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  • Trailer Park: Julian Morris (DONKEY PUNCH) – Interview

    By Christopher Stipp

    The Archives, Right Here

    I’m awesome. I wrote a book. It’s got little to do with movies. Download and read “Thank You, Goodnight” right HERE for free.

    And now, you can follow me on Twitter. Find me here, my oh so original name on the thing is Stipp so come on and follow my stray ramblings. I’m really digging being able to follow such luminaries as Not Henry Rollins, Not Gene Simmons and others who aren’t the real celebutards they lead you to believe they are. It’s Web 2.0! Catch it!

    Now, before we get into the interview with Julian Morris of DONKEY PUNCH I have some things to give away.

    Specifically, I have 5 copies of the Buena Vista Home Entertainment release of BLINDNESS starring Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo. I also have a metric ton of posters featuring the image to the very right so if you’re looking to spruce up a cheery room here is your opportunity. For those who are unfamiliar with the film’s premise it is as follows:

    From acclaimed director Fernando Meirelles (“The Constant Gardener”) comes this extraordinarily intense and gritty thriller that will change your vision of the world forever. Led by a powerful all-star cast featuring Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo and Danny Glover, this unflinching story begins when a plague of blindness strikes and threatens all of humanity. One woman (Moore) feigns the illness to share an uncertain fate in quarantine, where society is breaking down as fast as their crumbling surroundings. Based on Nobel Prize-winning Jose Saramago’s novel – let “Blindness” lead you on a journey where the only thing more terrifying than being blind is being the only one who can see.

    If you’re interested in winning a copy, drop me a line at Christopher_Stipp@yahoo.com. I can’t think of anything difficult for you to win one so we’ll make this a first come, first served giveaway. And, because of some issues of shipping to locales out of North America, we’ll limit this contest to our neighbors to the north and anyone in the continental United States. It’s not that I don’t love you nutty Europeans but tracking this stuff to make sure it gets to you has been a pain. Blame the postal system.

    Now, on with the interview…

    ———————–

    The thing about Julian is that he’s a great interview.

    The man has a way with casual conversation that you wonder if he’s been doing this for a long time or if he’s just that sincere when he talks about what gets him excited with regard to his work. The first time I talked to him it was over some water at the Beverly Hills Hotel (a swank locale that is excruciatingly difficult to navigate into but reeks of people who have more money than I’ll ever see in this lifetime) and I was struck by his genial and affable nature. That’s why when it was he who I could talk to regarding his newest venture, DONKEY PUNCH, I not only said yes but I campaigned to speak to him; it’s just easier when you have a connection with someone, however tenable and dubious the tether, that this helps to kick start a conversation when you only have 15 minutes to talk.

    You’ve got to be able and make the subject feel comfortable and when you’re doing it over the phone it’s almost like you’re rushing a relationship where no one has the time for witless banter. Julian, though, is a true gentleman in the sense he’s willing to share his thoughts but is willing to go that extra few inches and talk about what he’s really thinking. It may not mean much to you, those who are reading this, but for someone like me, who is stuck on the other end of the phone, it’s the difference between a long 15 minutes and a conversation you wish could go a little longer. To be sure, you’ll hopefully be reading another conversation between him and I in the near future.

    Again, like last week, DONKEY PUNCH is in limited release and will be out on video in mere months.

    JULIAN MORRIS: Chris?

    CHRISTOPHER STIPP: Sir…

    MORRIS: Good to hear your voice again.

    CS: You too. How have you been?

    MORRIS: The last time was the Beverly Hills Hotel, right?

    CS: That’s correct. How have things been?

    MORRIS: Since I’ve seen you last, things have been incredible. Social’s been great. Life’s great. Did a movie with Tom Cruise. Did, this one, DONKEY PUNCH. Played a doctor on ER. What else? Got another movie coming out this year that you would be interested in, called SORORITY ROW.

    CS: Well, I had no idea that you were in this film. Zero.

    MORRIS: What? You saw it?

    CS: I’m having a copy being sent to me. I think it’s at my house today.

    MORRIS: Great.

    CS: I’m hoping to be able to watch it tonight. I’ve just culled a bunch of information about it and now I’m really amped to see it at least after reading everything about it.

    MORRIS: It’s pretty out there. I’m really proud of it. I think it’s really different from movies that are being made for our demographic. It’s a smart movie. Incredibly disturbing but people get a kick out of it.

    CS: How did it come across your table? And I only ask because I know because Ollie [Blackburn] is a first time director. This film was only made for less than a million pounds if I am to believe the reports.

    MORRIS: Well, I loved Oliver Blackburn’s reel. I loved the short films that he’s done. I loved the videos he’s done. And when we were meeting to discuss the film ““ his insights into the character and his vision really excited me. And also with the way he directs, you would never believe he is a first time director. He directs with the confidence and also the ease of someone who has been doing it for decades. So, how I came about it was being in America a lot I was shooting this film Privileged and my agent called me up from London and said there is a script that I think you will love and initially I was being looked at for another part but I really like the character I play and when you see it you will understand why. He’s interesting. At the beginning he’s quite shy, slightly awkward, young man but with this huge internal to be the alpha male or at least within the respect of the huge chasm between the man that he is and the man that he wants to be and that was really exciting to play out. He does the famous Donkey Punch. How could I say no to that?

    (Laughs)

    CS: Exactly. That’s all I’ve been hearing about this technique. How was it doing the thriller/horror genre? You’ve been through it now with your other film…

    MORRIS: CRY WOLF…

    CS: So do you have this down to a science about what it takes?

    MORRIS: I guess I’ve been lucky in that all the characters I’ve played have been exceptionally different. Josh is very different from Owen in CRY WOLF. And not only that, the movies have been very different. Whereas CRY WOLF is, I don’t want to say generic, but it was a very Hollywood slasher of it’s time and I think that a film like SORORITY ROW which I just did is like a remake of one of those 90’s films like SCREAM ““ a lot of that dark twisted humor running though it and DONKEY PUNCH is more intellectual and serious one. I don’t know that I would describe it as a horror film as much as fascist almost in it’s intensity of extreme thriller in the way STRAW DOGS was and I know that Pauline Kael, the terrific critic, she coined it “fascist cinema” and I think DONKEY PUNCH is more in that genre. Like Michael Haneke’s film, FUNNY GAMES, CACHE, etc.

    CS: Speaking of the way the movie unwinds, I read that it was very unique in that it was almost shot in sequence.

    MORRIS: Yes, the director was great. Some things were done on stage and that was separate, but it was all one location on the boat, either below the boat or on deck and did that in sequence setting up the character development.

    CS: The old adage of you never shoot on water

    MORRIS: You never work with animals or kids…especially in porn.

    (Laughs)

    You know what? I think it was surprisingly nice shooting on water. It was a gorgeous super yacht that was the kind that you see on MTV owned my wealthy people or huge rock stars. It was great fun. And also the fact that we were all on this boat in this relatively small space. There weren’t dressing rooms, never in trailers, a single green room. We would be there in our wet costumes when it was cold, covered in blood and it was intense. There was never escape of the characters or anyone else and I think that intensity comes through in the film.

    CS: How was that? Now you’ve been on a few sets of this kind ““ this variety. What kind of challenges does horror, an intense thriller, like this present? What do you have to bring to a role to really get that kind of emotion across in your performance?

    MORRIS: Well I think in any scene you want to bring realism. I think with the horror genre you tend to be looking at the emotion of fear a lot and particularly with horror and I think it’s true with all cinema, at least in the cinema I like to make and the characterization I like to make, you want it to be an incredibly empathetic vicarious experience for the viewer in a sense that I want the audience to empathize with my character plus I want them to feel what my character is going through. Any successful cinema, when you are feeling what that character is going through, when you are in that experience, so whether I’m running away from a nice bear I can cry wolf I want the audience to be running with me. I want them to get that tightness in their chest, their heart pounding or in this film ““ there’s a torture scene and I’m digging a knife in someone (I hope I didn’t give anything away but I think it’s fine to say) I want the audience to be torturing that character with me or at least going through what I’m thinking and what I’m feeling while I’m doing it. If I’ve done that successfully that’s great. If not, oops.

    CS: And I guess on that point as well and something I want to bring back with your stint on ER for a few episodes, is the idea of ensemble acting. How is that working within a group, is there a dynamic of sorts that has to take place, whereas do you have to throw it back or forward to make sure you don’t overshine anybody?

    MORRIS: Ensemble is great. I think when you are in the lead in something there is just so much what the audience sees but there’s a lot of you are on your own a lot just because of how the filming and the machinations of the filming takes place. When you are doing a scene with a lot of other actors it won’t always be with the same people you’ll be in your travel a lot of the time. You’ll be first in and last out. You’ll spend a lot of time by yourself. The experience is quite isolated. The experience is all good but it’s isolated. Ensemble acting you are with your cast mates all the time. It’s a different feeling. A great sense of teamwork and I think it helps that you are always with the other actors and feeding off them, bouncing off them, not just on camera but off camera as well so you bring that to the set as well.

    CS: Being that it’s an ensemble, ensemble cast as well, all these things working against you, first of all it’s low budget, second it’s that it’s a first time director, third you are shooting this thing in 24 days. Were there really any challenging moments where people had to come together to get something done, i.e. go beyond your acting duties, or did everything go smoothly?

    MORRIS: This is about two people, the producer, Angus Lamont and also the first AV, Barry Wasserman. I think both AV’s don’t get credit nearly as much as they should but they were really in charge of creating the atmosphere and space on set with which to work between the actors and the directors. They did a tremendous job. So, although we shot in 24 days it was intense. It was challenging. We were jumping in the sea which was probably pretty close to freezing and spent long hours ““ at one point we shot 24 hours straight. We never got the feeling that we were being rushed at all or forced to act on the nail. The space was always really terrific to work in and very comfortable. That said, the intensity of the drive and the excitement of working in such confinement both on the boat and in time, did create a sense of urgency and intensity and I think that comes through in a successful way and translates itself very well into the film.

    CS: Looking at the finished product, what came up on screen, a lot of films try to mimic this, why does this one stand out? Why is this film getting attention?

    MORRIS: Because it’s very real and realism works in a number of ways. It works well for the horror. The horror is this fantastic imagined horror. The baddie isn’t some supernatural being with crazy feet. It’s us. We’re the enemy. The other characters are the enemy. We are each other’s own worst enemy. My character is his own worst enemy. Because it’s so real, the audience can associate with them far more. And in that sense, the experience for them is more haunting and exciting. And the last thing is that it’s real. When these kids are on the boat, and they are young people, they are doing what any other young person would be doing or would like to be doing with their best mates, gorgeous girls, drinking a little bit, skinny dipping in the Mediterranean as the sun’s setting. It’s a crazy orgy. And up until the point of the donkey punch it is really the best of youth or the best of any fanaticized youth. After which these real people are confronted with an extraordinary situation and how they deal with it is probably how many young people would deal with it and try to get away with it. And it all goes wrong and leads to this bloodbath. Does that make any sense?

    CS: What elevated this? From the very beginning you would think that if you were explaining it to someone they would be apt to say “Nah, this seems like just another teen thing” but what elevated it for you?

    MORRIS: I think Oliver Blackburn is probably one of the greatest directors working right now in Britain and his vision was incredible. The cinematic devices he used, whether it was slow motion which was reminiscent of Peckinpah, STRAW DOGS, he drives this menacing destructive crushing atmosphere that’s on this boat and it is a great experience when you are watching it. It’s definitely nails getting right down to the knuckle.

    CS: Julian, I know our time is short so let me ask just one more question of you. You are doing a lot of TV, you’re doing a lot of films now, where is your heart taking you? Do you want to have your cake and eat it to? Do you want to keep doing both? What’s on the horizon?

    MORRIS: Yeah. I think the line now between great film and great TV is diminished. I think it’s quite easy to swim between the two and I’m just enjoying playing great characters and I want to continue playing characters that inspire me and hopefully inspire those that watch them.

  • Trailer Park: A Donkey Punch and A Slap From Danny Boyle

    By Christopher Stipp

    The Archives, Right Here

    I’m awesome. I wrote a book. It’s got little to do with movies. Download and read “Thank You, Goodnight”right HERE for free.

    And now, you can follow me on Twitter. Find me here, my oh so original name on the thing is Stipp so come on and follow my stray ramblings.

    I swear this is my last time pimping my appearance in a podcast. For now, anyway.

    The fine lads over at Screen Geeks had me on for their Most Anticipated Films of 2009 show and, thankfully, they hadn’t discovered how much of a charlatan I am before letting me shout out such gems as G.I. JOE (If you’re a fan of the 80’s series by Larry Hama run, do not walk, to IDW’s new series that has brought a bit of nostalgia to my pull box.) and FRIDAY THE 13TH. These chaps are top shelf and I thank them one more time for having me on.

    [display_podcast]

    Now, instead of letting pundits and blowhards get their soundbites on CNN without any informed discussion about the allegations surrounding Danny Boyle’s SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE as it pertains to the man’s filming of the movie Mr. Boyle decided to defend his film and thankfully he comes out swinging. I wouldn’t normally run this statement from Danny and Co. but my time with him a couple of months ago was genuinely exhilarating; his gregariousness, his excitement and overall joy at just being in some hellhole in Arizona talking to some no name web journalist left an impression.

    What follows is an answer to those out there in the ephemera who are taking Boyle to task, ignorantly, for what they perceive as bad behavior on his part as he made his film in India.

    FILMMAKERS STATEMENT:

    From the moment that we hired them and long before the press became interested in this story, we have paid painstaking and considered attention to how Azhar and Rubina’s involvement in the film could be of lasting benefit to them over and above the payment they received for their work.

    The children had never attended school, and in consultation with their parents we agreed that this would be our priority. Since June 2008 and at our expense, both kids have been attending school and they are flourishing under the tutelage of their dedicated and committed teachers. Financial resources have been made available for their education until they are 18. We were delighted to see them progressing well when we visited their school and met with their teachers last week.

    In addition to their educational requirements, a fund is in place to meet their basic living costs, health care and any other emergencies. Furthermore, as an incentive for them to continue to attend school a substantial lump sum will be released to each child when they complete their studies. Taking into account all of the children’s circumstances we believe that this is the right course of action.

    Since putting in place these arrangements more than 12 months ago we have never sought to publicize them, and we are doing so now only in response to the questions raised recently in the press. We trust that the matter can now be put to bed, and we would request that the media respect the children’s privacy at this formative time in their lives.

    – – Danny Boyle and Christian Colson

    DISTRIBUTORS STATEMENT:

    The welfare of Azhar and Rubina has always been a top priority for everyone involved with Slumdog Millionaire. A plan has been in place for over 12 months to ensure that their experience working on Slumdog Millionaire would be of long term benefit. For 30 days work, the children were paid three times the average local annual adult salary. Last year after completing filming, they were enrolled in school for the first time and a fund was established for their future welfare, which they will receive if they are still in school when they turn 18. Due to the exposure and potential jeopardy created by the unwarranted press attention, we are looking into additional measures to protect Azhar and Rubina and their families. We are extremely proud of this film, and proud of the way our child actors have been treated.

    – – Fox Searchlight Pictures, Fox Star Studios, Pathe International

    Finally today, what follows here is a chat with Sian Breckin. She’s in a new thriller that is making some lo-fi rounds at the multiplexes and will be out on video in a couple of months called DONKEY PUNCH. For those who are unfamiliar with what this movie is about here is a short synopsis:

    After meeting at a nightclub in a Mediterranean resort, seven young adults decide to continue partying aboard a luxury yacht in the middle of the ocean. But when one of them dies in a freak accident the others argue about what to do, leading to a ruthless fight for survival.

    I have read a lot about the production of this film and was attracted to it for 2 reasons: 1. It was made by a first time director and 2. It was shot on the cheap. It isn’t the novelty so much as I am and have been endlessly fascinated by filmmakers who haven’t made much and want to make a splash without a whole lot of cash to do it. Reviews have been all over the board with this movie, and that doesn’t interest me so much as it does get in the way to the story, but when I was asked to speak to one of the film’s ensemble cast, Sian Breckin, I was in. She’s was a delight to talk to and, oddly enough, her filmography to those who live here in the U.S. equals 1 film. This one.

    I figured that would be just as good as any of a spot to begin our talk.

    CHRISTOPHER STIPP: You’ve made it really hard on me to try to find any kind of question to ask of you based on your many films.

    SIAN BRECKIN: What do you mean?

    CS: Apart from Donkey Punch ““ I don’t know where else or what else you’ve been in. It makes a hard interview.

    BRECKIN: Oh, OK. Lots of theater in London.

    And then lots of television in England on the BBC and ITV networks which are the main tunnels in England, but this is the first time I’ve come to LA or America I suppose because Donkey Punch has just come out here.

    CS: Learning about this film I found out that it was made for a million pounds, it was really low budget when compared to some movies of its kind.

    BRECKIN: I think it was 800 thousand or something. It was nothing.

    CS: Nothing at all.

    BRECKIN: It’s incredible that I’m here to be honest with you.

    CS: Then how did you make that transition? What I know about you here is that this is basically your first movie and this is the first thing you have been in to me here, someone being from the states. How did you make that leap or why did you want to make that leap from theater to film?

    BRECKIN: It was the first thing I did on screen and I think I had watched, have you seen DEAD MAN’S SHOES, which is a British film with Paddy Considine who has been in a few American things which was made by Warp Films and Warp Films sent the script out for Donkey Punch and they made really challenging films I suppose and they are not just pleasing the right wing middle class audience. They are making something I believe in.

    So when I got the script from Warp I thought this was a company I really wanted to work with and they had made some interesting things I liked. So when I read the script I really identified with the characters and with Lisa particularly and then I thought this was a great opportunity to create someone very believable in a messed up situation.

    CS: Right. And I think one of the things that a lot of people, these post modern critiques of horror film, is the helpless female. Looking at this, did you look with an eye towards is this person believable or she is another female trope of “Is she going to break a leg, fall down?”

    (Laughs)

    BRECKIN: I don’t think she’s a helpless female because she’s, particularly for the sex scenes, she’s completely in control. She’s doesn’t get Marcus, the boy she wants, so she fell for somebody else and then when Bluey suggests that Josh gets involved she very much in control and on holiday having a fantastic time and I think she’s a powerful woman who is very sexually confident. And, as an actress I have to think, “OK what are my paranoias and my insecurities?” But they are not relevant because Lisa is very much in control and is having a fantastic holiday and I have to match that. And I thought that was empowering to play rather than thinking of her as a helpless female. I don’t think at any point she’s helpless.

    CS: No, absolutely not. And this film I think challenges that idea. The aim of that question was you see a lot of horror movies where women are relegated to the screaming role. This brought something a little different to the idea.

    BRECKIN: Well, good. I’m glad. Because the women are really strong. There’s one woman that gives up the ghost at one point and she feels she can’t carry on, but I mean I think that Lisa realizes that she doesn’t need Nichola’s character, she plays Tammi. So there are strong women who are in control I guess.

    CS: To that point of the production of the film, I’m always curious when I’m talking to someone who has made a thriller/slash horror film. About the very mundane parts of making a horror film…I read in some interview with you that you were wet, you were cold, really wasn’t conducive for abject horror.

    BRECKIN: Yeah.

    CS: How is that process of actually having to muster up the fortitude to look scared and panicked when in fact it’s rather so planned out and staged?

    BRECKIN: I think that maybe Donkey Punch is different because it was shot in 24 days and rather than having to fly in and fly out for my scenes we were flown in at the same time and spent 6 weeks together. The girls lived in a flat together and it felt very much like a lot of the rehearsing ““ we were working all the time ““ living together we were establishing our relationship and stuff that could have been mundane wasn’t. When you felt terrified ““ I just had the fun stuff ““ but I think they did feel claustrophobic on the boat which was out to sea and there were a lot of people on the boat and you couldn’t get off that. In the beginning we had a lot of fun and really worked very hard and played really hard, that’s the reality but what we were going through was reflected in the film.

    CS: One of those things about it and pointing back to one of those things I’ve read about the production of the film, that Ollie, who is a first time film director….

    BRECKIN: Yea, that’s right….which is amazing.

    CS: How was that?

    BRECKIN: It was amazing because he was very interested in the actors and what we could bring to our characters and wasn’t exclusive with the script. He had his script and had an idea at least of what he wanted and then would let us give as much input as we could, what we wanted to create for the film, which for my first time on screen was incredible because I felt very loose and very free with what I could bring to the film rather than restricted by someone who knew more.

    CS: And how was that coming from the theater ““ the performance you would give ““ given the film as opposed to the theater? Is it more nuanced? Do you find yourself falling back into the ideas of theater acting? Making things grandiose? Or did you find there was an adjustment period?

    BRECKIN: It’s incredibly different. I think I did go through an adjustment period and when I watch the film and know how we filmed in sequence, I can tell where I am much more used to the camera and where I’m not. And when you are on the stage and used to an audience which is far away from you and to do something on the screen, everything you do is smaller and much more focused and intense and it took me a while to get used to that.
    But, I knew who Lisa was and I knew what I wanted to portray and I worked with 6 other actors who had worked on film before and were young and I really learned a lot from them and watching them all the time. Because Ollie was new he let me on the set a lot to watch what was going on and I felt it was OK for me to learn and I did learn a hell of a lot doing that film.

    CS: And you mentioned working with other actors, ensemble acting…

    BRECKIN: Just thinking in terms when you work on a script for theater you maybe spend four or maybe two weeks before you start rehearsing and researching the character ““ how they walk, what they wear, what kind of person they are and because I came from that training background, I brought that into the film and I think again, that was the thing that carried me through. I was very clear of who my character was. Maybe I wasn’t so skilled at working on camera but I was very clear on what I wanted to achieve and I think that helped me through.

    CS: And you mentioned working with the other actors, ensemble acting. You are not the only person up there. This isn’t a movie with one or two people. How was that? You are not just acting by yourself but having to act within these other people.

    BRECKIN: It was amazing. I felt really lucky to have that experience. The whole thing was an ensemble feel to it and it just meant I could learn from the experience from the other actors and they were very accepting into the things that I brought to it. And it was about a group of young people having a lot of fun. And that’s great isn’t it? For a job – go out and have fun. Yeah, I was really lucky.

    CS: They say to never shoot on water. It’s one of the first things they say…

    BRECKIN: Yeah, that’s true. That water that we jump into was freezing cold and we had to pretend it was boiling and we’re having a wonderful time. That was really tough because it wasn’t. It was very cold.

    CS: Yeah, talk about that. I read that the divers that had to be in there with you got hypothermia.

    BRECKIN: Yeah, hypothermia, checking for jellyfish and the tide and current was really strong and you are trying to look like this is great, we’re having a lovely time. Not “Oh my god, there’s a jellyfish and it’s really freezing” but I guess that’s the part that makes you a tougher actor.

    CS: Being on the boat, you mentioned it being very claustrophobic. That’s one of the hardest things to do is make a movie in such a confined space. Talking with Ollie, how did he explain that he was going to make something so thrilling and so horrifying in such a tight, confined area?

    BRECKIN: I’m not involved in that as much. My part on the boat is not as claustrophobic. I don’t know that he explained to the other actors. They would do night shoots and of course they were tired and stressed shooting on the boat just helped added to the fear and experience and I think it was a positive thing. I don’t think it was something he ever explained. We got on the boat on the first day of rehearsal and we knew then, “Oh my god ““ we’re out in the middle of the ocean.” I think it was very trying at times but I think everyone is happy with the end product. We all contributed to what we created in the end I guess.

    CS: Looking back at this, I’m interested to know if you’ve seen your own work and whether you watch it and see imperfections that you might ““ some people look at themselves and don’t want to see what they’ve done on screen ““ anything you would have done differently?

    BRECKIN: Sure. This is my first screen experience. So for me, to watch it was…different ““ I’ve never seen myself on screen and then I’ve watched it maybe about 12 times in different screenings and with different audiences and the main thing for me is watching the other actors and learning from them and thinking what works and what doesn’t and hopefully I’m just bringing something truthful to the character that you can like…I think that’s important for Lisa…and something you can believe in ““ that’s my main goal. There are bits that I’m incredibly proud of and bits that I think are awful and I would change that but I’m only 26 and it’s all about experience and learning from that and everything that I’ve done.

    CS: I know our time is short but I want to ask one more question and that’s seeing what I know ““ obviously me being from America I only see one thing that you’ve done here so basically in my eyes this is my first introduction to you. You now made yourself on a world stage and said, “This is who I am.” How do you look toward the future and what you want to do going from here?

    BRECKIN: The thing that Donkey Punch as brought me is introduced me to a lot of companies that I’ve always watched their movies and thought I would love to work with them. And that’s British companies and now because Donkey Punch is being publicized in America it has allowed me to come out here and hopefully I can establish myself out here. I think American television is fantastic and would love to be involved in that and I think I’m young and I don’t know how ““ I think of this in terms of longevity ““ could involve different things ““ could involve acting, directing, producing but learning as I go along.