Edinburgh International FILM FESTIVAL Ugly Truths
Eddie Harrison speaks to Ugly Betty star America Ferrera about her role in hard-hitting psychological drama The Dry Land ‘I ’m not a professional expert
in post-traumatic stress disorder,’ says Ugly Betty star America Ferrera. On the strength of the popular fashion- industry sitcom, few would have any expectations that the LA-born actress would have much flair for examining the personal cost of war. But America Ferrera is no one- trick pony; since her eye-catching debut in Patricia Cardoso’s 2002
sleeper Real Women Have Curves, Ferrera has been a darling of the indie film-making circuit, now flexing her creative muscle as executive producer and star of The Dry Land. ‘The character I play in The Dry Land could not be more different to the one I play in Ugly Betty,’ says Ferrera. ‘The big challenge for me was that I only had four days after wrapping series three of Ugly Betty; four short days to
prepare me to shed my Betty skin and dive into the part of Sarah. Sure, seeing me in a film like The Dry Land might be shocking for people who have only know me as Betty, but the truth is, I try not to worry too much about how other people see me. What I do is my own personal journey, made for my own personal reasons.’ Written and directed by Ferrera’s boyfriend, Ryan Piers Williams, The Dry Land is a serious drama
about the problems of war veterans, realised specifically through the character of James (Ryan O’Nan), who returns home from Afghanistan to a reunion with his wife Sarah (Ferrera). Although The Dry Land doesn’t contain a frame combat footage, the film’s focus of
PELICAN FAMILY TREE
Family estrangement and skeletons-in-closets come to light at a French funeral, with fantastic performances. Cameo, Thu 17 Jun, 6pm & Sat 19 Jun, 3.30pm.
BLOOD WORLDI
PREMIEREI
Atmospheric, edgy story of an ill-fated love affair between a competitive birdwatcher and a seductive environmentalist. Cineworld, Thu 17 Jun, 6.30pm & Fri 18 Jun, 9pm.
EDGE OF DREAMING A poetic, personal film in which a woman’s dreams of death come true. Filmhouse, Thu 17 Jun, 7.15pm & Sat 19 Jun, 4.15pm.
THE RED MACHINE
Delicious propaganda-
style movie featuring safe-crackers and Japanese spies in depression-era America. Cineworld, Thu 17 Jun, 6pm & Sat 19 Jun, 3.15pm.
GIRL WITH BLACK
BALLOONS
WORLDI PREMIEREI
A character study of reclusive artist Bettina Bashyi, inhabitant of New York’s Chelsea Hotel. Filmhouse, Thu 17 Jun, 5.30pm & Sat 19 Jun, 6.15pm.
CATERPILLAR Provocative and disturbing Japanese movie about the mental and physical effects of war. Filmhouse, Thu 17 Jun, 9.15pm.
24 THE LIST 10–24 Jun 2010