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LEONOR VARELA on 'INNOCENT VOICES'
Contributed by Michael J. Lee, Executive Editor
for Radio Free Entertainment
September 21, 2005
Set during El Salvador's civil war of the 1980s, Innocent Voices is a dramatization about how the government army and civilian rebels both routinely recruited young boys to fight in their bloody campaigns. Based on the childhood experiences of screenwriter Oscar Torres, the story revolves around an eleven-year-old schoolboy named Chava (Carlos Padilla), who faces the threat of forced recruitment on his impending twelfth birthday.
Leonor Varela (who played a vampiric vixen in Blade II and the title role in TV's Cleopatra) dresses down to portray Chava's mother, an embattled woman who struggles to protect her children from the many repercussions of the war. In this interview, the versatile actress talks about working on a project that meant so much to her on a personal level.
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The Interview
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MEDIA: What was your initial reaction to the script?
LEONOR: I just couldn't put it down. And I started crying, and I just felt so compelled to do this movie. I felt like I was awakening to something that was deeper inside of me, like I was going to be service to a story that really deserved to be told. Not just entertainment--which is great and I love it--but it deserved to be really shared with the world. And I just felt human dignity arise in me. I felt like I was reminded why I wanted to be an actress, and I felt like I could participate in something that was going to be bigger than me.
Was your decision to do the movie influenced by the fact that you were born in Chile during a time of political upheaval?
For sure. No doubt. I have an emotional history that was tapped into with the script...I mean, as a child, teachers were killed outside my school. You would walk out and there would be [an outline] of blood, and that was your math teacher right there. So the sense of military oppression, and the deep-rooted fear, is definitely something I drew from my own emotional history to serve this character better.
Did you discuss your emotional ties to the story with director Luis Mandoki?
For sure. He could tell I was so passionate because I just wouldn't take no for an answer. They're like, "Well, you're Cleopatra, you're too pretty, we don't think that you can do this. It's not going to be believable." I'm like, "You need to understand that I need to do this movie. I'm not doing you a favor, I'm doing myself a favor. This is something that I need to do. It's my own process. It's my own cathartic way of expressing myself."
Did you ever think being pretty would be a hindrance in getting a role?
Oddly enough, it's been a sort of hindrance all my life, because I think I operate on a different code--on a different ethic than superficiality. Not that I don't appreciate beauty. I'm a whore for beauty. Believe me! I love beauty. I love beautiful things, I love beautiful people, I love beautiful places. But I just operate on a different scale of values, and my priority is not the appearance. With The Tailor of Panama, I had my face [half-disfigured] so I could express other things that were not just sexuality and sensuality.
Did you share your childhood experiences with your young co-star, Carlos?
No, I didn't. I think for Carlitos, it was more about every scene and understanding why he needed to do this and understanding that he was teaching people about something so that it wouldn't happen again. And you know, children are fantastic because they will bounce from a complete, sheer joy to tears [snaps fingers] in a split second. So it's not an intellectual process for them. It's a very emotional and immediate and spontaneous process. So it was more of an emotional conveying of the feelings.
Is it true you left TV's Arrested Development to film this movie?
I left Arrested Development to do this movie, yes. It was a very important and not difficult choice for me...I really felt compelled to do this movie. I really felt it was important.
Do you put a priority on Spanish language projects over more Hollywood endeavors?
No, good material has priority. Good material has priority whether it be in France, whether it be in Chile, whether it be in Hollywood. I love good material. I love thinking of my career as something that does not need to be secluded into one compartment or one box. I like to think of my career like my life--it's diverse, it's poly-faceted, it's multicultural. And I don't want to give any of that up, whether it be expressing all those things in one movie or whether it be expressing all these different things in different movies.
As someone who speaks English, Spanish, and French, which language do you enjoy performing in the most?
I love acting in English.
Is that the one you're most comfortable with, as an actor?
I don't know if I'm the most comfortable with it. You see, it's sort of weird. I think English and Spanish would be the [ones] I feel most comfortable with. Why? Because they're the two that I spoke earliest. French is a much more academic language for me, and though I speak it fluently, it goes through the process of my brain, no doubt. I think, I study, I conceive, and I can arrange my thoughts really well in French. Like the whole academic side of me just comes out. [laughs] My parents spoke Spanish to me, so for me, it's a very emotional language. And I communicated back to them in English, so it was a very instinctive sort of language.
What differences do you notice between big Hollywood productions and small independent features?
No trailers, no comfort. No nothing. [laughs] No...I mean, I'm not going to lie to you. Yes, I prefer to have the comfort of life. But to be totally honest with you, in this movie, it was not required, and I'm very glad it wasn't there. Because when I stepped onto these sets, I stepped on as a person. I didn't step on as a diva or as a star. I hung out with a woman from the neighborhood who made tortillas, and they're sharing their bread with me. And I was helping them do their laundry and hanging out with their kids. And I think that sort of proximity to the people is not possible when you isolate yourself in a certain comfort. Stepping into this sort of shantytown was the biggest wake-up slap that I could get in terms of appreciation for my life, and also in terms of just understanding the reality of what we were filming. That's very important. What are you driven by? Performance, comfort, or money? You gotta prioritize in your life. And I'm not saying you can't have it all, but at times, you gotta take and give.
How was the film crew received by the locals?
We had a great, great support from that environment. Amazing. Truly. And we would give them stuff. It was [a] very symbiotic collaboration. We just felt comfortable.
They were excited to be a part of a movie production?
They loved it! They're like, "What is that? A rain machine? Oh my God!"
Your eyes always seemed to be swollen in this movie. It looks like you were crying a lot.
Well, I was. [laughs] I was so emotionally exhausted after this movie like I've never been in my life. [It] was like a piece of my liver was just put into this movie. But also, we worked very closely with my makeup artist to create a look. We'd joke in the morning, like, "The raccoon's coming!" They would paint dark circles [under my eyes] and blotch my skin and darken my teeth and f*ck up my hair. I didn't brush it once. I hardly washed it ever.
As someone who isn't a mother, how did you get into the maternal mode of your character?
Sometimes the actor's process, I find, is intellectual. You have to think about things and make certain choices. But most of the time, it's very instinctual. You just function on instinct. You feel prone to protect this child, and you feel prone to love him. He's fricken lovable! And it sort of just happens. I can't really explain it. And I think that one of the reasons why Luis felt comfortable with me is because I'm a caretaker in my life. I care. I'm obviously very self-involved, I'm an actress, but I mostly try and really empathize and care. And I think that's what she does--she cares. She just puts people before herself.
What was it like meeting the real woman upon whom your character is based?
I talked to her extensively before the movie, as I did to Oscar, and it was a great source of information. And every single thing I needed to know, I got from them. And she was very touched by the performances. She came to set the day that we were filming the good-bye scene. She just cried and cried.
Did you incorporate elements of her personality into your performance?
You know, it was great to have access to all sorts of information--the archives of the characters, and the emotional history of how they lived these things and how they reacted to them. But [director] Franc Roddam told me something when I did Cleopatra which I will never forget. "Never let the truth get in your way." Which means, yes, honor this person--it was so important to me to have her approval of what I was doing--and at the same time, it's really important to know that we're telling a story for the purpose of an hour and a half screening. So we need to, at [times], make different choices other than reality.
You got the chance to kick ass in your Blade II role. Do you welcome the physicality of doing some of your own stunts?
I still got scars from my last production from the stuntwork. [shows scar on arm]
That's from Blade?
No, this is from the last production I did in July. At some point, [I] fell and tore my knees and my arm. But I think it's a great side of our industry. I just really enjoy doing physical things and having that challenge. It's like, "Okay, run! There's explosions! Run!" It's just so fun. I get so excited, like a kid!
Directors must love that about you.
They don't really want me doing that kind of stuff, because I'm a klutz, too. [laughs]
Thanks for your time.
Thank you all.
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