It’s not every day that a child points at Vanessa Stacey and says, “That’s the bad woman,” but when it happened recently at the premiere of the new film Bookwormshe was very happy about it.
“I play a villain in the film. When I got the feedback ‘evil woman’, I thought: ‘My work here is done,'” she laughs.
Bookworm is a coming-of-age film directed by Ant Timpson. It shows Lord of the rings Star Elijah Wood and brilliant newcomer, 12-year-old Nell Fisher.
Shot on the South Island near Methven, the film showcases our fantastical landscape as the characters of Elijah and Nell wander through the bush in search of a mythical black panther.
Vanessa plays Angelina, who meets the couple while hiking in the bush and leads them astray.
Her character was described by the director as “a quaint English villain in an Enid Blyton book.”
“She’s a smiling murderer,” Vanessa says. “I become friends with them and then it becomes very mysterious.”
The first screenings of the film took place at the beginning of the month, but Vanessa was able to see it in June.
“My dad was dying and in palliative care. It was such a difficult time for me, but Ant sent me a copy of the film so Dad could see me in it,” she says.
Richard Stacey died on June 27th and Vanessa is still very emotional about it.
“I was with my dad 14 hours a day for the last nine weeks of his life,” she says. “Luckily, I was able to continue working from home. I knew he would like the film, so it was so great to sit down and watch it with him.”
“If I’m honest, my dad was more of an action movie guy, but he really enjoyed the magic of the film. It’s very similar to the films I grew up with, like Stand by Me. They are coming-of-age adventure films from the 80s.
“Dad saw it and then said, ‘I wouldn’t think you were a hiker.’ I said, ‘No, but I’m a trained actor, Dad,'” she laughs.
Vanessa says she was thrilled at the premiere of Bookworm and to see how much the children in the audience enjoyed it.
A highlight for her was working with Michael Smiley, who is known from many British films and television series, including Doctor Who And White Bear.
“It was a pleasure working with Michael,” she enthuses. “We got on brilliantly. He is a fascinating, funny man and we laughed the whole time.”
“Michael and I are already talking about a spin-off or our origin story where we become crooks. We’re definitely old-school villains, but without guns.”
Vanessa also knew Elijah from her roles in the film series “The Lord of the Rings”.
Vanessa is Ngāti Kuia and Te Atiawa. She works in many roles in the arts world: as an actress, musician, producer, playwright and comedian. She is also the director of the New Zealand Fringe Festival and Ngā Toi Kaitiaki of CubaDupa. She has performed in Bookworm between the organization of the two events.
“I had just finished the Fringe Festival and was there for a few days to photograph. Then I came back and opened CubaDupa, then I was there again for 10 days.”
Doing several things at once is how Vanessa works these days.
She explains: “I’m a musician first and foremost. I’ve just finished a national tour of Back to Black with some amazing musicians, playing Amy Winehouse songs to celebrate her 40th birthday. That was great fun,” she says.
Vanessa says that ultimately she is a storyteller.
“That’s what really excites me, whether it’s through a song or a character telling someone else’s story. If the story comes from the heart and I know it’s going to spark something in a viewer, that’s the draw for me.”
Since Vanessa has many different talents, she is busy most of the time, which is important when pursuing a career in the arts.
She will soon be boarding a plane to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to meet artists and will immediately start a new project upon her return.
“I like being busy and I love my current role, which has spanned the last 25 years of my work,” she enthuses. “And I get to help hundreds of artists at the festivals, so it’s a lot, but I love it.”
Bookworm is in theaters now.
