Horror movies &stuff Interviews:Rhoda Jordan
HM&S.com proudly presents it's first interview.
Actress Rhoda Jordan is certainly working her way up in the biz.Sister of jazz soloist Stanley Jordan,Rhodas done work all over the genre map early in her career.
From music videos,to action movies,thriller movies, to our beloved genre of film, the horror movie. Her works include most recently "Never Die Alone" where she worked alongside DMX and David Arquette, a hip thriller entitled "Revenge", 2003's "Aquanoids", and her upcoming SCI-FI movie "Galaxy Hunter" where she plays *Edge*, a tough as nails female half alien creature whos a part of a team of intergalatic bounty hunters. What most horror fans may know her best from is 2002's "Death Factory" where she starred alongside B movie actress Tiffany Shepis and Ron Jeremy.
So with a good portion of her film work being mainly horror/SCI-FI films,one has to ask the question,was Mrs Jordan always a horror movie fan at heart? She reveals the answer to this question and others in this in depth interview.
MR H:First off Mrs Jordan, tell everyone a little bit about yourself
R.Jordan:Well, I'm originally from San Jose in Northern California. But I came out to LA
in the summer of 2000, after I graduated from college on the east coast.So I've been here about 5 years now--and loving it--you know, as much as you can love it out here! You can't really love LA too much, because it will swallow you whole if you do.You have to really fight to keep a level head about things. When I got here, I started out doing tons of music videos. It was fun for a minute, you know? You get paid good money for a day of shaking it in front of the camera...or whatever it is us females do in those videos! But after realizing that world wasn't for me, I stopped with the videos and moved
on to
my first feature--which was Brad Sykes' "Death Factory"--the horror flick
about a
bunch of kids who are getting killed one by one in an abandoned factory
in town.
Before I did that film, I never really thought that being a B-horror
actress
would lead me other places, but it has. I moved on to work on other
B-films
(Aquanoids, Galaxy Hunter), and I've started making the transition into
bigger
films, most recently the film "Never Die Alone", with DMX and David
Arquette. It
has been a long road, but I'm intent on seeing this thing through.
MR H:Of all the films you've done up to this point,which one was the most
fun working
on?
R.Jordan:I had a blast working on "Galaxy Hunter." I can't tell you how much fun
it
was--we learned fight choreography, stunt work, and weaponry to prepare
for the
film. It was a true challenge. I play Edge, a half-alien creature who
has
tremendous strength. I was in make-up, getting the prosthetics put on
for over
an hour each morning. So some days I had to be on-set extra-early just
so
Make-Up could get me ready in time. And all us girls--(I'm part of a
team of
female bounty hunters)-- each had our own vibe and personality. I
think that
the director, Mark Borchetta, really worked hard to make that
happen--actually,
for all the characters in the movie, not just the lead females. He had
a really
sharp vision of this world and he really helped each of us to hone our
roles and
make each one our own. He did an amazing job at that. See, that's
what's so
tough about female roles. You tend to end up playing these roles that
are just
empty and vapid, you know? The lines are on the page, and no matter
which way
you say them, they won't come out right in the context. It's not
satisfying.
There's something lacking.
MR H:Was acting something you had wanted to do ever since you were little or
was it
something you decided you were interested in later on in life, and if
so,
around what age?
R.Jordan:I started out wanting to sing as a child and that eventually lead me
into
exploring acting around the time I was in high school. I got my first
agent
when I was about 15, I think. But I was only doing little gigs here
and there.
There was not a whole lot of work in San Jose. So I made my own short
films and
acted in all the school plays. And so theater had a lot of influence
on me
early-on.
I'm still sticking to the singing as well. I recently signed with RRAG
Records,
who is producing my first solo album. It's kind of a blend of R&B and
Jazz.
MR H:You were in a direct-to-video film entitled "Death Factory". What was
it like
working on that film, and what was it like working with Ron Jeremy who
was also
in the film?
R.Jordan:Unfortunately I didn't even get to meet Ron Jeremy! He wasn't in any of
my
scenes, so we never crossed paths.
But my experience on Death Factory was good for the most part. You
know, it was
incredibly low-budget. But we all made it work.
MR H:Looking at the IMDB,it seems "Death Factory" was your first time doing
a horror
movie.What was it like to walk onto the set of a horror film for the
first
time?
R.Jordan:Oh, wow, let me see...I think I was just so eager to start working.
The first
day of shooting was all exterior stuff in the beginning of the film.
Brad
tends to like to shoot things almost chronologically, so we were doing
a lot of
the set-up for the film and it was all pretty low-key. Now that I
think about
it, it was kind of cool that he set it up like that, because doing
everything
in order helped to keep track of your character throughout. It's like,
you get
to steadily build to your hysteria!
MR H:Are you a horror movie fan yourself, and what are some of your favorite
horror
films?
R.Jordan:You know what I really love? A good Zombie movie. "28 Days Later" was
just
awesome. I'm a big fan of "Dawn of the Dead" as well. I'm a sucker for
that
stuff. And I know this isn't a film--but I was just engrossed in
Richard
Matheson's Vampire story, "I Am Legend". Once I started reading, I could
not put
the thing down. It was so engrossing. Overall, I think though, that
zombies
are the best. To me, they're more terrifying and stealthy than any
monster. A
Zombie has all this energy and mania that's really exciting to watch.
MR H:Ok last question. Whens "Galaxy Hunter" due out, and what are some
upcoming
projects that you're working on or currently involved in?
R.Jordan:"Galaxy Hunter" is due out on DVD in mid-May...Also, in terms of upcoming
projects, I just finished shooting a supporting role in an indie flick
called
"Bad Penny". But at the moment, my main project is developing a
screenplay that
I recently wrote, entitled "Struck." I've been playing the "pitching"
game,
trying to get producers attached to it, etc. I've gotten some interest
recently, so there's hope yet! Also, I am working on developing a
sci-fi script
with my husband, Eric Shapiro. He is the author of this fantastic
horror/sci-fi
novel, "It's Only Temporary", which is due out in July. This is the
first time we
will be crossing our professional worlds like this, so we're both
really looking
forward to it.
MR H:Thank you for your time Mrs Jordan, and good luck with your career in
movies,and
everything else overall.
R.Jordan:Thank YOU. I really appreciate you taking the time to interview me.
Good luck
with everything as well!
There you have it folks, a multi-talented and successful young lady indeed.Between her involvement in her first love-music,her sky-rocketing acting career, and her marriage,shes certainly got a bright future ahead of her.Keep an eye out for her newest movie "Galaxy Hunter" which will be released on DVD the middle of this month.
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