Anne Heche has the exceptional talent of breathing an exceptional amount of life into any character she play. In addition to her God-given talents, she has a reputation as one of the hardest working women in entertainment and her dedication to her craft raise the bar of any project in which she is involved. Such is the case with her latest film, ‘That’s What She Said’. Directed by Carrie Preston, who stars on HBO’s ‘True Blood’ and CBS’s ‘The Good Wife’, the film features Alia Shawkat and Marcia DeBonis in a quirky, down and dirty, comedic look at how friendship can survive chronic sarcasm, bizarre stranger-danger, an unexplained itch and a dangerous dildo.
Written by Kellie Overbey, this film is a hilarious and insightful glimpse into the comical realities of modern womanhood. That’s What She Said gets to the root of what it really means to love someone. BeBe, Dee Dee, and Clementine are all honest, messy, culpable and loveable. They represent real women struggling to accept their value and their flaws. In this hilarious downtown comedy, New York City challenges our characters like no other place can – testing their friendship and ultimately bringing them together.
Jason Price of Icon Vs. Icon recently spoke with Anne Heche about her role in the film, her experiences on set and the collection of elements that brought this exceptional independent film to life.
You latest film is ‘That’s What She Said’ which features at terrific cast and a very talented director. What do you think that director Carrie Preston brought to the table for this project?
Belief, direction, commitment, strategy and money. She really gave it her all. It was her hope to make this film for nine years. She had done it as a play with Kellie Overbey, who is the writer. If it wasn’t for her, incredible vision and commitment, it definitely would not have gotten done. I don’t think I have ever seen someone pour themselves so deeply into a project. You always hear stories of these people who deplete their bank accounts and put everything on their credit cards to get a project made and that is Carrie’s story! She did it for this and that i show much she believes in this movie. I am so happy for her. You don’t know with independent films. Our dream was to get it into Sundance and we were floored and thrilled when that happened but it doesn’t mean your film is going to get distributed anywhere. The belief that Phase Four has had in us and now Redbox and Showtime, I just couldn’t be any happier for her! In fact, even saying it makes me want to cry! It really comes down to what we did the movie about — friendship. Carrie is truly a champion of women and her cause which is friends love each other and take care of each other. I didn’t take a salary on this movie and I believe in it that much! We are girls that believe in the words that we speak.
As an actress who has been successful in both big budget films as well as independent film, what intrigues you the most about working in independent film in today’s environment?
Now that there are options for independent film to be seen, it has become a brand new and very exciting world. I feel like I had these feelings twenty years ago when I was just starting to get into film. It is a rebirth for independent film, meaning character driven, more intimate storytelling and artists exploring these things for themselves and the artists around them. I really feel it is like a rebirth and I am excited to be a part of it. I am not saying that I wouldn’t like to be the new “Batwoman” but it is really exciting to take on characters who are awesome and who are speaking words that are so truthful, crazy and hilarious. It is a great time right now for independent film!
You always hear actors say that they pick a little something up from each new project. With so many talented ladies making up the cast, what did you take away from your time on this project?
Oh my gosh, so much! At it’s heart, obviously, this movie is about friendship. We all made fast, lifelong friends!, making, watching it and doing it! The commitment was amazing. Alia Shawkat and I worked together on “Cedar Rapids,” she has said jokingly that I begged her to do this movie because I don’t think anyone could have done it as well, truthfully or funny as her. That is a really had thing for a young actress to pull off — to be a nymphomaniac and make it funny. I thought she could handle it and not only did she handle it but she did an amazing job! When you are working under crazy conditions like that, you either build each other up or you let each other down because you can’t handle the pressure. This was a crew of people who, daily, built each other up and made something that we all really believe in and are tremendously proud of.
It truly is a terrific film, Anne. Thank you for your time today and best of luck to you moving forward!
Thank you so much, Jason!
Visit the official site of the film at www.thatswhatshesaidmovie.com.
Official Synopsis: Bebe (Marcia DeBonis) is getting ready for the most romantic encounter of her life, and she needs her best friend Dee Dee (Anne Heche) to cheer her on. Too bad Dee Dee is so cynical about dating that she shows up three hours late only to spew cigarette smoke and bitterness all over the morning coffee. And too bad Clementine, a train wreck of a stranger (Alia Shawkat,) has decided to invade their day with non-stop talk about her nymphomaniac escapades. Looking to turn the day around, this fearsome threesome embark on a day of misadventure that only New York City can offer. THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID is a quirky and honest look at friendship in the face of adversity, asking one of life’s great questions: why does it always have to be so hard? (That’s what she said.)
Jason Price founded the mighty Icon Vs. Icon more than a decade ago. Along the way, he’s assembled an amazing group of like-minded individuals to spread the word on some of the most unique people and projects on the pop culture landscape.
