After topping the charts, Feist has jumped into the unknown by making her film debut opposite Britain's most versatile actor, Cillian Murphy. Here the pair re-unite to talk stage fright and rock dreams.

Text by Kin Woo

The runaway success of Feist's last album The Reminder not only won the singer-songwriter numerous awards but allowed her to expand her artistry in unusual ways, from showcasing her love for shadow play and puppetry in her live show to appearing on Sesame Street singing a custom-tailored version of her smash hit, "1,2,3,4". Now she's taken her love of performance one step further, making her acting debut in The Water, a short film inspired by her song of the same name. Directed by Broken Social Scene's Kevin Drew over two days in the wintry climes of Canada, The Water is a haunting, almost wordless elegy to lost love.

Her co-star in this icy heartbreaker is Mr. Cillian Murphy. Since appearing on the cover of Dazed back in 2006, the 32-year-old has continued to establish himself as one of Britain's most versatile actors, playing roles as varied as Batman's nemesis in Batman Begins and the romantic lead in period-piece Edge of Love, to appearing as both husband and wife in the upcoming psychological drama, Peacock.

After Feist came to the end of her mammoth world tour, Dazed reunited her with Cillian, on a break from shooting new film, Perrier's Bounty, to talk about The Water and their other shared artistic endeavors, from failed rock star dreams to their apprehension about acting. They were so excited to see each other again, they broke out a pair of matching woolly jumpers and went for a bracing stroll in Regents Park...

Cillian Murphy: I'm obsessed with music. I've been a fan of Broken Social Scene for years -- I went to see them play an amazing gig at the Scale about two years ago. I briefly met Kevin (Drew) backstage afterwards.

Feist: Kevin actually got the idea for the film after meeting you! It was something in your eyes that sparked the whole storyline. He didn't tell you that because he didn't want to freak you out! He came up to me and said, "I have this idea for a story, and I want you to be in it. I think I could probably ask this guy to do it." The fact that it was for 'The Water' came later. He wanted to make a film and it turned out that he thought my song would suit it. My involvement came from that.

Cillian: But I never had a script for this ever. It's very unusual for me to not have a script for a project. Kevin talked to me on the phone and emailed me all the time but there was never anything on paper, which was fucking crazy! I knew the outline and that was it. The concept and the song appealed to me immensely. And the fact that it was independent. Back in the 60s people collaborated together purely out of mutual respect, not for any commercial response, just purely to make something. That really appealed to me. There were no agents or publicists -- it was just a few of us in the fucking woods making this thing.

Feist: I watched Wind That Shakes the Barley and Breakfast on Pluto the day before you arrived on set. Those are good places to start. It wasn't until a month ago that I watched Dark Knight. I was on a flight and I screamed so loud!

Cillian: Really?

Feist: (laughs) Yeah! You were so scary! Before this, I had only been in high school plays. I was in one community theatre play when I was 17. The first time I was ever written up in the paper it said, 'This play is terrible, this is really the worst play Calgary has ever seen. The only redeeming factor might be Leslie Feist, who, to her credit, doesn't even seem to be trying to act, she's just being an annoying 17-year-old.' I remember reading it and I was like, 'They're right! I don't know what I'm doing!'

Cillian: I remember saying acting would be easy for you. I firmly believe that there's a performance gene. Whether that comes out through singing or playing live or what you do in your music video, it's a variation or suspended version of acting. So, if you can do that, you can absolutely go act in front of the camera and you do it beautifully.

Feist: You know, I never put myself in the position of trying to be something other than a variation on my own theme. I took your lead a lot. There were scenes with you and David Fox (their co-star in The Water) and I just hovered behind the camera watching it go down. You were doing so much with so little. Onstage, I just translate things to the back of the room. You unconsciously exaggerate everything.

Cillian: I'm a fucking frustrated rock star. I've played in bands since I was 20. But it's pretty much a hobby because this is what I do. I'm less comfortable with actors making records than musicians acting. I'm a bit snobbier about it because you already have a platform as an actor. You find a lot of actors are frustrated rock stars.

Feist: It's the cliche of the crossover -- like, if you put out a record, it wouldn't be that out there, it wouldn't surprise me. There's something that happens where there's an instinct to be curious. You see bands, and their posturing is often more potent than what they started doing. All of that stuff is a variation on performing, or finding pieces of yourself to deliver. Over the years, I kind of went through all that, being in rock bands. You're thinking about yourself from the outside which is an aspect of acting. What do you think makes musicians want to start acting?

Cillian: I guess it's so hard to make your living as a musician and I wasn't really good, so that was an important realisation I think. You have to find some way of self-expression so, for me, that was acting. The other guys still play and they're really good, but I'm really glad it didn't happen. So often what happens is that you've signed, release a record and you're dropped. You get a lot of people who are eaten up by the system and spat out by it.

Feist: Bizarrely, record deals are usually the things that break-up the initial kernel of joy. Record deals can actually be the kiss of death. Thank God I didn't get one until I was 28. I'd already made five albums before someone decided to put my record out! I may have only sold 20 of them, but I'm really glad I had gone through that. I barely understood how to weather being signed but luckily I had ten years under my belt already. If you get a deal at 18, you're just a [something] little person. You often talk about going into [something]. I'm fascinated by the courage it takes to act live on stage. You're naked. I sling a guitar in front of me so I don't have to do that.

Cillian: I started off in theatre. I keep going back to it and I intend on going back to it next year as well. It's the live element that makes it attractive and terrifying.

Feist: I guess it's the terror that is attractive!

Cillian: You can't recreate that connection you have with the audience. Making a movie is so piecemeal, and creating emotion in that environment is mechanical. Whereas, with theatre, it's like a visceral reaction.

Feist: But I was really uncomfortable in my skin trying to understand how to be that way. What was hard for me was not talking. I felt kind of mute without any words to imbue the moment with intention. But with you guys, you were saying so much without saying anything. Just the ability to connect your emotions and relate to each other, I found it so fascinating. I don't know if I'd act again. I've been asked a lot and I've said no every time. I usually say no because it relies too much on that character, whatever script I've been given. I'm looking for the Jack White in Cold Mountain angle. I feel I could do it if it's really in another era, another place and time...

Cillian: You did the acting without any dialogue. That's the fucking hardest. You were thrown in the deep end. I'm telling you, try something with words!

Feist: Then you've got something to hinge it on. It was interesting. There were parts of my mind I don't think I ever checked out before. The day after we shot the movie, I swore I'd never do that again. It wasn't fun, I was scared I was doing it wrong. I feel ridiculous, though, sitting next to you talking about acting. For me, it's evident there's a craft there and it takes time and instinct. It's silly to say I'm gonna do that now. First of all, I have no ambition for it. Second of all, I really respect the matter. It's something that's in your blood.

Cillian: We should work together again. I like to re-collaborate. I've worked with Danny Boyle twice and John Crowley, working on stage and film. I think it's nice. You establish a shorthand, a quicker route to the end-product because there's a trust there. It's harder as an actor, because you're interpreting work, rather than creating work as a musician. But as you get older, you feel the need to make stuff happen for yourself, rather than wait for someone to offer you a job. So I'm starting to produce a few bits. This piece is the perfect example of what I think people who respect each other's work can achieve by working together. I'm really proud of this film, it turned out for the best.



Kevin Drew
The centre of the musical maelstrom known as Broken Social Scene talks about directing his debut short film.

Kevin Drew has taken a break from being musical lynchpin of the ever-expanding arts collective, Broken Social Scene to make a directorial debut with The Water. Drew initially started off in acting school before segueing into creating offbeat musical brilliance with the band and his own label, Arts and Craft. Having directed videos for Broken Social Scene, making the film was a logical progression and a real labour of love for him.

Dazed & Confused: Did you have an image in mind when you devised The Water?

Kevin Drew: It was generally the faces of these characters. I knew what the landscape was -- that there was to be a pond and that it had to be frozen. But generally, I wanted the story to be told in the eyes of each of the characters. There's only eight words, so it was all down to the eyes of the actors.

How is the songwriting and filmmaking process linked?

Stories come to me on a daily basis. I don't know exactly where this came from but I do know it was in the middle of winter and I do know I was listening to "The Water". I felt like the film had to represent the actual recording of the song because on that song, you can hear things like people breathing and their chair creaking. The lyrics are not where the film is coming from, but more the feel of the song. Leslie loves Aesop's Fables. I knew she was into fairytale stories so I thought, "What happens if we turn this into a fable?" I really wanted it to be like a poem.

How did you convince Feist to act in it?

First of all, she loves a challenge. She was into it from the beginning. Especially when Cillian became involved. When the three of them got together, it was chilling for me, I loved it. The funny thing was that we tried out having a relationship together and it didn't work. It actually ended a few months before the film. We sort of made a pact with each other to still do the movie. I was thinking the other day, so many people are afraid, it's so hard to do relationships sometimes because they don't want a photograph of what their personal failure is. The other day when I watched the film finally, I thought, "Well we didn't take any personal photographs but we made a beautiful little film together."

What did you learn from working with actors like Cillian and David Fox?

Well I loved working with Cillian because he hadn't done anything like this in a long time, so everything was refreshing to him. His enthusiasm was amazing, he is being part of the project. For me, David is so beautiful to look at, in forms of seeing the conflicts within him.

Is this a conscious stepping-stone to directing a feature?

Yeah, I've cornered some producers, made them shake my hand on some funding and I'm currently writing like three scripts. I get so excited about life sometimes that my brain keeps hopping around. I've had a crazy four years, just like a kid in a candy store. As I get older, I want to tell stories. But I love Broken Social Scene so much, it's such a free thing for us. We haven't been locked into anything. I look forward to creating more things for people to work on and work with. Basically I'm just trying to get everyone involved and start another empire.

The Water is out later this year.