Summer (2008) :: Cast

Cast Notes

• Robert Carlyle » Shaun
• Steve Evets » Daz
• Rachael Blake » Katy

Robert Carlyle » Shaun

Born in Maryhill, Glasgow, Robert Carlyle left school at 16 and worked with his father as an apprentice decorator for five years. At 21, disaffected, he enrolled at Glasgow Arts Centre, got in to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, and began a career as an actor. He appeared in Ken Loach's Riff-Raff and Antonia Bird's Safe, before coming to international fame in Trainspotting and The Full Monty.

Alongside Summer, he will appear next in Stone of Destiny, a film about the retaking of the Stone of Scone from Westminster Abbey by a group of Scottish students. This will be followed by The Tournament, an action adventure, and the lead role in I Know You Know, directed by Justin Kerrigan (Human Traffic). He is currently filming a feature-length version of 24 in South Africa with Kiefer Sutherland.

Robert Carlyle Q&A

How did you become involved in Summer?

It came through my agent, but obviously it was Kenny's [Glenaan] name attached to it that was interesting, because Kenny and I had worked together before, years and years ago, as actors. And there was a piece that we tried to do about 5 or 6 years ago but it didn't happen. So I'd followed his career and was always keen to work with him. Summer was an easy decision because the writing was just fantastic. It was such an honest script and very moving and very simple, without pulling at it - it affects you and it moves you. Hopefully that's what it will do for the audience.

What is it like transferring from big-budget Hollywood productions to an independent film like this one?

Obviously a low-budget film like this presents difficulties, but I know that before I go in and if that was going to bother me then I wouldn't do it. My grounding in cinema was Ken Loach and that world - Antonia Bird, Michael Winterbottom's early stuff, low budget films - and I look back on all of that with fond memories. I loved it and I've never forgotten that. I think I work better in that kind of environment anyway. You can get too comfortable sometimes you know? Too cosy. As long as people want me to do these kinds of films I'll do them because I think they're important and they're documents of the time. That's the best thing you can hope for as an actor - to be involved in something that tells a story which talks about the surroundings and the time you live in. I loved the films in the late 50s, early 60s - Saturday Night, Sunday Morning, The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner, Billy Liar - these films told you what life was like then and that's the greatest thing you can get as an actor.

Did the script speak to you personally because of your upbringing in Glasgow?

I guess. You always find something that's in there, but that, to be honest with you, is on a superficial level - I think anyone can find anything in any character that can make them say, 'Oh yeah, that was like me.' It's more about how it affects you at a deeper level, and I was moved emotionally by the character's journey, and felt the pain in that character and understood that. That's not to say that I went through that but I can imagine being there. And in terms of the background of the people involved, yes, I was poorer than poor - I will never forget that. It's easy to bring that back in to your mind and your head when you approach this kind of work. I don't know a lot of people from that time these days, but I've seen them through the years and I've seen what life has done to them, how it's affected them, good or bad - but generally the downside. So that's at my fingertips. I totally understand all of that. What interested me in the adult Shaun was the idea that you turn round, you're 40 and your life's going past you. Over the past few films that has been a running theme for me - having to do something quickly, having to suddenly hold on to something. In Shaun's case it's this relationship from the past, because he knows that his friend's dying.

How was shooting in Bolsover?

Ah man, it was chaos, absolute chaos! Obviously I'm recognised around the place and people approach me, but this was en masse! I didn't think about it until I was getting down there, and then I realised of course that Sheffield is only ten miles away, and that's the eye of the storm for me [because of The Full Monty]. It was like the prodigal son - incredible - 'You came back!' Just magic, surrounded by kids the whole time.

It's a very quiet, still film. A lot of your performance involves not doing very much...

Shaun is the one that everything bounces off of - it was really important to show that. Whereas Daz is absolutely manic. There was no point in those scenes to try and top that - it was essential to be rooted. But I think there's an innate stillness in the character, anyway. Even in the younger Shaun you can see that. He's slowed down by the weight of his past - what you're seeing is the past 40 years inside a few weeks. That's the hardest thing for any man or woman to cope with - getting to that age and thinking, 'What the fuck have I got?' Me, I'm a lucky man - I've got a wife, three beautiful children, a career. But I can feel that all too easily.

And yet there's humour and warmth throughout the film, and by the end there's hope.

That's always important. People that have never seen, say, a Ken Loach film go, 'Oh, it's all just doom and gloom.' You actually watch them and they're very funny - because life's funny, particularly the arse end of it. There's a kind of gallows humour. Every community I've ever worked in they've got that. It's vital - so if Summer didn't have that it wouldn't be honest and Hugh [Ellis, writer] knew that. He lives there, he knows the people. Plus, it's important that there is some kind of redemption for Shaun. When he says, 'Goodbye' to Katy it's important that he's the one that says it. He's made the decision that there wasn't any life in that relationship. That's him doing something for himself, for the first time since he was a teenager, since he started looking after Daz.

The film deliberately avoids any overt politics. Was that important to you?

Absolutely. Me and Kenny spoke about that when we were filming and Kenny put it well - he said you can't avoid the politics. It's in the landscape, all around you. I think that's enough. You don't have to go in to that. It's not about that. It's about the results of that.

Why did you want to work with Kenny Glenaan?

I think it's his undeniable enthusiasm for every single scene he directs - every single scene is like a film in itself to Kenny and he gives it every ounce of his thought and his energy. And there's his enthusiasm for his actors, for his crew - you want to do it for him. That's not always the case, believe me. It's not just about being a nice guy, which he obviously is - it goes beyond that. He's got a touch of the Danny Boyle about him - with Danny you feel that it's your film, you're all doing it together. Kenny's got that and you can't learn that, it runs through you as a person.

How do you see Shaun and Daz's relationship?

They're like a married couple. We spoke about that. Just small moments show it, like at the beginning when he's pushing him up the hill in his wheelchair. That was a bastard climb to do and we did it a few times. Kenny was laughing at the other end - "There's that bugger sitting in his wheelchair eating his chips!" That's the relationship right there, in a lovely wee detail.

What did you make of Steve Evets?

He's absolutely tremendous - exactly the kind of person I love working with because he's so unaffected by any of it. He's one of those guys where anything he says just sounds funny. Particularly as Daz ,when he was complaining all the time - just a constant whine and moan. Because it went on all day!

Steve Evets » Daz

Steve Evets grew up in Salford, Manchester. After school he joined the Merchant Navy for three years until he was kicked out for jumping ship (twice) in Japan. "I was a bit of a loose cannon in those days," he says. "I spent my 18th birthday in a Bombay brothel - it was really liberating..."

After several odd jobs back in Manchester he decided to "follow what was in my head which was to do some kind of acting or something creative." He joined a local college and did a foundation course in drama, and then formed a small theatre company with two friends, doing street theatre. It has led to fringe theatre, stage roles, parts on television and, following his performance in Summer, the lead role in Ken Loach's next film.

"It's always been tough going, but I've never been in this thing for the money otherwise I'd have packed it in years ago. I'm a jobbing actor, so to keep going you've got to have a passion for it."

Evets, who is 48, may just be reaching his peak. "That's another thing about the acting game - you're never too old. It's not like a footballer whose career's over at 30-odd. In this game you're never too fat, thin, ugly, old. Things are going good for me lately with this project and of course Ken Loach's project. I'm just happy because I've been plodding on for years and I love what I do. It's nice that other people are putting a bit of faith in me now."

Steve Evets Q&A

How did you become involved in Summer?

Kenny Glenaan cast me in an episode of a series called Buried [Channel 4, 2003]. Kenny has kept me in mind for things since then and he got in touch when the script for Summer had been written. I went to the read-through and Kenny said he'd keep me in mind if they got the money and got down to casting for it. Which he did.

Describe Daz

He's not miserable but he has got a chip on his shoulder because of his circumstances. He gets enjoyment the only way he can - he takes solace in things like alcohol, and the drugs to help cope with the pain. Daz's approach is, 'Well fuck it, I'm going to die anyway so I might as well have a few drinks and enjoy my last few weeks.'

I think he is quite a strong character in a way - he's got to get through day to day with himself and his condition and his environment. He's a survivor - he's come through what happened to him and had to cope with it. And then of course in other terms he's quite weak and dependant.

How has his relationship with Shaun evolved as they've grown older?

At school when they were young Shaun feels very, very protective of Daz and looks after him, so Daz has always looked up to Shaun. Then, in teenage years, as they've got older Daz becomes on the same level as Shaun yet still looks up to him. Then, when the accident happens, it's quite a big change in the relationship - first of all he feels like he was deserted by Shaun and secondly it's made him a bit bitter towards him because he's ended up in a wheelchair and he's restricted. Now Daz has that guilt trip over Shaun. Shaun feels that guilt and tries to make amends by still looking after Daz but now in a different way. Whereas at school he protected him against bullies, now he's a servant in a way, trying to make good his mistake for leaving him in the past. Daz, when it suits him, will not hesitate to bring that up and use it as a weapon. That's where Shaun's weakness comes in - because he lets him do that.

Did it complicate matters having two younger versions of Daz in the script?

It makes it easier. Normally when you accept a role a lot of the time's spent mentally filling in the blanks of that character from the past - what was his family life like? What was he like at school, first job, all that. But when you've got it in the script it's easier to come to terms with - you can look at his school days, see how he related to his teacher, what the first girlfriend was like and all that.

Daz and Shaun are lifelong friends. How did you get on with Robert Carlyle?

I'd never met Bobby before, but we got on fantastic. We just liked each other and had a natural bond and we're still in touch now. We're both working-class lads. Obviously he's a lot more successful but I'm sure Bobby started out as a jobbing actor and he's not forgot that. He's a genuine bloke and he made me feel completely at my ease - there was no 'I'm a big star and you're privileged to be working with me.' None of that. We got on so well, laughing and joking all the time. We talked about the characters and we both knew where they were coming from.

How was filming in a wheelchair?

You spend a couple of hours in one of them things and you suddenly realise just how unhelpful the world is. I know there's ramps about and parking but you should try it - put yourself in a wheelchair and try and get up a pavement and through a door. It's one of the hardest things, and the strength you need in the upper part of your body to compensate for the loss down below - it's weird. You do feel helpless and trapped and frustrated. You can get in a rage just trying to go and buy a newspaper.

How did you film the scene where Daz goes careering down the hillside in his chair?

It's a stuntman for the long, long run - you know what health and safety's like these days - but they also wanted a stuntman in the chair for the close-up eight-foot roll down the hill. I thought, well bollocks I'll do that - the camera's close so he's got to look the part. Kenny was quite pleased about that I think. We had this crash mat in front of me with about eight of the crew behind it to stop me. Every time I went for a take we kind of crept the wheelchair back a few more feet until we ended up with about a 20-foot run at this crashmat. I would have done the long one if I thought I could have survived it. But seeing it was the first day of filming, if I'd have broke any bones I would have been bollocked so I was quite happy for the stunt guy to put a wig on and let him do that one.

Do you see this as a film with a political message?

I didn't look at it that way. I just saw it as two life-long friends dealing with the shit that life has thrown at them. You could politically analyse it if you wanted to but I didn't approach it that way. I looked at it as a real-life, everyday event that some people somewhere are going through.

What was it like filming in Bolsover?

It's just a typical working-class environment. Just a normal estate probably mirrored throughout the country. I'm from Salford and I can see the same thing down there. Places are stagnating because of lack of funding. It always amazes me that we're in the 21st century and there seems to be a bottomless pit of money to kill people, but not for places like that.

When we were on location at some of the estates it was like the circus had come to town. You could see the glee on people's faces because there was something going on in their neighbourhood. And of course, when they saw Bobby they were absolutely over the moon just to see somebody that they'd seen in movies. It was nice to see these people suddenly have an interest in their life and when the film comes out they're gonna be, 'I recognise that street, I know that house, that's that shop we go in,' and that's a buzz for people.

Rachael Blake » Katy

Although Rachael Blake was born in England, her family moved to Perth, Australia when she was eight. Ten years later she moved again, this time 3000km east to study acting at the National Institute for Dramatic Art in Sydney. She has since appeared in the Australian police drama Wildside, the Channel 5 comedy Suburban Shootout and Channel 4's Clapham Junction, directed by Adrian Shergold. She also starred in the award winning Australian film Lantana.

She will next be seen in False Witness, an Australian / UK television co-production currently filming in Australia, to be transmitted in early 2009.

Rachael Blake Q&A

How were you cast?

I had worked with Tony Slater-Ling, Summer's DOP, on Clapham Junction. They were looking for an older Katy and Tony suggested me to Kenny Glenaan. I received the script and I just couldn't believe how beautiful it was. Then a meeting was set up for me and Kenny and we just sat down and talked about it - that was how I got the job. It was all happenstance really, sheer luck.

What did you and Kenny discuss?

We spoke about who I was, and what I was doing in the world. I got the feeling that Kenny was looking for someone who had the same mindset as Katy - someone who was trying to get away from home and be something outside of their childhood, be seen as something different. Our conversation naturally strayed on to that path. He asked me all sorts of questions about my life, and it sort of slotted in to where he felt Katy sat.

What struck you about the script?

I cannot tell you how unusual it is to find a script that was as crafted as this one. But it was the way it straddled three timeframes - I think we often do that in our lives. By getting to the present we're constantly moving through the past, re-editing it, trying to fix it in some way. I had never seen it put so eloquently on the page before.

In what way do you identify with Katy?

I grew up in England and then I went to Perth with my family and it's one of the remotest cities in the world. Australia is a huge expanse of country and when I left Perth I didn't know what I wanted - I just wanted something other than what I had. It's a dangerous thing to do to yourself - you sort of burn your bridges behind you and you take off in to the blue yonder and you don't know what's out there. In a way that's what the young Katy did - she left home, she left that situation that had happened and struck off in to the world and had no idea what to do or how to get what she wanted. She just worked very, very hard and then of course she comes back - and that's the shocking part, when you go home. I feel like that's constantly happening to me, I'm constantly trying to make sense of my life as it's going on. Life can get turned upside down in a moment, absolutely silently. I completely identify with that.

Describe Katy

I think she's a very ambitious girl who's trying to redefine herself. She was always someone who was very intelligent and quite a hard worker. Even when they were kids she was top of the class, she finished her homework, so she's a very smart girl. In a way, Shaun is all of those things that she shouldn't have liked that she kind of did. I think leaving the place they grew up was always on the cards for her - she was always going to go and make a go of it. I don't see how she could not have done that. She escaped what happened in the past, which she felt responsible for. But it was very much not dealt with and she had to go back and deal with it.

What does the grown-up Katy make of the grown-up Shaun?

I think in the beginning he's exactly what she expects - he's working in a service station, he's a bit depressed, kind of anxious - and she sort of ends up with this incredible view of someone who is generous and responsible. Who he ends up being for her is something that's completely diametric to who she thinks she's going to meet.

How did you find shooting on location in Bolsover?

To me Bolsover was like Perth - like any small town that's so small you outgrow it quickly. If you're doing anything to move forward you find the resources in those sort of places aren't great enough. So being in Bolsover - it just reminded me of what I left. It was funny, Hugh Ellis had lines in the script of kids going, 'Ooh, nice car,' and stuff. And they were actually doing that when we were driving through - it was like the place was caught in time.

Can you talk about working with Robert Carlyle?

Bobby is just somebody that wants to come on and do good work, and get to the nub of what it is you're doing. We shot a night scene in a gas station and we were there for about five hours or so. At the beginning of the night one person turned up with their dog and a mobile phone across the road. Then you'd look across every now and again and they'd have rung up their family and they'd be there. By the end of the night this street was lined with probably 100 people, all just waiting to see if he would sign something - and he did. He sat there and signed every single one of them. Wherever we went there was a trail of people.

Did you have any contact with Joanna Tulej, who plays Katy at 16?

I did actually. It was strange because Kenny had told us that he wanted to look at them as though we were separate people. You're three individuals; you happen to be playing the same role. We spoke about should we have the same mannerisms, what should we adopt, what should we not. So I did meet Joanna and I could very much admire her for the girl that she was and how courageous it was for her to do this - here she is studying fashion and stepping in front of the camera. And Kenny too - using people that have never been trained before is incredible.