Meet the Creatives - Hannah McKenzie, Lead Actress, Jane Doe

Meet the woamn behind the enigmatic Jane Doe. We chatted with Hannah and asked her to share what it was like to be an actor on set of Snatchers. See below to her insigHtful and considered responses - and perhaps if you're a actor dreaming of what it might be like to one day be a lead on a feature - well this might just give you a few pointers of what you might expect!

HANNAH, TELL US WHAT A DAY ON SET WAS LIKE FOR YOU.

The day would start with waking very, very early in the morning. I’m not really a morning person so definitely struggled out of bed.

I’d be picked up by Des one of our lovely crew who drove me to set and we’d have some really lovely chats every day on the way.

When I got in I would have a very needed cup of tea and get a little bit of breakfast. Then I’d sit down and have my hair and makeup done for an hour or so while I looked at lines and prepped for the scenes we’d be shooting that day. Next we’d be rushed into costume and onto set. Once on set there would be a quick briefing with Craig and Shelly about the scenes ahead and we’d get started. After a morning of shooting we’d then have a really tasty lunch for an hour and then we’d be up again! By the end of the day I would pretty much fall into bed, asleep in an instant. 

WHAT WAS THE GREATEST CHALLENGE? 

The greatest challenge for me was definitely the scenes where Jane was dead on the steel table. I had to work out a way to look like I wasn’t breathing during some very long takes while keeping my eyes open and not blinking. During these scenes I couldn’t see anything through the contacts I was wearing, which was super disconcerting. It was also later autumn in Canberra so it was absolutely freezing! I was really lucky that we had the team that we did: everyone very obviously understood how difficult these scenes could be and I was very cared for and looked after. 

WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST LEARNING?

My biggest learning was taught to me by Justin who’d had much more experience on set than I had. He talked to me about how he would preserve energy and emotional output depending on the shot. Eg if we’re shooting a wide where we only see your body he would put out 60% (because we don’t really see much besides a body) vs a mid which would be 80% and a close up 110%. It is such an effective way of making sure you don’t run out of juice too early - sometimes we would be shooting very emotionally taxing scenes for hours. This allowed me to not run out of steam too quickly. I’ve used this every time I’ve been in front of a camera since- absolutely incredible. 

WHO IS JANE DOE?

This is quite a hard question to answer for Jane because she is completely non static. She is whoever she needs to be in that moment to get what she wants. I think one of the wonderful parts of Jane is that we never really get a clear answer who or what she is— it’s left up to the viewer. Is she an avenging angel giving humanity itsfinal test, a ghost of the women who died in that building, a supernatural trickster keeping themselves entertained or simply a figment of these men’s imagination? I love that we never really know. 

WHAT'S YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS? HOW DO YOU APPROACH CHARACTER? 

How I approach a character changes depending on the project. To me each character is so deeply individual that approaching a character in the same way every time doesn’t work for me. For Jane I prepped 4 different women and/ or facets of Jane. The first was the human young woman who woke up on a table in the middle of the creepiest surgery you’ve ever seen, the second the perfect daughter for Mac, the third the perfect seductress (not necessary to seduce but to push) for Fettes, and lastly and maybe most importantly the truth of her- the otherworldly, all powerful Jane. Shelly and I worked very closely to flesh out all of these different parts of her, hopefully leading to a grounded but slightly fantastical Jane! 

WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

Nature is a big one: we are very fortunate to be able to work and live in such a beautiful place, Australia and Canberra in particular. I also love watching short films:getting to see what people are really excited to be making. Watching incredible, powerful women work - particularly Tilda Swinton, Toni Collette, Saoirse Ronan, Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman. Watching the people around me, loving the people close to me— it all inspires me. 

WHO DO YOU THINK WILL ENJOY THIS FILM?

I think people who love a bit of gritty, funny, absurdist, Australian indie cinema. People who want to support new Australian films being made and championed! 

WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING CREATIVELY FOR YOU AT THE MOMENT?

I’ve recently finished filming another project that I’m excited about. Now I’m back on the classic actor grind! Auditioning and hoping to continue making work with people I love. In between, I’m writing some of my own work.