December 2007 | blackfilm.com | features | HONEYDRIPPER An Interview with Yaya Dacosta

HONEYDRIPPER
An Interview with Yaya Dacosta
byWilson Morales

December 28, 2007

Since she had a featured role in the dance film ‘Take the Lead’ opposite Antonio Banderas, former runner-up in Cycle 3 of America's Next Top Model, and actress Yaya Dacosta has been honing her acting skills and working with some talented people that will give her more to learn in this business. Coming up for next for her is a role in the latest film from John Sayles, ‘Honeydripper’, that also stars Danny Glover, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Charles S. Dutton, and Gary Clark Jr.

According to allmovieguide.com, Tyrone (Danny Glover) is the proprietor of the Honeydripper juke joint. When business at once-popular the club begins to trail off and Tyrone hires unpredictable electric guitarist Sonny (Gary Clark, Jr.) against his better judgment, Tyrone's last-ditch bid to draw in crowds during harvest time has surprising results that neither desperate Tyrone nor the ambitious Sonny could have ever anticipated.

Can you talk about your character and what attracted you to the role?

Yaya Dacosta: My character is name is China Doll. She is the daughter of the character played by Lisa Gay Hamilton, who is married to Danny Glover’s character, Tyrone Purvis, who is the owner of a nightclub. She hangs out a lot with her step-daddy but he wants her to go to school and study and her mother has been saving enough money so she can do that. She’s very young and about 17 years old. She’s a bit naïve, sweet and wants everything to be okay.

What attracted you to the role?

YD: Well, I’m a city girl and the film was set in the South and I thought it would be an amazing opportunity and I was so grateful that they cast me after the callback. Once I got there I realized that this character was so different from myself. I’m from New York and the big city and she’s from down South.

What time period does the film take place in?

YD: 1950

How was working with Danny Glover?

YD: It was great. He’s a great actor to watch and learn from. He’s a season actor and has worked on many films and done so many things, it was good to see his process of working and his patterns and how he developed them through the years.

How do you relate with the character?

YD: I’m young. Not exactly as young as her but we both want to more about the world and want to travel and she wants her beauty career to take her places.

What did you learn from John Sayles?

YD: I learned about the responsibility of the actor. He doesn’t teach anyone how to act. He has a very clear vision. He wants you to do your job as an actor, especially when you have a tight shoot. There wasn’t a lot of room for multiple takes.

How’s the experience been so far?

YD: I’m still going out for parts all the time. I go to classs here and there. I still have the same coach from when I was young. She got me my first paid acting job. It was an educational film and I was eleven. For each audition I go to, I’m learning a lot.

How are you balancing the film world with modeling?

YD: I model when I can but at times I have to stop because when it gets tough when you get home at 2 o’clock in the morning and you have to be prepared for 10am auditions and you have to be on time. It’s a real blessing to have a side job like that but it’s not an exercise; and it’s nice and fun.

HONEYDRIPPER opens on December 28, 2007