Interview with Actress Stefanie Lynn Evans from the short film Elimination Strain
We had a chance to speak with Actress Stefanie Lynn Evans who played a conspiracy theorist in the proof of concept (short film) Elimination Strain.
Stefanie can be found:
IMDB – Stefanie Lynn Evans
Official Website
YouTube Channel:
1) How long have you been acting?
A: My first Television appearance was somewhere around 2005. Since then I haven’t done anything of merit. I just love anything creative and consider myself quite enigmatic.
2): How did you become a part of Elimination Strain?
A: Christopher and I were friends on social media sites, and I was a huge fan of his web series Good Question. I also love his short films, as well as the film The Luring. When he offered to view my reel for the project I immediately wanted to be a part of the film.
3) What attracted you to this project?
A: Firstly, I thought the timeliness with the COVID crises, and political turbulence was quite brilliant. I personally find that creation out of chaos, fear and pain can be quite cathartic. It’s Jungian to me. I am also a huge horror genre fan.
4) What did you think of the trailer?
A: I thought the trailer was fantastic and compels one to watch the film in its entirety. It makes you want to know what happens!
5) What has the pandemic taught you as being a creative person?
A: I’ve always been mindful of my emotions and try not to hold things beneath the surface. My generation has never gone through something such as this pandemic, and it’s definitely cemented the foundation mortality; just how delicate and intertwined the human psyche and existence is. As an artist, it’s difficult not to let this permeate then regurgitate in conception, as in my case my paintings.
6) You play a conspiracy theorist in Elimination Strain, did you have any concerns with playing this role?
A: Absolutely. It is wholly paradoxical to who I am, and I was apprehensive of people believing I really had these irrational philosophies. These days, anything can easily be pilfered from professionals and then edited to suit one’s political or religious agenda. Anytime we put anything out there, this is a risk we take.
7) I saw the film and the way you come off is very unnerving and real. I honestly thought Christopher downloaded footage from YouTube and edited that into Elimination Strain. Talk to me how you prepared for this role and did Christopher give you any direction?
A: I honestly didn’t need to prepare. I had already been so immersed in watching so many conspiracy and political YouTube videos just for my own knowledge and innate curiosity. I felt all I had to do was to mimic what I have already seen. I’m also a news junkie, so that helped quite a bit. I was actually quite surprised that Christopher didn’t feel the need to steer me in any one direction or have me do any re-takes. Apparently, playing crazy comes naturally to me!
8) How much freedom did Christopher give you? I know you were acting remotely so how did that work exactly? Was it difficult to act remotely?
A: Christopher gave me complete freedom excluding specific direction for background, lighting and camera view of course. As far as any issues working remotely, I only had two; one was to find an unadorned wall in my hauntingly decorated home, second was that the audio kept picking up my neighbor’s stereo. I had to ask them to turn it off for a few hours.
9) What kind of characters do you like to play?
A: Again, it’s probably quite Jungian, but for me it’s a lot of fun to incorporate the darker aspects of myself. I guess you can call it shadow integration.
10) I spoke with Christopher and he said you gave him different takes with different tones and feel. How do you go from one way of acting to another?
A: I try my best to put myself into different mindsets. Different personality types and political/religious views. I just take a moment, then delve into what I, or others may feel. Probably, the more empathetic, compassionate characterization was easier since it was more of who I am. It’s always fun though to role play a women who has a very different belief system.
11) Are you currently working on anything interesting?
A: Right now, I am currently working with a “Tribe” of artists to create an extremely unfiltered Podcast/web series. I am also concentrating on my first love of painting.
12) Do you see more or less roles during the pandemic?
A: I was more or less just trying to keep my head above water mentally so I wasn’t actively looking for work. I just took the deep dive into my painting.
13) Have you ever received any advice from an actors coach or any creative teacher that stayed with you that you’re able to apply to future projects?
A: Really, from working with and watching specific ones, I just learned what not to do. I’ve also learned that the higher the bar, the more I want to clear it.
14) What advice would you give actors?
A: I truly would consider it a disservice to compare myself to real actors as I’ve never had any formal training. I think it would be dishonest to even put myself into that category since serious actors sacrifice so much to bring their passion to fruition. However, if I had to give any advice, I think it would be to keep doing what you love. It takes courage and perseverance which I greatly admire.
15) What advice would you give directors?
A: Again, I don’t feel I have the experience or expertise to even remotely give advice, but I would say to study human experience and emphasize with all frames of mind to create an image of a relatable reality. Oh, and to not kill dogs or cats in film. I always straightaway discontinue and delete any given film with these visuals. Even though provoking emotion in the audience is the trademark of a true artist, this specific one is not my cup of tea.
