Movies
[Interview] Asta Paredes Talks “Sociopathia” and “Return To Nuke ‘Em High Vol. II”
In “Sociopathia,” Mara (Tammy Jean) spends her mornings fabricating props for movies. But during the night, Mara turns corpses into living dolls. When she’s hired by Kat (Asta Paredes) a fledgling producer, the two develop a relationship that grows more intense. Will Kat be Mara’s saving grace? Or will Kat become another doll in her collection?
Bloody-Disgusting spoke with actress Asta Paredes about her role as Kat in the upcoming psychological thriller, and teases what’s to come in the highly anticipated Troma sequel, “Return To Nuke ‘Em High Vol.II.”
Bloody-Disgusting: How did you become involved in Socipathia?
Asta Paredes: Well, I was approached by Ruby Larocca and Rich Mallery. And they basically sent me the script. They gave me the character, the synopsis. After reading the script and being surprised by the story, how different it was from a lot of things I’ve read, I approached back. Then I read for the role and the rest was history.
BD: Tell me about playing the role of Kat.
AP: Kat is an impulsive producer. She’s an up-and-comer in the film industry and trying to prove herself as a woman in this male dominated world. She needs some special effects and is then brought into Mara’s world.She’s immediately drawn to Mara (Jean) like a moth to a flame, and becomes reckless in this attraction.
BD: Tell me about working with a cast of up-and-comers, such as Brandy Noir, and recognized names in the horror industry, like Ruby Larocca.
AP: It was really great to work with not just a bunch of up-and-comers, but a bunch of up-and-coming actresses who have participated in horror. It was like a little spooky sisterhood.
Brandy, she’s great! She was also the make-up artist. I didn’t get to personally have a scene with her though. We did drive to set together and even sang songs to get ready for the day.
Tammy [Jean] was a ball of sunshine! She is very unsettling in her role because she has this doll-like demeanor and it offsets this demented quality of Mara she plays so well.
Nicola Fiore and Nicolette Le Faye were both fun to work with! They’ve both got a big energy and talent to match. I also had some special scenes with Tabetha Ray; she’s definitely someone to look out for.
I enjoyed working with all the ladies!
BD: Tell me about working with Ruby LaRocca and Rich Mallery as directors.
AP: Ruby and Rich wore a lot of hats in this production. For one, they were also producers. They helped me to transition from horror/comedy to psychological horror by being very specific and having their own aesthetic. It was an ambitious shoot where everyone very much had to be ready and prepared for anything.
However, they nurtured anything you had. You could go out there and try things but there was no room for frills. You had to be true and ready for your character, what the scenes were, why they were important, and move along. It was a very strict atmosphere in that sense, but they were great to work with, and I hope I get to work with them again.
BD: Was if a challenge to work with a director, who was also your co-star?
AP: No, because Ruby has this intense energy and it’s so much fun to share the screen with her. She also knows how to get things out of you. I don’t want to give away the scenes I did with her BUT they were certainly fun, animalistic, crazy horror scenes. It was also great to hear her thoughts when I went through some of the most frightening scenes I’ve ever done. She has such an immense spirit and I’m so glad to learn from such a true scream queen.
BD: Do you know when audiences will get to see “Sociopathia?”
AP: From what I’ve been told, they’re going to have it open at summer film festivals. It’s then aiming to be on home video, VOD release by the end of 2015.
BD: “Return To Nuke ‘Em High Vol.1” is out on DVD and Blu-Ray. How do you feel now looking back on the experience behind the screenings, signings, and the audience receptions.
AP: It’s been a fun ride! I’ll always be grateful to how the energy and the understanding of the critics pushed forward the considered success of the film. A film like this was made by a lot of people, that were really in love with the work and had fun with the work most importantly.
It was so great to see this understanding from audiences that it was a fun and silly film. People saw it in the theater, which is a sense of community; that’s what really drove my first major role in a feature film to be truly memorable.
BD: What can you tease about “Return To Nuke ‘Em High Vol. II?”
AP: “Return To ‘Nuke Em High Vol. II” is going to be super crazy. It’s going to be over-the-top and surpass any expectation of shock and awe that any Troma fan, non-Troma fan could expect from Troma. Vol.II will finish it off with a bang. I’m pretty excited about it!
BD: What other projects are you working on now?
AP: Well, a lot here and there. For instance, I recently worked on the web series “Mummy Cop.” Antonio Piluso and Clay von Carlowitz wrote an episode that takes place in the ’70s. Fun stuff! I also just worked on “These Three Girls,” which is a great comedy series made by my good friends, Teresa Hui and Jarrid Crespo. Everything else I’m working on is pretty hush-hush for now. I’m also always open to new projects.
So for now the focus is on 2015 being about “Sociopathia,” “Return To Nuke ‘Em High Vol.II” and I worked on the short, “The Runaround Club,” all of which will be showing next year.
An Interview by Jorge Solis
Described as “Ted meets ET,” David Mikalson’s raunchy comedy Goblin is being brought to life over at A24, and Will Forte (“The Four Seasons”) is now in talks to star.
Deadline first reported the news this afternoon.
Kenneth Branagh has been cast to voice the titular Goblin in the upcoming A24 movie, with the character said to be “green-colored” as well as “anatomically correct.”
Skyler Gisondo (Superman) is reportedly playing the Goblin’s human best friend.
The mysterious project sounds a bit like films including A Gnome Named Gnorm and more recently, Frankie Freako, though it’s important to note that it’s not billed as a horror movie.
Deadline details, “After [Mikalson] hatched the idea to make an outrageous buddy comedy about a goblin, using a practical puppet and operating outside the Hollywood system, his script quickly got him a rep team. While others might have eyed the raunchy comedy as a writing sample or planned to wait to see the micro-budget version Mikalson has been directing in Kentucky, A24 jumped all over it. The hot indie essentially has agreed to finance a full feature.”
“There was a lot of interest, but A24 came with what Mikalson really wanted, after spending all his money crafting the puppet title character: they acquired the movie and agreed to let him make it with a significantly increased budget than what he had left after creating the anatomically correct title character,” Deadline’s report goes on to explain.
What does the titular Goblin actually look like? Well, a cake that Mikalson had whipped up for his reps might give us our first look at what to expect. Deadline explains the photo you’ll see down below, “Take a look at the cake he commissioned with Marc Gravelle at Cake Art in West Hollywood, to present to his reps as thanks for making his dream come true.”
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