Pop-Culturalist.com

Sam Quartin has quickly made a name for herself with the layered characters she’s brought to life on the screen. Whether she’s starring as a recovering addict in Body Brokers or a modern-day Robin Hood in Tyger Tyger, Sam is a commanding presence whose vulnerability and poise have left a lasting impression on audiences. Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to chat with Sam about her two recent projects.

Career

PC: How did you discover your passion for the arts?
Sam: I discovered it later than most. I did plays in school, and then something happened. I lost all my self-confidence during those awkward teenage years. I felt like I sucked, and I stopped doing all the things that I loved. Then a few years back, I had a pretty bad drinking problem. I had a psychotic episode. After that, I picked it back up again. I decided to start doing anything that freaked me out. Auditioning was one of those things that scared me, so I started doing it. I ended up booking the first few auditions I had. Now I’ve been doing it for a few years. That’s how I got back into it.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Sam: There’s an actor named Crispin Glover. He’s a pretty cool character actor from Back to the Future. He was on one of my first projects. He was really kind and suggested me for another role that I got. That was awesome. He helped me out a lot. More recently with music, there’s been a producer named Vance Powell who’s become a mentor. He does a lot of Jack White and Chris Stapleton stuff. He mixed Beyonce’s Lemonade. He’s pretty amazing. He’s down in Nashville, and he’s been guiding my band.

Body Brokers

PC: Tell us about Body Brokers, your character, and what drew you to this project.
Sam: In Body Brokers, I play a young mom named Tina. She’s going through the rehab shuffle. The film is about corruption in the US rehab system. She’s someone that’s been in the system for years, trying to get clean and getting paid to go to rehab. When we meet her in Body Brokers, she’s actually trying for the first time to really get sober. As soon as I read the script, I was really excited about the project. I knew it was based on director John Swab’s firsthand experience being in the rehab system for years and being a body broker. Anytime someone writes a true story, I’m really drawn to it.

PC: You’re also an executive producer on the film. At what point in the process did you realize you were going to wear multiple hats? How did that come to fruition?
Sam: As soon as I read the script, I wanted to help out. I know people that are interested in these types of films. I helped raise funding for it. Then I helped a bit with casting. Once we got Melissa Leo, the process moved pretty quickly and it all came together. It was pretty quick.

Tyger Tyger

PC: In addition to Body Brokers, you also have another film out. Is there anything you can tell us about Tyger Tyger?
Sam: Tyger Tyger was the most fun I’ve ever had on a movie. I’m so excited because I actually haven’t seen the final product. I have such a happy place in my heart when I think about everyone involved on that project. Director Kerry [Mondragon] and I became really good friends, as well as the rest of the cast.

Tyger Tyger is a really cool concept. It’s about a girl named Blake who robs a pharmacy for this life-saving medication and then distributes it to people in need. But along the way, she meets this drug addict named Luke, who’s played by Dylan Sprouse. She falls in love with him at first sight and decides to kidnap him and take him with her. It’s pretty fantastic and an escapist film. Visually, it’s beautiful. We shot it in Bombay Beach in Slab City, California. It’s absolutely beautiful.

PC: You and your band also have a single in the film. How did that come to fruition? What can you tell us about “Drive”?
Sam: Kerry reached out to me. He heard my band and asked if we had any songs I thought would be good. I sent him a few and he chose “Drive”. There’s a lot of driving in the film, so he picked that one. I was really excited he wanted to use it!

PC: As we look ahead to the rest of 2021, what can we expect from you and your band?
Sam: We’re finishing a new record and we’re supposed to go on tour. Who knows though with the state of the world. We’re technically booked all over Europe in June and July, but I’m hoping those will stick. We’re supposed to put out some new music at the end of the year, but we’re waiting to see what happens. In the meantime, I have a couple of films coming out in the summer that I’m excited about.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Sam: The only show I’ve seen in the last two years is Black Mirror. I’m obsessed with that show.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Sam: Recently I saw Out of the Blue. Dennis Hopper directed it. It’s so cool. Then there’s a movie called Over the Edge. It was one of Matt Dillon’s first ones. But my guilty pleasure movie that I watch obsessively is Detroit Rock City. It’s not a guilty pleasure. It’s great and I’ve watched it a hundred times.

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Sam: My dad used to watch West Side Story with me all the time when I was little.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Sam: My band makes fun of me for this, but My Chemical Romance’s first record, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love. I don’t know why I love that record. And then Iggy Pop and any of Iggy Pop’s stuff or the Stooges I really love. That’s a hard one for me to pick. I’m going to list ten albums, so I’ll stop talking. [laughs]

Body Brokers and Tyger Tyger are available anywhere you stream movies!

Photo Credit: Boris Brenman