They often say you cannot have too much of a good thing! And in this case, I will agree, as OneFilmFan.com was given the additional pleasure of scoring an interview with lead actress Christine Conger of the upcoming indie film, “Iris”. In tandem with our recently posted interview with the film’s director Chiara Farina, we thought it would be equally engaging and fun to get a perspective of the project from someone in front of the camera, much less in the primary role of Alix, the story’s focal point character. Like Ms. Farina, Christine is also a current student at Arizona State University. So without any further fussing about, let’s get right into our interview with the lovely Ms. Conger!
One Film Fan: First off, tell us a bit about yourself and what brought you to the place of ultimately choosing acting as a career path.
Christine Conger: I’m a theatre student in ASU graduating this December. After graduating, I plan to move to New York to continue pursuing my acting career. I enjoy acting in both film and theatre, although I want to continue to be in as much experimental and independent productions as possible. I also do collages with various and other mixed media art, as well as participate in cosplay. I always need a project, so if I don’t have an acting gig going on, that’s when I’ll really focus on a Tank Girl cosplay or something else that I’m working on. I get to learn a lot of new skills through doing that.
Acting is what I’ve always loved doing. And it’s stayed there, even when other things have waxed and waned. I just can’t see myself doing anything else, so I had to pursue it.
O.F.F.: How have you further learned the art of acting (ie: mentors, influences, schooling)?
C.C.: I’ve been super influenced and inspired by this one professor at ASU, his name is Brian Foley, and he’s fantastic. I took a clown class with him, and that was the best class I ever took in college. It really teaches you to take risks, and follow your impulses. He had a really great way of expecting you to do the best job you could possibly do, and making you feel like you owe it to yourself to do it. Also, there are just a lot of actors I admire, such as Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix, and Elizabeth Olsen.
O.F.F.: What types of projects have you been involved in so far in your acting journey?
C.C.: I’ve been involved in many different types of projects – short films, plays, and also a feature.
“Iris” is probably my favorite project I’ve been in so far. I like doing things that are well-written and where everyone is invested in making the film as good as possible, and things where you have the room to explore the character and do the best job you can do. I was also in the play “Bug” by Tracy Letts, where I was Agnes. That was a really awesome part, too, in that it allowed me to explore things outside my comfort zone.
O.F.F.: When preparing for the roles you’ve done to date, do you always have the same routines/methods to get into a character or does that vary depending ON the role? Additionally, how much research do you tend to do FOR a character?
C.C.: How I get into a role does really depends on the role. Alix was fairly similar to me as a person in terms of her emotional journey and mannerisms. She’s a little more internalized than I am, but I had things to pull from. So for “Iris” in particular, it was more emotional preparation before the scene, like listening to music and stuff like that, to get in her headspace. Usually, I like to do as much pre-planning as possible–like research, doing the character’s background, and everything so that I can have it all but not have to think about everything when I’m actually doing it.
One thing I always do with every character is decide how they lost their virginity: what age it was, and what kind of happened. It really says a lot about the character’s emotional journey throughout, how their life has been, and what moments have really defined them as a person.
So, for Alix, it was her senior year in high school on her prom night. She went with this guy who was kind of a friend, he asked her and they went. She was a senior, so she was just like, “Ok, this is my time, I guess”. She was kind of unsure about it, but she ended up going for it. So that was her first experience.
O.F.F.: Do you prefer more physically driven characters or emotionally driven characters and why?
C.C.: Emotionally driven, although I do also enjoy physical characters. I really enjoy being able to get into the emotional depth of a character and who they are.
O.F.F.: Has there been a certain character (or characters) to date you’ve enjoyed playing in particular and why?
C.C.: I really enjoyed playing Alix. There was so much emotional depth going into her. Especially in short films, if you’re a female role, you’re “the girlfriend”, or some other one-dimensional character. With Alix, it was very focused on her as a person and what depression is actually like to go through rather than sensationalizing or belittling it. So that was really great.
O.F.F.: So, onto your current project, “Iris”, a new indie film that just wrapped filming recently. What drew you to this film?
C.C.: There’s a lot I can relate with in my personal life to this character. I’ve dealt with depression and anxiety, among other things throughout my life, so it was really neat to see that portrayed in a film from someone else who experienced it firsthand and in a way that wasn’t exploiting the fact that this person was depressed. And, it’s hopeful in a way that isn’t just like, “It all gets better!”, but instead in a way that says it’s really difficult, but it can get better. It doesn’t belittle it by making it seem too easy, but it does it justice.
O.F.F.: Tell us a little more about the character, Alix, you play in it.
C.C.: Alix is in a weirdly transitional time. She’s in her early 20’s, she went to college for a year, and then ended up having to drop out due to emotional problems. She wants so badly to be able to be great at her art and be able to do that, but she’s undergoing a lot of emotional issues and depression while she’s learning to do what she loves to do. She’s learning how to live and not just survive.
O.F.F.: Was it hard to address/become a character dealing with that theme of suicide?
C.C.: Because I’ve been through a lot of the things Alix is going through, it wasn’t too hard. I was able to draw a lot from my own personal experiences for her, so that helped a lot. Most of it was getting into that headspace before a scene through being off on my own and listening to music.
O.F.F.: How has it been working alongside your fellow actors in “Iris”? Any anecdotes to share from the set while filming, humorous or otherwise, especially given the gravity of the movie’s primary focus?
C.C.: All my fellow actors were fantastic. Skyler (Lacey) was the best, and I couldn’t have imagined anyone else being that part. Everyone in it was doing their best and really into their roles.
The pie was really good! I get really excited by food and there was a lot of good food on set. I basically got to eat and smoke cigarettes all day because Alix smokes cigarettes a lot. It was great. On the last day, I ate five cupcakes. It made up for all the grueling times where I had to sit there for a half hour listening to the same suicidal song over and over again.
When we did the scene where Alix cries in the car, Chiara came up to me after one of the other park scenes and she was just like, “So, we’re gonna have you drive around and film you until you cry.” I thought she was kidding at first, but then I was like, “Ok, can I put on a song?” It was really funny.
O.F.F.: In further detail, how was it working with director Chiara Farina?
C.C.: Chiara is a fantastic director. It was perfect because she would be super honest about what you were doing, but in a way that didn’t make you feel bad about yourself, which is a hard balance to strike. She’d be like, “You know what, you’re in the right vein. Just keep playing with it”. But I knew what that meant. Something I always appreciate is honesty. So the director knowing what they want and being able to communicate it, as an actor, that’s what you need.
Chiara totally did that. And she was on top of it! She was one of the most organized directors I’ve ever worked with–professional and friendly, and she understood what she wanted. And it was really cool working with a female director, because you don’t get that often and it was great. Plus I had a fully developed character! That was great, because it’s just too rare.
O.F.F.: What other projects are on the horizon or would you LIKE to be involved in?
C.C.: My ideal role would be a circus clown in a mockumentary, about what a circus is like behind the scenes. I’m obsessed with clowns and circus history! I also think that would be awesome to show the intense amount of skill and the pain that people work through emotionally and physically in the circus. I wanna do something really intense with emotional depth, some crazy horror movie, or I wanna be like Tomb Raider or a superhero.
O.F.F.: What advice would you give to someone looking to get into the film industry in general?
C.C.: Just do your absolute best in everything that you’re doing. Don’t be complacent, and don’t get caught up in anything other than doing the best you can do with your art form. And also just be really nice to everybody and respect everybody.
O.F.F.: We traditionally end with this question–What is YOUR favorite film of all time? Why?
C.C.: “Dog Tooth”. It’s an indie Greek film that’s so good, original, and well done, and the acting is amazing. That’s my favorite film right now.
Student, actress, food lover, clown-obsessed, and heading to the hustle and bustle of NYC after graduation this December, it is most certainly evident this young, rising talent has big dreams and the plan in place to make it all happen! As always, we extend a heartfelt “Thank you!!” to the wonderful Ms. Conger for taking time out of what is surely a busy schedule to do this interview for OneFilmFan.com and to help in getting the word out about “Iris”! Looking forward to the film as soon as it is released and stay tuned, as we are seeking to get a screening and review of said movie right here! In the meantime, check out the following ways to stay up to date with the film’s progress:
“Follow” the film’s Twitter account: here
“Like” the film’s Facebook Page: here
That wraps this newest interview up, folks! As mentioned above, stay tuned for more coverage of “Iris” as it is provided to us! Until next time, thank you for reading! Spread the word!
