Actress Amber Janea chatted about starring in “Don’t Turn Out the Lights,” which was written and directed by Andy Fickman.
‘Don’t Turn Out the Lights’
“Being a part of this movie is the wildest blessing I’ve ever received,” she noted. “It was an unknown dream come true. I never thought I’d be cast in a horror film, I always found myself quite ‘scary’ as they would say growing up.”
“Not in the spooky kind of way, but in a prone to be scared s***less kind of way. To be a part of this film is to be a part of pushing my own boundaries and getting myself to finally explore the spooky scary. That feels amazing,” she exclaimed.
Playing Sarah in the film
On playing Sarah, she remarked, “What I love the most about Sarah is her vulnerability. She is a person who wears her emotions on her sleeve and no matter what is going on, my girl is going to let you know how she feels!”
“It doesn’t matter if she has to yell, cry, or get in your face, she will be felt. I desire that level of freedom of expression everyday (minus the getting on people’s faces),” she said with a sweet laugh.
Working with Andy Fickman
On working with director and screenwriter Andy Fickman, she stated, “Working with Andy as a writer and director was such an incredible experience. There’s no other director I know who builds in a week of bonding and horror research before filming to ensure we all feel like family.”
“Andy started off with such a great foundation for all of us to do our best and even gave some creative freedom when it came to the script which was super cool to see in the final edits of the film,” she elaborated.
“It just shows how much he trusted us and our incredible film speaks for our trust in him,” she added.
Working with Daryl Tofa
On working with Daryl Tofa (“Back to the Future: The Musical” and “The Outsiders: The Musical”), Janea exclaimed, “Daryl was such a blast to work with. Dude is a ball of energy who always has a groove or tune in his heart that just makes your day.”
“We had some great moments in the Best Western Plus parking lot that I don’t think we’ll ever forget,” she said with a sweet laugh.
Advice for hopefuls in acting
For young and emerging actors, she said, “My advice for young actors is to play the long game because it’s a long life. Meaning your career will have dry seasons and seasons of immense overflow, the goal is to remain focused on the work and the love of the work to see the fruit of a long career.”
Future plans
On her future plans, she shared, “My plans for the future include more movement for sure. I’ve been taking dance classes and pole classes to further unlock my instrument and find more ways of expressing myself.”
“Of course, my plans are to continue auditioning, but as seasons are slow, I desire to cultivate other areas of my life including my style, home life, and social circles,” she added.
Success
Regarding her definition of success, she revealed, “Success used to mean the huge mansion with two cars out front and a full time gardening staff.”
“Nowadays, as I’m getting older and have since found interest in the tiny home movement, I realize success is for just that. To live a life that best resonates with oneself,” she elaborated.
“So, success for me is whatever it takes to have a tiny compound living situation. In a broader sense, success is what happens when you can build a comfortable life built on purpose,” she added.
Message for fans and viewers about ‘Don’t Turn Out the Lights’
For fans and viewers, she remarked about “Don’t Turn Out the Lights, “I want people to know what a labor of love this film was to create and to know that we all bore our souls on set everyday to get what we’ve put out there.”
“From the film, I hope viewers are walking away with heightened imaginations that lead to as many theories as we’ve had while filming and have a great time discussing them with friends,” she concluded.
To learn more about Amber Janea, follow her on Instagram.
