Amber Benson

ONE OF THE NICE ONES:

AN INTERVIEW WITH AMBER BENSON

I'm not a big fan of television, but I am addicted to one show: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER. I'm occasionally pilloried for this admission, but only by people who are unaware (or unwilling to learn) that BUFFY is one of the best-written and best-acted shows on television. It is perhaps the only show on the electronic wasteland right now (except for it's spin-off show, ANGEL, of course) where the characters have actually grown over the years - and this growth can be re-examined now that the show is being re-broadcast from the beginning in syndication. Fans who have been with the characters since the beginning have grown to love the expanding cast, the intricate season-long storylines and the scripts that constantly keep you guessing.

These are just some of the highlights. The true joy is in the cast - particularly the supporting cast. While Buffy herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar, continues to grow in fame and popularity, her co-stars remain relatively unknown to audiences outside of the fanbase (the exception to this rule being Alyson Hannigan, who has gained a cult following as "Michelle the Band Camp Girl" in the AMERICAN PIE movies).

On Buffy, Amber Benson plays Tara. Tara is a ground-breaking role, particularly for U.S. television, because she is one-half of an on-going lesbian love-affair, with Alyson Hannigan's Willow character completing the couple. The relationship is one of the most tender and romantic currently on TV, and has never gotten the least bit exploitative, thanks to the skills of the actresses and the deft handling by the show's creator, Joss Whedon.

Benson's acting career hit the ground running. She made her debut at the age of twelve in Stephen Soderberg's KING OF THE HILL. Most recently, she completed THE PRIME GIG alongside Ed Harris, and if that weren't enough, she wrote and starred in her feature directorial debut, the coming-of-age movie, CHANCE, also starring her BUFFY co-star, James Marsters.

The sixth season of BUFFY brought new changes and challenges. Amber turned down the offer to become a series regular, sacrificing the "gifts and large salary" (her words) in favor of a lower episode commitment. But the episodes already aired have proven themselves to be no less demanding - even moreso, as the show entitled "Once More with Feeling" required the entire cast to sing and dance, allowing Amber to showcase her amazing soprano voice.

I got the chance to talk to Amber recently. Surprisingly enough, the actress called me, proving that she might be a budding star, but she's no shallow diva.

AMBER BENSON: "Boringly enough, I just auditioned for it. I'd known Alyson [Hannigan] before, we'd met through mutual friends. So I'd seen the show since she was on it, but I never watched a bunch of them in a row, and knew who said what in what episode, or who wore what in that episode. But I thought it was a really good show, really well done. And I was very excited to go in and read for it. I went in and met with Joss, and he was really cool. And they said 'Well, we're going to have callbacks!' And this and that. But then I got a phone call when I'm halfway out of town, saying that they were going to change the callback to that afternoon, 'Can you come back?' And I said, 'I'm almost in San Francisco, I can't come back! There's no way. Even if I turned around now I'd never make it.' So I kind of wrote it off, thinking it's not going to happen. Bad luck. Then they called again and said that they didn't find who they were looking for and wanted me to come back in. So I went back in and later I got a phone call telling me I'd gotten the part. That was funny too, because just as my agent called to tell me I'd gotten the part, Allyson Hannigan called at the same time to give me the news. She'd heard from Joss that I'd gotten the part. So that was really nice."

GC: Has Tara's development over the past two seasons been because of you or the writers?

AB: "It's a group of effort. The way that Joss had written it, he wanted Tara to really blossom under Willow's affection. I've tried to take it further, because she needs to be growing. She has an arc, and I really want her to grow up in front of people's eyes. And find out who she is. It showed people that you can be really shy and quiet, and you can become a more outgoing person. [Tara's relationship with Willow] is very nice. It's sweet and romantic. I think it's actually the most romantic relationship on BUFFY right now. I think because she and I are comfortable with each other, it makes it really easy.

AB: "I've only had good encounters with Buffy fans. I went to this party that the fans put on to raise money for charity, and this one girl came up to me, and she was in tears. And then I started crying, and she started crying harder. And she came out because of Willow and Tara's relationship. 'I came out because of you and now I have a girlfriend and I'm happy. And I just wanted to thank you.' And I started crying harder, and she was crying harder, and Joss walks by and says 'Alright, everybody's going downstairs now.' I've just been really lucky with this Buffy thing. It seems to have spoken to so many people. People are really moved by what happens on the show, and they like being a part of it."

GC: Have you been confronted with any backlash over the Tara/Willow relationship that has cropped up? Do you have an added sense of responsibility?

AB: "I think more people were upset that I was taking over where Seth Green left off, than that I was portraying a lesbian. But yes, anytime you put yourself in front of the camera, you have to be aware of the fact that people will emulate what you do. You MUST be responsible for your actions off camera as well. You are in the public eye and have to learn to set an example, not cause more problems in this world. Enough sanctimonious stuff. Sorry."

GC: On the "The Body" episode [in which Buffy's mother played by Joyce Summers, dies and is laid to rest] Tara and Willow finally share their first onscreen kiss (amidst only a little controversy). Were you happy with the way The Kiss finally transpired, and was it difficult to shoot when it finally came time?

AB: "The episode itself was a tricky one 'cause the subject matter was so intense. But all in all, I think that the kiss was very well done and the subject matter demanded a bit more intimacy between the two of us, so it fit well."

AB: "The schedule's grueling. Twenty-two episodes in one season. Eight days to make an episode. I don't know how they do it. They make phenomenal little movies in eight days. I admire them so much."

GC: Now, you knew Alyson, but didn't you work with Eliza Dushku [who plays the Slayer named "Faith" on BUFFY] before?

AB: Yeah, I worked with Eliza on BYE BYE LOVE, and Lindsey Crouse was in that too, playing my mother. She's a sweetie. She gets on the set and she's just fun. She's a wild girl. You can dare her to do anything.

GC: You recently wrote an issue of the BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER comic book with Christopher Golden [entitled "Blessed Wannabe"].

AB: "Chris [Golden] is awesome. I was really, really lucky. Chris approached me about it, and if he hadn't I never would have gotten involved in comics. I'm just so lucky that he thought I could do it. He's just such a cool guy. He's written a lot of stuff for BUFFY. I couldn't have done it without Chris. He walked me through the entire process, after I moaned, 'I need help! I don't know what I'm doing.' Chris introduced me to the realm of comic books. He did indeedy. It was his idea to do a Tara/Willow comic, and I was just along for the ride."

AB: "He's full of it! It was his idea! He and I work really well together, because I think we both think in the same vein. We're both into science fiction and scary books and mythology. Chris had some of the same ideas that I do, so he made it really easy to collaborate and make something cool. I think he did a nice job on it. I did a piece for Joss's book "Tales of the Slayer" [which is a] a compilation comic. So that should be really interesting."

GC: Tell me about your directorial debut with the movie CHANCE (which you also wrote and star in):

AB: "That's actually why I'm so beat. I've been working on BUFFY, and on the weekends I come home and work on this movie that I wrote. I think it's going to be really good. I'm excited about it. James Marsters [BUFFY's "Spike"] is in it. And David Feury, who's one of the writer/producers on the show, he took a part as the Pizza Guy. It's really just my take on trying to figure out just who the heck you are in your twenties. Trying to find somebody that you really connect with on more than just a physical basis. That's kind of what it's about. I started writing the script a few years ago, and when I finished it, I never did anything with it. I didn't think anyone else out in Hollywood would appreciate it. It's my story, my thing, you know? I didn't want to shop it around, say, 'hey you wanna buy my movie?' They'd tell me to screw off. So some friends of mine and I were talking at dinner one night, and they said "Heck with it, why don't you do it yourself? Send it over, we'll look at it." So I did, and they really liked it, and we just decided to do it ourselves. It took about three months of pre-production, and five weekends worth of filming, now we're in editing process. Which is really scary! I can't believe five weekends are over. We did this for no money. Whatever I made from BUFFY we funneled into it. And whatever my sister in college didn't need. We did it really low budget. I think our budget was $25,000. I know that sounds like a lot of money to people out there, but it's so not."

AB: "I like directing. Screw the acting! I wanna be a director! That's where all the fun is." Luckily I was surrounded by this incredible crew. I have a wonderful director of photography Patrice [Lucien Cochet]. Because I acted in it, I had to get into makeup, and wardrobe and stuff. So I'm running around in half-finished makeup going, 'okay, get the lights inside, I'll be right back, meet you at the monitor!' We VHS'ed everything so that we could go back and look and see how things were coming. It was intense. Even the sound guy, Dennis [Baxter], got into it. He'd yell out, 'Hey, the eye-line looks a little funny!' Then I'd have to come back and look. Luckily, I had a friend who could stand in for me so I could come and go and see what was up. So between all of them, and my mother [Diane Benson], who was sitting around going, 'okay, that looks funny when you do that!' I got myself taken care of. I was okay with everybody else, because I knew what I wanted from them, so that wasn't a problem. It was just me trying to make sure I was doing what I was supposed to do.

GC: Christine Estabrook (from the TV show NIKKI) plays your mother in CHANCE.

AB: It was really funny. I didn't really know anything about her. They always invite you to these WB parties, and you walk around and people come up to you and ask you questions, journalists or whatever. It's kind of cheesy, actually. I always feel stupid when I go to these things. But one time this woman comes up to me, and says 'My stepdaughter and I watch BUFFY and we just love your character so much!' And I said 'Oh, you're so sweet'. Then I kept running into her at these WB functions. And then I found out she was on the 'Nikki' show, and she was a Yale-trained actress, gone to school with Christopher Durang and Sigourney Weaver. This woman was the for-real acting deal. So at this next party I went over to her and asked her. And she said, 'Uh, sure, send me a script!' So we sent her a script, and I forgot to put a cover page on it, so she had no idea where it was from, what it was about, who's doing it. So we had to work it all out. But she's in my movie and she's phenomenal! She's so wonderful. And I didn't know anything about her. I just had this really intense vibe at my gut-level that 'she is it! She's your woman!' And she was. She brought so much to the table.

"I did not have a bad actor the whole way through. Everybody was fantastic. [Director] Stephen Soderberg gave me the best piece of advice I've ever gotten: 'When you direct, the real directing comes in the casting.' And I agree with him so much, now that I've done my own thing. Because he's so right. If you cast people that you know are going to be wonderful and give you what you need, you don't have to stop every five minutes and say 'okay, I want you to read the line like this…' I was just so lucky. [All the actors on CHANCE] were all in their grooves, and they listened, and they were so good, I didn't have to work hard to get them to give me the things that I needed. They just intuitively were there. We got great stuff. It was like magical. Everybody came in and they became the characters that I'd seen in my head. And if they weren't one hundred percent what I'd seen in my head, they brought something so different and unique and new to it that 'whoa, I never saw it like that! That's really cool, let's do it like that!' I was really lucky."

GC: Your career certainly got off on the right foot, working with Stephen Soderberg.

AB: "KING OF THE HILL was amazing. I was fifteen, I guess. To go in and read for Stephen Soderberg, and then to actually get the part! It just blew my mind. I was so nervous and uptight about it, and then it was such a wonderful experience. The best film I've worked on. It was like a big family. We shot in St. Louis, and we all stayed in this big hotel, everyone would hang out in the bar at night after filming. It was fantastic."

GC: Can you tell me a bit about THE PRIME GIG? You're character's name is "Batgirl"?

AB: "Not like the comic-book Batgirl. She's just this really crazy character. They say that she 'talks loudly and carries a really big bat'. Hits you over the head of it. Kind of the antithesis of Teddy Roosevelt. She talks loudly and uses her big stick. I haven't seen it yet. But I think it's going to be great. All my stuff was with Vince Vaughn and Julia Ormond and Ed Harris. He's a very cool guy. I was so excited to work with him. He's very nice. He called me 'Kid' the whole way through."

AB: "Oh yeah. (laughs) I'm really bad. I start something then start something else, then start something else. Not finishing half of it. I'm trying to write a modern-day film noir right now. Takes place in Los Angeles, Chinatown influence, Elmore Leonard influence. Little bit of Chandler, little bit of Elroy, but more of the Chinatown-ish kind of feel. I've been obsessed with that movie forever. 'My daughter! My sister! My daughter!'"

Visit Amber on the web at her official website, The Essence of Amber: http://www.amberbenson.net. [Extra special thanks goes out to Little Willow for her assistance in obtaining this interview. http://slayground.net/yourgirl/]