TOMMI ROSE TALKS A SAVANNAH HAUNTING

Interviewed by Culture Coast Talks editor Daniel John. Interview transcripts might have been edited for length and clarity.

‘A Savannah Haunting’ is a film about a family grappling with tragic loss, moving to Savannah to find some kind of peace, only to find themselves haunted in their new home. It’s quite a story, leaving some of us confused, but everyone at the edge of their seats?

I remember reading the script and being so intrigued by the twists and turns. I typically see what’s coming or can at least guess, but I was totally caught off guard. I still remember reading it in the passenger seat of my dad’s car and gasping so loud that it scared him while he was driving.

The film was inspired by the alleged real haunting that its director and his family experienced in the very house you filmed. And a lot of the cast and crew has said that they had some kind of super-natural experience in there. You did not, though?

I did not. However, that could have been attributed to my willingness to experience supernatural occurrences. I many times would enter a room alone, turn off all the lights and speak to any possible spirits that were in the room. I suspect that may have taken the fun out of it for them. It’s no fun to scare someone who wants to be scared.

Are you generally easily scared when it comes to horror, I would kinda assume that you would not be stepping into a haunted house if you were?

I am definitely not easily scared, especially by supernatural experiences, not because I doubt their existence at all, but because I have mostly only ever had positive experiences with them. That happens to be another theory of mine as to why I never had any in the house. Maybe none of them were friendly.

Any particularly fun day on set while everyone else was terrified?

One of the days on set I got my lovely friend and co-star, Anna, to learn a funny little dance with me. We spent all day learning it and I just remember thinking it was the funnies thing. I am pretty sure Dean snuck a couple videos of us practicing and everyone got a pretty big kick out of it.

What is interesting about Lilath is that she, necessarily, is not her own person?

Lilath is such a unique character because she quite literally has no redeemable qualities. She is pure, genuine evil. She’s frightening not because of some dark objective she has to accomplish, she just simply does not care about any damage or destruction she causes. It’s all a silly little game to her, she has no empathy, no remorse, no way to reason with her, which is what makes her so terrifying. This also makes it so easy for her to spot anyone’s deepest needs and use it against them.

How did you truly find her?

Strangely enough, she almost felt like she was already there, and it was just a matter of my willingness to let her through. So, although I didn’t encounter any ghosts while in the house, Lilath specifically felt very real to me in a disturbing way.

Were you always a creative?

Creative outlets were huge for me as a kid and still are. I honestly don’t think I could get through one day without some form of art. I had way too much energy as a kid, and truthfully still do, do my parents put me in an acting class when I was three years old. It just clicked for me. I fell in love and am still just as much in love with the process today. My parents were really extraordinary about supporting whatever I was passionate about and letting me explore my creative side from a very young age.

Been writing any new music?

Always. I’m always writing, it’s just a matter of when I feel like they’re ready to release into the world. Songwriting is such a personal thing, it really feels like putting a chunk of your soul out on display, so I’m always very adamant about giving each song the attention it deserves. That being said, I have a few in particular I absolutely love that may or may not make an appearance soon.

You have a lot going on, anything in particular coming up you cannot wait for people to get to see you in next?

I do! For horror and thriller fans specifically, I have a new film coming out soon called ‘Catch a Killer’ and I am also on ABC’s new series ‘Will Trent’. Outside of that genre, I will be on the new season of Netflix’s ‘Sweet Magnolias’. That’s all I can say for now, the rest is top secret, but I’ll post updates as soon as I can on my Instagram.