For her HollyShorts Film Festival entry and directorial debut Strayed, actor Sarah Bonrepaux turned to her own experience with debilitating illness for inspiration. In our email interview below, Bonrepaux recalls getting sick “so brutally and suddenly” and consequently “ending up laying down in bed, unable to do anything,” and equates that moment in life as having her physical abilities “stolen” from her. A fan of horror movies with a long-time desire to direct her own, this harrowing experience kickstarted in her a seize-the-day mentality, so she checked her fears and set out to tell her story.
The result is Strayed, a suspenseful thriller about a woman (played by Bonrepaux) whose body, while on a jog in the woods, suddenly shuts down. The film is virtually dialogue-free and, as such, a testament to Bonrepaux’s capabilities as an actor. She effectively grounds the narrative, and it is through her panic and desperation that you feel paralyzed as well. With ever silent scream and the fire burning in her eyes, determined to get back up, Bonrepaux absolutely owns the film.
Bonrepaux credits her director of photography Adrian Cacciola as being a rock throughout filming. Indeed, throughout juggling writing and directing duties, Bonrepaux’s ultimate mission was ensuring a top-notch performance. “I absolutely wanted to work with [Adrian] because I knew I wouldn’t have to think about the frame once we [were] on set.” It’s evidently a match made in heaven: Strayed is thrilling and captivating, serving a twist at the end that makes you sit back and think.
Before we get into Strayed, I wonder if you might tell us about your own filmmaking journey? I understand that this is your directorial debut, so where did the desire to step behind the camera start with you?
I’ve always wanted to try directing, but I was too scared. Being like “I’m not a director, nobody will care” and all the self negative thoughts someone can have. So I would always start to write scripts and then block, not finishing them. But when I got my illness issues, it really put me in front of all my fears, and also made me realize how life can be swept away in a heartbeat, and what really matters. So I made a promise to myself that I would shoot this film, no matter what, once recovered. I guess it pushed me to jump out of my comfort zone. Also, today, we have so many ways of creating our own content & projects, and I think it’s important to do that. And not be scared. Not to wait for the phone to ring, or for someone to validate your work.
You’ve mentioned before that Strayed is inspired by your own experience with debilitating illness. What was it about that moment in your life that made you want to translate your experience onto the screen?
When I got sick, it happened so brutally and suddenly. I went from living a healthy, completely normal life to being like “hit by a truck” and ending up laying down in bed, unable to do anything, not even writing a text on my phone. All this in just a few days. It was a nightmare. Suddenly, all the things you have: the health, the energy, the physical abilities, are like “stolen” from you. You just struggle to stay awake and not pass out. Everytime you fall asleep, you think you’re never gonna wake up. Since I spent years recovering, and trying to learn how to navigate in this new reality, I wanted to write something to convey this feeling of being “trapped” in your own body. As a fan of horror movies, I imagined this story about a girl, who suddenly sees all of her abilities shutting down. Thankfully, after a few years, I recovered and went on to shoot this film.
The film’s resonance is a testament to your performance, which is wholly captivating. What was the reasoning behind the decision to have virtually no dialogue?
It just came naturally with the story. She’s alone in the woods, and she’s scared. It also helped to intensify the tension and anxiety feeling I wanted to bring on screen. And also, it’s a short. In a longer version, there will probably be more dialogues 🙂
As the director, writer, and lead actress of Strayed, you had to juggle many hats during production. What was it like to have to jump back and forth between the roles?
I was scared about that, because I didn’t want the performance to be affected by the fact I had to deal with everything else on set. That’s why I went back to France to shoot this. I absolutely wanted to work with Adrian Cacciola (Director of Photography) because I knew I wouldn’t have to think about the frame once we would be on set. He’s so talented, he knows everything! I worked with him before, and I love the way he films. Whatever happens on set, if a light crashes, or something is missing, if something goes wrong, he knows how to jump back on track and make things perfect anyway. We did a lot of preparation during which we talked a lot, to make sure we would be on the same page, and once on set, it was easy to navigate back and forth. I’m not saying I wasn’t stressed, I literally went to throw up in the woods at some point! Haha. But honestly I don’t even know how the shoot could have gone better. The whole crew was amazing and they did a tremendous job to make this happen.
A couple of fun questions: a) do you believe in aliens? b) extending the final moment of the film, if you encountered a younger version of yourself, would you approach her or say something to her? If so, what would it be?
Hahaha, well, if by aliens you mean that there’s little green men that are about to invade our planet, no I don’t believe in that. But the universe is so big, we’re just a grain of sand in the middle of it, there’s so many things we don’t know or places we haven’t explored. So who knows, maybe there’s a planet somewhere where other people live? I can’t tell what’s possible and what’s not. We have no idea of what’s behind the limits of what we already know.
I would tell her that she’s beautiful, and that she needs to be strong & confident, to trust herself, and not listen to anyone saying “it’s not possible”. To dare, and also that whatever happens, everything will be ok.
HollyShorts is a great platform for indie filmmakers. What does it mean for you to have Strayed play here? How will you be celebrating?
I am honestly still pinching myself! I attended the opening night and I was SO impressed by the quality & diversity of the shorts I saw! It was truly amazing, and being screened alongside such creative and mind-blowing projects is an honor. I am really grateful, and I can’t wait to watch more of this year’s selections.
What’s next for you? And where can viewers follow you and your work?
I play the female lead in the horror feature film ‘Schimbarea’ directed by Patrick Corcoran, which is due to come out soon! 🙂 I’ll also be in the feature Exceptional Beings directed by Njedeh Anthony. As for the directing side, I’m writing something new that I won’t talk about yet, but it’s something really close to my heart, and I can’t wait to finish it and start shooting. If you want to follow my work, you can find me on Instagram & Twitter at @sarahbonrepaux – I publish everything on these platforms 🙂
