An Interview with Robin Sydney of “The Gingerdead Man”
BY KEVIN CARR
Robin Sydney is the star of Full Moon Pictures’ “The Gingerdead Man.” Sydney, a Colorado native, has been seen on “e.r.,” “Freddie” and “The Andy Dick Show.” Her upcoming films include “Big Bad Wolf,” “The Lost” and the upcoming Full Moon feature “Dead Man’s Hand.” Excepts from the interview follow.
Hear the entire interview…
7M: TELL US ABOUT “THE GINGERDEAD MAN”
RS: It was an amazing experience. Charlie was great to work with. It was definitely a crazy movie about a crazy cookie. But it was really scary to do, in fact. I had nightmares while we were filming it of the cookie chasing me.
7M: HOW DID YOUGET INVOLVED?
RS: I got [the part] on a Friday. I got the script on a Sunday, and we started shooting on Monday. It was pretty quick. Which was good because it could keep me on my feet and in the moment.
7M: DO YOU PREFER WORKING AT A FAST PACE OR ON A LONGER PROJECT?
RS: There’re both different, and there’s aspects to them that are both fun. There’s something about the really quick pace that makes it really enjoyable. And there’s something about being able to take your time to develop the arc and structure of a character in a film. They’re both similar and different, but each has their own aspect of excitement.
7M: WHAT DID YOU THINK WHEN YOU FIRST HEARD THE CONCEPT?
RS: First I thought, “Wow this is crazy.” Then I thought, “Oh my goodness, a cookie is going to be chasing me. That’s kinda scary.” Then I thought, “This is going to be so much fun.”
I wonder what made [Charlie] create that idea of this cookie?
7M: HOW DID YOU KEEP A STRAIGHT FACE?
RS: Most of the film, I actually was scared of this cookie, except for these two instances when I realized it was a cookie chasing us, and then it was kinda funny.
7M: WHAT WAS IT LIKE ON SET?
RS: We actually shot it was in a bakery, so when we got to the set in the morning, the people were actually building their croissants to ship out later that day. And they would shut down the bakery when we started filming. So to get in my character, I would go and build these croissants with these people.
7M: WHAT WAS IT LIKE WORKING WITH GARY BUSEY?
RS: He was so intense and so crazy I didn’t even have to act. He freaked the living daylights out of me.
He’s off-the-wall crazy when he gets into his character. He didn’t want to go along with the script. He would kinda go outside of the box. He was calling action. He was calling cut. He definitely changed the whole scene. But he’s amazing. He did a great job.
On the set, he was always all over the place. He would be talking about very spiritual stuff and then he would be crazy Millard Findlemeyer. Then he’d be scary, then he’d be the actor guy. I never knew what to expect. He was so perfect. He definitely nailed the character. He was definitely the character the entire day, and it was great. It was perfection. Gary Busey rocked.
7M: ARE YOU BUMMED YOU DIDN’T GET KILLED?
RS: No. I mean it’s definitely fun to get killed, but I’d rather not get killed.
7M: WHAT DID YOU THINK WHEN YOU SAW THE FINAL PRODUCT?
RS: When I was filming, I thought it would be really hilarious. And when I was watching it, I was freaked out of my mind because this cookie was so much more evil than I remembered when we were filming. It’s definitely a movie that you see on a Saturday night with your friends. Laugh it up.
7M: WHAT DO YOU HAVE COMING UP?
RS: Right after “The Gingerdead Man,” I started this movie called “The Lost,” where I’m a totally different character – a bad-ass. Pot smoker, hard core, a real bad-ass. That movie is going the film festival route. It’s not a typical horror, it’s a drama horror. I did just finish shooting “Big Bad Wolf.” It’s about this guy who is a werewolf. I’m going to be doing a film called “Dead Man’s Hand” with Charlie.
7M: ARE YOU STILL SCARED OF THE GINGERDEAD MAN?
RS: I’m so thankful there are no homicidal baked goods chasing me on a daily basis.
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