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Your new movie Glasshouse
- in a few words, what is it about, and what can you tell us about your
character in it?
It's
about a family that has somehow survived the end of the world and have
been living in complete isolation to keep themselves safe from the dangers
outside. We meet the family when a stranger is introduced into the
household and we get to see how that affects the family dynamic and what
it means for all of their futures. My character is Evie, younger sister to
Bee. Evie is extremely guarded for her age and very protective over her
family. She doesn't trust the stranger and only wants her family to be
safe. She carries a lot of guilt and uses her memory of past events to
keep her grounded so that she doesn't lose herself like her sister has.
She steps up and does what needs to be done.
What did you draw upon to bring your
character to life, and how much Anja Taljaard can we actually find in
Evie?
I
definitely relate to many of Evie's qualities. She's very affectionate,
protective and motherly, but she also tends to be quite distrustful of the
unknown and doesn't let people in easily, whether it be for the sake of
them being a danger, being disappointed by them or vice versa.
That's always my first way into a character. I find the similarities and
work from there.
How did you get involved with the project in the
first place?
My
agent contacted me on a Wednesday morning asking if I could get a self
tape in for an important project by the end of the next day. Apparently
they had been struggling to cast some of their leads and were under a bit
of pressure. I cancelled everything and started working on it that night.
By the end of the Thursday my tapes were in and the rest was history. I
know director Kelsey Egan and writer Emma Lungiswa De Wet were pretty extensive in their search for these
characters and gave so many young actors a chance to audition for this
which I'm so grateful for. What were your first thoughts when reading
the script, and to what extent could you identify with the movie's
approach to the end of the world? I
was absolutely engrossed. Loved it from the very first moment. I thought
it was incredibly unique and unlike most of the films that exist within
this/these genres. What I love about the world is how real it is. Although
visually beautiful, it's not fancy or made to be anything other than what
it truly is. Surviving an apocalypse and fighting to survive every day is
hard, and it shows you exactly what they need to do in order to do that.
It's also incredibly character driven and you get to see and experience
every bit of pain, frustration, fear and love that exist between these
characters. It's about all of them. It's beautiful but incredibly painful
at the same time. Do talk about Glasshouse's
director Kelsey Egan, and what was your collaboration like? Kelsey
is amazing. She's an actor herself so she understands our process. She
knows how to take what you're giving her and how to mould that into her
final vision. She's an all round beautiful human being. A
few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? We
were pretty focused most of the time. We only had a set amount of time to
get the film done, and shooting right in the middle of Covid and in a Covid
hotspot was quite stressful. I think because of that extra pressure it
really allowed us to stay in the world and create the best possible
project that we could have. Any
future projects you'd like to share? Nothing
much at the moment. Just a a couple of smaller things, but fingers
crossed. What got you into
acting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject?
I
always loved the idea of acting but never had the courage to try and give
it an actual go until I got to grade 9. It was school holidays and there
was a little acting workshop happening at a local acting school called The
Stage Performing Arts School and Theatre, and my mom encouraged me to go
try it out for fun. Little did I know that that would be where it all
started. I continued doing extra mural drama and singing lessons there
until the end of high school. In 2015 I started studying my Bachelor of
Arts Degree in Acting for Film at City Varsity Cape Town and graduated in
2017. Been working full time in the industry as an actress, voice artist
and singer ever since then. What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to Glasshouse? Well,
in 2015 I was lucky to have been chosen for a lead role in a South African
feature film called Double Echo before I'd even started studying my degree
(thanks to my amazing agents at APM). That was of course such an amazing
learning experience for me and I felt super privileged. Then in 2017 I
acted in another South African feature film called The Wrong Side of
the Day that was written and directed by my 3rd year Acting for Film lecturer
Riaz Solker, who is also an amazing South African actor, writer and director. Then in 2018 I was lucky enough to travel to the Island of
Mauritius to shoot in three different feature films that were being shot
back to back. Two of them are actually available on Netflix and their
names are Camp Getaway and The House on Seahorse Bay. They are fun
coming-of-age films that were directed by the incredibly talented Daniel
Buckland. And then in 2020 I was lucky enough to play the small role of
Renee in the new release Redeeming Love, which is based on the incredibly
well known novel by Francine Rivers.
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How
would you describe yourself as an actress, and some of your techniques to
bring your characters to life? Well
I do love working with emotion memory, but I am very open to trying new
techniques and always looking to explore new ways of getting into
character as well as getting to know my characters. I wouldn't say I have
a specific style just yet. At this moment I'm still young and trying to
soak up as much as I can and learn from those around me. Actresses (and indeed
actors) who inspire you?
There
are way too many to mention. I have always loved Johnny Depp and how he's
able to bring such interesting characters to life. Getting to work with
him one day would be amazing, or even just getting to be a fly on the wall
on a set he's working on. An actress that I have really admired
as of late for her work in films such a Little Women and Midsommar is
Florence Pugh. Absolutely love the way she's able to convey emotion and
can watch her for hours. Sandra Bullock has always always been one of my
favourites. Helena Bonham Carter is absolutely mind blowing don't even get
me started on her. There's literally too many to mention.
Your favourite movies? Midsommar, The Shining,
Harry Potter (all of them), The Notebook, Pirates of the
Caribbean, Pride and Prejudice, Sweeney
Todd, Les Misérables, The
Fault in Our Stars, The Abyss, A.I., Dune... once
again, way too many
to mention. ...
and of course, films you really deplore?
Nothing really comes to mind. There's definitely some films that have
disappointed me but nothing worth mentioning. Your website,
social media, whatever else?
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Haha,
I'm not the best with social media but my Instagram handle is
@_anjataljaard for anyone who is interested and if they want to know more
about anything I've acted in they are more than welcome to have a look at
my IMDb @ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm9288757/
Anything else you're dying
to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? None
that I can think of. But thank you so much for all the questions. It's
been a pleasure answering them and I hope all my answers have been
sufficient haha. All the best :D Thanks
for the interview!
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