A while back, around last month Cry of Silence made its way onto Hollywood Suite/Prime Video. The film takes place in a small community that deals with a serial killer, who’s probably taken out most of the population already. Well, they’ve killed off most of the women. Anyways, a young married couple, Frank (Felipe Aukai) and Maggie Klassen (Charlot Daysh) move in to the town, unaware of this freaky phenomenon, and they just live a sugary sweet mushy-gushy relationship. But eventually, even those kinds of relationships go sour like they always do, and this one is no exception. Frank becomes much too busy at his new job, and Maggie gets nervous while dealing with a stalker, and soon she is kidnapped. But was it the creepy guy? Or the killer? Or are they the same person? I’d say watch to find out, but I wanted to learn more about what happened behind the scenes, because that’s the kind of person I am. There’s more info on the synopsis here anyway, but since I got a chance to talk to Charlot herself about her role, it was interesting to hear about what happened on set.
Charlot has already gotten well into acting from a young age and was won some awards already, but apparently, this is her biggest role yet. Bigger than her recurring role in Hotel Caesar, or her role in Eli Roth Presents: A Ghost ruined my Life or even A Time To Kill. This sounded so intensifying, I just had to get more answers and figure out more about Charlot and this movie. Prepare yourselves, this could get edgy.
HNMAG: Tell me more about your role in Cry of Silence. It’s your biggest yet. Why is that?
Charlot Daysh: Yeah, I was reached out to by the director and the writer of this movie a few years ago. They had seen my profile on backstage, and they thought I was a good fit for the role. We just had a meeting, and they offered me the role which was amazing. It was thanks to them, seeing something in me that they believed in. I’m really grateful for them having taken that chance on me, and my role is Margaret Klassen. She is settling into a community that is terrorized by a serial killer. She’s newly married and she’s haunted by a demon from her past. She basically has to face this demon and get her life back.
HNMAG: I saw you did some pretty epic fight scene rehearsal. Was it frightening to practice for al that?
Charlot Daysh: It was a little bit different in the beginning, it wasn’t something I had done before. But I actually loved it, I found it very fun, and it was great to be able to challenge myself and learn something new. It’s really cool how fighting like that is like a dance between two people. I thought that was a pretty cool element.
HNMAG: So you really put yourself into the character and were able to relate. What parts were different given experiences in your life?
Charlot Daysh: I can’t personally relate to everything the character went through, but I always try to understand more and do my research on how that could feel. I have never been kidnapped or assaulted like she was. I had to draw on how that could make me feel.
HNMAG: And what kind of similar scenarios have you experienced in comparison to the concept?
Charlot Daysh: If there’s some something similar I can draw on, I always try to find some common ground in my character, and find ways in which we’re alike. Also have compassion for them and never judge them or anything. I try to understand them to create that bond and portray them in the most authentic way.
HNMAG: You learned a lot on set with developing as an actor. What was the most important lesson you learned?
Charlot Daysh: Emphasizing the importance of teamwork and the elements to work together is huge. I learned a lot about how stunt performances work and what goes into that which was a new world to me. One of my biggest things was fighting and getting into all of that.
HNMAG: You were working with Felipe Aukai on this one. How do you two know each other?
Charlot Daysh: We worked on a commercial together many years ago when I first moved to Toronto. I was actually asked if I knew somebody who would be a good fit for his part, and I mentioned him among a couple other guys. I just had a feeling he would be a good fit and do a good job. We work really well together, and he’s very nice. He got the part and I’m so glad because he was perfect for it. I was so happy to be working with him again, he’s such a dedicated actor. It makes your life easier when you have such great co-stars.
HNMAG: You seem to have done quite a few horror roles. Why else is this one different from the last few?
Charlot Daysh: This is the first lead I have in a thriller and it’s a really strong female lead which I love. I really like that this movie has moments of laughter but also really deep seriousness and there’s empowerment. There’s a lot of things you can find in watching the movie. I like the fact it takes the audience on a roller coaster of emotions.
With what we get out of the trailer, I can say a roller coaster of emotions sounds pretty accurate in describing this whole thing.
HNMAG: Given your experience on horror sets, you must’ve gotten into this one really well. Is it hard to get scared?
Charlot Daysh: I think it’s just a part of acting, it doesn’t feel like it’s necessarily hard or easy. I think for this one it was a lot of emotions. I really had to dig deep within myself to get to a really emotional place, and to get to that to be able to cry and convey that misery in the journey that she went on. I was in a real basement, that was not very nice at all. That kind of helped though.
HNMAG: Have you always enjoyed doing horror or do you prefer doing other genres?
Charlot Daysh: I honestly love doing any genre, I don’t have a specific genre that I like the most. I like doing different kinds of things because it really helps me as an actor. I just want to keep doing different genres.
HNMAG: What other types of films do you hope to do after this one?
Charlot Daysh: I’ve always wanted to do a period piece, and now I’ll actually be able to do that next year. With the same people that are behind Crowded Silence, so I’m really excited about that. Then I’d love to do maybe a Hallmark, a Rom-Com. That would be great, something I’ve always wanted to do.
HNMAG: Besides acting, I’ve noticed you also look into work about physical and mental health. Do you operate any businesses about those?
Charlot Daysh: No, I’m just very passionate about it. It’s something I take very seriously and I incorporate that in my everyday life and it helps me optimize my life. I think it kind of helps with every area of your life, so really taking care of myself in every way is a big priority for me.
HNMAG: You also started out singing, but transitioned to acting. Would you ever consider a musical role?
Charlot Daysh: Yeah, I totally would love to do a musical. (laughs)
HNMAG: Why did you go from singing to acting?
Charlot Daysh: I actually started acting. I did musicals as a child for a long time, so it’s kind of been this dance between the two. I’ve always done a bit of both.
HNMAG: That’s interesting. Now are there any kind of roles you wouldn’t feel comfortable doing?
Charlot Daysh: I’m sure there would be. There’s so many things that it would depend on, the specific role and the circumstances.
How was that for edgy and nerve-wracking? Well, I’d say get into it some more because it sounds like this movie is worth watching. What are you watching for? Check it out here. Get Prime Video if you have to. It’ll be worth it.