship between Clara and Eleanor
and only hinted at the vampire stuff. But when Neil [Jordan] came aboard, he
wanted to make it more of a genre piece. For me, it was never just, “Oh, it’s a
vampire movie”, it was much more about the characters at its core, what it was
like to be a trapped, ageless mother having to care for her daughter. And the
genre elements sort of fed into that. It’s probably the first film I’ve done
that’s more in line with what I like to watch, which is anything supernatural
and fairytale-like.
Are you much of a
horror fan yourself, then?
I wouldn’t say I go to see horror
films for the sake of seeing a horror film, but I’ve always been fascinating by
the genre because it always makes you feel something. But I wouldn’t go to see
a horror film because it’s got a lot of gore in it. I’m much more interested in
the stuff underneath the surface. I think it’s such a broad term, horror, and
even this film is more art-house horror.
What research was
involved to play Clara?
I had to learn to lap dance, that way
the first thing. I made up a whole pole dance because I wasn’t sure how much I
would need. I watched a lot of documentaries on brothels and what it was like
for people to live that way, the day to day. That was what I was least familiar
with, so I wanted to make sure I was able to portray that side of Clara as
accurately as possible. And then there was a lot of physical preparation. I had
to do a lot of training because vampires are obviously incredibly strong, so I
needed to be able to have a convincing creature-like presence. We also did a
lot of work on the script together, Saoirse and I, for a couple of months
before filming started to get that relationship are strong as possible.
It sounds as though
you had a lot of time to develop a relationship with Saoirse.
Yeah, yeah. We had a rehearsal in
London two months before production began and that was the first time I met
Saoirse. Our relationship was very natural, very touchy feely, plating her hair
and playing with her face. But we didn’t have any bonding sessions, no shopping
or bowling trips.
What was it like to
work with Neil? He’s quite experienced in the horror genre. Did you feel
intimidated at all?
Yeah. I think when you work with
someone who you’ve admired for so long, it’s only natural to feel nervous. But
once I’d gotten over those initial nerves, it became such a joy to work with
him. And I think we’re going to work together again, which is very flattering.
It was a great relationship that we had. He’s very interested in actors. He
loves the process and has a huge amount of respect for the profession, which
again made the working relationship easier. He’s constantly pushing the
boundaries and very vibrant with his direction, which makes you want to work
harder and to figure out how you can take what you’re doing to the next level.
It was a magical experience, a very playful environment.
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