Interview with Lindsay Mackay and Julia Sarah Stone

The movie Wet Bum was playing this year at the Toronto International Film Festival. Recently, I had the opportunity to talk to writer/director Lindsay Mackay and actor Julia Sarah Stone about the stories behind making the movie and what it meant to them.

Lindsay, you wrote and directed Wet Bum. Was this an idea you have had for awhile and was it a personal story for you to tell?

It’s an idea I’ve had for awhile and a bit of a personal piece. (Laughs) It is probably the most personal film I have ever written or directed. I grew up in a small town where my parents use to own and run a retirement/nursing home and I used to work there as a young girl and I also failed to be a lifeguard which was a big disappointment in my life. (Laughs) So it’s loosely based on traits of some of the people I’ve met with some of Sam’s experiences similar to mine but I also wanted it to be its own thing separate from me as well.

Julia, after I watched the movie it brought back some of those awkward memories from my own teenage years. Was there any part of Sam’s journey that you found difficult to portray?

Well I think that, even if your experience wasn’t the same as Sam’s was I think that at some point in everyone’s lives they have gone through this, whether they are fourteen or forty. So I think a lot of Sam’s feelings and a lot of her confusion and awkwardness are things that many people can relate to. For me, the emotions and feelings were not completely foreign to me so I found it easier to access them. I actually used music to help me access those same kinds of emotions Sam was feeling and to help me with different scenes.

Lindsay, I found that there was a lot of camera time spent on the actor’s faces, sometimes when there was no dialogue at all. As a director, do you find it difficult during these moments to have the actor’s understand what it is you are looking for?

It can be, for sure. I have been fortunate enough in a lot of my projects to work with many wonderful actors. I think Julia has this incredible ability to give so much without saying anything. There are a couple of moments in the film where we just hold on her and I feel like you can track the shifting emotions going through her mind. It’s a rare ability and I was very lucky to find her.

I find that so important because I think of filmmaking as to use its whole medium and it doesn’t just have to be two people in a room talking. It’s a visual language and I think we as human beings understand emotions through eyes and faces and the little things which are so important.

Julia, did you find it difficult to not speak and just try to portray the emotion on your face?

Not particularly because Sam’s journey means so much to me as a person and I really felt connected to it I mean, I just fell in love with the character of Sam as soon as I read the script. Her journey I think hit’s home with a lot of people and it is so vivid from the script that it wasn’t that difficult to know what she was going through in those moments and to kind of be going through that with her.

Lindsay, this isn’t the first time you have used scenes that are in the water. Is there some special attraction for you there and how do you find actors react to doing scenes in the water, such as those in the swimming pool in Wet Bum?

Some have enjoyed working in the water, some have not. [Laughs] To me water is really such a power, terrifying and beautiful substance. It can both take a life and save one and it’s fascinating to me that oh, I hope I don’t become known as the water lady [Laughs] but I obviously find it very beautiful and I also find it interesting and, I take very long showers and swim laps and I do my best thinking when water is involved. I don’t have any training in meditation but his is my form of meditation.

It’s what I assume runners experience when they are in the zone, having that kind of focus. I find it very interesting for Sam’s character to be in a space where she can be weightless and kind of shut everything off. I find it fascinating that there is also a time limit on it, that eventually you have to surface and face reality. I love being able to play with those ideas.

In terms of filming in the water, it’s challenging there is no denying that. [Laughs] Basically we did about three days in the water…

Julia: …not including re-shoots!

Lindsay: Yes, not including re-shoots. It’s like a marathon and honestly, I don’t think I could do it. It was really difficult but Julia did amazing, you couldn’t have asked for anything better. I think it really set the tone for the story and I’m really excited about it.

So Julia, how did you enjoy the water?

[Laughs] I enjoyed it. Honestly! It was really challenging after getting in and out of the water so many times in one day, and being there all day was pretty exhausting physically. It’s also an understatement to say it gets kind of cold going back and forth like that, so I didn’t enjoy those days. However, it’s just one of those things where you know everyone in the cast and crew are working so hard to achieve this one goal and that’s to bring this story to life. It really is just part of the process and makes us that much prouder of what we have accomplished.

It must also be tough mentally, to not only concentrate on the swimming part but to remember your lines as well.

Lindsay: It’s funny because with my other film, the short film Clear Blue, we did A LOT of auditions and we brought them into the water because the fascinating thing I discovered was the people who can act above water can’t necessarily act or look pretty underwater. Some people when they get under water they make the worst faces! [Laughs] When Julia came in for her callback we forced her to get in the water and we brought in a camera and it was so great. She looked beautiful underwater, had full control of her body and emotions so it was a sure sign to us that not only was she fantastic above water but that she could also handle the challenging underwater photography as well.

One of things I enjoyed most about the movie was not just Sam’s character, but that all the teenagers seemed real and not just cookie cutter, background material. Was that something the both of you had to work on or did it come naturally while filming?

I think it came naturally. I mean, we talked a lot and rehearsed a little bit but what was most important to me was for the characters to be authentic. Talking to Julia made me realize she was a bit of an old soul like myself so we were able to talk through scenes pretty easily. It was all about trying to find some personal experiences we could draw on and points that I can help her tap into at certain moments, it was very interesting to do.

With the other characters like Craig, who plays Lukas, what I talked to him a lot about was that I didn’t want to make him out to be the villain in the offset. There is a real grey area that surrounds him, it’s not simply black and white, although obviously towards the end of the film things go a specific direction. However, I wanted him to be a fully formed character and not just a villain so we talked a lot about how he was feeling and what he was thinking during certain scenes and I wanted the audience to take this journey with the characters but not really be sure how things were going to turn out.

The party scene at the unfinished house was also a very interesting to watch. Was that particular scene planned all along and how was it to film?

Lindsay: It was kind of planned I mean, the script went through a few variations like originally it was set in the summer (Laughs) and there wasn’t really a party scene but through season changes and notes and what not the party scene came to be. To me it’s the kind of scenario that as a teenager being surrounded by people that are a little bit older you kind of want to be a little older yourself. Then all of sudden you find yourself in a situation where you want to do something yet are questioning it at the same time.

Julia: That was a fun scene to do, and I have to thank Craig because he was so amazing. I do think that the combination of his character having a lot of that grey area around him and us being able to bounce things off each other so easily made it a lot more comfortable to film those scenes.

I think that because the characters are so well written and layered that for example Sam, who has this huge vulnerability she tries so hard to hide with this mask and doesn’t always succeed in doing so. It makes for an interesting balance of trying to be that older person that people want her to be which also terrifies her at the same time.

I want to thank Lindsay Mackay and Julia Sarah Stone for taking the time to talk with us.