Written by Maria Paula Acosta
W SPOTLIGHT: Hi, nice to meet you. My name is Maria.
NICOLETTE PEARSE AND AMANDA BABAEI VIEIRA: Hi Maria.
W SPOTLIGHT: First of all, I just wanted to congratulate you both on the release of the movie.
PEARSE AND BABAEI VIEIRA: Thank you. Thank you so much.
W SPOTLIGHT: I'm guessing you guys are feeling excited.
PEARSE: Yeah, nervous, excited, all of it.
BABAEI VIEIRA: Yeah, I love it.
W SPOTLIGHT: So I'm going to start with my first question. This film brings together two women from different cultural and social realities. What conversations do you hope audiences will have after watching Maya and Samar's story?
PEARSE: Yeah, I mean, I think the experience of watching the film is very unique because there's the big twist at the end. So I hope that that really sparks a conversation on the assumptions that maybe the viewer had throughout the film, assumptions about who is the victim, what it means to take power into your own hands, what it means to have privilege, the responsibility of privilege, all these kinds of things. I hope that it sparks just an interaction on those ideas.
BABAEI VIEIRA: Yeah, I think that's beautifully put. And maybe also to center some sort of joy that lies in the empowerment you have. Or you can have when you are from...
PEARSE: Yeah, like stepping away from victimhood and focusing on someone as a victim and looking at the joy and the power that they exercise, even in conditions that are horrible.
W SPOTLIGHT: So the relationship between Maya and Samar unfolds against issues like privilege, migration, and identity. How did you balance telling like a love story while also exploring those things that are heavier?
PEARSE: It was so beautiful to show that connection can exist in those conditions because people don't stop living, they don't stop loving and desiring just because they are maybe in an urgent situation. And I think I love having both these conversations at the same time because it's what makes the film unique and what highlights the moral complexity of the situation.
BABAEI VIEIRA: Yeah, and I do think that there are existences that are inherently political and you cannot separate one from the other. It always is intertwined.
PEARSE: And queerness is inherently political in a lot of societies. So, queer love and the courage to define that for yourself is also political.
BABAEI VIEIRA: Yeah, like queerness as a disinterest in a straight path, maybe.
W SPOTLIGHT: Is there anything in particular that attracted you to this film at first? That made you say, "Oh, I love this idea, or I love this story, I want to do it, and like tell it to the world."
PEARSE: Yeah, I mean, the things that we're talking about, the complexity in the script, that it plays a bit with the audience's expectations, I thought was refreshing. And I was really drawn to the character of Maya. I just found her appetite, her curiosity, and her lust for life so compelling and an interesting challenge, a special challenge as an actor.
BABAEI VIEIRA: And I do like about Samara how remarkably unafraid she is and how she carves out a way for herself. And I think what drew me really to it was the plot twist at the end, because it's such an interesting commentary on saviorism and sensationalism, maybe too, that goes in there. And what happens when you are as bold as these two women and you go for things that are risky.
PEARSE: Chaos! Chaos happens.
W SPOTLIGHT: Yeah, I was definitely not expecting that plot twist at the end. It was like, "Wow", yeah, that got me on guard. But I like how this story unfolded at the end, even though it's maybe a little different from what we usually see, but it shows what the reality is nowadays. So I like that this story was sold this way. Also, both of your characters meet at a moment when both are searching for something. What do you think each of them ultimately finds in one another?
BABAEI VIEIRA: I mean, Samara finds a way to have a freer life through that, through freedom.
PEARSE: I think it's a bit of a reckoning for Maya. I think it's an opportunity to check herself and this like intense trajectory that she has and almost like a coming of age, like a reckoning of who she is and taking accountability for how she needs to adjust moving forward. And I think it's a bit of a loss for her in a way, like a bit of a heartbreak, but one that ultimately is good for her as a human. And I think for Samara it's different.
BABAEI VIEIRA: Yeah, it's different because she had to be more calculating during everything.
W SPOTLIGHT: Yeah, I think Samara ultimately finds like her freedom at the end, kind of like what she was looking for. And maybe like Maya finds, like this whole different world.
PEARSE: Yeah, I think that's a good way of putting it. Maya really sees the world for like, unfiltered.
W SPOTLIGHT: And what surprised you the most about your character while preparing for the role? Was there something about them that challenged your own assumptions?
PEARSE: Yeah, I mean, I think the film itself was an opportunity to confront many of my own assumptions and also just my naivete on the situation in Europe and what refugees really went through.
BABAEI VIEIRA: Yeah, I think for me it was the research that I did on the complex and rich history of Afghanistan, to just be able to dive deeper into that, and also listening to so many human rights activists and getting familiar with the accent in that way. That was really amazing and something where I could see the work, the important work that people do, amplified in a way.
W SPOTLIGHT: Perfect. Thank you very much for answering the questions. Congratulations again on the movie. I think it really gives another perspective on what all the struggles that we see in it are about and a little bit more understand it.
NICOLETTE PEARSE AND AMANDA BABAEI VIEIRA: Thanks, Maria. Thank you.
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