Hi
Claire, why not start the readers off at www.racksandrazors.com with a visual and
describe the room where you are answering these
questions?
Hahaha,
Well, I'm sitting in my car on the beach (too
cold to sit outside today), typing on my Mac
power book during my lunch break. I've been
pretty busy these days with pin-up photography,
burlesque performances and sewing, so this is the
only time I get to work these days.
Okay Claire, I
guess first off I want to hear about how the role
of Argenta came about who you play in both 'Meat
Market' (2000) and 'Meat Market
2' (2001)?
Argenta
is a product of Brian Clement's (writer/director)
fertile imagination. He is always good at
creating strong female leads who don't fall into
stereotypes, which would be nice to see as a
trend in films with larger budgets, but I find to
be frustratingly rare, both as an audience member
and an actor.
What character
traits do you think you and Argenta share most
strongly?
A love of
licorice and good hair and a hatred of zombies?
What in your
opinion makes zombies such a frighteningly
popular horror staple or more specifically why
you seemed so cinematically linked to them?
I think
it's how slow they move, but that they are still
capable of harming you. I think it's meant to be
an analogy of forces in society that creep into
our daily lives without us noticing it, and by
the time we notice that something's wrong, it
often feels too late to effect change. I think
zombie movies mirror the hopelessness we feel
about things in our life it seems we can't
change, so I think it's a fear most of us can
relate to. As to why I'm linked to it, I will be
in just about any movie Frontline Films will have
me in. I miss the days of the action movies, as
they are moving towards more thoughtful dramatic
pieces, which I think is great, but it would be
fun to get to chase zombies again.
You also confront
the undead in 'Exhumed' (2003).
Can you give me a quick description of how your
character Jane Decarlo fits in with the
proceedings?
Jane is a
private investigator looking into what she thinks
is a simple case of a jealous ex-husband keeping
tabs on his former wife. What she stumbles on is
a tangled web of glamorous dames, a mad scientist
promising them innovative beauty treatments
through his time machine, and an evil general
from the future trying to go back in time to find
a device of great power, which acts as this time
machine. The scientist learns that he can bring
back people from the dead with this device, and
with the general tries to build up an army of the
undead to do their bidding.
You also produced
and did costumes on 'Exhumed' as
well as acted. Did you enjoy all three roles or
was tackling the three a bit much to juggle?
Oh no, it
was so much fun, and it felt great to be more
involved with the production of the movie. I am
also a bit of a stickler for period details,
being a big fan of the fashions and designs of
the first half of the last century, so it was
great to be able to work on making it as perfect
as we could with our little budget. I'm sure it
was more trying for Brian, as I tend to leave
things to the last minute, so it probably upped
his stress as I sat on set finishing up stitches
on a garment needed in a second, but I think it
all worked out pretty well.
I noticed that
you also run a faux fur company in Canada. Did
that come before or after your 'Exhumed'
costume work and were the two directly connected?
I have
been doing Coquette Faux Furriers since Oct 2002,
so a bit before Exhumed, but it worked perfectly,
since I was able to use a lot of the products I
had on hand for costuming, and through the film I
met Kitten Coquette, a burlesque performer from
Vancouver who appeared in the nightclub scene,
and would become one of my first models, and the
first dancer I sponsored with product.
Then you play a
zombie in 'Binge and Purge'
(2002). Did fighting zombies give you any tips as
to how to play one...or -what is something
necessary to keep in mind if you are going to
play the undead?
Yes,
definitely! Watching zombies for hours does help
you to improve your walking dead game, so I'm
thankful for that experience. It's surprisingly
fun to stumble around in a horde of zombies.
Nothing is more enjoyable than sitting in a room
with your friends making zombie noises for adr.
Trying not to laugh is the hardest part.
Do you have any
other pending projects you would like to let the www.racksandrazors.com readers know about?
Frontline
Films is actually working on Meat Market 3! I' m
very excited, although I will likely be behind
the camera for most of this one - maybe I'll be a
zombie in there somewhere. I' m hoping to try my
hand at filming some of this, and I'll be helping
out with costuming again. We're currently looking
for investors for this and another period piece
that is in the works too, so if anyone is
interested they should contact us at brian@frontlinefilms.net. I'm also keeping
my alter ego busy with burlesque and pin-up
modeling, which you can check out at Bettina.ca
and SuicideGirls.com. I'm hoping to work in a
tour to Las Vegas and New York and area in the
summer or fall, and I'll be attending Glamourcon
in LA in November, a pin-up model convention.
Okay - we're
pulling the car into the Claire Westby Drive In.
What three horror films are you going to be
showing on your triple bill and what goodies are
going to be served at the concession stand?
Chud
They Live
Evil Dead 2
Concession
will be stocked with tons of delicious vegan junk
food.
What makes you go
psycho in real life?
Sugar.
And meanies.
What scares you
in real life?
People
who don't think politics effect them. I think we
all have a responsibility to each other and our
community to be active and aware of what goes on
around us. |