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Upfront: Actress and filmmaker Livia De Paolis

Livia De Paolis. Photo: Pip

Ciara Dwyer

June 19 2022 02:30 AM

Livia De Paolis is an actress, screenwriter and director. Her latest film The Lost Girls is based on a novel by Laurie Fox, a dark spin-off inspired by JM Barrie’s Peter Pan. She wrote the screenplay, directed it and also acts in it, opposite real-life mother and daughter Vanessa Redgrave and Joely Richardson. Born in Rome, Livia lived in New York for 17 years and is now based in London.

What were you like growing up?

I was a very quiet child and a loner. My sister is seven years older than me, so there was a real difference in age. I was very much on my own the whole time. I had a strong world of the imagination, and I was an avid reader.

What did you read as a kid?

Little Women, The Neverending Story and I would steal my sister’s Nancy Drew books.

How did being schooled by nuns influence you?

I read a lot of children saints’
biographies. They were fascinating. As a child I was a strong believer, even stronger than my parents. At some point, my mom was even concerned.

To whom do you owe your interest in film and storytelling?

My father ran a studio structure in Rome, so I was surrounded by filmmakers, studios, and theatres and production. That has definitely influenced me.

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What drives you?

Obsession really pushes me forward. I’m drawn to projects that have a sense of longing.

Who are your role models?

Madonna. She made the most of everything she had. She was able to be successful many times and everything she came up with was a hit. She did all this despite the fact she doesn’t have a great voice. She just really worked it. I admire that she does whatever she wants. When people say she is too old to do what she does, I say what about Mick Jagger? Nobody is complaining he is wearing leather pants on stage.

Best advice given?

Do not quit. Many years ago, I was assisting a costume designer in New York. I told her I really wanted to be an actress and asked if she thought it was impossible, and she said, “Absolutely not. The problem is that people give up.” It stayed with me. If I start something, I’ll bring it to completion.

Best advice you give?

Seek people who inspire you and who you want to work with – and be close to those people.

Tell us about The Lost Girls.

I had loved Peter Pan, so when I read Laurie’s novel, I went for it. I was drawn to it [Fox’s book] for the darker aspects. The premise is set up in the last chapter of Peter Pan. He comes back to Wendy but many years have gone by and she has grown up and has forgotten how to fly. She tells him she has a daughter, so he will take her instead and then her daughter’s daughter. I always found that really unsettling.

What happens in the film?

I did the story of four generations of daughters who fly away with Peter to Neverland. Vanessa Redgrave and Joely Richardson are some of the daughters and I play a Wendy too. After she comes back from Neverland, she is forever changed by this experience and not in a good way.

Like in the Barrie novel, Peter doesn’t come out of it too well...

He is cranky and narcissistic like a child, because for a child their universe is all about them. At some point, we’ve all experienced a boy who is very charming and fun but very problematic and not good for you. I wanted to look at that.

How did living in New York change you?

I discovered my strength there. I didn’t know I was able to work that hard. I had been a sort of bourgeois girl growing up in Rome and then I was in New York and I had to pay my rent.

Why did you move to New York?

I wanted to go because as a child
I watched the TV show Fame about actors and artists trying to make it in NY. I adored it.

How Italian are you?

I like fashion and I take a lot of time to do my hair. My appearance matters to me but my aunt, who still lives in Rome, says my sense of fashion has gone after my years in New York.

‘The Lost Girls’ is in cinemas and on digital platforms now

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