The Film Experience is proud to turn the site over to Ann Dowd for the day. Enjoy...
As Patti Levin on "The Leftovers"
-by Ann Dowd
Finding the character of Patti on The Leftovers was a fascinating experience. I remember having a lot of questions about her when I first read the script. It was scary at first, it was daunting the not speaking. “What is this about? How are you going to play this?” There are always so many questions for an actor. You think “Where is this person? How am I going to find her?” And then the thought came, "Take a breath, settle down, The information will present itself." And sure enough it did.
There are always clues when you’re searching for a character. Not speaking actually turned out to be an incredibly powerful position to be in and here's a clue: make sure you know what the character wants because you are not going to be able to tell anybody with words so it has to be in your whole being. Other clues turned up each time, episode by episode: what she responded to, what she didn’t respond to, her intense aggression toward Kevin, trying to understand why.
It’s a process and in those first episodes, I had just enough to do to slowly put that picture together. [More after the jump...]
Damon Lindelof and of course Tom Perrotta’s novel were very helpful, too. The great thing about acting in a series for television is that you learn who the character is over time.This was also true of the Guilty Remnant - in terms of rules and regulations. Damon said to me one day:
It’s a new religion and they’re putting it together day by day.”
That was very helpful to me. My experience with Catholicism was helpful in creating “Sandra” in Compliance but this was a much different thing to find. The Guilty Remnant is not an institution or an established religion but a reaction. When something catastrophic occurs and there is no explanation for it, like 2% of the world's population disappearing, you can try to go back to life as it was, as many of the citizens of Mapleton did. Or, you can do what the Guilty Remnant did -- accept that it happened and know that the world as we knew it has ended.
Randomness is terrifying. But denial is the enemy of the Guilty Remnant. Their goal is to let go of attachment, to bring every day life down to its simplest form, and ultimately to let go. Silence is a very powerful tool. When you don’t speak it stills your world and your focus gets stronger. The chain smoking? It’s all going to end anyway so it doesn’t matter. The attraction to the Guilty Remnant, why people joined, I believe is because it alleviated anxiety. When you don't resist, when you accept, anxiety dissipates.
[SPOILER] Death was the ultimate goal for each of them because it's an acknowledgment that life has already ended. It's the ultimate letting go. Patti was prepared to die at any time. She didn't know when it would happen but she was prepared. Because Kevin was the peacemaker, because he lived in denial and therefore the enemy of the Guilty Remnant it would've been a great coup for the Guilty Remnant if he killed Patti. He wouldn't do it so she did it herself. [/SPOILER]
And then you work on the arc. I’m sure she came from a wretched childhood. and then into the marriage with a creep. And her knowing that something was coming, knowing with every anxious fiber of her being. And when the Sudden Departure happened it validated all of those feelings she had been carrying, those tremendous feelings of anxiety and that validation changed her life completely. Before she was a victim, after the Sudden Departure she became a warrior."
Patti was an incredibly complex character but it all made sense to me by the end of it. Being able to jump on this particular train ride with her was one of the great experiences of my life.
Previously: Falling in Love With Acting
Next: Mothers & Imagination, Favorite Roles, Future Projects