Pop-Culturalist.com

Brooke Markham, a versatile storyteller renowned for her transformative performances in projects like In the Dark, Foursome, and Cassandra French’s Finishing School, takes center stage in her latest film, Shaky Shivers.

In this horror-comedy, Lucy (played by Brooke Markham) undergoes a transformation after a mysterious animal bite, firmly believing she’s destined to become a formidable werewolf. Accompanied by her best friend Karen (Vyvy Nguyen), the duo embarks on a thrilling escapade filled with enchantment and chaos, confronting a throat-slashing creature reminiscent of ’80s horror classics.

Pop Culturalist had the pleasure of catching up with Brooke, to chat about Shaky Shivers, exploring the werewolf canon, and she shares details about her upcoming short film (which she also wrote and directed).

PC: You were attached to Shaky Shivers for a bit before you actually started filming. What was it about this initial project that attracted you to it?
Brooke: I loved the script. I thought it was really, really funny. I sat down and read it, and I actually laughed out loud, which is always a good sign. I’ve always been a big fan of those types of horror movies. This is a love letter to the classic ’80s monster-horror movies and those nostalgic films that we loved from that time. I grew up watching those, so I was really drawn to that.

PC: As part of your preparation for this role, you did a deep dive into the werewolf canon, and historically these roles have been more male-dominated. How rewarding has it been for you to bring a different perspective to such a horror/supernatural staple?
Brooke: [Laughs] Yeah, I was really excited to join the werewolf canon. I’ve said it before, but I think I’ve seen every werewolf transformation known to mankind now. I did a deep dive into the werewolf lore, and all of that stuff. Before this film, I loved learning about all that stuff anyway, like where real-life monsters come from. I listened to a podcast about that.

As far as it being a horror-comedy and a very silly comedy more than anything, I probably took it too seriously. [laughs] But yeah, it’s not portrayed by women very much, and I don’t know why.

Before we started shooting, we worked with this amazing movement coach because all of us had to turn into these monsters. Even though they’re silly, Sung [Kang] really wanted us to be able to fully embody them, so we worked with this woman, and she was so brilliant. I remember her and I talking about the cycles of the moon and what that also means to be a woman. It definitely started from the inside out and then also from the outside in because we were working with Gabe Bartalos, who, in my opinion, is the star of the movie.

PC: How did that physicality allow you to tap further into your character? How did you make this transformation unique and your own?
Brooke: We talked about when your body is transforming into another being/entity, your bones are literally breaking, snapping, reforming, and how painful that would be. When I was doing it and exploring my performance, it felt very deep and guttural. I feel that really lent itself to the performance as well.

I think any actor is going to have a unique take on anything if you’re authentically approaching your work as you. So I think because it was me approaching it, it’s then authentic. I think I made it my own, but also I love An American Werewolf in London, so I was also thinking of that. I love that movie and that transformation. So I did make it authentically my own, but I definitely pulled from all the classics.

But emotionally, I guess that was where it was the most authentic because I felt it inside of me, inside the context of the movie which is also very silly. That’s the other thing that makes it super authentic is that it’s not a super scary werewolf transformation. The monsters themselves are kind of funny. That’s definitely what made it authentic as well because it’s not a scary werewolf movie. [laughs]

PC: Since the last time we spoke, you’ve also started writing and producing. How has your work behind the scenes impacted the way you approach your work on camera and interpret characters like Lucy?
Brooke: I have been writing a lot. I just directed my first short as well. I tried on that hat and I loved it so much. I really enjoyed the process of writing and also directing. You gain a whole new perspective when you step into another aspect of the industry. I’ve always been a big reader. I love scripts, books, and all that stuff. Writing always seemed to be something that I fell into anyway. But directing and my experience directing actors gave me a whole new respect for the entire process as a whole. It really does take an army, and every single person on set, the actors, the crew, no matter who it is, it’s all very important. It really is a family and takes a whole team to accomplish something.

As an actor, you can feel a bit isolated sometimes from the process. You come in at the end of this whole pre-production that’s been happening for a long time before you entered the project. You don’t see a lot of that, and then post, you don’t see a lot of that, unless you’re coming in and doing some ADR.

Getting a hands-on perspective of where the piece births itself and seeing it through to the end is something that I’ve never experienced before. It’s given me a whole new appreciation and perspective.

PC: You and VyVy [Nguyen] have such fantastic chemistry on screen, and you really do believe that Lucy and Karen are best friends. How did you both build that bond while filming during a pandemic?
Brooke: Honestly, it was one of those special things that just happened. Vyvy and I share an amazing mutual friend, so we had met prior very briefly at a theater thing. Then when she did the chemistry read, we were like, “Oh my gosh. You know Lindsey. I know Lindsey.” Shout out Lindsey. [laughs] So we were already bonded by a mutual friend which helps in those situations.

There is this story that I think solidified our friendship because we’re still good friends. We arrived at the location where we were shooting Shaky Shivers, which primarily was in this area called Frazier Park, which is about an hour and a half from north of L.A. It’s this little town that everyone has a cabin and their bear warning signs everywhere. You get the idea. [laughs] We were staying in our little cabin and when we arrived, we were like, “Okay, here we are. There’s no wifi, which if I was there to unplug and relax, that would be absolutely amazing. But we were like, “How are we going to know our call time or if the schedule changes?” [laughs] We had absolutely no reception at all because we’re in the middle of nowhere, and it was dark as well.

We were like, “Let’s just drive until we get reception. We’ll go on this main road, which wasn’t actually that. It was like this back road lined with trees and who knows what else.” [laughs] Before we started filming, we set off on this adventure together. We found ourselves pulled over, and there was a weird guy there. After we stopped being scared and were no longer in the middle of nowhere, I looked at Vyvy, and I was like, “I think we essentially did the first scene of the movie in real life.” [laughs] That moment really solidified it.

PC: Lucy and Karen are two characters who are equally unhinged (in the best possible way). How much of that is scripted versus improvised? Do you have a favorite one-liner of Lucy’s?
Brooke: We were able to play a lot. Our writers were brilliant and Sung, of course. They let us improvise a lot. This isn’t a line, but I like when, spoiler alert, Karen turns into a zombie. I feel like tonally, the movie really becomes aware of itself at that moment. Lucy escapes from this dorm room situation that we’re in. She does this leap. It’s so silly and didn’t need to happen, but it’s one of my favorite moments. I totally stole that from Werewolf in London. That was a moment that we wanted to pay homage to.

PC: You’ve worked on projects of all sizes. What is it about independent filmmaking that excites you as a creative and storyteller?
Brooke: That’s a good question. There’s a freedom to it. You’re going to be working with less money, so there’s a lower budget. I can specifically speak for Shaky, but everyone was there because they loved it. They loved these types of movies. It feels like there’s a more family aspect. There’s a tighter bond. It feels more family-like when you’re working on these smaller movies. You really do get to play and explore because you don’t have somebody at the top pressing you for time or money, not that time and money isn’t a thing when you’re shooting an indie either but there isn’t much of an overhead presence. It’s a little bit more free and collaborative.

PC: This is also Sung’s directorial debut. Is the filming experience different when the person at the helm also has experience in front of the camera? Is there a different shorthand that’s developed? What was that collaboration like?
Brooke: Definitely. Sung is an actor’s director. He walked so many miles in our shoes. It feels like any situation that we were experiencing on set, he knew immediately because he had already experienced it himself and knows what it feels like when you’re feeling extra vulnerable that day or something like that. There was definitely a shorthand and understanding.

PC: You’ve done so much already in your career. What’s left on your bucket list? Is there anything you can tease about that short you wrote and directed?
Brooke: Oh my gosh. I have so many things on my bucket list. What do I want to do? I want to do so many things. Three-dimensional characters and characters that are really fighting or going through something is always the overarching goal, but I want to experience living in a world that’s like an apocalyptic situation or something that’s set in the past like the ’70s and isn’t super modern. I want to live in a different world right now for the next project.

As far as the short, it’s called Sis. It’s a very personal story of mine about a really important time in my recent life and a conversation that came out of that experience that I had with my real-life sister that then inspired this movie.

To keep up with Brooke, follow her on Instagram. Shaky Shivers is available wherever you stream movies.

Photo Credit: Jonny Marlow