Your new movie Montréal
Girls - in a few words, what is it about, and what can you tell us
about your character in it?
Montréal
Girls
is a movie about a young man discovering himself. Phénix, my character,
is a talented, but tormented and self-centered dark poet from the Montréal
underground scene. When we first meet Ramy, the protagonist, he is
impressed by my character and constantly seeks approval from him.
What did you draw upon to bring your character to life, and how
much Guillaume Rodrigue can we find in Phénix? I
believe we all have a dark side, which made it actually quite easy and fun
to jump into this role. I channeled my inner God complex and imagined if
someone wanted to take my place! With the help of director Patricia Chica [Patricia Chica
interview - click here] we worked on giving the character sympathy and humanity despite his
narcissistic behaviour. I'm nothing like Phénix! Haha! I’m much more
calm and kind, although we do share the same love for the stage. How did you
get involved with the project in the first place? My
agent called me when Patricia Chica was casting for the character.
Patricia and I talked on Facetime and it just clicked!
What
can you tell us about Montréal
Girls' director Patricia Chica, and what was your collaboration
like? Patricia
Chica is a great director. She's all about freedom and making actors
comfortable and confident. At the same time she knows what she wants and
will get you there with her Chi Energy technique. Montréal
Girls is said to be the first film to be made with Chi Power
- so how has this method informed your acting, and maybe you personally?
It
was really interesting! For me, it was a very spiritual approach. You can
actually feel the energy circulating through your body when you warm up.
It was really fun!
Do talk about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere! It
was in the middle of Covid so it was pretty intense with the sanitary
measures. But everybody was giving their all to make the best movie we
could. It was a great crew to work with!
Any
future projects you'd like to share? I'm
more of a stage actor. I'm touring with 3 shows this year. One of
them is the adaption of the movie The
Full Monty
called Ladies
Night,
which became a huge comedy hit in Québec. The two other projects are
musicals that will be touring Québec as well! What got you into
acting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject? I
always liked to sing and make people laugh. I knew I wanted to act when I
did a Molière monologue from a 500 year old comedy in high school, and
made my entire class laugh. I then went to Conservatoire d'Art Dramatique
de Montréal, a theatre school. What
can you tell us about your filmwork prior to Montréal
Girls? I
was in Et au Pire, on se Mariera,
directed by Léa Pool and Ligne
de Fuite,
directed by Myriam Bouchard and Catherine Chabot.
Montréal
Girls is my first bilingual movie! How would you
describe yourself as an actor, and some of your techniques to bring your
characters to life? I’m
a perfectionist and hard worker. I mainly use the Stanislavski technique,
the magic if. Actors (and indeed actresses) who
inspire you? Tony
Colette and Joaquin Phoenix. Your favourite movies? Big
Fish, Hereditary,
Rosemary's Baby,
and Trainspotting. ...
and of course, films you really deplore?
|
Feeling lucky? Want to search any of my partnershops yourself for more, better results? (commissions earned) |
The links below will take you just there!!!
|
|
|
I
don't really like the superhero movie genre. I find them repetitive and
that there are too many. Your website,
social media, whatever else? Insta:
@guillaumerodrigue Anything else you're dying
to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? I'm
a taurus and I love R'n'B! Thanks
for the interview!
|