Note from Cantare: I am greatly flattered and honored to present the magazine interview that pissed Al off in the last chapter! This is entirely written by Geniusgirl (who calls herself "Gigi" here). Hats off to her for a very realistic and entertaining article! Please send praise and feedback her way! (FF username Geniusgirl; The Original)
Appendix A: "Mirrors Don't Lie" – Written by Geniusgirl
The buzz this season is all about "Antiphony," the latest production out of FFNet Studios. Directed by Cantare (revered for the depth and quality of her previous works like "Consacra"), it unites two unlikely characters in a desperate battle against time. These characters are, as most already know, Mozenrath and Jasmine. The two play a dangerous game of cat and mouse and toe the lines between love, hate and lust all while trying to save themselves and their respective kingdoms from the evil clutches of Mirage. Today, I was given the chance to sit down with the actors and get their take on this latest production.
GIGI: Welcome, welcome. I'm glad to have you both here with me today.
MOZE & JAS: Hey, hello.
GIGI: So… you two are all the rage recently. "Antiphony" is the biggest hit of the season and it's still a work in progress. How do you feel about its success?
MOZE: Well, to be quite honest, I'm a little surprised. (chuckles) When I first read the script, I realized that it was deeper than your average production. I was almost certain we'd lose out with the amount of focus there was on dialogue in the beginning. I thought for sure we'd have trouble with the in-depth debates about the nature of power that Cantare included but …everything seems to have worked out fine. Thankfully.
JAS: (jerks her head in Moze's direction) What he said. (laughs) Actually, I figured we'd at least have a sleeper hit. What really scared me was the change in hero that Cantare pulled off. For one thing, I haven't been the lead in that many productions and the switch to a female lead in a male-dominated category was risky but I wanted to try it out. Now I'm really glad that I did. It's been a blast to work on this project so I'm glad that fans appreciate it the way they do.
GIGI: I see. So what's it like working on a project of such immense scale and depth? Do you find it overwhelming?
JAS: I wouldn't say it's 'overwhelming'. The scale of the production isn't all that daunting because it's actually about the same size as the previous Aladdin movies I've worked on but the depth of the story … that's very different. Cantare's really gone into detail about the history of the characters. Like in the Mirror, it's Mozenrath's history we're seeing but I'm the one who navigates through it. As I said, I haven't ever been the focus of a story before so I do find it quite challenging to be at the forefront of everything almost all the time. It's a really demanding role because of the kind of development I've got to portray but I think it's a really beneficial experience. Plus, I've got such a great cast and crew to help out that I never feel over stressed about anything. Moze here has been a lot of help in keeping things light. (chuckles & smiles at Moze)
GIGI: And you Mozenrath? How do you feel about the depth of the production?
MOZE: Like I said, I didn't think it was going to fly. I wasn't a part of the three Aladdin films and when we were working on the TV series my past was only vaguely alluded to so the range and intensity of emotion and personality that I'm being asked to produce -- and very often not produce -- are a big change but, as Jasmine says, it's not a bad one. The crew is a big help, they work really, really hard to make everything flow and make it easy for us to move from scene to scene. "Antiphony" is basically a much more mature storyline so we've had to adapt our mindset to fit that but once that was done, this project has been excellent to work on. Even … well, I shouldn't mention that yet.
GIGI: (attentive) Haha, so you are keeping secrets from the viewers. Well, spoilers aside, what's been the most challenging aspect of the filming for you two so far?
MOZE & JAS: (looking uncomfortable) …um
GIGI: (laughs) Come now, it can't be all that bad.
MOZE: (blushing) It isn't. (cools down) For me, I think the hardest part of production has been keeping my face as expressionless as Cantare demands. It's a bit ridiculous to find that the most difficult aspect but sometimes she just writes some things that almost demand reactions that I'm not allowed to give. Other than that there isn't much else that's been particularly strenuous. (smiles like a kid) I've got some cooler fight scenes so those were a bit more technical to film but they were really fun. (thinks) Oh! (chuckles) There's the skeletal arm I've got to work with. It keeps falling apart on me so actually managing to film a whole scene with it on is probably my biggest challenge. You wouldn't believe how many times we've had to stop shooting to replace fingers. (rolls eyes)
JAS: (laughing) The arm has been a big hassle lately, yes. Especially since it's getting so much more screen time. The action scenes have been far more intense so that's been a big challenge since I'm usually the damsel in distress. Now I'm out there on the front lines and I've actually had to do a lot of physical training for this role. Otherwise, I'm probably the opposite of Mozenrath. He doesn't get to show emotion and I've got to constantly show it. On top of that, it's always changing and sometimes I've got to go from happy to sad in seconds, from relief to terror or anger, and a lot of the time it's secondhand emotion so my character doesn't experience the things that are making her feel some way for herself. It's difficult but it's a good test of my abilities …I think.
GIGI: I see. (smirks) OK, now we readers have our favorite bits and pieces of "Antiphony" but what were your favorite parts to film?
MOZE: (grinning) The fight scenes. And I liked doing the voiceover work for the first few chapters. It was interesting to be and not be in a scene at the same time.
JAS: (rolling her eyes at him) I've enjoyed it all. I don't think I can pinpoint one thing that I liked most. What I did have fun with was when were filming the scenes in the Mirror, this one (points at Moze) couldn't keep his face straight around Xerxes. Xerxes is so funny and so much fun to work with. That was a really great couple of months.
GIGI: (smiles) Now that's interesting. (focuses on Moze) Your character is pretty much an evil bastard for most of this story but you seem quite different. How does it feel playing the villain and how do you think it affects your real personality?
MOZE: (sighs) I've been a villain for a long time now so it's not a big deal anymore. I'm pretty used to it. I hope I don't come off as an evil bastard in real life obviously. Um… I don't think I've taken much of anything from Mozenrath's character. I've probably stolen some of his vocabulary but that's about it.
GIGI: You can rest assured, you're quite pleasant company. (winks)
MOZE: (blushes) Er…thanks?
GIGI: Speaking of your villainy, "Antiphony" effectively recasts you as the romantic lead. What's it like to have such a drastic change in your relationship with the Princess you're usually trying to destroy?
MOZE: Um… well, would you really say that I'm the 'romantic lead'?
GIGI & JAS: Yes.
JAS: (sighs) It's been interesting working with him. He has a completely different approach to his work than what I'm used to.
MOZE: The relationship that we're in in "Antiphony" is drastically different from any we've ever had before so we've had to get to know each other on completely new levels. It's been… (looks at Jasmine, blushes, smiles softly) nice.
JAS: (also smiling at him) Yeah.
GIGI: (grinning widely in her little world of M/J fangirling, nods) Ah… and now, what everyone wants to know about you two (motions between the two), there's absolutely nothing going on? I mean, that was one HOT photo shoot you just did. "Antiphony" may soon be slapped with an M rating and it's a given that you are going to have a few risqué scenes. Now, you two already have so much chemistry and you look so natural; are you at least attracted to each other, yes/yes? (smirks)
MOZE: (Moze and Jas are blushing and averting their eyes) Um…er, well -- (looks at Jas, pauses, blinks) I – uh, I plead the Fifth. Yeah. (exchanges looks with Jasmine. She laughs.)
(GIGI's eyes widen in delight and shock. Turns to Jas for confirmation)
JAS: (blushing) Yes, can we skip this question?
GIGI: (grinning like the cat who ate the canary) I think we have an answer. Thank you both for your time. I'm sure "Antiphony" will continue to be a great success and I look forward to seeing your future projects. If I'm not mistaken you're both already signed for two further works together, correct?
MOZE: Um, yes, we are. We've started some light filming for "The Scales of Truth" directed by demonegg.
JAS: We're also looking at storyboards for Geniusgirl's production of the "Antiphony" alternate universe.
GIGI: (grins) Well then I'll definitely look forward to seeing more from both of you!
Note from Cantare: Thanks again Geniusgirl! You rock.
