“We have our premiere tomorrow in a small theater in Los Angeles,” she said. “Then, it’s going to be released on VOD on May 7 via Uncork’d Entertainment. I am really excited about people seeing it. You hope people enjoy it and take away something important from the story. I am very proud of the work we did with a small production budget but a fantastic story. I’m excited about the opening.”
She plays a lonely widow, Joyce, whom she describes as an “interesting yet odd woman.” “What attracted me to the story, to begin with, is she’s a disenfranchised person and she was controlled by her husband. There are so many people that are under the radar that we don’t know about that live all kinds of lives and we find out terrible things about them on a regular basis,” she said.
“Joyce is one of those people. She was married to this man for 30 years and he keeps her as a captive. She stays in the kitchen and he’s an abuser and she doesn’t know how to navigate life without him,” she said. “I don’t think she’s an evil person at all. I hope people taking something away from it. The movie has some dark comedy in it and also a message about what we can do to each other.”
“The fact that I have promoted those feelings is really thrilling,” she admitted, on being affectionately known as a “scream queen.”
Digital transformation of the entertainment business
On the impact of technology and streaming on the entertainment industry, Shaye said, “I am an old-fashioned girl in a sense. I think seeing a movie in the theater is still the way to see a movie, and the experience is different. I have mixed feelings about it. Technology allows more people to see more content, for sure. You see content that is not as powerful as it can be. Also, the experience of seeing a movie with other people is powerful.”
“Everything has the good and the bad and you take both and hope that you come away with the story elements that are important to you,” she said. “Everything is a progress of some kind. There is more to come, for sure.”
Regarding the key to longevity in the entertainment business, Shaye said, “Telling the truth and not giving up. I am more surprised than anybody about my success. That wasn’t my goal. I do it because I love it. I have a primal need to express myself in that way. I’ve lived a very charmed life in a beautiful way.”
“I always work as hard as I can. I have a very strong work ethic and sense of community. Making a film is a communal effort, and its own society. Those are the things that have kept me moving forward. People want to work with me and that’s very exciting to me,” she said.
Shaye defined the word success as “achieving something that really answers some question in your heart.” “I really do have this desire and need to pretend to be other people since I feel like I have a gift. For me, the success has been trying to realize that gift, and I’ve been doing it so I feel like I’m succeeding in that portion in my life. I love my life. I am truly a happy person.”
