DEBBIE ROCHON INTERVIEW

“EXPLANATION OF A SHE-DEVIL”

Q: How did you first hear about “Nowhere Man”?
A: I was at a horror convention in Baltimore and received a call from filmmaker Matt Howe. I had made a couple movies with Matt and he said he had a buddy that was trying to get in touch with me for some possible film work. His buddy was Tim McCann. I looked him up on Imdb.com and he seemed legit enough so I called him back and arranged an audition. I think Tim was at some film festival receiving an award for “Revolution # 9” at the time so it seemed really promising! When Tim and I were both in New York , I went over to his office and auditioned. What I liked about the audition was that Tim kept asking me to play the scenes different ways and the way in which he directed me I knew he was an experienced director and that made me interested in working on the project. I thought the script was really amazing and funny and sad. I felt like I might be able to do a really good job with the role because I have worked a little in exploitation movies, which are a far cry from porno, but thought there was stuff there I could draw on for this character. I thought it would be a rare opportunity to deal with this type of material in a really powerful and well crafted way.

Q: What critical changes does your character go through in the film?
A: Well, my character's changes are rather radical! She starts out as a happy working class woman who finally gets an engagement ring from her boyfriend, and then suddenly the bottom gets pulled out from her world and she loses everything. When someone loses everything they become very dangerous! She loses her entire life when her past comes back to kick her in the teeth and she kinda resorts to desperate acts and reverts back to her old self. I guess you could say she goes from sweet and stable to scorned, unstable and emotionally beaten. In other words, a really great character to get to play.

Q: How did you prepare?
A: I always really suck in rehearsals. It's just part of my process that's hard to explain. I use all the stuff that's being said to me and what I'm learning in rehearsals to penetrate my brain but it really doesn't come into play fully till I'm shooting. I really had to make some pretty big adjustments because up until then I had spent the prior couple of years playing crazy killers in horror movies for the most part. So playing more of a 'victimized' character was hard and I really had to let my guard down and trust the director. Also shooting the fake porno scenes were very, very challenging! I doubt I could even do that again.

Q: What kind of film do you think “Nowhere Man” is? By that I mean, considering that it has all these exploitational elements, yet they're played brutally straight?
A: This is a very unique film. It has strong elements of Film Noir with sprinkles of black comedy and dead serious drama. I think people will have a strong reaction to it either way, but it will never be a middle of the road experience and that's a great thing! I think that's what filmmakers should PRAY for. I guess you could call it: Noir Com-u-Dram. And if that doesn't work you could always take it as a nasal decongestant.

Q: I'll try that. How did you get into acting?
A: I got into acting when I was a homeless teen. The film was “Ladies and Gentlemen: The Fabulous Stains!” and it starred Ray Winstone and Diane Lane . It was an amazing experience that changed my life and got me off the streets and gave me direction for my life.

Q: What are some of your best roles so far?
A: This film is no doubt my best so far. It's really hard to combine a great performance with a great script and great direction. It's very rare when you have all the elements in place. I have tried just as hard on other projects but usually the material or direction was just lacking so much it was impossible to overcome it. And of course sometimes I just suck too.

Q: You've acted in almost eighty films so far. What are your thoughts on the industry from what you've seen?
A: Things constantly change which is a good thing. With the advent of DV it allows so many more wonderful filmmakers to work and create, which is the most important thing. The downside is that you have a lot of amateurs who are making movies and they are really not ready to. I was seriously injured on a film set not too long ago because of negligence. Also, some folks think their very first film should be sold to a distributor, but if you haven't even gone to film school, you may have to put in some time before that happens. I think my experiences over the past 2-3 years makes me want to work in much bigger projects.

Q: And what's next?
A: I'm writing a book! Also, I'm in many features, including; “Screaming Alone in Silence”, “Lord of the Undead” and “Split”, a movie that's been 7 years in the making!