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I had the opportunity to interview Eva Amurri in conjunction with the film The Life Before Her Eyes which screened at the AFI Film Festival held in Dallas earlier this month. I was so impressed with her acting ability. We all know that she’s Susan Sarandon’s daughter, but did you know how tall she is? She must be close to 6 feet (in heels of course)!

PS: How has your stay in Dallas been so far?
EA: Great! I mean I got here last night, so I haven’t been here too long - it’s been fun! I got up early and did some morning shows.

PS: I wish it was better weather for you! We get so much sunshine usually this time of the year.
EA: It doesn’t really matter - there are no windows in this room, so I can’t even see outside.

PS: I understand you’re from New York, but you went to college in Rhode Island.
EA: Providence, I went to Brown

PS: My niece went to Brown.
EA: Did she like it?

PS: She liked it very much. When did you graduate?
EA: This past May.

PS: I didn’t realize that you’re a recent graduate. How were you able to work college into your schedule?
EA: I basically had to put my career on the back burner for a little bit. In between my junior and senior years I did manage to do both this movie and also The Education of Charlie Banks directed by Fred Durst. So I got to do a little bit of work and then I basically started right out of the gate as soon as I graduated. But it was really important to me to finish and get my degree

PS: What did you major in?
EA: Italian studies.

PS: Oh my! Are you fluent?
EA: Yes! Actually, I’m Italian and grew up half here and half there and grew up speaking the language. So it was less about speaking and more about becoming confident in writing and there were things I wanted to lock down while I could take classes for it - history and film especially.

PS: Let’s talk about this film. Tell me at what point did you hook up with this film?
EA: Vadim (Perelman) and Evan had already been attached and I read the script and I loved it! It was so exciting - I loved the sort of twisty ending (she giggles) and I think the idea of working with both of them was also very attractive to me. I was filming in Providence at the time actually and had one day to audition and I took a train in and auditioned and got it! Which was great! It was nice, really nice - we started filming right away.
PS: So there was never a point where you read the script and you said, “Wow - I’d really like to play Diana”.
EA: No. I think that I’m very, very different from the character of Maureen and that is what attracted me to the character. It was a really big challenge for me. So, if I had to chose, I’m sort of more Diana in some ways then Maureen (she giggles). So, it was interesting. It was the challenge that I think that I needed at that point.

PS: Actually, that was my next question - How much of a goody-goody are you? You did a good job convincing me that you really are!
EA: I’ve always been a good kid, but I was a dork goody-goody in my school. But you know, I’m somewhere in between.

PS: How was it returning to high school?
EA: Interesting. The wardrobe people helped me out a lot. Because you know, I’m more then a few years older then Evan and I was really worried that it wasn’t going to work. They had her in heels this high (she motions) and me in flats most of the time. I haven’t been in high school in a long time and it was interesting to try and get back into that mentality, where you have your crush and you have your best friend and you hang out at each others houses after school. It was nice to remember that time. So it was fun!

PS: It was soooo……high school.
EA: Yeah, it was so high school, exactly.

PS: We don’t see much of Nate, your boyfriend.
EA: We see him a few times. There’s a really beautiful shot where the camera tracks - it’s a cool shot, where you see both of us, interplay in class. And actually the guy who played Nate -  this is a little known fact…..is my best friend now. Tanner. And he is great! He has this really cool movie opening in the Miami Film Festival. So, I’m really happy for him! So we’ve stayed really close, just as Maureen would have wanted, he’s still in my life (laughter).

PS: How about Evan? Did you become friends on the set?
EA: We were very, very friendly.

PS: Did you know her beforehand?
EA: No, I didn’t know her beforehand. And she’s a really great girl – very, very smart, really talented, she’s very, very professional to work with and I think we had kind of a mutual understanding. We had a great time. We had a few really great laughs.

PS: I really did get the feeling that you were friends, even though you were polar opposites. I did believe that you were truly good buddies. Let’s leave this film for a second…… You’ve done some comedies; you’ve worked with some very diverse directors like Tony Shalhoub, Bob Dolman. How was it working with Vadim? I heard he’s a perfectionist!
EA: Yeah! He definitely knows what he wants, which is wonderful, as an actor because you have this goal, this vision that you can try and be part of. There’s nothing better when you’re playing somebody who is so far removed from yourself, to have that much guidance was wonderful! He’s a no bullshit kind of guy. If something’s not working, he’s very clear. I really respect that. If something’s not working, I would much prefer that it be known and we can fix it, then tip-toeing around everything, so I really appreciated that about him, when we were working together.

PS: I know you mentioned that you read the screenplay, at what point in making the film did you read the book?
EA: I didn’t read the book. Vadim preferred that we not read the book.

PS: Even now?
EA: No, I think that I probably should do that now, just to know how it’s different. He was very specific and didn’t want us to read it during the process because the characters we constructed together with him, when they were adapted into a screenplay became a little bit different then the ones in the book. So it was nice to feel we were starting fresh and creating these characters ourselves.

PS: It’s going to be difficult for me to write the review because I don’t want to give anything away, but I heard the book does have a slightly different ending – I’m going to have to read it myself to find out! You started acting when you were very young. You won a young artist award for The Banger Sisters. You’ve worked in TV and you’ve worked in film. Do you have a preference?
EA: I like both. The little TV I’ve done, Friends was a live show, so that a very different kind of experience, which was really fun!  I just love a challenge. I love whatever can keep me on my toes. I would love to do plays, I would love to do that, so….I don’t know, whichever way I can kind of explore, makes me happy.

PS: Did you participate in theatre in college?
EA: No, I didn’t. I wanted to make sure my time at college was academic and very different from what I feel like what I want to do forever after.

PS: Forgive me, I have to ask this question, and I’m sure you’ve been asked this question many times before, but my readership would like to know…..it’s a two-part question….What was it like working with you mother? Some would think it would make the process easier, I personally feel that it might make it more difficult. How did you handle having her around?
EA: It was a great experience. It was very fun. It’s always nice to have your mom around when you’re away from home. So that was good! And it’s nice because, she’s a really talented actress. And I think it didn’t make it easier or harder. When we work together, we really treat each other like co-stars, like you would anybody else. So we make sure we’re prepared, we’re very courteous to each other. When we’re working, we really have, a working relationship. It comes out of the mother-daughter relationship and becomes something else. That’s how it works.

PS: You’ve been around actors your whole life. When did you get the “calling”?
EA: I always knew that I liked acting and that I wanted to do it, but it was when I was about 14 that I decided that it was something that I really wanted to invest my time and energy into doing. Because up until that time, some things had fallen into my lap, like, one of my parents had been doing something and the casting director asked if I wanted to audition for a little part. I said, “Of course, of course!” But I was still in school and I wasn’t going on auditions every week. When I got to high school and decided that I really wanted to do it, I just started going and going, 3 or 4 days a week after school. I would go into the city and audition. So, it was definitely a process, it didn’t just come right away. It was definitely a lot of hard work.

PS: Did you parents try and dissuade you?
EA: I don’t think it thrilled them (she laughs), that I was going into the business. But they’ve been very supportive. They know that if it makes me happy, it makes them happy.

PS: I saw Made-Up at the USA Film Festival a few years ago. That’s the first time I can remember seeing you in a film. That was a wonderful role.
EA: I liked that. It was fun! We filmed that in zero time, in Boston. We had a good time filming that.

PS: Sorry about jumping around here - let’s go back to The Life Before her Eyes. You really had to draw on what’s in here (I point to my heart) for that role. How did you prepare for that? You’re so young! How did you conjure up such strong emotions? 
EA: Well, the characters are young, so that’s part of it. That’s what happens when you’re that young and you’re still figuring it out and something of that magnitude happens to you. That’s really what the movie is about. And for me it was very difficult, but it was also …….the circumstances were so real and so relatable, that it really helped us both, get into that place of ….”What if this had really happened, what would this be like”? That scene was shot over 3 days, so it was maintaining that same level for three days that was absolutely exhausting.

PS: I can’t imagine!
EA: And really emotionally draining. It was difficult, but also having another person there to feed off of their energy was really helpful.

PS: From the audience perspective, you get to witness that scene many times, and each time, you see something different, it was hard to watch! I can’t imagine how difficult it was for you to place yourself within the scene. Just having a gun placed to your head. …….What would you like us to know about this film that we don’t already know?
EA: I think that more then anything, it’s obviously about a school shooting and a specific act of violence, but it really is so rooted in a story about friendship and loyalty and growing up. I know from the poster it seems like it s a chick flick, a somber kind of movie. But there’s really a lot of laughter, there’s a lot of fun. It really is a movie for everybody. So I would encourage people to bring their boyfriends and their husbands, because it’s really something for everyone.

PS: Well, thank you, it was so nice to chat with you today. I wish you much luck with this film and future endeavors. 

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