We left off with my
interview of Horror Goddess Genoveva Rossi on her acting in a new film called
Trailer Heaven. We will pick up where we left off. Welcome back Genoveva.
Marie Gilbert: “We
left off with the film you’re working on now, Trailer Heaven.”
Genoveva Rossi: “I’m also a Divine fan as well and I
grew up watching those types of movies. John Waters is amazing!
As an actress I love to cross into unchartered territory and
play a lot of different characters and work with a really wide variety of
directors. I feel that is vital for me as both an actress and an artist. I am committed keeping my acting work an
adventure! I wanted to bring up that there were several films that I did that
were not horror at all, for example, Apocalypse Kiss which was a sci-fi
thriller that I did with Michael Berryman, D. C. Douglas and Tom Atkins and I
also did comedies with Bill Zebeb called Scienceless Fiction, and Jesus, The
Daughter of God, which were both quite funny.
Genoveva on the set with Stephen Baldwin
The one film that was very different for me was Tapestry
which was directed by Ken Kushner and that is a wonderful Christian film. It
was an amazing and inspiring experience. I deviated into something completely
different and it starred Steven Baldwin, Tina Louise from Gilligan’s Island and
Burt Young from Rocky. ”
Marie Gilbert: “Where
can people see Tapestry?”
Genoveva Rossi: “I don’t think it’s been released to
theatres yet. He just wrapped that up pretty recently, but look for it soon! ”
Marie Gilbert: “Well
then you’re getting calls for different types of films, now.”
Genoveva Rossi: “Well, that worked out well because I
met a director on the set of a horror movie where we were both scene partners
and that set led to Tapestry. Film sets often lead to more film sets in this
business. I’m open to different genres. I don’t just do horror films and it was
really interesting to be in this Christian film where there is no sexuality or
nudity and people don’t curse provocatively…and it has a family message to it.
This is something my mom would probably like. It’s a wholesome movie and I can
certainly appreciate a film that embodies such values. Everyone was wonderful
to work with on set and I had a lot of fun working on this. I am grateful for
the opportunity.”
Marie Gilbert: How
does your mother feel about you acting in horror films?”
Genoveva Rossi: “Everybody in my family has always
known that I was obsessed with horror movies ever since I was a little kid. My
father is probably the blame in that he introduced me to Budd Abbott and Lou
Costello meeting the Wolfman and Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr. When I was
little I had one wall full of these pictures of these movies because that’s
what I was into. Then my father and I got interested Peter Cushing, Vincent
Price, Christopher Lee, Barbara Steele, Ingrid Pitt and films like that, but
when more modern horror films like Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th
came out, he sort of lost interest. He
likes the classics like Hammer and Universal Studio Monsters. For me, my
interest in horror just expanded and evolved!
”
Genoveva in the Enchantress
Marie Gilbert: “Have
you ever done Stage Shows?”
Genoveva Rossi: “Not since high school and college. I
was mostly focused on short films in college, but stage was of greater interest
to me in high school. At this time, it isn't something that interests me, but
we shall see how things evolve down the road. I'm very committed to film at
this time, but I'm also open to the vast possibilities that life can offer so
it's possible if the right opportunity came up I would go back to the stage!”
Marie Gilbert: “Would
you be interested in doing stage shows, now?”
Genoveva Rossi: “That’s a good question…I’m not sure
if that would appeal to me. I have this reputation in film that's really
growing and evolving. The Digital Dead, a UK magazine recently referred to me
as one of the most well-known scream queens in the world so I feel like I need
to focus on film. Film is a fun medium; I
like the screenings, the film distribution, the chance to reach an
international audience, and being a celebrity guest at Horror Conventions and
the interviews and the IMDb credits. It’s a different medium than theatre work.
If someone asks me to be in a horror theatre production that would be running
for a while, I guess it could be fun being the same character for weeks at a
time, sometimes months. I'm open to the possibility.
It’s the opposite of film work where you’re the same
character, but it’s during these little snippets of time. You’re hanging on the
set rehearsing your lines and then being “on” while you film your scene and then go back to eating your
bagel and drinking your coffee. Then you have to be “on” as the same character,
the same voice and the same appearance. You have to remember what you were
wearing and be consistent because it might be five minutes later on the film,
but actually the scene might be shot a month later in real life. I can’t
drastically change my appearance until I wrap up a film. It's all about being
able to go in and out of character seamlessly. ”
Marie Gilbert: “I
never thought about that, but as a woman, you would have to keep your hairstyle
the same way.”
Genoveva Rossi:
“Yes, I could get my hair trimmed so it stays consistent to go along
with my current hairstyle until I stop filming, but every now and then, I do
wear wigs. This is nice because you don’t have to worry too much. I do wear
wigs in several films I had purple hair in Flesh of the Beast: Tsukiko's Curse
and I have a black wig in Witches’ Blood, and long black hair in The
Enchantress, which I star in and they are filming right now in Buffalo.
I have
blond hair in the series In Fear Of which is playing in Italy right now before
going to Vimeo on demand. I have a lot of different hairstyles including a
short frosted wig that I wore in The Attack of the Brain People and it looks
like Tippi Hedren’s hair in The Birds. That wig is authentic hair and was made
in 1958, and my grandmother had it up in her attic.”
Marie Gilbert: “Did
you travel to Italy for your part in “In Fear Of”?
Genoveva Rossi: “No, the series was filmed here in
America, but they were able to get it distributed to Italian T.V. Yes, it’s funny because sometimes the films
that we shoot, the European market has an even bigger interest than the
American market does! I know that a few of my films have a HUGE following in
the international market. I have been to Italy though for fun of course and I
would certainly be open to filming there or most other countries.”
Marie Gilbert: “I’ve
heard that before and it’s amazing how shows will do better in the foreign
industry. Tell me more about this series.”
Genoveva Rossi:
“In Fear Of is produced by Scott W. Perry and I’m featured in four episodes and
star in two. One episode is Fear of Sexual Harassment, and I have long blond hair and I fire an employee of mine who
comes back for revenge. I had fired him because of sexual harassment. I looked
good in the blond hair and looked very Nordic I must say.
In Fear of Blindness, I have my own hair and this episode is
directed by Jeremiah Kipp, a very talented director and it stars Susan
Adriensen, which is a friend of mine in real life, is going blind and I’m her
best friend who is desperately trying to help her.”
Marie Gilbert: “This
is so exciting. When will it be out?”
Genoveva Rossi: “It’s going to be on Vimeo on demand
and people can watch the different episodes as they are released on demand. Two
of my episodes should be released in June and
July, so I’m very excited.”
Marie Gilbert: “Which
director so far have you found the easiest to work for? That you learned the
most from?”
Genoveva Rossi: “I think I can go with two people
that I felt I learned the most from. The first is Jeremiah Kipp and the second
one is Christian Grillo. With Jeremiah Kipp, you rarely work with a script, but
instead he would give you a treatment that was several pages long with the
whole background of your character that you could really think about and
bringing that character alive in your mind and giving you this distinct vision.
I think Jeremiah understands the mind of an actor more so than a lot of
directors do. Yes with his direction in films, he always has a good scope on
what he wants the film to be. He has a keen artistic vision.
Genoveva in Apocalypse Kiss
Organization is why I enjoyed working with Christian Grillo
in Apocalypse Kiss. He gave me the script six months in advance and told me
what days I would be doing my scenes. In every scene I shot, he had a four
camera set-up and that means something because each camera captures every angle
of your scene. Christian Grillo put in a lot of time and effort into the sets
and the wardrobe, and it shows in the final product. I like both because of
their organizational skills and because they have this distinctive vision of
their film and how to achieve it. They are both great artists.”
Marie Gilbert: “Then it is important for an actor or actress
to have a director that connects and let’s you know what’s expected.”
Genoveva Rossi: “Exactly, it’s the director’s vision and how
you play your part and how say your lines can be done a hundred different ways.
He/she understands the greater scope of your scene and your character on the
film. Not all directors have an easy time communicating that to the actor. It's
wonderful to work with a director that is also a trained actor.”
We are stopping part two of the interview here, but Genoveva
Rossi will be back next week with part three of her interview. I want to thank Genoveva
for being a guest on my blog. You can find Genoveva at these sites.
Guest appearances:
Meet Genoveva Rossi at Connecticut Horrorfest on August 23rd and Blood and
Babes in Long Island Sept 12-14th
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