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Soon after I take my seat in the front row for “The Neon Demon” press day at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills, Bella Heathcote, Christina Hendricks, Jena Malone, Elle Fanning and Nicolas Winding Refn make their way to their chairs. Having just premiered the film at Hollywood Forever Cemetery the night before (with a crazy after party consisting of a Q & A with Ryan Gosling and eyeball cake pops), everyone seemed so energized, especially Elle Fanning who told us proudly, she is “officially” a high school graduate. Our conversation is interesting, to say the least; director Nicolas Winding Refn talks about seeing a man die during filming, Jena Malone talks women vs women stereotypes, and Elle talks about finally feeling free to create on set for the first time. We begin:

Where was the idea for “The Neon Demon” birthed from? On some level, is it parental anxiety because you have daughters and this is something they could encounter in L.A.?

Nicolas Winding Refn: Sure, being a father to two daughters is… interesting, especially now that my eldest is 13. I can see how technology [affects her] and how she reacts to it. The origin of the film was actually a few years ago. I woke up one morning and realized that I wasn’t born beautiful, but my wife was. I wondered what it would be like to be more beautiful. There’s also this fantasy that I think every man has, being desired for one specific reason, which is beauty. Of course, it’s very superficial. I wanted to make this a horror film. I didn’t want to educate or make a political statement on beauty.

Elle, can you talk about playing Jesse and embracing her nuances?

Elle Fanning: The funny thing is, is that I think my character was the most evil. I thought of her like Dorothy coming to Oz, but she is the evil one. Jesse is the toxic poison that corrupts everybody else. I like this film because, yes, it’s like a classic “A Star is Born,” a little girl comes to a big city, but she has a plan the whole time. She uses her youth and innocence as a mask to disguise it. We also filmed in chronological order, so things were changing all the time.  I really trusted everyone in the entire cast, we were all in this together. I’d get to set and Nic would ask me what I wanted to do. I never felt so free on a set to really just create things.

“I thought of [Jesse] like Dorothy coming to Oz, but she is the evil one.” -Elle Fanning

Have any of you ever felt exploited like Jesse being an actress in L.A.?

Jena Malone: I would almost turn it around and say it’s not just about Los Angeles, I would ask every woman and man in this room if you’ve ever felt exploited, or undersold by your own beauty, or devalued because of your facial structure. I don’t think it’s just “Los Angeles” or the “fashion industry,” I think this is something all of society is being affected by.

What about working with other young women in the industry, do you feel pressure or support from your female peers?

Bella Heathcote: I feel like I’m being helped more and more [by women]. Although there is one girl specifically who I based Gigi off of, she’s the kind of girl who will do anything she can to destabilize you in any situation, professional or otherwise, to make herself feel better. But the last film I did was with all girls and I was a bit nervous going in because I didn’t know what to expect but it was a really supportive vibe, a beautiful sisterhood.

JM: I think the stereotype of women battling [each other] in the workplace is a stereotype I was fed when I was a child, but I’ve never actually seen it. Except for high school. I think that women coming together in a group and creating something will instantly feel that it’s something special. I think that energy alone is healing.

“There is one girl specifically who I based Gigi off of, she’s the kind of girl who will do anything she can to destabilize you in any situation…” -Bella Heathcote

Has your sister (Dakota) influenced you as an actor? 

EF: Yeah, my sister started acting before I did so she paved the way in that sense, little sister wants to do what the big sister does and try it out. But we’re very separate with our scripts and things. She actually saw “The Neon Demon” for the first time last night, she loved it. One of the scenes made her sick, but I was like, “Good!”

(Laughter)

“The Neon Demon” is like a rollercoaster ride, thrilling and unpredictable. I’m wondering, what was your favorite scene to shoot?

NWR: When you find something new or you did something you didn’t know was going to happen, you get pumped. I remember when we were doing the runway show, I had gone to Musso & Frank because we were shooting there the following day. I had just dropped my daughter off at school in the morning and arrived to look at the location, and when I went into the parking lot someone had been stabbed. There was a guy holding his wound and screaming for help. He was all alone. I hurried over to this poor man who was lying on the floor, blood was just gushing out. I had (a jacket) on, but took it off because we needed something to put pressure on the wound. Unfortunately, the ambulance arrived too late and he died. The parking lot turned into a crime scene and we weren’t allowed to leave. I was supposed to be shooting in the valley, and I was like, “Oh my God, how are we going to do this?” The insurance company wouldn’t care if I was stuck at a murder crime scene. As I was standing around, answering questions, I suddenly got an amazing idea. And that idea changed the film. So even though it was such a horrifying experience, I had never seen anyone die before, it gave me one of the best ideas for the movie.

“So even though it was such a horrifying experience, I had never seen anyone die before, it gave me one of the best ideas for the movie.” -Nicolas Winding Refn

What was the editorial process like?

NWR: I’ve worked with my editor Matthew Newman for the last 5 movies. Matt cuts the movie at night at my pool house, so I can come and watch cuts. If Matt ever says we need this or that, like an extra close up of something, I always listen. It great to have those few people around you on the technical side who you know all share the same vision.

[Music composer] Cliff Martinez became the third part of the team on “Drive,” and he is the first person to see the thing. We talk about the music, and he always has 100 questions. Then he goes away in his laboratory and comes back with this music that just makes the movies better.

The film is very quiet, not a lot of extraneous noise. 

NWR: I love silence because silence is the loudest sound in the room. The first time you really pay attention to a sound is when you don’t hear anything. At first, it’s very uncomfortable because we’re not used to silence, we’re used to noise and definition of noise. Not talking is actually scarier than talking.

Christina Hendricks: I saw the film for the first time last night and I loved it. I found that with the silence or just a beautiful image that Nic had us sit in for a bit, you found yourself having to confront your relationship with what was going on [on screen]. Elle played Jesse so beautifully, she’s supposed to be so innocent but then we see at the end of a scene she gives this little smirk of enjoying being adored so much, the narcissistic and dangerous side of her comes out. In those quiet moments, I found myself thinking how beautiful, sexual, ridiculous, and goofy taking fashion to those extremes can be. I liked that I got to sit in those moments and have to feel those things.

“I found myself thinking how beautiful, sexual, ridiculous, and goofy taking fashion to those extremes can be.” -Christina Hendricks

How do you feel about living in Los Angeles?

EF: I was pretty young when I moved to L.A. from Georgia, but it’s definitely very different from the small town my family and I grew up in. L.A.’s my home, I go to school there– well not anymore, I just graduated two days ago…

Congratulations!

NWR: (jokingly) Fuck school.

EF: Hahaha!

For our review of “The Neon Demon,” click here