Festivals - Fantasia 2020 : Lucky : Interview with Natasha Kermani, Kausar Mohammed and Dhruv Uday Singh

By Mulder, Canada, Québec, 24 august 2020

Author May Ryer (Brea Grant) has been out of luck lately. Her self-help books aren't selling as well as they used to, and one night a masked intruder breaks into the house she shares with her husband Ted (Dhruv Uday Singh). Worse, Ted is curiously unconcerned about the incident, speaking nonchalantly as if she just has to accept it, while an investigator says she is lucky she got away with it. To add insult to injury, the assailant reappears again and again, continuing to terrorize May, who defends herself against an enemy who seems to have supernatural powers. When May asks for help, she inevitably faces indifference and condescension. One of her books is entitled Problem Solving for Staying Alive, and she finds herself in a situation with no apparent solution, where she may well lose her life.

Last year, Brea Grant gave an excellent performance in Jeremy Gardner's After Midnight. We now find Grant (who also wrote and directed 12 Hour Shift, another Fantasia 2020 selection) as both writer and actress in a film that uses a genre cinema motif as a central metaphor for a deeply personal drama. While May is repeatedly assaulted by her anonymous stalker and fails to gain support from others, her experiences reflect those of countless women who have become targets of abuse and assault by men and have found no help anywhere. Far from being a pamphlet, Lucky is first and foremost a captivating portrait of a woman in peril, and director Natasha Kermani Imitation gil) skillfully directs Grant's script, which gradually slides into supernatural areas. But even as these elements become more pronounced, LUCKY remains grounded in identifiable and distressing current concerns, to the point where Ted's statement - "This is just how things are" - is perhaps the most disturbing thing.

Q : Hello Natasha, after Shaterred and Imitation girl, Lucky is you new movie. Can tell us a little bit about your background? What was your main inspiration to become a director ?

Natasha Kermani : Absolutely so. I'm actually from me a family of artists so my mother is an artist and I grew up around the arts. You know the idea of going into the arts as a profession was very much open to me so I had you know an advantage in that way but yeah I think. You know my father had been a real love for films so he introduced me to a lot of the great films as a child and you know once you realize that that you're allowed to do this for a living. You know, you sort of figure out any way to do it all the time. So you know from there I ended up going to film school at NYU. I just started working right out of school but yeah so. Imitation girls was my first feature film and from there I was just sort of figuring out what the next project would be and you know once I read Lucky I really you know responded to it I could see how it could come together so yeah I I jumped on board immediately after I read it.

Q : Hello Kausar, we are a big fans of series as Black Lightning, Silicon Valley in which you have played.. Can tell us a little bit about your background? What was your main inspiration to become an actress ?

Kausar Mohammed : hi, thank you. My inspiration came just always growing up really just loving performance and live performance and being on stage and also I found just how much I love comedy and I'm experiencing that live and so taking that says that's where the acting came about and I'm happy to be still doing that to this day.

Q : Hello Dhruv, we are a big fans also of series as Prodigal son and in which you have played.. Can tell us a little bit about your background ?

Dhruv Uday Singh : Yes of course. So, I grew up in Mumbai and I you know came out to America when I was almost eighteen or for college to study film and creative writing at USC. Like Natasha I also grew up with a huge love felt more real you know cinephile kind exposure that maybe wanna be a part of it. Somehow I got into improv comedy which led me to to acting as well as writing and then earlier this year started to roll out on Prodigal Son. The ywere filmed in New York yeah that that's my background.

Q : Kausar and Dhruv, please can you tell us what you liked about the script of Lucky? Also what can you tell us about your character ?

Kausar Mohammed : I think. For me I love horror and thriller. I just love the adrenaline rush and it's my favorite job aside from comedy so for me seeing at the script and then seeing the parallels of it to what it was making a metaphor of this larger system that were part of patriarchy and also the fact that it was written by a woman and directed by a woman was also very exciting to me. I think the genres like thriller horror allows for specific lens on the world that we don't get to see and in other genres and that description did that so well and I so I was very excited about it when I read it.

Dhruv Uday Singh : I agree with so much that I think I well when we first read the script I remember really being struck not only by the fact that I was actually getting really creeped out around page ten I started to really feel little afraid while reading it was so creepy and atmospheric and well written by Brea grant and then I think also that whole idea off the satire up behind it you know the idea having a target on the way gender is known to plays a role especially America the way you know reporting crimes of a certain kind aren't taken seriously the way the the lead characters up claims of big stroke by this mysterious man are not believed by people either so much in it but I found interesting and deep in a way that I think like also said you know when you have a genre picture especially it's a little bit like giving somebody can be with the medicine or they can they can take that in because it's so entertaining that so I love that.

Q : Natasha, Lucky has a great screenplay. Please what can you tell us about your collaboration with Brea Grant on this movie ?

Natasha Kermani : Yes so I had actually never worked with Brea before so this was our first time collaborating on a project so we knew each other socially but not professionally and she's just a dream completely I think when you're working with you know somebody who is also director in their own right you know maybe you're a little bit nervous that there's gonna be some issues you know territorial or you know just those kind of conflict could come up but you know one of the first things that Brea and I recognize was that we had to have a really open line of communication. So we sort of talked through the script in the themes and sort of what I would do with them what I would bring her material right from the beginning so that when it came time to do casting or hire crew or make big decisions we were really already on the same page and we have a lot of trust so I think you know we were both very open to that approach and you know honesty is the best policy and try to you know there's no ego it's not personal it's sort of I was just discussing what we think is best for the project and once I attached she was completely sort of handed the project over to me and then you know in return I tried to have her involved with all of these conversations that truly it was truly a collaboration between both of our of our brains you know going into this project.

Q : Nathasha, Did you shoot the different sequences of this film in chronological order ?

Natasha Kermani : No, it was not. We shot basically over the course of fifteen days and the first eight days were all in the house so is all this stuff and made in the house so that would be some of the stuff with Dhrub when they're at home together and then when she started fighting off the man and then we needed a few other shot so a few of the shops the closer the sister and then we ended with the big parking. So we actually ended with the hardest bit but yeah so that was sort of the flow was very fast and you know our actors and our team are just amazing these guys came in they knew exactly what they had to do and you know work flexible they took direction so easily and yeah I just feel super grateful that we were able to pull it off because that's that is a very short time to shoot this movie

Q : What do you think are the ingredients for a good thriller ?

Dhruv Uday Singh : It had to be scary.

Natasha Kermani : I think we need a good bad guy. That was really important for us to get a good bad guy. I don't know what do you guys think you guys are comedy and horror so you guys have learned outside you.

Q : for all, what were the main difficulties encountered during the making of this film ?

Natasha Kermani : Yeah I would say some of the difficulties that we sort of came up again since this is really the time. So we just have to go so fast that we really wanted to make sure that we knew exactly what we needed to do ahead of time so that there was no sort of questioning of it in the moment. I'm trying to think we I mean I don't know actors if you guys felt like we had any big difficulties.

Dhruv Uday Singh : From my point of view, we're not going to do is really smooth and not difficult but obviously I'm seeing when you are an actor you're coming in kind of about I am a little stayed after so many other people have done so much hard ground work so it's almost unfair to say that better sound easy and on my and and those terms. I can't, I don't know I mean that obviously time but you know and project about their time's gonna be a factor but it didn't feel like that to me anyway like it was during the project anyway.

Kausar Mohammed : and just i would like to add, I want to say that I feel like a lot of that goes to The kudos of Natasha just like managing stuff knowing. Working through it all so I think Natasha was handling that difficulty well to unite us.

Q : For Natasha, what were your main sources of inspiration for this movie ?

Natasha Kermani : Yes so I actually I really we looked Scream which is obviously a nineties thriller so we looked at some sort of very famous architects of the slasher movie. I had to sort of see what we could reference and then what we can sort of subvert and then we actually sort of didn't look at too many references beyond that because we wanted to create something that had its own sort of language for a lot of the styling and the mood I actually looked at a lot of French new wave films. Just sort of like breathless and Godard and Truffaut and sort of seeing how we could get back in the spirit while still feeling are you know like you're watching a movie. Like it's still cinematic and engaging and all that way in all those ways. I would say Scream was a really big influence because it does have that sort of satire. Approach that we also wanted to mimic with this movie.

Q : In the current context of the coronavirus, as a filmmaker or as actors, can you tell us about the many difficulties that this entails ?

Natasha Kermani : Well it was very disappointing for us because we were actually supposed to premiere at south by southwest in March so I think I speak for all of us when you know we were really looking forward to that and it would have been my first stop by and all that. However, we're super happy to be at Fantasia. This is amazing. I also love Montreal I'm sad not to be in Montreal But, the film is finding its audience and that's really with coronavirus but we were worried about is you know we need the movie was finished but the question is how are people going to see it but I think the festival's found an interesting way to still get out and of course we're gonna release with shudder. So and I'm going to come and released it. We're very happy about that.

Q : For Natasha, between your first movie Shaterred and Lucky there is a three -years gap... Have you seen any significant differences in your approach to filmmaking ?

Natasha Kermani : Absolutely yes . I think with each project you learn so much and I think I actually sort of was even more preoccupied with the idea of being on time and being on budget and you know really trying to, it is also more at logistical approach to making a project and putting a project together in filming and I think with this movie I really tried to create a little bit more space obviously we're still moving very fast and we're trying to make our day and and of those things that are important however I did try to you know let myself take the time that I needed to answer a question. May not to rush just for the sake of getting it done really setting and letting it yet taking up the space and the time that I need to make sure that we're doing it the right way and we're not just rushing through. Of course we always have to compromise but you know even working with these guys when we're talking one on one were engaged in we're talking we take the time that we need troops would give me the time to you know talk to the scene and get adjustments and I think developing that is it is really important and it's not just about getting it done just to get it done we want to make that work.

Q : For Natasha your film was presented yesterday as an International Premiere at the Fantasia festival. how does it feel to see your film selected in this international festival ?

Natasha Kermani : It is Awesome. We're really happy. I love this festival. I've always wanted to attend as a filmmaker and I'm just thrilled and I'm just super happy and I can't wait to hear more about what the what the audience is thought and we're actual team I mean we're all sort of come from interesting backgrounds and so it's really important to us that this film sort of get out of California you know get out of New York and whatever the the main sort of spots and be seen all around the world because I think it does have a it has a global message and I think people will respond to it.

Q : For all, who are your favorite directors and which films are the main driving force behind your artistic creation ?

Natasha Kermani : You know I'm very influenced by the work of Stanley Kubrick of course always my first movie Imitation girl was a big sort of homage to him in the opening minutes the movie. I also love as sort of like the original filmmakers I go back to them quite a bit so Fritz Lang, George Melies. you know I I find I draw a lot of inspiration from their creativity because now you know our challenges are different but as filmmakers it's always against the odds that we're getting in the camp so I I'm fine a lot of inspiration with those sort of early pioneers of filmmaking.

Dhruv Uday Singh : Yeah I agree with some of those ones as well personally I remember to be a huge Scorsese fan like many other people love you know as far as clothes go I mean Hitchcock really set the standard I think or to some of the same grammar and rules we see you know a lot of them today love Luis Buñuel. I think is one of my favorite directors.

Kausar Mohammed : I mentioned I'm a huge of Mike Flanagan who have directed The Haunting of Hill House Netflix series and he also did Doctor Sleep recently. I love the way he approaches horror and takes this horror and bases it around drama and relationships and just the themes and how beautifully mixes horror film.s I think I remember watching hunting of hill house interesting this is ten hours the most beautiful thing ever. I'm really inspired by his work.

Q : For all, Do you have any French actors you'd like to work with ?

Dhruv Uday Singh : This is funny you say that because I'm about to start on Julie Delpy Netflix show starring. We're going to start in September.. it's also with some incredible french actors and directed by Matthew Demi. I'm very excited.

Natasha Kermani : I'm a huge fan of Un prophete from director Jacques Audiard .I really love Tahar Rahim. He is just a phenomenal powerful actor and you know it's a really interesting sort of middle eastern French culture but I'm very drawn to and I I would love to add sort of work with some of the actors out of that space for sure.

Q : What are you currently working on ?

Dhruv Uday Singh : You know it will start in September and it's going to be with a lot of covert protocols but yet you know I'm not sure how much I could talk about it but it says that will be on Netflix. Also we are starting to work on season three of Good trouble which is Freeform show out here and I'm not sure it's actually made its way to many places overseas yet but bring that and then you know we're just like many other people in the game here house or at rest out my own TV show. And that's about it.

Natasha Kermani : we're obviously gonna should release some Shudder so lucky it has a lot of work ahead of it still we're gonna be surfing together our trailer and I and I'm sort of starting to get the word out there so that's a big next steps for our film I and then for me there should be some sort of information coming out soon but it's looking likely that I'll be back on another movie either later this year or early twenty one I'm looking forward to being back on set for another movie.

Dhruv Uday Singh : I have worked on this Jurassic World : Camp Cretaceous animated series coming out on Netflix. I wish I was a Dinosaur because I would take pterodactyl but unfortunately I am just act an human. I'm coming up with some really excited projects as well they have just released a couple days ago another Netflix show that I played with an english cast. It is call The great pretender and then also and developing and shopping on the show with my all south Asian sketch team right now

Synopsis :
A suburban woman fights to be believed as she finds herself stalked by a threatening figure who returns to her house night after night. When she can't get help from those around her, she is forced to take matters into her own hands.

Lucky
Directed by Natasha Kermani
Produced by Chelsea Davenport, Patrick Ewald p.g.a., Robert Galluzzo, Kimberly Hwang
Written by Brea Grant
Starring Yasmine Al-Bustami, Brea Grant, Kristina Klebe, Kausar Mohammed, Dhruv Uday Singh, Hunter C. Smith
Music by Jeremy Zuckerman
Cinematography : Julia Swain
Edited by Chris Willet
Production company : Epic Pictures
Running time : 81mns

Transcription : Boris Colletier