Exclusive: Nia Fairweather Talks First Feature Role In ‘A New York Christmas Wedding’
Currently playing on Netflix is the romantic holiday film A New York Christmas Wedding, written and directed by Otoja Abit and starring Chris Noth, Nia Fairweather, Cooper Koch, David Anzuelo, Otaja Abit, Adriana DeMeo, and Tyra Ferrell.
Produced by Abit, Kory Apton and Ian Phillips, the film has played at many festivals including this American Black Film Festival, the New York Latino Film Festival, Urbanworld Film Festival, Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival, and the Tallgrass Film Festival.
A New York Christmas Wedding stars Nia Fairweather as Jennifer Ortiz, a young professional living a seemingly perfect life. Aside from an overbearing future mother-in-law, Jennifer lives in comfort with her loving and very wealthy fiancé David (played by Abit). When a family dinner becomes uncomfortable, Jennifer leaves for a run. She encounters a young man with whom she instantly feels a connection. Unbeknownst to her, the young man is a guardian angel who shows her what would have happened had she not denied her true feelings for her childhood best friend Gabrielle (Adriana DeMeo).
For Fairweather, having done a number of short films, this is her first feature role. BlackFilmandTV.com recently caught up with the playwright and New York native on getting a lead role for her first feature film.
How did this role come about for you?
Nia Fairweather: With A New York Christmas Wedding, the way it came about was that the director of the film, Otoja Abit, and I had actually met 10 years ago when I was doing a table read at a theatre company in New York. Although it was a table read, I was giving it my all and enjoying myself. Unbeknownst to me, he had loved my work so much that day, and has continued to follow it over the last 10 years, to the point that when he wrote and finished the script, I was his first choice for Jennifer. He emailed me and I read the script. Then I said yes and we continued on.
Did he allow you to add in some of your thoughts to the script and did you go by everything that was written?
Nia Fairweather: In my conversation with him, I wanted to be clear on what he wanted to say with the story. I strongly felt that this story is rooted in love. All that Jennifer goes through it's love and seeking love and wanting to be loved. That for me was at the core of who she is. So I did advocate, and really had a lot of conversations with him about that being the leading force for her. Along the way, while we were on set, because we shooting out of sequence, my thing was wanting to make sure that no matter what that it was so leading with that, because I felt at the heart of hearts of this story, that that's what it was. For the most part, I did follow the script and what Jennifer had to say. But as far as performatively, the essence of what you feel, the emotional availability, in different moments were a lot of my own doing. Of course, I talked about some of the things with the director, but really in the process, I felt like he trusted me a lot where we would do the takes. I would just do what I felt was right and appropriate for the time. Then if there was an adjustment, he will give it to me. In most cases it wasn't. So I felt very much though that we were on the same page, just based on what I felt and what he was seeing.
The one moment where it was more of improv in my own vocals, actually, is the moment where Jennifer has an encounter with Vinnie, who is someone from their childhood past. I'm yelling at him in the street, like,”How does it feel be punched in your face by girls?" That was all me improving in that scene. That's the only moment where it was not written in the script. Funny enough, it's the moment where I've had a lot of people reach out to me and quote that. It's quite funny, because that was all improv and what I brought in the moment and then once I did it in the first few takes, the producer and the director were like, “You have to do that again. Keep it going." That was that.
The thing about this movie is that it appeals to everybody, but specifically the LGBTQ community. We’re starting to see a number of films where they are including in the storyline.Did you do any research so that people can relate with Jennifer’s dilemma?
Nia Fairweather: No, I didn't. I didn't have to talk to anyone with how to connect to Jennifer because to me, Jennifer is a person. She's a human being. The way in which she desires love and desires to be connected to someone is no different than anyone else. The love interest in her case, she is engaged her fiance David, and then has this opportunity to explore what how a past love could have been. For her, her first love was with her best friend Gabby. The fact that Gabby is a female and then that David is a male was of no consequence. There was no need for her to alter or change her beingness because her love and her engagement with Gabby is no different than her loving engagement would have been with David as far as her feeling towards the person. I didn't have to prep, or do anything differently to delve into that world because in my own personal philosophy, I see it as one and in the same. Who someone chooses to love is their choice, and how we love and how we show that love, while it may look different to certain people, it's not different in how it feels, and how it's embodied. I didn't have to do any research about what it means to connect to someone else. Because as the actor, it was just connecting to Gabby as her first true love. That was all that I needed.
For you as an actress, when you're the lead of a movie, did ever get daunting knowing you have to carry this movie?
Nia Fairweather: Yes, having a lead role is a huge responsibility. The writer and director are trusting me with their baby is how I describe it. I now have to nurture and raise this child into the world. So it is a huge responsibility. But for me, I strongly believe in preparation and doing all the work that's needed. Once I was on set, I was able to just play and be in the moment and not worried about whether or not I know the lines and whether I know what comes next. We shot out of sequence and we shot for a consecutive 14 days. That's a two week shoot, which is quite aggressive for a feature film. But I knew that going in as an independent film that there were those constraints. All of my preparation and work from the moment I signed on to the project until the last day on set, I was just making sure that every every i’s were dotted and every t's were crossed and it was it was a huge undertaking. But by no means that I feel threatened by it as much as I felt like I had a responsibility and it was an honor.
The other part of it for me, which ties in to your previous question is Jennifer. I'm embodying all the Jennifers in the world, but I have a responsibility to the Jennifers that she represents and all the individuals that will see themselves in her story, whether it's people who are dealing with grief and the loss of loved ones, their own search for their authentic self, and or, looking back into their past and wishing they had had that second chance with their first love. I had a responsibility on two fronts, from the actor, and then in my responsibility to the producer, the director and the technical side. But then what I knew the story would be about and could be out in the world and I had a responsibility to the Jennifers.
How was working with Adriana DeMeo, who plays Gabriela in the film. There has to be chemistry for the audience to feel the connection.
Nia Fairweather: Absolutely. We did rehearse ahead of time. But really, it was more so going through the scenes. That was done remotely because I was in LA at the time and Adriana was in New York. I was in LA doing all my prep remotely before getting to New York to actually shoot it. We connected virtually by just doing our own connection and going through the scenes and sharing what we thought about it. Then in June of 2019, which was about a month and a half before actual filming began.
I flew to New York and we did have an in person prep weekend. I got to meet Adriana in person and did all my fittings and we did all that stuff. We got to spend some time together and talk things through with the director in June and then that was it until I came back in July to actually film it it so it was moments of having the ability to just chit chat with Adriana just about the role about the film, getting to know each other a little bit just as actresses. In addition to having that weekend where I was on the ground connecting with her and the director and the producers, and everyone else to get a clear 360 picture, I think really set us up to be able to fly on set.
What did you learn from doing this movie as a lead and from your director that you can take on to your next project?
Nia Fairweather: Yes, this is my first feature role and it was my first time carrying a film. What I learned from this is how important it is to do that work beforehand. Because we shot out of sequence and there were so many other things going on. Just the technical side, you have crew, you have all these other things happening with wardrobe, all these other things. The discipline that I had to just be rooted in so that no matter what was going on that I was 100% focus. I had scenes where one was dramatic, the next one might have been light hearted, and then I had to be distressed the next moment. It was not like I had an easy day. But I am grateful for this experience because it showed me that I always knew I could carry a film, if I'm quite honest. But it's not until you have the opportunity to do so that you get to see what you can do.
In working with the director, and our producer really played an integral part. She was really, really hands on. And along the way to continue to have the conversations about the script about certain moments was was helpful. Moving forward, I will take that away with me and directors moving forward, ensure that we have that flexibility to continue to have those conversations while filming.
So that it continues to grow and continues to be rooted in what we intended it to be. It was a great experience in doing it in the process. It's like being an athlete, you have to have that stamina. I learned the constraints of it. I come from a theatre background. I'm used to having to be on for two hours straight without any breaks. But when you're on a set for film, there's so much downtime, or in between scenes, which is great for me, because it allowed me the time to transition. I knew I had the ability, but it wasn't until I got on set, I really got to exercise those muscles and learning what that was like on the job. I'm grateful to have had that experience.