After talking with her last year for Women in Horror Month, this year I'm pleased to talk to actress Joyce Curtis about the status of shelved projects from last year, working on the film Nishabdham and other upcoming films she's working on.
Me: Hello and thank you for agreeing to return! What in general have you been up to since last we spoke?
Joyce Curtis: Moving to Portland because of Covid. A few auditions but many canceled scheduled shoots.
Me: Among one of the projects mentioned was the series Midnight in the Diner. What updates, if any, can you provide about this?
JC: This has also been but on indefinite hold.
Me: As well, you've also mentioned shooting 'Park Dead: The Awakening.' Considering the state of the world at the time of filming forced its postponement, are you looking forward to returning to the film as it stands?
JC: I believe they are adding more to the script for my character.
Me: As well, you also started in a Bollywood effort, 'Nishabdham.' How did you get involved with this project?
JC: A casting Director who knew me booked me for the film through my agent, Melissa at Big Fish NW. No audition necessary.
Me: While there's an international cast involved, how was the experience working on such a film?
JC: It was wonderful to make new friends from India. We follow each other on Facebook. Although the production was run differently from what we are used to in the US. Sometimes the communication was lacking on all sorts of things. …I.e. scheduling, characters.
Me: What was the set like while shooting the film? How did the cast and crew react to the type of film being made?
JC: There were challenges between the crew between US union and non-union actors. The union shut down the film for noncompliance a few times. But it eventually worked out.
Me: Do you recall having any odd or funny on-set stories about yourself or any of the other cast/crew members?
JC: The two female stars from India had several people in their entourage. They had make-up, wardrobe, an assistant each and did not work on anyone else. When I needed my nun costume collar sewn done, one of the female stars did it herself. So sweet. Then my costume was wrinkled and she made her wardrobe assistant iron it. He was not happy but she was great!
Me: You also appeared in the project 'Masked Monologues.' How did this come about?
JC: Our manager signed us up for a free online acting class with Karen Paull, a very experienced teacher. She worked with us to write our own Covid story in a monologue. This was challenging for me because I had never written anything of my own before.
Me: Given the timeliness of the material, did that add an extra layer and depth to your scenes?
JC: It was one of the best things I have done, as an actress. It was about my real 84-yr-old biological mother that I had recently found and my fear of losing her to Covid. I did not have to ”act” my tears. So I will be filming an update. My mother is still in rehab trying to recover. My biggest fear was realized.
Me: With the nature of how it was shot, did that add any extra challenges to filming?
JC: Because of Covid, we all shot our own monologue. We had to shot in the dark with a spotlight on your face, and a mask in the background. It took me a while to figure out the lighting. I am used to doing self-tapes on my phone camera but not with this lighting. I shot it in my garage with a flashlight for the spot. It was a lot of effort but worth it.
Me: Lastly, what else are you working on that you'd like to share with our readers?
JC: I have two films in the works and also Park Dead. 💀 The first film I am an Indiana Jones kind of character and the second a “cult leader.” In Park Dead, I play a botanist. Indian Jones-type character is scheduled for sometime in April.
This interview ran as part of our Women in Horror Month celebrations. Click the banner below to check out all of our reviews and interviews about the occasion:
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