Emily Haack

An Interview with Emily Haack.

• Yourself and the other guys involved with Wicked Pixel and Sub Rosa are all from St Louis I believe. Is there something about the area that encourages talented, creative people?

Yes, we're all from St. Louis and the surrounding area. Honestly, we don't get much encouragement from a lot of people in this town. We have been lucky to find the dedicated few that love to work with us and give us their valuable time. But we get no love from the so-called Film Commission, our weekly paper, or the right-wingers, just to name a couple. But hey, who's counting? It doesn't stop us from doing what we love to do

• Playing Clara in Scrapbook would have been a daunting ordeal for the most accomplished of actors, yet it was your first film. What are your enduring memories from the role and was it a positive experience?

It was most definitely a positive experience for me. It was my first time working with everyone and I always felt safe and respected on set. I was enthusiastic about the role from the start. I was very green, it was my first time acting in front of the camera and I had no idea what to expect.

But I pushed myself to places I never thought I could go. It was very cathartic... I exorcized a lot of demons on that shoot. One of the best things that came from the Scrapbook shoot was the bond I had formed with the Wicked Pixel guys. Eric, Jeremy, Tommy, and Todd were incredibly professional, yet amazingly friendly and loving and supportive. I have so much respect for everyone in Wicked Pixel.

• You have some fabulous and very unique tattoos. Are you having any more and do you think they may ever have an adverse effect on you getting certain acting roles?

Why thank you! Yeah, I'm always getting more work done. There's too much skin showing! But, honestly, I have thought about that a lot...the fact that having this much tattoo work could hinder my chances on getting certain roles. But I guess I just need to cross those bridges when and if they come. There's a great invention called long sleeves! I wore long sleeves in Savage Harvest 2 and it seemed to work out just fine.

• The locations used in the Undertow look very picturesque. Was making that film an enjoyable experience?

That part of Missouri is very beautiful. There are rolling hills and creeks and huge trees... and not to mention, ginormous bullfrogs. But it was great shooting next to a creek in the summertime! And it was an interesting experience being part of an ensemble group. That was my first time, and we had to improve a lot, so it was pretty challenging for me at times.

• On the latest Wicked Pixel project Deadwood Park you're Assistant Director. Do you enjoy working behind the camera as much as acting?

I have a lot of experience behind the camera from doing projects in school, low-budget independent features, and bigger-budget Hollywood features. I've worn all the hats at some point or another, but have the most experience working in the Art Department. I do have to say that I enjoy being in front of the camera the most, though. I love to push myself both physically and emotionally... just to see what I can do with the character. I hope to have many more chances to do that.

• Being English and a soccer fan, I was fascinated to learn that you had some behind the scenes involvement with the film "The Game of Their Lives", which is about a soccer match in the 1950's. Was that an interesting experience?

It was a really fun experience. I was an assistant in the Props department on that film. My boss, the Propmaster, did the props on the 2nd shooting of House of 1000 Corpses, and it was great working with him. I learned a lot. I was only supposed to be on for 2 weeks during pre-production, but Michael, the Propmaster, kept petitioning the Line Producer to let me stay on and I ended up getting to work the full 2 months, both pre-production and production. It was hot as hell here during shooting, but it was good time overall. Unfortunately, the powers that be decided not to give screen credit to the majority of the locals that worked their asses of on this film.

• Savage Harvest 2 is the next movie that we will see you in. How did that go and do you think it's turned out well?

I had such an awesome time on that set. I'm so excited to see what Jason is going to do with it. I loved doing the fight scenes and being able to wield all those weapons! I think we all had a positive experience on set. Jason is a fantastic director and has great vision. He's very easy to work for, keeps things professional but knows how to lighten the mood if needed. Being able to

act along side Eric was so fun. He's great in this movie! Ben Gaa was also awesome in this and our fight scenes get pretty bloody! Everyone came together and worked really hard and I think that's going to come through when you see it.

• What are your plans after your current projects are completed? Do you have any other ambitions outside of movie making?

Well, Deadwood Park just wrapped not too long ago, so I don't have any other Wicked Pixel projects at this time. I just worked on the 48-Hour Film Project that happened here in town, and I hope to be able to do other projects that are in the works right now. I'm very interested in doing some theatre and definitely more film projects.

• Thank you very much for taking time out to talk with us Emily, and I wish you the very best of luck with all your future projects.

Thank you very much for your support! We really appreciate it!

S.J.T.