Strange Girl
An interview with the Adorable Rona Naomi Mark
Interview by Rhonda Baughman
She’s an artistically strong female director, I know … but she was just so adorable in her photos – I had to use the word. Unbiased journalistic ethics can bite me; that is, if it can handle the taste. Rona currently teaches a course in video production at Sarah Lawrence College where, if I could pass as a budding freshman, I would so be in the front row. And if you would like to read a decent critique and analysis of Strange Girls, Quiet Earth does a bang up job: http://www.quietearth.us/articles/2008/10/12/Review-of-Rona-Marks-STRANGE-GIRLS
On Adrienne Wehr
“I met Adrienne when she came to audition for the role of Dr. Jessica Karp in my first feature film Strange Girls. She had great acting chops and the requisite ‘togetherness on the verge of disintegration’ that I was looking for. I later discovered that Adrienne was a fixture in the Pittsburgh film scene and a producorial force of nature as well as a talented actor,” says Rona.
And I couldn’t agree more – anyone who remembers knows I was able to interview Ms. Wehr for here work in Romero’s Deadtime Stories. Jeff Monahan almost glimmered a bit at the memory of Ms. Wehr’s audition, and his crew agreed wholeheartedly. Upon interviewing Ms. Wehr myself, I felt the spark over the ‘net. Short of stalking Ms. Wehr, I instead decided to simply interview her and meet up with her at another time. Perhaps while she showers, but I digress …
“Simply stated, she's a pro,” Rona continues. “She's prepared, she takes direction well, she has good instincts about character, about the highs and lows of a scene, and, most importantly, she's 100% committed when she performs. Of course, she's more than just competent, she's charismatic on screen and in person, and I think that quality puts her ahead of the pack. She's also very tiny, which is a prerequisite for stardom. I once stood near Kevin Bacon on a red carpet (and was yelled at by the paparazzi to ‘Get the hell off the red carpet!’) and he was of small-ish stature, so I know it's true.”
On Location, Returning to Connecticut, My Jealousy, & FBI Watch Lists
“Me and my husband Niall went to Mystic last summer and my uncle Harry still lives there, so who knows? We may be due for another visit. Unfortunately for me (and Niall) the only city I've found I can live in without sinking into a major depression is New York. I say unfortunately because it's mercilessly expensive and after making this film, I am beyond broke (still jealous?) But I am a child of immigrants, a fish out of water, and New York is the only tank I can stay afloat in … [however] Be mindful of men with shades tailing you. You may indeed be subject to wire tapping, water boarding and stake outs! Truth is, I was trying to make myself sound more mysterious with that little bit of bullshit. But if you are taken in for questioning, you can tell them that 17 years ago you were pro-PLO. Now you don't know what to think. The more I know, the less sure I am of anything. Except directing films. I know I want to keep doing that.”
She only wants me to think she was being mysterious. As a completely paranoid writer, I know what she’s up to – but yes, admittedly, I still have a side order of jealousy to keep my healthy heaping of paranoia company.
The Background Story – Smooth Talk Straight from the Source
Born in Connecticut, raised in Pittsburgh PA, currently based in Queens, New York City. Rona Mark grew up in Pittsburgh in the 1980’s- a dismal time in the Pennsylvania rustbelt city from which she couldn’t wait to escape. So she did, and went from frying pan to fire when she moved to Jerusalem in 1988 at the beginning of the first intifada. She studied Literature and History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where she earned a BA and was begrudgingly drafted into political life, representing the Civil Rights/Socialist Workers’ Party in the student government. She suspects she has been on the FBI watch list ever since.
Rona graduated with honors from Columbia University's MFA Film program where she was a directing concentrate. While at Columbia, Rona directed several films including The Final Days of the Ministry of Tea, which won the Filmmaker Magazine Audience Choice Award and the Faculty Choice for Best of the Night at the Columbia University New Works Festival of 1998.
Rona’s thesis film, Finbar Lebowitz, which she wrote, directed and edited, was the recipient of the HBO Producers’ Development Award and The Polo Ralph Lauren Award for Best Comedy. Finbar was also a regional finalist in the Student Academy Awards in 2001, played widely on TV (Cinemax, HBO, SkyMovies, IFC and Sundance Channel) and was featured in numerous film festivals worldwide.
Strange Girls is Rona’s first feature length film and, after 20 years, marks her return to the Steel City. She currently lives in Queens and teaches a class on video production at Sarah Lawrence College.
Finally, for the record, Rhonda, Rona, and the FBI might be watching you. Right now. Fear them. And go visit this website, or be sure to incur some wrath:
Mdux Pictures, LLC
