Talking With The Dead: Questions with Maria Olsen
1. With 98 credits to your name in just under 6 years, you have certainly blazed a wide path in the film industry, with horror being one of your main venues! According to IMDB (and we know how accurate they can be!), your first role ever was 2008’s Sam Hell, directed by Michael Bayouth. Was horror always the genre that you intended to get into when you decided to be an actress, how did you come to be a part of the production and what can you tell us about your character of Nurse Kelly?
Although I was incredibly interested in horror when I was growing up – and that interest continued throughout my life – it wasn’t my intention to become a horror film actress. During my early years in South Africa, for instance, I concentrated on musical theater and straight plays, and it was only once I arrived in Los Angeles and realized that my on-screen presence was extremely intense, did I figure out that my home was probably going to be in the horror world.
I met Michael Bayouth of Son of Jason Productions – the genius behind Sam Hell – while performing in a play for the West Valley Playhouse in Los Angeles. I took over a role in a day after the actress playing the role chose to shoot a commercial one night instead of appear on stage, and this so impressed Michael that he invited me into Sam Hell to play Nurse Kelly…and I haven’t stopped since. I played her just one or two steps away from normal, and her creepy intensity would soon become one of my trademarks.
2. 2009’s A Gothic Tale was your next jump into the genre. The film was directed by Justin Paul Ritter and has “Rowdy” Roddy Piper in the role of The Narrator. The film was a selection at various film festivals, including Dead Channels San Francisco Festival of Fantastic Films, Idaho International Film Festival, Ozone Film Festival, Severed Head Film Festival and the Halloween Horror Picture Show (all in 2008), while culminating with a showing at the Fangoria Weekend of Horrors 2009 in Los Angeles. What can you tell us about your time on set, did you get to meet and work with Piper any during the film and can you tell us how the Fangoria Weekend of Horrors stacked up to the other festivals the film was in?
I loved my time on set – we shot at Lacy Street Studios in Los Angeles where I would return several years later for The Lords of Salem – and the scenes that I shot were so incredibly strong and dramatic that I use them in my reel to this day. Most of my scenes were shot at night, some of them outside and some of them in the very bowels of the building, and Justin proved a wonderful director to work with. The completed film is simply stunning, and it’s a shame that it’s not more readily available to viewers. I wasn’t, though, ever on set with Roddy, as my scenes were mainly flashbacks whereas his were part of the main storyline, but I did meet him at the Fangoria Weekend of Horrors.
Unfortunately due to work commitments, I was only able to attend the Fangoria screening. This was the first time I had seen the completed film, and I found that Justin had done complete justice to it’s complex structure, intense emotional layers and visual beauty. This is, I found, not a film for the faint-hearted, and it got great reviews.
3. Three other horror feature films are listed on your resume for the year of 2009: Dan Donley’s Shellter, Edward Payson’s Morbid: A Love Story and Patrick Horvath’s Die-ner (Get It?). In addition to them, you also have the horror shorts Dead Game (directed by Richard Bluth) and Undying Love (directed by Brian Halopoff). With four horror features and two horror shorts during that calender year, which of the projects did you find to be the most challenging yet rewarding, were you getting burned out on horror and at this point in your career, did you have a preference to working on shorts as oppossed to working on feature film?
I actually don’t think I’ll ever get burned out on horror as each film, whether short or feature, presents new challenges especially – given that I usually play the Big Bads – regarding how to justify my characters’ actions. Of the films you listed, it was Dan Donley’s Shellter that was the most challenging. My character was silent – she’d had her lips glued together – so everything that I felt and thought had to be portrayed through actions and body language. Of all the roles I played in these films, my character of Shellter’s Nurse was also the most emotionally complex, and required the largest emotional investment. I also loved playing Rose the Waitress / Zombie Rose in Die-ner, and my scenes as a human were as complex as my scenes as a zombie were slapstick!
Of the two types, shorts and features, I would say I prefer features as there’s more of an opportunity to develop and sustain a character.
4. Victor Bornia’s Darkening Sky and David and Bob Molinari’s The Bork were your two horror features in 2010, and from the synopsis’ of the films, they are are on the total opposite sides of the spectrum. Darkening Sky: “When an alien abduction nightmare is revealed to have been much more than a dream, a skeptical grad student studying the “modern mythology” of UFOs and ETs finds himself confronting an impossible reality involving shape-shifting extraterrestrials, implanted objects, organ harvesting and humans possessed by a malevolent alien presence unlike anything he has ever heard about. All while dealing with a growing suspicion that he is somehow the center of the aliens’ plan” while The Bork: “ Stan likes things done his way; in fact he insists. Stan is the sadistic task master of a small family group which includes his bible quoting wife Ophy, his one eyed step son Teddy, and his coming of age beautiful step niece, Maddy. Stan learns how to increase the profits of this landscaping business by killing his workers instead of paying them. One at a time, day labors are mysteriously disappearing and the towns’ people have a feeling Stan is to blame. For sociopath Stan everything is going fine until one day he unknowingly kills the wrong man. A man who has connections with Satan himself!” What led you to accepting these films, do you prefer your horror roles to be more hardcore or with more of a comedic slant and how do you prepare for the stylistic differences between them?
In Darkening Sky, I was offered the role and, in The Bork, I submitted, auditioned and then booked the role. My Darkening Sky role was a cameo, while my role as Ophy in The Bork was the second female lead. The films were very different from each other but, in both cases, I wanted to work with the writers and directors, and I actually still keep in touch with them today. The roles were also challenging and interesting: in Darkening Sky I played a seemingly insane homeless woman and, in The Bork, I played an abused wife; in each case, I wanted to explore the characters and try to find out what makes these troubled people tick.
I actually enjoy playing both emotionally intense roles and way-out-there comedic roles; I know where I don’t really fit and that’s middle-of-the-road romcom or sitcom lol!! With the emotionally intense roles, I’m free to let my imagination explore another person’s psyche to find out exactly why they act the way they do because if I know why a character does something, then I can make an audience believe that what I’m doing is right (at least right for the character!). With the comedic roles, on the other hand, it’s all about either letting the comedy flow naturally from the situation – which requires an in depth understanding of both the character and the situation – or about specifically creating moments of comedy by how I craft the minutiae of the character.
5. 2011 saw more horror in your cannon than the previous year, with Mark Edwin Robinson’s The Levenger Tapes, Taylor Sheridan’s Vile and Paranormal Activity 3 as features, and Brandon Scullion’s The Black Guitar and Dennis Widmeyer’s Curtain as shorts, with a host of other projects in other genres! With so much hype these days about lost and found footage films, how would you rate the experience and look of working on PA3 with your other horror efforts that year, were you looking to do more shorts at this point in your career and how did you juggle your horror projects against everything else you did that year?
When I shot PA3, I wasn’t even aware that it was PA3 that I was shooting. I had been called in to audition for a feature film named Sports Camp that I had been told was super hush-hush and in respect of which I was required to sign extremely strict non-disclosure agreements (I wouldn’t have been allowed to audition if I hadn’t agreed to sign the NDA). I shot what I thought was “Sports Camp” in a beautiful old house in Alta Dena with an amazing cast and a wonderful crew – and I found I’d worked with both some cast and some crew before – and it was only about a week after I wrapped that I discovered that I had actually shot PA3…
Another horror feature I shot that year – altho it might have a different year of release on IMDB – was Bunnyman2, and the PA3 and Bman2 shoots actually happened only a few hours, but 100 miles, apart…needless to say I didn’t get much sleep THAT night!
Regarding the features v shorts question, I will always try to book features as there’s more chance of a feature obtaining distribution and so more chance of my work getting out there. That’s totally not to say that I don’t enjoy short films – in many ways I think the short form of the art is more difficult to perfect – and I welcome every opportunity to shoot anything, both feature or short.
With respect to juggling projects, I just take one day at a time and make sure I get as much done every day as I have to. It’s not uncommon for me to shoot more than one, or even two, projects per week, often with a very quick turnaround time between roles. This is partially due to the fact that I mainly book supporting roles that shoot for a few days, which means that I can fit a lot more feature films into an average shooting year than those actors who only play leading roles with a longer time commitment.
6. 2012 was indeed a banner year in the genre for you with Jose Prendes’ The Haunting of Whaley House, Rob Zombie’s The Lords of Salem, Justin Paul Ritter’s The Amazing Adventures of the Living Corpse, Carl Lindbergh’s Bunnyman 2, Edward Payson’s The Cohasset Snuff Film, Brando Scullion’s Live-In Fear and Sherman Hirsh’s Scream, Zombie Scream! Add to that the shorts Before I Die, The Old Chair, Something Sinister and A.B.S. along with a part on American Horror Story, it would seem impossible to top that! At that point in your career, were you accepting of the title of Scream Queen, how was it being on set and working on Lords of Salem with Rob and the rest of the amazing cast and what was it like being a part of American Horror Story?
LOL All those projects may have the same IMDB release year, but I didn’t shoot them all in one year. I recorded my role in The Amazing Adventures of the Living Corpse in about 2008, for instance, and it has been due to the complexity of the film’s new 3D process that it’s taken some time to be released. On the other hand, I did shoot projects in 2012 that will show a 2013 release date…like Way Down in Chinatown and The Scarlet Samurai : Incarnation…
Also, although I’ve shot a lot of horror, I don’t think that I’ll ever be eligible for the title of Scream Queen as, in my tiny little mind anyway, that’s reserved for the leading lady / last girl actresses and doesn’t cover the Big Bads / creepy-women-from-the-end-of-the-street type roles.
Working on The Lords of Salem was absolutely awesome and everybody on set was a delight to work with. We shot at both Lacy Street Studios and the absolutely magnificent Los Angeles Theater, and I enjoyed every minute on set with the TLOS family and Mr Zombie himself, who was surprisingly quiet, given his on-screen music video persona! Being on set with Jessica Lange and the other powerhouses of the American Horror Story cast was also a dream come true, and Ms Lange is a wonderfully talented, friendly and gracious lady.
7. Lana Titova’s Infestation: Day One, Jon Craig’s The Road Killer, James Cullen Bressack’s To Jennifer, Tara Cardinal and David R. Williams’ Scarlet Samurai: Incarnation, Christopher Dye’s Something Sinister, Shawn Chou’s Reunion, Kevin Kolsch and David Widmyer’s Starry Eyes, Mark A. Pierce’s Moon Creek Cemetary and Edward Payson’s Squeal: The Harvest are the many horror titles that are either completed or in pre/post production for you for the year of 2013. These titles do not even reflect the other genres you have/will be working on this year as well. How in the world have you managed to increase your horror output this year in the face of all of your other work, are you ever concerned that you will be strictly pigeion-holed into the horror genre and out of all of the horror projects listed above, which did you find to be the most challenging and how do you unwind from such a hectic and packed schedule?
Question: what does the word “unwind” mean? I am, quite literally, always working (even in my sleep!), and I do believe the last full day I had off was in November 2010!! This doesn’t mean that I’m stressed out, though, as I can cope with a lot on my plate at once and I’ve won prizes in multi-tasking!
The films that you’ve listed can also be divided into two groups: those where I’m also attached as producer (The Road Killer, Something Sinister, Reunion and Squeal: The Harvest) and those where I’m attached only to act (the rest), and, obviously, those where I’m also producing will take up far more of my time than the others. Out of all of them, Reunion would be the most challenging as, not only did I co-produce, I also played the lead.
I’m also not concerned that I’ll be pigeon-holed in the horror genre – and if that were to happen, I wouldn’t really mind as I love the genre and all the people who work in it – because, over the last year, I’ve also been acting or acting/producing in Eric Michael Kochmer’s Way Down in Chinatown (sci-fi noir), Randal Kamradt’s Faraway (fantasy-adventure), Michael LaPointe’s LoveTouchHate (drama) and the hilarious tv series Legit, to name a few!
8. You are certainly not just a one trick pony in the business. As well as acting, you have also been in the casting department, camera and electrical department, a casting director and a producer. On the horror side, you are a producer on Live-In Fear (2012), Something Sinister (2013), Squeal: The Harvest (2013) and Tv’s Edward Payson’s Sunday Night Slaughters (The Clown and the Christian), associate producer on Scarlet Samurai: Incarnation, co-producer on Reunion and executive producer on The Road Killer. How much differently do you view a horror project when you are attached as a producer, what do you find the most difficult and the most rewarding about being a producer and can you explain the differences in your responsibilities as each different type of producer?
When I’m attached as producer, I feel much more responsible for the project, and I’m very aware of my role in making the project a success and in doing what has to be done to get the films in the can and through post-production. This does, of course, apply to ANY project I produce, be it horror or otherwise.
I think that the most difficult thing about producing is that there never seems to be enough time in the day – or the week! – to do everything that you’re supposed to do. It’s all about prioritizing and recognizing exactly what has to be done, and then just doing it. The most rewarding thing is actually seeing the completed product, and also seeing how people who have supported me react to, and enjoy, the finished product or even just a work-in-progress.
And here goes my best effort as explaining the differences:
(a) Executive Producer: you basically do everything (now that’s NOT to say that I’ve done everything on The Road Killer: in fact, I’ve only really been involved in online marketing and fundraising, and that’s because the project’s being shot in PA, very far away from my Los Angeles base);
(b) Producer: you still do everything (here I’m very hands on and I’ve been known to take on crafty, stills photography, EPK interviews and the role of a 1st AD! In other words: whatever it takes!!)
(c) Co-producer: here I assist with specific aspects of production (basically whatever it is the producers would like me to do)
(d) Associate Producer: I would assist with one specific aspect of production (usually online marketing).
The above is, though, what the different roles mean to ME when taking my duties on the above projects into account, and not the generally understood definitions of these roles.
9. Speaking of producing, you will be doing that and acting in your next project, Slash. The premise: “Cade just wants to settle down and get on with his life–find a girl, pursue his acting career–but his tempestuous step brother “Trench” doesn’t make it easy, dragging Cade through a series of increasingly violent fantasies that begin bleeding over into reality. Now, as their friends are butchered around them, Cade must finally face up to Trench and his own demons…or die trying…”. What can you tell us about your role in production and your character Mary Kelly, how did the project come to your attention and what will set this film apart from other projects that you have produced and acted in?
I’m incredibly honored to be a producer on Rycke Foreman’s Slash, and, so far, I’ve been assisting with marketing and publicity as well as crowdfunding and liaising with potential cast and crew. Not only has Rycke written an incredible script that’s going to bring ground-breaking 3D technology to everyone’s attention, he is also one of the Good Guys. Working with him and his wife, Miranda, is an absolute pleasure, and I can’t wait to meet them in person when I go to New Mexico to shoot.
The story is shot through with references to the notorious Jack the Ripper murders, and my character’s name, Mary Kelly, is just one of them. Not only is the idea of playing someone named after the victim of Saucy Jack’s most horrific murder extremely attractive to me, despite the character not having anything to do with the real life Kelly, there are aspects of her character that really resonate with me…being the artistic director of a community theater, for one! I’m also really looking forward to the kick-ass fight scenes I’ll be doing in the film; I usually do all my own stunts, and I actually love this aspect of a shoot.
The project actually came to my attention through a post Rycke and Miranda made on Linked In. I answered it. They answered me, sent me a script and a business plan, which I loved, and pretty soon I was signing a producer’s deal memo and agreeing to play Mary Kelly!
What will, no doubt, set this film aside from the others is the innovative new 3D techniques that are going to be used to bring the imagery alive. I’ve seen pictures of what this is going to look like and, quite frankly, audiences will be blown away. I can’t wait to introduce them to the spectacle that will be Slash!
10. On the crew end of Slash, you will be working with Sheryl Roberts (Executive in charge of Casting), Ned Weisman (3D Producer), Leoni Kibbey (Casting Director), Lora Carlson (Producer), Myss Miranda Foreman (Co-producer), Dev Ross (Associate Producer/Acting Coach), John Reynolds (Producer) and Rycke Foreman (Director, Producer and Writer). What can you tell us about how the crew was assembled for the project, what led to the decision to shoot in 3-D and how do you feel each one of the crew brings something to the table to make the best film you can?
By the time I came on board, almost the entire production team had already been assembled. I was, however, very lucky to be able to recommend Ned Weisman to Rycke and Miranda after being referred to Ned through a mutual acquaintance of ours, the awesome actress/producer Tara Cardinal, and he soon became part of the team as 3D Producer. The question about what prompted the decision to shoot in 3D is, furthermore, one that should be directed rather at Rycke than myself, and I will be the first one to admit that I’m just a bit challenged when it comes to technology!
I can, however, totally say that each person on the team brings something very special to the table, and that here the whole is most definitely greater than the sum of its parts. Sheryl Roberts and Leoni Kibbey have been beyond wonderful in the casting arena, and they’re always totally on top of their game. Working the nitty gritty of the production with Miranda, Lora, Rycke, John and Dev has been a joy, and, again, I can’t wait to meet everyone in person and put faces to all the names. Miranda especially must be commended for the wonderful marketing, publicity and graphics work she’s done with respect to the film’s numerous websites, webpages and online stores. There is no doubt in my mind that everyone on Team Slash is invested heart and soul in this film.
11. For the cast of Slash, the only names that are definite are you and Shawn Hernandez (Pro Wrestler for TNA and one half of the TNA World Tag Team Champions), but IMDB list a few “rumored” names for the film, including Holly Madison, Todd Farmer, Megan Lee Joy and Gibby Haynes. Are there any updates on the names listed above or truth to the rumors that they are in the film, how did you guys go about approaching Shawn for the film and what do you think the actors “rumored” for the film would bring to their roles?
At the moment, there are no updates to the confirmed cast, and it’s still only Shawn and I who have been officially pinned. The awesome Sheryl Roberts has, furthermore, handled all arrangements with Shawn and his team so far, and I’m sure she will continue to do so. Due to my being located in Los Angeles – with the rest of the team being in Arizona and New Mexico – I haven’t been as hands on with the casting process as much as I would have been had the production been based solely in California. I do, however, know that Holly, Todd, Megan and Gibby have been on Rycke’s “wish list” forever, and that, as he created the characters that he wants them to play, he must know that they’ll be a perfect match.
12. You guys have gone the route of a lot of indie film makers these days and have started a Indiegogo fundraiser to help you guys hire Publicist Stacia Brigham and Photographer Joet Mercado. To those that may not know, their work includes “T2” (Sony Pictures Worldwide Publicity Campaign 1991), “Philadelphia” (Sony Pictures – 1993 Academy Awards Campaign for Best Picture), “Sense and Sensibility” (Sony Pictures – 1995 Academy Awards Campaign for Best Picture), “WishMaster” (Robert Kurtzman / Director /publicity campaign), “The Lost Room”/ Sci-Fi Channel miniseries / Lionsgate – NM), “Fanboys” (Weinstein Company – 2009), Ad Council “No Bull” (campaign raising awareness against Bullying) and “The Flock” – Warner Bros. Richard Gere, Claire Danes – filmed in NM). What led you guys to selecting them for your publicity campaign, how much do you feel they and social media will impact the amount of interest in the film and what led to using Indiegogo fro the purpose?
Stacia and Joey were referred to us through Sheryl’s office as they have been absolutely wonderful to work with! Working with them has been a filmmaker’s dream come true, and I would totally recommend to anyone on the fence about who to use for publicity to contact Stacia.
In a world where it seems everyone and their cat is making or promoting a horror movie, it is, I believe, essential that a film should have something unique to make it stand out from the flock and to give it the edge. Yes, Slash has an awesome story, has a stellar cast and crew attached, and, given the 3D cherry on top, will look stunning, but that is all worth nothing much unless the news can get out to fans, and this is exactly where Stacia and Joey, who will be chronicling the making of the film with gorgeous stills, come into the picture. A knowledge of how social media works, and the impact it can have on the legions of online horror fans, is essential for getting the word out there, and a good publicity campaign will not only engage an audience’s interest, but will also sustain and grow it.
It was with all of this in mind that we launched our two back-to-back IGG campaigns – we needed the absolute best in publicity for our film so that word can get out to our fan-base – and, even though the campaigns are now over, fans can still help us out by purchasing their pick of all the stunning Slash swag, from clothing to keyrings and mugs to downloadable goodies, that we have on sale in our online Zazzle store.
13. Thank you so much for your time and films! What would you like to say about any of your other projects that we have not yet touched upon, is there any advice that you would give to anyone looking to get into the industry and any last words for your fans?
I don’t think we’ve spoken about the thriller Damon Shalit’s African Gothic, and I’d like to mention this feature especially because it’s all set to premier at the Durban International Film Festival in July. It’s based on a play by renowned South African playwright, Reza de Wet, and I’m thrilled that my work is finally going to be seen in South Africa in a South African project.
A film I co-produced and acted in, Eric Michael Kochmer’s Way Down in Chinatown, is also all set to premier next month, this time in Los Angeles at the 2013 Hollywood Fringe Festival, and this is the first premier I’ll be attending for a feature I’ve produced (all the others are still in post-production). I’m thrilled, to say the least…
As for advice to anyone wanting to get in the industry, I’m going to say “get in at any level you can, work any job you can to gain experience and connections and then do your utmost best at that job and keep in contact with those connections”.
For my fans, I would say keep your eyes peeled for all my new projects as I have a lot of work in post-production right now, and you’ll never know where I’ll be popping up!!
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