Produced by Phantom Film Production Corp, the Swarms of drifting shadows is a film directed by Amir Ganjavie, a filmmaker, university scholar and critic based in Toronto, Canada. Ganjavie is known for his independent style of filmmaking, exploring themes of human psychology and tales of morality. This is his third and largest feature production after Pendulum (2019) and Into Schroëdinger’s Box (2020). The film’s production has finished, and the film is ready for distribution. What follows in an interview with Beáta Imre, a Hungarain-Canadian actor, writer and model with 10 years of experience on stage who played the role of female lead, Delilah, in the film. She is currently studying Communication and Media Studies at Ottawa University.
Darida Rose, UniversalCinema Magazine (UM): This is your first feature film. How was the experience? What were the main challenges for you?
Beáta Imre (BI): Overall, I found the experience to be very rewarding. There were certainly some challenges along the way, but I learned so much about what it means to work on a feature film, and I also learned a lot about myself and the way I work best. At first, I was unsure of myself and my abilities, but I was always surrounded by a very supportive cast and crew who helped me become more and more comfortable as the shoot went on. I basically had a group of twenty people who always had my back no matter what!
In terms of challenges, it was certainly tough to adapt to the last-minute changes and shifts that are characteristic of an indie film. Sometimes shoot schedules would be altered the morning of, making it very difficult to properly prepare for the day. It took me a while to get used to this, for sure – I just had to remind myself to take a deep breath, empty my mind, and remember how grateful I am to do what I do. After all, the worst day on set is still better than a great day doing anything else.
(UM): What attracted you most to the role and the script? What was your reaction when you first read the script?
(BI): Reading through the script, I saw Delilah as fierce, independent, and strong – yet I also saw the possibility of darkness and pain in her past. I saw complexity and depth, which is not always the case for female protagonists in films. Most important of all, I saw a bit of myself in her, which made it easy to embody the role.
Moreover, I found the script as a whole to be moving and raw. It had the ability to provoke critical thought on a variety of levels; it constantly left me wondering who was the bad guy and who was the good guy. Though – on the surface – Caesar can be seen as the antagonist and Delilah as the protagonist, there’s good and bad in both of them, and I can sympathize with each of them. I can’t count how many times my fellow actor Rick Amsbury (who played Caesar) said: “I still don’t know who Caesar is.” Though this can make our work as actors difficult, it’s reminiscent of real life – I dare you to find someone who knows exactly who they are. People, by nature, are unsure of themselves. We make mistakes, we learn from them, but at the end of the day, no one can put a label on us. We all have a bit of good – and a bit of bad. This is precisely what drew me to the script; it pulled my heart in multiple directions and I never really knew which character was really the hero of the story.
(UM): Can you expand a bit about the production process? What was it like to work during the pandemic? Have you faced any issue?
(BI): Going into this shoot, I was certainly nervous about my health and safety, as well as the health and safety of everyone that would be around me. However, protocols were followed and I always felt perfectly safe on set. Overall, the pandemic didn’t interfere with our work on set as long as everyone followed the rules that were prescribed in our contract!
(UM): How was the experience of working in the unstable weather of Canadian’s fall?
(BI): I’ll be honest – the weather was terrible to work with! We went from over 20 degrees Celsius one day to a blizzard the next day to melting snow the day after to summer weather the day after that. Sound complicated? It certainly was, but we did our best to work around it. Undoubtedly, we’re all extremely blessed to live in such a beautiful country that can experience such vast weather conditions, and we tried to take as much advantage of that as possible during our shoot. We shot as many scenes as we could outside, showcasing Canada’s raw falltime beauty.
To be honest, when I heard that this movie would be shot primarily outdoors in the wilderness, I was beyond excited. Working amongst the elements, connected to nature, is refreshing – although it was sometimes difficult to perform in chilling temperatures.
We did have to reshoot more than a few scenes due to the unpredictable weather, but it’s a small price to pay. If I had the chance to act in another movie that would be shot outdoors, I’d agree in a heartbeat!
(UM): Does the director have a specific style of acting that he asked you to do?
(BI): Overall, I was permitted to be very free with the kind of acting I did, yet I would say we leaned more toward a realistic, life-like style of acting. For the most part, I was allowed to deliver my lines the way I actually would in real life. Additionally, the blocking for the scenes was, more often than not, a collaboration between the actors and the director, which allowed for the actors to imbue pieces of themselves into both dialogue and action.
Having this kind of collaboration fit perfectly with the story, I think. Without giving away too much about the film, it’s essentially about a group of people who don’t know where they are nor how they got there. By allowing all the actors to just act like themselves, every scene is infused with reality and truth.
(UM): Please tell us a bit about the dynamics with the other performers? How were you able to create chemistry in a limited span of time?
(BI): Before the shoot, I had only met the other lead actor twice. With this being my first feature film, I was really, really nervous – I hoped that I could at least have kind actors working with me to make this entire experience more comfortable for me.
Thankfully, my wish came true. Everyone that I worked with, cast and crew included, were beyond kind to me. In terms of creating chemistry in such a limited amount of time, I already had experience. Before this film, I’ve worked on numerous short films, and I’d argue that creating chemistry on short films is even more difficult than for feature films. For Swarms of drifting shadows, I spent weeks upon weeks with my fellow actors, so it was easy to build close, personal relationships with them. For short films, you need to create camaraderie within two days – three if you’re lucky.
Overall, creating chemistry is just another one of my tasks as an actor, and I think there was more than enough chemistry to go around on this set.
(UM): Who are some of your inspirations in terms of acting?
(BI): This may be a strange response to this question, but I actually don’t have any inspirations for my acting. Of course, I watch a lot of movies and shows and plays and I recognize great performances and great acting, but I prefer not to pin down any role models. I feel like if I choose certain actors for inspiration, then I may end up just copying their acting. Instead, when I’m acting, I get inspired and motivated by the objects and people around me and I let that inspiration create an authentic moment between the camera and me.
I view acting as a very personal journey. I’m not acting so that I can be more like my favorite actors – I’m acting so that I can delve within myself and learn more about me.
(UM): Is there any specific experience that you will remember from this movie?
(BI): There’s certainly a lot I’ll remember from this shoot, but I think one of the memories I’ll hold with me the most is one of the first scenes I did. I was sitting on a rooftop, my legs dangling off the edge, staring out into the nearby forest. Sitting beside me was one of the other actors (an 11-year-old who had never been in a feature film before, like me).
For me, this scene was a pivotal point in terms of my experience on set. After this scene, I felt more comfortable and more myself. Moreover, the scene itself was just magical – I couldn’t believe that my job at that moment actually involved something as awesome as sitting on a rooftop, staring into a beautiful forest, and breathing in the crisp, cool air. It was also shot beautifully by the camera crew. Props to them!
(UM): Do you have any advice you’d like to give up and coming actors, especially during these times where roles are limited?
(BI): If I could give advice to up and coming actors, I’d tell them to never stop working. There’s very little time to rest and recharge – you’re always either working or looking for work or auditioning or getting over rejection or networking. It’s just a constant barrage of work. Don’t let that discourage you, of course! Acting is the one of the few things that make me happy, and the amount of grueling work I put into it just makes it even more rewarding.
Accordingly, this constant work can take a toll on mental health. I think the most important part of being successful (in any part of life) is taking care of yourself – listening to your mind and body when something’s going wrong. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, take a step back and re-evaluate yourself. If you’re feeling pressured, don’t be afraid to say no and stand up for your wellbeing.
Altogether, my advice would be to work as hard you can, but also to make time for your wellbeing and sanity – both are equally important.
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