Brandon Judell
Inside the Mind of a Young Actress: Off the Map's Valentina De Angelis
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| Valentina De Angelis in "Off the Map." |
By Brandon Judell
The centerpiece of Campbell Scott's "Off the Map," his second film as a solo director (he co-directed the gourmand hit "Big Night"), is the startling teen, Valentina De Angelis. In this, her feature debut, the audience gets to see life through the eyes of her precocious character, Bo Groden.
The year is 1974. The locale: an isolated ramshackle abode in Taos, New Mexico. Bo's dad (Sam Elliott) is so depressed he doesn't talk and barely moves. Her mom (Joan Allen), who raises her own vegetables, is doing her best to keep the household functioning. But then an IRS man arrives, the young befuddled William Gibbs (Jim True-Frost), to collect back taxes. Instead of cash, he garners a catharsis and a romantic obsession.
Meanwhile, the pigtailed Bo is spending all her time trying to obtain a credit card. Why? Well, that's the surprise you'll have to pay to see.
Beautifully shot with fine performances, "Off the Map" is certainly a fine career starter, especially for this former child model. In fact, she's already won "The Young Star of Tomorrow" award at the Fort Lauderdale Film Festival.
To find out how this early acclaim is affecting her, NYTW sat down with Miss De Angelis recently at the Regency Hotel. Several years older since she made the picture, the young woman in front of me, now self-assured and sophisticatedly attired, seemed almost unrecognizable.
NYTW: You look much older now than you do in "Off the Map." Did
you play young then or are you dressing old now?
VD: Both. I'd say both. Actually when I filmed the movie, I had just turned 13. I was very young.
NYTW: When you appear like this, fully made up and in extremely stylish clothes, don't your parents wish you were still the girl in the film?
VD: No-o-o-o-o! No. They know I'm growing up so they don't really mind. (Giggles.)
NYTW: So you're living in New York?
VD: Yes.
NYTW: And going to school here?
VD: Yes. On the Upper East Side. I love it.
NYTW: What was it like filming in a New Mexico desert?
VD: Well, it was definitely a change. I mean coming from being a city girl, which I've basically been all of my life, it really didn't bother me. I liked being out there. It was gorgeous. The scenery was beautiful. It was definitely an experience. Really. New Mexico was fantastic.
NYTW: Did you ever see the film Thirteen?
VD: Yes. Actually I was really close to getting that role.
NYTW: Oh. Do you find it odd that the two characters who are the same age, yours in Off The Map and the lead in Thirteen, are leading such morally diverse lives? And is it hard for you in your everyday life to keep yourself balanced right now?
VD: Well, comparing the character in my movie to the character in Thirteen, they both definitely live two different lives. One lives out in the desert in the middle of nowhere with just her family. With nothing. She has absolutely nothing, and, you know, I think she's very just like so down to earth and just so naïve because she's not out there in the world. So she really doesn't know anything as opposed to the character in Thirteen. She has things. She has a family. She has problems in her family. That's what really makes her act the way she does. They're very different characters. How would I balance both lifestyles, are you asking?
NYTW: Are you well adjusted?
VD: (Silence) Yeah, I could definitely balance both. Me, as opposed to the character that I played, are definitely two different people. Although there is a part of me that is kind of like that character.
NYTW: Did you get anything from playing the part?
VD: I would think so. Yeah, a little bit. I think it mainly just taught me a lot of basically family values and stuff like that. I think in the beginning I really didn't appreciate my family as I do now. I really do. I appreciate my sisters and my whole family and . . .
NYTW: Since I've never been to New Mexico, I'm now quite sure about there being a New Mexican accent. Is there one? Did you have a dialect coach?
VD: I don't think so. When I went out there, I really didn't hear much of an accent. I think it kind of sounds more like a really light Texas-ish accent. Really like very vague. Something like that. There's something but not much.
NYTW: Was it your first time you were down there?
VD: Yes.
NYTW: Did you get to see much besides the arid landscape you were shooting in?
VD: Yeah, actually I did. I got to see a lot of it. I found it amazing. Of course, a lot of New Mexico is all like desert and sage bushes and things like that, but it's really pretty. The mountains are gorgeous.
NYTW: You've been a top model since age five?
VD: Since six or seven yeah! (Laughs)
NYTW: You got all those jobs because of your looks. Now you are getting acting parts because of your talent, looks, and personality. Do your parents ever have to tell you, "Your head's getting too big"?
VD: Not at all. The thing is ever since I started with this, my mother's always told me . . . constantly . . . every day . . .every minute of the day, you know: "You're a great kid whatever, but stay as down to earth as possible." She's always telling me to stay down to earth. It really helped because I don't let anything go to my head. I think nothing of it. It's just a hobby of mine. It's something that I feel passionate about, but I don't really think of myself as an actress or anything like that.
NYTW: Book-wise, where are you? Years ago did you do the Nancy Drews?
VD: Right now, I really haven't been reading much except for schoolbooks like Romeo and Juliet and all the classics. A Raisin in the Sun and all those. I enjoy those, you know, but I haven't really had time to read anything by myself.
NYTW: When you read Romeo and Juliet, do you imagine: "Hey, I can do this?"
VD: Not really. Whenever I read a book, I always picture it as a movie in my head. Always. It's always just playing as something. That's how I think of books. But I never thought I can do this. I can play this. [Judell]
Copyright © Brandon Judell 2005
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