An accomplished name in the British indie scene, actress Lisa Jay Jenkins has developed quite a solid career working in a variety of genres including several notable roles in and out of the genre. Now, in honor of Women in Horror Month, I talk with her about her early acting career, her upcoming directorial effort Devil Witch Way and other projects.
Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, when did you get into horror in general?
Lisa Jay Jenkins: My parents used to rent horror movies from the video store every weekend. They used to let me watch them also, I was probably about 6 or 7 when I saw a horror movie for the first time. So I was a horror fan from a very young age!
Me: Were you into genre films growing up? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
LJJ: I always enjoyed horror, I think part of the attraction was that as I was very young, I shouldn't really have been watching them. One of my earliest memories of horror was watching the Poltergeist films, Nightmare on Elm Street and the House movies, I found the House movies really funny. I remember watching a video rental of The Lost Boys with my father, that movie made a big impact on me. As I got a bit older one of my favourites is the not-so-well-known Pet Semetary 2 with Edward Furlong. Loved that film and watched it over and over.
Me: Where did you get the urge to become an actress?
LJJ: I started getting involved in a local theatre group when I was 12. I was a very shy child and it really helped to develop my confidence. At first, I was mad on musical theatre and wanted to be a West End actress. I studied Performing Arts at College and University. After that, I didn't really know how to get into acting so trained as a drama teacher which I didn't really enjoy, so after a year I quit. I took a bit of time away from acting, then, about 10 years ago I was really missing it and started applying for tv and film jobs which led me to acting in horror.
Me: Is there any specific type of character you prefer playing?
LJJ: It seems quite difficult to find a good female character to play. A lot of scripts I have been sent, it's usually to play a friend, mother, girlfriend...parts that are often playing a version of yourself. What I like about acting is becoming someone completely different to me. That's the fun of acting. I love characters who are quirky, strange, a little psychotic.
Me: With plenty of short films early in your career, what tools and skills do you acquire working on those that transferred to feature-film projects?
LJJ: My first challenge with film acting was to learn the difference between acting for theatre and acting on film. My training was in theatre so I learnt to focus on making it smaller. A camera picks up all the subtleties so you don't need to do so much. An eye movement can convey so much on camera, but on a theatre stage wouldn't be noticeable at all. They're very different arts. I also learnt how long it takes to shoot a scene and to have a lot of patience!
Me: Your first full-length genre effort was "Valley of the Witch." What drew you to the character of Shannon Griffiths? How did you approach the role while filming?
LJJ: Shannon was an interesting character, she was part of a pagan group and a bit of a hippie. I enjoy a character where I get to put on a costume, I had some lovely velvet flowing skirts. I also got to be burnt at the stake on a very windy hilltop which I'm sure would be appealing to a lot of actors!
Me: What do you do to stay in character while on-set? When you're not filming, how do you pass the time between takes?
LJJ: Costume and make up helps to keep me in character a lot. I don't like to over rehearse, I feel this can take away from the spontaneity of performance so I try to just chill between takes. You usually get to meet lots of new people, other actors and crew, so I enjoy chatting and learning about their recent projects. Also, drinking lots of coffee!
Me: What was the set like while shooting the film? How did the cast and crew react to the type of film being made?
LJJ: Everyone on set was great. It's good to have a team of people who are familiar with shooting horror. Most were used to the challenges that horror can present so it actually went rather smoothly. The ones of us who got to be burnt at the stake relished the opportunity to scream very loudly.
Me: Do you recall having any odd or funny on-set stories about yourself or any of the other cast/crew members?
LJJ: We were shooting a gory scene with a blood pack. None of cast or crew had used them before so we were just expecting a little bit of blood to drip out. It literally exploded and there was blood everywhere! On the walls, ceiling, floor, camera...the cameraman panicked, stopped filming and started cleaning it up. So after cleaning it all, and running out of time at the location, we had to do it all over again the next day. The blood exploded everywhere again but this time he kept filming. I've never seen so much blood, it looked awesome!
Me: You also wrote, directed and acted in the short "Woods." Where did the inspiration come from to jump onboard as a director?
LJJ: I was keen to do more horror films as this is my favourite genre, so due to a lack of horror roles coming my way at the time I decided to write my own. I wanted to write a character that would be fun to play, to get to do some of those cliche horror acting moments.
Me: Did it challenge you to be involved in various capacities at once on a project like this? How do you balance those priorities during a shoot?
LJJ: It was challenging as you can't just focus on the acting, there are so many other aspects to be thinking about. There was no downtime and I barely got time for a coffee break. The main priority was to stick to schedule, so this meant being constantly on the go. It was all shot outdoors so we had to make sure we had all the shots we needed before sundown. I had to be able to snap in and out of character. I'm thinking about the shot and calling action whilst in position for acting in the scene. While challenging, it is also very rewarding to know I made that film.
Me: More recently, you're also doing the feature-length "Devil Witch Way." What can you tell us about the project and your character Esme?
LJJ: Devil Witch Way is about a girl called Lacey who believes she is possessed by the spirit of Esme, a medieval witch. I play both Lacey and Esme. She uses her powers to get bloody revenge on anyone who crosses her or just looks at her funny. We've been lucky to shoot in some great locations, including a disused ward in a mental hospital. There's been a lot of blood, it's been messy. The film should be out later on this year.
Me: What else are you working on that you'd like to share with our readers?
LJJ: I have a couple of other horror projects lined up which is very exciting. I can't say too much at the moment but there'll be some groovy 70s costumes to be worn!
Me: Lastly, being that this is Women in Horror Month, what special message do you have for any women out there looking to join in the industry in any capacity as you are one yourself? Thank you again for your time!
LJJ: Horror and the film industry is dominated by men, women have a lot to give to the horror industry. We need to be creating more iconic horror women, we can be more than scream queens! But being a scream queen is also very fun 😀
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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