Posted in: Exclusive, Interview, Movies | Tagged: Off the Record

Off the Record: Qualley & Sui on Playing Best Friends in Film and IRL

Off the Record stars Rainey Qualley (Queen of Manhatten) and Olivia Sui (Smosh) spoke to Bleeding Cool about the music drama Off the Record.

Rainey Qualley and Olivia Sui thrive on their versatility. Qualley grew up not only acting but also thriving as a singer and dancer. Sui grew up not only with a passion for acting but also with a passion for dancing, and developed a natural talent for comedy with her improv skills for the comedy group Smosh. Together, they became best friends and found a perfect project, also playing best friends in the Kirsten Foe music drama, Off the Record, for Quiver. The film follows Astor Grey (Rainey Qualley), a rising singer-songwriter, who falls for washed-up rock star Brandyn Verge (Ryan Hansen). Their whirlwind romance spirals into a dark tale of manipulation, forcing Astor to fight for her independence and reclaim her music and identity. Sui plays Astor's supportive best friend, Noelle. The two spoke to Bleeding Cool about how Foe was able to tap into Qualley's life and friendship with Sui as inspiration for Astor and Noelle, how the film was empowering with women involved in major key positions, working with Hansen, and sharing the screen with Rebecca De Mornay and Julia Campbell.

Off the Record Stars Rainey Qualley and Olivia Sui on Their Organic Chemistry as Best Friends

What intrigued you about 'Off the Record', and how did you get involved?

Sui: Rainey was signed on to do this project. She gave me the script and was telling me about this role I could connect with. I read it and loved my character, and I got to spend time with Rainey, which is so special to me, so I was like, "Of course! Yes, let me do it!"

Qualley: Yeah, and for me, I have a separate career as a music artist as well (like my character Astor), so having the opportunity to sing in the movie, helping to write some of the songs for the soundtrack, telling a story I'm so familiar with about the music industry, and then in addition, about the unfortunate dynamic between Brandyn and Astor was so exciting, and I was happy to be involved. Even more so, once we were able to bring Liv on, she's my real-life best friend. She's so funny, having the chance to spend time with her on set and on-screen was a blessing.

What was it like working with Kirsten as a director and a writer?

Qualley: Kirsten is such a wonderful person and director. Female empowerment was always at the forefront of her mind, and you could feel that in her directing. She put women in all the powerful positions on set that she could. There was a female DP, female stunt coordinators, and she came from the stunt world. She's very mentally and physically strong. She always made any difficult situation on set feel safe, and it was such a pleasure.

Beyond Kirsten's script, did you guys get together to build rapport between Astor and Noelle and develop that chemistry, or was it all in the script?

Sui: Off camera and in real life, Rainey and I have an actual, real friendship, and she's actually one of my closest friends. I go to her for so many things that are happening in my life, whether it's good or bad, she's always there for me. It was natural for us to have that chemistry on camera because we have it genuinely all the time.

Rainey, what was it like working with Ryan and going through the motions with the whirlwind of your characters? Is it something you guys worked through in your scenes?

Qualley: What's so interesting about his character is that he presents as such a charming guy, and you feel for Astor, and understand why she was so easily put under his spell. When he makes the switch to manipulation and gaslighting, ithitst even harder because he seems like such a nice guy. Ryan was able to bring that to the character because he is such a funny, nice, and likable guy, so making that switc, was really impactful.

How often do you tap into being able to do both singing and acting in your roles?

Qualley: This is the second movie that I've done where music was also a part of it. I had a film released earlier this year called 'The Devil and the Dayline Brothers,' which is a Southern Gothic musical, so I sang in that one as well. This is my first time playing a music artist, so it was a joy to participate in the songwriting for the film and using it as a vehicle for musical expression as well as acting.

What did it feel like having some more seasoned veterans like Rebecca and Julia on the screen, and what they brought and their presence and everything?

Qualley: It was fantastic getting to work with them. They're both so dynamic and wonderful and just amazing scene partners.

Off the Record, which also stars Will Peltz, Billy Gibbons, Peyton Manning, and Edgerrin James, is currently available on demand and digital.

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