JAMIE TAYLOR BALLESTA TALKS PETIT LOUIS
"It was important for us to implicitly trust"
Daniel John
Set within the confines of a small apartment that neither the audience, or the young runaway woman you portray, ever leaves, 'Petit Louis' tells a nonlinear drama unfolding, and dispersing, in parts. It is a film that truly is subjected to the brilliant performances of you and Tom Koch. How did you become comfortable with both the stillness and tumultuousness between those four walls?
The way we started off the entire casting process aside from initial auditions was through chemistry-reads, and I think Tom would attest that we connected immediately. From there we had Zoom meetings with our director, André Bato, to really understand how he saw this story and this couple. During the last two months of pre-production Tom and I had near daily Zoom meetings, him being based in NY and myself in LA. For all of us, Chiara and J’s chemistry and connection had to be undeniable and something you almost felt physically within yourself. Tom had a great thought for us to improv with each other in character each day, which I think really allowed us to explore how these two move in relation to each other, how they handle things within themselves and how one affects the other. Also, given the heavy material within the script, as well as the more intimate scenes, it was important for us to implicitly trust one another and that was really facilitated by our talented intimacy coordinator, DaRyn Merriwether. She helped us find our footing and comfortability when it came to the physical parts of these characters and their relationship, exploring both the sexual and more violent aspects of Chiara and J in a safe and respectful way.
It's an interesting story in the way it can be interpreted in two completely different ways. Either very literal, but also in a more metaphorical way, about how we romanticise dysfunctional relationships, and stay even when we should not. Do you see it as a literal lock on the door or does it speak of a self-made prison?
I see it as both literal and metaphorical. They are two people who have their own ideas about what love and romance means and how they are able to express it. To me, Chiara is someone who is very comfortable exploring all of her emotions without reservation, including the darker and more complicated emotions sometimes brought about by love.
Why does the "broken bird" not leave the nest, as you see it?
When J tells Chiara this story about the bird being abandoned by his family and “left for dead” she can’t help but relate. He speaks of the bird being rescued by his mother and needing “someone to care for him” and that’s how she sees the dynamic between herself and J, he’s someone that essentially rescued her and cares for her in the best way he knows how given his own past. Despite the tumultuousness of their relationship, they’re incapable of leaving one another. I think they are both broken and trying to navigate their relationship through their inner turmoil. J goes on to tell Chiara the ending of the story about the little bird, where he finally leaves the nest for a period of time and upon returning, the bird lands back in the mother’s hands and dies. “It was the outside I think, it killed him” J tells her, for me those words have a high impact on Chiara. She continues to question if she is capable of taking care of herself which is why when she finally is able to get the door open to escape the apartment. She can’t bring herself to leave that nest. The love they carry for each other, their insecurities, and all that has happened between them becomes its own sort of prison.
A lot of it takes place in quiet moments. Even a lot of its loudest are when the feelings get so big that the silence and emptiness is heard. But then there is also that long sequence like scene where it emotionally explodes and does all of it. It gets loud. You dance, you fight. What was it like going through that entire flow?
That was one of my favourite parts. It was also, in my opinion, the most technically difficult. Just for that sequence, it was imperative that we worked and rehearsed thoroughly with our intimacy coordinator, DaRyn, our powerhouse choreographer, Gigi Todisco, and a fight choreographer. That is not even to mention our incredible director of photography, Guido Raimondo, who was moving through the space with us on a handheld for that sequence as well. We had a few rehearsals with the dancing, the fighting, the cameras pathway, and the breakaway plates that I threw towards Tom and the camera, but ultimately with this whole thing being shot on film, it did not leave too much room for error from any of us, especially because André wanted longer takes with very few cuts, which for us as actors was such an incredible gift. He had such a clear vision from start to finish and because everyone on set is such a master at their craft. It was wildly fun and honestly a once in a lifetime kind of experience to film.
What was the voilà moment that got you into acting?
I first wanted to start acting after my grandpa had taken me to see a local theater production of 'The Wizard of Oz'. I loved everything about live theater. After that, I just did as many plays and musicals as I could, until I was able to continue pursuing acting in college, and after. It’s been the best possible thing I could have done and the hardest. I feel lucky to have so much support from my family and partner because it does get discouraging sometimes, but I’m frequently reminded of how much I love doing this.
How do you make sure not to romanticize the struggle of the craft all too much, balancing that?
That’s a great question! I am honestly still trying to figure out the balance part. I think as creatives and actors, there comes a lot of uncertainty about what and where your next job will come from and managing to not take the many “no’s” along the way personally is difficult! I love what I do and truly wouldn’t change it for anything, but that being said it’s so important to try and keep a full life of friends, family, experiences, hobbies, and so on. I think it makes you a more thoughtful and well-rounded actor. I don’t think I romanticize the struggle much but I do get frustrated and discouraged by it and for that, I think having a good support system will sustain you, whether that's family and friends, or passions that fulfill you outside of acting.
Anything else that we can look forward to seeing you in?
Yes! I wrapped a short called 'Five Stars' by Kenny Williams and Ryan Hepkema that I believe comes out in the fall and then a horror short called 'Mora' by Sam Evenson, that will be released in the next couple months!
