Interview: Seána Kerslake about the mystique of feminine relationships

Irish acting phenomenon Seána Kerslake’s standout performance in Darren Thornton’s feature debut A Date for Mad Mary is turning heads at KVIFF, where the film saw its world premiere, heralding a highly promising future for the 25-year old Irish actress. Seána opened up about the mystique of feminine relationships such as those explored in the film, the challenges of being in Mary’s headspace and what she has in common with the character she played.

How was it when you got the role in A Date for Mad Mary?

It was brilliant. I was delighted because it had been a long time in the works, a couple of years, because it was on and off, looking for funds and all those kind of things. Mary is a great character to play because she gets to do so many things. There’s a lot to her, you know, so I got to dip into a lot of different parts of being a human being. I think she’s quite humorous, in her own way. I got to dip into her anger, her confusion, and all that. It was a lot of fun, but it was hard to play, as I was saying at the (KVIFF opening screening) Q&A, because she’s quite a lonely character and she’s a very angry character. When you’re trying to get into her headspace, it’s hard to be around other people, because if you’re in that angry, lonely headspace, it’s hard to interact with people – without, you know, getting into trouble. It was a weird one, you’re just trying to keep it to set because you can’t really walk around the Dublin city center in that headspace or on a night out in Mary’s headspace because you just end up in trouble.

How long were you shooting Mary?

I think we shot the movie over six weeks, half in Dublin and half in a place called Drogheda. It was like two different shoots. It was quite a short time, so we didn’t really have time to lay back and enjoy, to fully take it in. It was like, ‘Next scene! Next scene!’ It was very fast-paced. But the editing process was a long process, just to get it right, especially because it was Darren’s first feature film.

The film is full of the feminine mystique and how the girls’ friendships, jealousies and loves are actually much deeper than when it comes to women and men afterwards...

Yeah, there was a lot to draw on. I cannot speak from a male point of view, but I know as a woman you do have those friendships. And sometimes you can be in toxic relationships with friends that you stay with longer than you would put up with if it was between a man and a woman. It fascinates me, female relationships, how they work and how attached you become, you know?

You can read the whole interview in today's Festival Daily.