Emily Barclay Lou Interview

Emily Barclay Lou Interview

Lou, written and directed by Belinda Chayko, was filmed on location in the stunning cane fields surrounding Murwillumbah in northern NSW. Producers are Helen Bowden, Michael McMahon, Tony Ayres and Belinda Chayko; Executive Producer is Liz Watts.

The film tells a tender story about the relationship between 11-year-old Lou (Lily Bell-Tindley) and her grandfather (John Hurt). Not long after Lou's father walks out of her life, her irascible and befuddled grandfather crashes in. But when Doyle comes to stay, Lou discovers, against all her expectations, the healing power of love.

Interview with Emily Barclay

How was it working alongside acclaimed actor, John Hurt?

Emily Barclay: It was completely surreal really... John is a genius and a gentleman and I learnt so much from him every day.


Can you tell us a little bit about the film location, Murwillumbah?

Emily Barclay: I'd never been up that way before and Northern NSW is such a beautiful part of the world. We'd drive to set each morning with the sun coming up over the cane fields and mount warning in the distance, it was just really, really special.


Tell us a little bit about your character, Rhia:

Emily Barclay: Rhia is 27, she has three kids, the eldest of whom, Lou, is 11. Her partner has recently left her, she's I trouble financially and she's just struggling to stay afloat.


How did you prepare for your role?

Emily Barclay: I don't know - I mean I read the script a million times, I researched various things, I wrote a lot, I talked a lot to Belinda, rehearsed with the girls.. I guess it's a bunch of things, the character is in your head constantly and everything you see and experience you kinda relate back to them, you pick up this and that...


What was the hardest thing about playing a mother in this film?

Emily Barclay: I think often Rhia feels like she doesn't know how to be a mother, there's this gap between the ideology of it all and her reality, like nothing quite fits or feels right, and I felt that at times - not quite knowing exactly what to do or exactly how to be with the kids, but I guess those feelings were relevant, and maybe it was just the lines of reality blurring haha.


Lily Bell-Tindley, who plays Lou is quite young, can you tell us a little bit about the filming process for the movie?

Emily Barclay: Lily is incredible. She's so smart and fun and mature - just such a beautiful person, it was such a joy working with her. And she was so excited about it all and so eager to learn everything and that attitude is infectious -the fact that Lily was there everyday influenced the rest of the cast and crew and made it such an enjoyable experience.

Obviously there are certain restrictions when you have three kids on set all the time - days are shorter so somedays you can feel a little pressed for time, but everyone was very supportive and respectful of the kids and the focus was on them which was great.


Why will this film appeal to Australian audiences?

Emily Barclay: I think it's such a sweet, tender story, it feels like an Australia that we don't really see on film, while still being a story that we can all recognise and relate to on some level.


If you could star alongside any actor, who would it be?

Emily Barclay: I don't know! There's so many amazing actors... working with John Hurt was something I never thought would happen, I don't know if it gets much better than that!


What's next for you, in regards to acting?

Emily Barclay: I just finished a film in New Zealand called Love Birds with Sally Hawkins and Rhys Darby and I'm currently finishing Guardians of Ga'hoole which is an animated film being directed by Zach Snyder.

Lou

Cast: John Hurt, Emily Barclay, Lily Bell-Tindley
Director: Belinda Chayko
Genre: Drama, Family
Rated: M
Running Time: 82 minutes

Release Date: June 17th 2010
Website: www.louthemovie.com