Amber Coney – Dead of Summer

By: Lisa Steinberg

Q) Talk about filming your last episode.

A) It was super out of order. The whole series was based on production logistics. For me, I was only on three days, probably tops, out of the seven or eight that we filmed. So, I really wasn’t in the crux of all of it. I only had, as you saw, a few scenes where Cricket was taken over and then the scene with Blair (Mark Indelicato). It was definitely just based on what the production needed. I got off pretty easy, honestly. [laughs] I died and then I traveled, wrote a script and then I came back and shot for a few days. It was great!

Q) Obviously Cricket kept making appearances, like with the Ouija board.

A) The Ouija board was interesting because I went in for ADR with my voice over Elizabeth Lail. It was really cool to see my voice on top of hers. They had this track where they took her voice and made it high, creepy and squeaky. I was trying to be me as Cricket while having that squeaky voice in my head. It turned out really well! I think Elizabeth did a great job. Then, there was a scene with Jessie, which was cool because Paulina [Singer] and I had become best friends. We had been living together and it was so easy to work with her. We got along so well and trusted each other. That was in her episode, if I remember. So, it was also cool to see her in the midst of that because I think mentioned before somewhere that with a particular episode they are completely on. To see their energy and their mindset and where they’re head is out…it’s really nice to see them in their element. We’re just really good friends and I was really proud of her as an actor, too. It was also really cool to see where Jessie came from because up to that point people were hating on Jessie a lot. Her M.O. was just super rude and defensive. She took on that persona because she was so terribly scarred by her experience with her mother. Then, in the episode you see her sensitivity and the person who has been hiding underneath the whole time. It was a really cool reveal. I think she had a great development in that way where she was ultimately able to shed the shell of who she was portraying.

Q) It’s good to look back now though and see the stereotypical horror movie moments.

A) Exactly. Distance always is inherently bonded to perspective. So, it is fun to look back and seeing all the funny things and the moments where you like, “Wow! I didn’t even connect those dots when I was in it.” It was fun to have those experiences.

Q) Cricket came to camp to find or rekindle some romance with Alex. Instead, she ended up with some self-acceptance and self-love. What do you think of Cricket’s journey and development within the short time she is on screen?

A) I think it is a very concise way to show what a young girl on the verge of becoming a woman could experience interpersonally and should experience interpersonally, especially if she starts out in a place similar to Cricket – that of low self-esteem, self-doubt and insecurity and seeking validation. It was a really short time to show that evolution, but it worked. That evolving would have digressed had she gone on. Her turning point was a huge realization and was a break through to have the realization that if she continued having the behavior she had now she would never be happy with herself and find someone who is happy with who she is. So, that breakthrough was so powerful that if she had continued to live she would have found someone who would have wanted her for just vacant company or just a body to be with. She realized she needed to start having self-respect for herself. I think her relationship with Blair really helped with that because she knew how deeply how Blair valued her as a friend. Finally, being open to that, she was able to accept those feelings and realized she was worth something – not just in her eyes, but in someone else’s.

Q) I felt she finally found true love in a sense through her best friend. Not romantic love, but a true love and acceptance through the friendship.

A) I agree. It’s funny when people were like, “Alex and Cricket would have been perfect together!” Most people were shipping them, but in my mind I was like “maybe not.” Cricket is a complex person and a complex character. So, unless he was able to show her something deeper and way more significant than the past showed then it definitely wouldn’t have gone further. I think she gets the true love from Blair, as you said, and finds a way to open herself up to love within. But everything else kind of falls to the wayside. She went through a lot of trauma to get to where she was in her psyche, but it was cool she was able to have that breakthrough, especially with men, so early. And my hope would be that it would continue to get stronger had she continued to surround herself with the right people.

Q) When Cricket met up with Alex, was it a romantic moment or was she seeking to put an end to things?

A) In the episode there are clues to the answer to that. I think that at first, initially, Cricket is assuming he just wants to have sex with her and things aren’t working with Amy (Elizabeth Lail). Like it was convenient. She was like, “I’m not putting up with this anymore. I’m more than just a one night stand and worth more than someone who doesn’t truly care about who I am.” So, she rejects it. Then, Blair (after having his drama with Drew) is like, “Don’t make the same mistakes I did. Give him a chance. You never know. He might be having a change of heart.” So, then again, I’m like “Maybe, but probably I should just stay away because I’m just figure out myself now. I don’t want to bring someone in who is going to wreck that for me.” But then when he asks about the song, that kind of clued me into that maybe it could be something sweet and he might actually want to get to know me on a deeper level. Going into it, I’m just really giving him a shot. I still say, “Don’t congratulate me until we see how it goes,” but it is like I’ve had this crush on him so I’m really reticent yet things might be different. So, I’m going to give him a chance I think. Whatever that leads to, I don’t know. If it led to something romantic or sexual, we will never know. Obviously, when I hear the song playing and see in the distance how he has kind of made an effort to make things special that it is me really deeply happy, but obviously that is cut short.

Q) What aspect to Cricket’s personality was harder for you to portray?

A) The killing part was actually easy because I didn’t have to do a lot of my own stunts. I think the hardest part of playing Cricket was the attempts to be overtly sexual. It’s very tame, but at the same time it is not a confident sexuality. It is not a self-assured womanly sensually. It’s this act that is put on in order to compensate for what she thinks she doesn’t have as a human. Really breaking that down in my psyche and having those layers of vulnerability underneath everything that I’m trying to put on to impress or fit in was the most challenging. It was challenging psychology not physically. It was physically challenging to wear that fat suit! It was SO hot! I was dying. I had to wear it the entire episode. It was really uncomfortable!

Q) In regards to Cricket’s death scene, what were your thoughts when you found out about her dying?

A) They had to establish my story pretty early. It was the third story. So, they did it on purpose so they could kill me sooner. It was all very logistical. Mostly, the creators’ intent was to make people really like me and feel for me so that when I died it was really traumatic. They wanted me to be the camp counselor that was very accessible and relatable, but had issues yet ultimately was a good person and tried to do her best in spite of what she went through. So, the point was to build it up and then break the hearts of the audience. I had to make sure that I was really on it and stayed super pissed about the series. I really wanted to seem like I was going to last. That’s my evil confession. [laughs] It was really entertaining to see the reactions.

Q) What was it like getting to work with Norman Buckley for the episode?

A) He is amazing! We just hit it off during our shoot together. Literally the first scene we shot was my death. It was kind of like one of those kindred friendships where you felt like, “Where have you been?” It felt like we had known each other. He’s amazing at what he does and very prolific and knowledgeable in his craft. So, it was just so fun to hear his thoughts on the process and the kind of things he is interested in thematically. I’m really glad that I was able to build on that relationship because it made it really special. Being the last episode I was a key player in made it awesome to go out on that note with him on that helm. He’s a really awesome, fun person.

Q) What did you learn about yourself from playing Cricket?

A) How essential self-worth is and I was able to shed a lot of self-doubt as Cricket was, which is really cool. Seeing it at a distance in a character and taking on that, I was like, “Wow, I can deepen that within myself. I can deepen my sense of self love and my sense of who I am just as this person did.” It was really cool to grow and evolve along with the character. Whatever Cricket learned, I learned within the context of my life. As someone who is just starting her career and I’m young and ambition, it is very important to me to reaffirm that mentality of self-worth and grounding. It’s really vital for what I plan to do.

Q) What was your last day on set like?

A) My final scene where I actually had dialogue was with Blair, which was really special. Also, it was hard because it was the last thing I got to do as Cricket alive and not a zombie. That was hard to part with that and to come to terms with that. My technical last day was when we’re breaking into the cabin and Sykes (Alberto Frezza) plays the music over the walkie talkie. That was my actual last day and I was the first one of the series regulars to be wrapped. Everyone clapped for me, but my other actors had two or three more days to go. So, no one could celebrate with me. It was very fulfilling.