Pop-Culturalist.com

Julia Sarah Stone has emerged as one of the most accomplished and layered actresses of her generation. Her commanding presence on screen and ability to disappear into any character has made her one to watch and earned her worldwide recognition.

Her latest project, The Marijuana Conspiracy, finds Julia stepping into the shoes of a young woman looking for a fresh start and struggling to find her place in the world. Based on a true story, The Marijuana Conspiracy follows a group of women in 1972 who endure isolated captivity in a human experiment studying the effects of marijuana on females.

Pop Culturalist had the pleasure of speaking with Julia about The Marijuana Conspiracy, the thrill of independent filmmaking, and the film’s important message.

PC: Tell us about The Marijuana Conspiracy, your character, and what drew you to this project.
Julia: The Marijuana Conspiracy is a true story about a study that was done in the ’70s in Toronto about the effects of marijuana on women. The study gets a bit intense and lines that shouldn’t be crossed are. It’s the story of how these women navigate through that. It tells the story through their perspective.

My character is Mary, who’s living on the streets. She doesn’t have a place to call home. At the beginning, she has this very tough exterior, but there’s a lot of vulnerability underneath. She signs up for this study, mostly because it’s a place to sleep, and she makes some connections with the other girls while she’s there.

I was drawn to this script because I hadn’t heard about this before. It struck me as a story that was important to tell and that should have already been told. A lot of us felt that way. We were very passionate about getting the story out and telling it truthfully and authentically.

PC: When you’re working on a project that’s based on a true story and set in a very specific era, does that change your preparation/approach to the character?
Julia: The characters aren’t exact parallels of specific people. There are truths to all of the characters, but they are pieces of their personalities and backstories. They’re a bit of a mix of the actual people to protect their identities.

That was nice because it allows us a bit more creative freedom as actors, because we weren’t trying to emulate particular people. But yeah, I think it being a true story affected how we thought about it because there was a sense of importance to it. It brought a bit of added pressure as well because we wanted to tell this story truthfully.

PC: Throughout your career, you’ve done a really fantastic job selecting the projects that you want to be a part of. What is that vetting process like for you?
Julia: I look for scripts that seem to have a message that I believe in and is relevant. I look for scripts that ask questions. This one definitely provokes a lot of questions about the system that we have in place that allowed something like this to happen. Even though those systems have changed a lot since then, what’s still being allowed to slip through the cracks? Why are those things happening?

PC: Over the course of the film, we see these women from all different walks of life come together and build this incredible support system and friendship. What was the collaboration like working with the rest of the cast?
Julia: We definitely connected a lot. It was really nice to be part of an ensemble cast; I hadn’t really had that experience yet. I got to be part of this amazing group of women. We really bonded, and I think that chemistry came through on screen. A lot of really close and special friendships were made, and I value that a lot. It was a really special experience.

PC: For Mary specifically, she’s searching for her place in the world. How did you prepare to tackle the journey that we see unfold throughout the film?
Julia: What really struck me about Mary is this immense vulnerability that she has underneath that tough exterior. Throughout the film, she learns to trust a bit again and to let her guard down. You see her start to have a bit of fun with the other girls before everything gets very intense. I fell in love with that part of her. A lot of my prep was figuring out how that drives her throughout the film. Even though we don’t necessarily get to see a lot of it, it’s always there underneath.

PC: With so many different layers to Mary, was one more challenging than the other to portray?
Julia: I don’t think so. The different parts to Mary are so intertwined. The challenge was really having them all connect and be there at the same time and figuring out which moments different parts of her shine through as well as how that’s affected by the study and what’s happening to her physically and mentally.

PC: You’ve worked on projects of all sizes. What is it about independent filmmaking that excites you as an actress?
Julia: I love indie films. I love them a lot. There’s something really fulfilling about them. I love that feeling of family that really forms between the cast, the crew, and everybody involved. There’s a sense of really caring about the story and wanting to work together to create something really special and not having necessarily the fanciest means to do that. It really forces collaboration and teamwork. At the end of the day, everybody has the same goal. It’s harder to forget that on an indie film where you really need to help each other or else it’s going to be very difficult to get the film made.

PC: Like you said, the film tackles a lot of important themes. Was there one in particular that hit home for you?
Julia: That’s a good question. I think playing Mary, one of her values and one of the things I think she discovered about herself is that she found home in the people that she met and the people that she allowed in. That really affected me when I played her. That’s a big part of her journey.

PC: In addition to The Marijuana Conspiracy, you have a couple of other projects that you’re working on. Are there any you can chat about at this time?
Julia: I actually had a film that just came out called Come True, which is On Demand right now. It’s also on the streaming services and everything. It’s a psychological thriller. It’s very different from The Marijuana Conspiracy, but it’s generating a lot of really good buzz right now. I’m very excited about that project and to see where that goes.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Julia: Sex and the City.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Julia: Labyrinth with David Bowie.

PC: Favorite book?
Julia: That’s a tough one. I don’t know if I have an absolute favorite, but one that’s always been really special to me is Stardust by Neil Gaiman.

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Julia: Pippin.

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Julia: That’s a tough one. I’m not sure it’s surprising, but there’s a great Canadian band called Dear Rouge. Not many people know of them in the States. There’s a lot of great Canadian music that a lot of people outside of Canada don’t know of. But yeah, Dear Rouge is a great band.

To keep up with Julia, follow her on Twitter and Instagram. The Marijuana Conspiracy is now available On Demand and Digital.

Photo Credit: Ian Redd