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Welcome! If you're here it's because you like the film INK. We would not be here if not for the generous support of the cast & crew of INK, specifically Kiowa K. & Jamin Winans.

Interview with Chris Kelly – John

           It is our great pleasure to begin the fansite with an interview with Chris Kelly, John from Ink. This is the first of many interviews we will be bringing you. Without further ado, here is Chris Kelly in his own words:

AT:  What first inspired you to be an actor?

CK: I really don't know.  I've tried my hand at almost all of the arts.  At an early age my grandfather made me and my cousins memorize poems and short scenes that we would record on our camcorder. My mother is a poet and I've always felt pleasure in the sound of language.  I started professionally acting while I was in grad school and just loved it.
 
AT:  Are you a stage actor as well as film?

CK: I started out in stage but have been recently doing mainly film.  I've been enjoying the subtlety required in film.  The camera catches everything.  It requires a much greater level of naturalness and honesty.   I love stage as well, but for different reasons.

 AT:  Are you a Colorado native or what brought you to Colorado?
 
CK: I moved to Colorado for grad school.  When I finished my degree, I left and taught for a few years, then came back to Colorado for Ink.
 
AT:  What were your biggest or favorite projects prior to Ink?
 
CK: Nothing you would have heard of other than 11:59, Jamin's first feature.  My biggest personal project was probably a feature that I wrote and directed call The Cricket Revival.  It was an amazing experience and I learned a ton about all aspects of film-making.

AT:  How did you first hear about Ink?
 
CK: Jamin called me to see if I would be interested in coming out for it.  And I said, "Send me the script."

AT:  Did you have to audition? Did you audition for more parts than just John?
 
CK: I did not have an audition, though I had auditioned for Jamin twice before.  Jamin said he wrote the role with me in mind.  There was some discussion early on whether we should get different actors to play "Older" and "Younger" John, but in the end we decided it would be best i I did the whole thing.

AT:  How did you prepare to play John?

CK: As you know, it is a long and complicated role following John through several very different parts of his life.  I took different approaches to preparation for the different stages of his life.
              For the most part, I am a script-driven actor.  I like to feel the multiple meanings of each of my lines and the actor's lines.  Even scenes with no dialogue, I hear lines in my head ('thoughts') that are triggers to broader meanings.  I had the good fortune to work closely with Jamin on the script for many months before we shot.  I am a writer as well and Jamin and I would go over each scene together and evaluate it as it stood alone and it's place in the script.  This gave me an unusually deep understanding of the script, the character, and Jamin's vision which informed everything I did
            Fun fact: I gained about thirty pounds through weight-lifting (and eating!).  I am naturally a skinny guy and we wanted John to be a bit more middle-aged and traditionally manly than I naturally am.  This process alone had some interesting psychological effects.  I was literally embodying a different character.

 AT:  How would you describe the character of John?
 
CK: Well there are different stages of John of course.  But, generally, John is ego-driven.  He is worried how is perceived.  He has a lot of confidence in his abilities, coupled with a burning desire to succeed.  He fears failure.  He has a lot of pride which can easily flip into a lot of shame.  He is stubborn, intense and has a fiery temper.  These are his flaws.  But he is also deeply sensitive.  He cares for his daughter and wife.  He was ashamed for his mother because she was poor and it has always been important to him to save his family that embarrassment.  He is witty and passionate.

 AT: What was the biggest challenge of playing John?
 
CK: One of the biggest challenges to playing the John character came from the context of the movie.  The movie jumps between the normal world of John and the fantasy world of the dreams.  There was a sense we had that John had to compete to some degree with the fight sequences and special effects etc....  You always want your character to be interesting, but in the context of this movie straight naturalism would have been a little odd.  We wanted John to be real but for much of the movie a little larger than life to fit in with the style of the film, to compete with the fantasy creatures all around him.  Walking that line was an interesting challenge that I hope I pulled off.

AT: Was there a single experience while filming that stood out for you?
 
CK: Well, it was a very long shoot so a lot happened.  One thing that stands out for me was the week we shot John's 'happy' flashback scenes.  It was right in the middle of the shoot.  I had to wear age makeup (and worse) to play the older John for much of the shoot, but for that one week, I got to shave my beard, not wear any major make-up, and do a variety of happier scenes, from a cute-meet, to falling in love, to becoming a successful business guy.  The hours were shorter, the material was lighter.   It is a dark film, and honestly that darkness creeped into the shoot in ways.  Long hours, different varieties of suffering, haha, and the dark thoughts of the character.  But during that week, a lightness came over everything that prepared me for the second half of the shoot (which was even more grueling than the first half).

More to come…

You Like INK! Why not check out Ink cast & crew in other great local films. Some recommended ones include:

Skills Like This
www.skillslikethis.com

Suburban: The Movie
www.suburbanthemovie.com