Actress and writer Annika Marks chatted with Digital Journal’s Markos Papadatos about starring in the award-winning film “Killing Eleanor.”
The film initially premiered and won Best Narrative at the 2020 Savannah Film Festival. It is currently set to release nationally across the U.S. via streaming on October 12, 2021(acquired/distributed by 1091).
On her experience in “Killing Eleanor,” she said, “It was absolutely incredible. The amount of talent that rallied around this story, to bring something that I’d written to life— it still blows my mind! And, at the center of it is my husband, Rich Newey, who directed and edited it. I always say this was a family affair, but it really was. My parents did craft service. And because family was at the center of our movie, I think that energy radiated outwards, and by the end, it felt like everyone was part of this big, extended family.”
“We called on so many of our favorite people and collaborators, from actors like Jenny O’Hara, who I wrote the role of Eleanor for, to our DP, Jessica Young, who Rich has been shooting with since film school— the list goes on and on. So, it was such a safe, nurturing, challenging space; filled with people who were showing up with genuine enthusiasm and a willingness to get vulnerable and messy and really dig in and play. It was extraordinary, and it set my standards very high for what a collaborative, enjoyable, respectful, loving place a set can and should be,” she said.
She is drawn to her character Natalie for many reasons. “Natalie’s incredibly quick-witted and she’s capable of being incredibly charming, but she’s in a relationship with her painkiller addiction that’s all-consuming. She’s become this master manipulator, constantly weaving lies, and that’s left her without intimate relationships. So, she’s incredibly lonely. I think the thing I loved most was playing someone in need of connection, and getting to be inside her skin, stumbling down the unexpected, bumpy road she takes to find it,” she said.
On his plans for the future, she said, “A lot more writing, which will require a lot more traveling and a lot more adventure. My biggest fear is predictability– in my life and my work. There are comforts that I crave that include some big things like my husband and our family, and small things like almond butter and banana toast in the morning. But I never want to get too comfortable, because, for me, the only way to generate new stories is to get out of my comfort zone and have new experiences.”
“So, I’m sure the next stories I need to write are waiting for me on those adventures. Right now, I’m consumed with our 8-month-old. Talk about a new adventure! He’s teaching me so much, and every day with him is making me a more sensitive human and artist,” she said.
Regarding her daily inspirations as an actess, she said, “The thing that inspires me as an actress and a writer are the same, which is the truth. I’m only interested in what’s real. I don’t care what genre or medium a story is being told in, if it’s the truth, I’m in. I always felt like a lie detector as an actor, and now I feel like a truth hunter as a writer.”
On being an actress in the digital age, she said, “The thing that’s hardest about it for me is the social media component. I feel like, if you’re going to be an actor with a long career, filled with a variety of roles, you have to maintain a certain level of mystery. There are actors that we don’t recognize project to project because their talent allows them to disappear and to assimilate into a new world, but there’s another factor at play, which is that, often, those actors haven’t branded themselves.”
“We don’t think we know them, so we believe them when they tell us they’re someone else. But it’s nearly impossible to stay off social media, and there are a lot of reasons not to. Getting to speak for ourselves and directly to an audience is a very powerful tool. And there are a million reasons why I’m grateful to be an artist today,” she said.
“There is so much content being created and so many ways to access the creative endeavors of people whose work you’d never get to see before. I love that we’ve done away with a lot of the gatekeeping, and mostly, I love that we’re inviting a slew of new voices to the table. There’s easier access for talent— whatever package it comes in, wherever it’s located— to rise to the top, and that’s incredibly exciting,” she elaborated.
For young and aspiring actors, she said, “Well, mostly not to listen to anyone’s advice. I mean, if there was a road map, we’d all have followed it. There isn’t. There are as many back doors as front doors. But if I had to give advice, it would be that you can’t call yourself an actor and not act. You can’t wait for the opportunities. You have to make them.”
“Whether that means writing a web series for yourself or making a bunch of student films or getting involved with a theatre company that does a weekly reading series— you just have to do it. It’s the only way to get better, the only way to get to know your peers, and the only way to be sure that this is what you’re on this earth to do. And I think if you don’t feel that way, better to find what makes you feel that way because this isn’t easy. But it is an absolutely wonderful life if it’s truly for you,” she explained.
On her definition of success, she said, “I never got too attached to any specific point on the horizon, because that just felt like a recipe for disappointment. Success to me has always been very simple— living as an artist.”
“Making my living, sure— that was a big step on my personal journey and one that I took a long time to realize, but I already felt successful by then, because I was living the life of an artist. I was surrounded by artists, absorbing, and making a huge amount of art. That was always the dream for me, and it continues to feel like the dream,” she said.
She concluded about the film, “We like to refer to ‘Killing Eleanor’ as a right-to-die ‘Thelma and Louise.’ It’s a really fun ride, even though we’re dealing with issues that people like to avoid dealing with. It features women we don’t normally see on screen— complicated, flawed women, one of whom is 80-years-old. It’s a very personal, very hopeful movie with a lot of dark comedy throughout. I hope you can feel the passion and love that went into making it and that it brings you closer to your loved ones, because it’s as much about how we live as how we die.”
“Killing Eleanor” is available for pre-order by clicking here.
To learn more about Annika Marks, follow her on Instagram.
