Witchbomb Sunday part 2.   Taylor and Amalia’s panel

Amalia: it is hot outside, but cool in here, she had put a sweater on

Taylor: it was cold in the autograph room.  She thought they had put the heating on, but actually they had just opened a door to the outside. 

Question:  What do you think your characters would be doing, four years after the end of the show?

Amalia: One of us would have popped out a kid.

[Then they played rock, paper, scissors to see who would have the kid.  They did it three times and each time was a tie, so they decided it would be twins]

Taylor: take care of each other’s kids.  Lots of ducks

Amalia: Raelle would have climbed the ranks

Question.  If you got arrested, what would your family assume that you had done?

Taylor: streaking.  Something without clothes

Amalia: civil disobedience.  Parked in the wrong place overnight

Question.  If there was an alternate universe show set, with a giant dance troupe, who would die first and who would survive?

Taylor: I’m a crumper

Amalia: defensive

Taylor: Abigail would do ballet, someone would do jazz

Amalia: Emilie would be doing modern art or interpretive dance

Taylor: Celtic dance can be aggressive

Amalia: dance like an Australian break dancer

Question.  If you did a joint karaoke song, what would it be?

Taylor: Joint heir by [inaudible]

Amalia:  or Kelly Clarkson, that would be a deep conversation

Question.  What is your process for learning scripts and get in character?

Amalia: it depends how it fits with my way of life.  I learned from Lyne Renee to underline the TH sound, to emphasise it.  It is a European thing.  I record a monologue.  Not so with dialogue.  I run through my lines when I am doing the dishes

Taylor:  I leave people confused, if they don’t know I am an actor.  I talk to myself

Amalia:  like an upset scene

Taylor: foaming at the mouth

Amalia:  that’s just you

Taylor: accents – she gave examples of words pronounced with different accents.  Record with that person’s speech.  Like ping pong

Amalia:  Do you know UGLISH?  It is a website for non English speakers.  You choose a word, it plays you the sound of the word and you can choose different accents.  What is a choice, what is an accent?

Question.  If your characters were not together, who would you end up with?

Taylor:  Abigail

Amalia: there is no-one else for Scylla

Taylor:  Someone gave you eyes in the cafeteria  [was Taylor talking about Vira from ep 3.01?]

Amalia: I died

Question.  How is acting on stage different from acting on TV?

Amalia:  It is great.  I get into character the same way.  The big difference is that it becomes new every night.  It is made in me as I take the audience in.  In film, you get one shot.  You have to be present with your co-star.  It can be unforgiving, you play it right away.  Theatre is more forgiving, you get to do it again the next evening.  It is like Diana’s talk yesterday about perfection, a live performance can’t be perfect.  Every group is different, it changes every night.  I also do radio prank calls, there is a kid in the room with me and we edit that together

Question.  To Taylor, tell us about 7 Seconds [a song she released recently]

Taylor:  For some people, their first interpretation of the words was sapphic.  Sorry to disappoint, but it was about medicine and experience with psychedelics.  It mirrors self access at the peak of medicine.  7 seconds of profound understanding.  It is the depth of network and higher power.  There is a vital essence that we access for brief moments.  It can happen when you are in an altered state, like walking through a wood.  The frequency is fleeting, you distract yourself.  Wrote it as a reminder of gratitude

Question.  If a witch cast a spell to transport the guests to an alternate universe, with no memory.  Who would notice it?  Who would solve it?

Taylor: no idea

Amalia:  Kristina would notice first

Taylor: I felt if someone with enough connection, that would be you

Amalia: I’ll gather the troops

Question.  If Raelle and Scylla went on a roadtrip, what would be the best snacks to take with them and the best songs to listen to?

Taylor:  Stevie Nicks, Kate Bush

Amalia: on the road, the best snacks, ones that don’t go mouldy

Question.  If there were no more wars, so you had no jobs anymore, what would you do?

Taylor:  would do something blue collar, like running a duck farm

Amalia: work with troubled kids, foster care.  Bring them to the farm

Question:  How do you view the use of AI in the fandom and in general?

Taylor: repelled by the technology.  It is a nightmare.  In 10 to 15 years, it will be a novelty to have cinema made by humans.  Our jobs will be taken from us.  We will lose art, clothes, nothing is intentional, like it was in the 60s to 90s.  Like calling someone, will you be home?  There is too much information.  You can find out what your exes are doing.  Makes it more likely for people to be abused.  If this is OK for us, what does the military have?  Coding that would code for a virus but could create a virus to destroy mankind.  AI is none of our F***ing business

Amalia:  I agree with a lot of that.  Don’t feel hopeless.  It mirrors back information.  Using AI when making arts, you don’t have rights to that.  Need to hold people in every country accountable.  However widespread it is, it is not inevitable.  AI in the fandom, if you stand behind it, but be very selective.  Bat sh*t scared of it.  Refused to learn it.  Those who want a better world need to be as well trained in it as those who use it. 

AI is like electricity.  They need to step up their game

Taylor: Make art the long, hard way.  Others check out AI

Amalia: enjoy art, made by flesh and blood

Taylor: human error is beautiful

Amalia: buying ice cream on the beach, they used AI to create a menu.  Something was missing.  Hire someone or do it yourself

Taylor: you can tell if it is AI

Amalia: trained eyes.  People are not patient for very long

Question.  What can you tell us about the Beltane dance?

Taylor: Jess is such a beam of sunshine, bouncing around.  You saw my moves last night [Taylor was dancing at the Saturday night disco]

Amalia: how much rehearsal and choreography was there? 

Taylor: weeks of rehearsals.  Professional dancers.  They were very patient.  Lots of components.  Took 2 days to film.

Amalia: will you dance in your next video?

Question.  If you could bring back any dead musician, who would you bring back?

Taylor: Macmillan.  Wake up George Harrison.  Beatles.  Listening to a lot of 60s and 70s music.  [I have ] not evolved in that way.  Feel lost in this world.  Find special people.  Be intentional. Travel. Spend time with community, time with art.  That is the era of music for me – none better

Amalia:  Wake up Mozart.  Not shown modern musicians, would be overwhelmed.  What would they feel about someone like Elvis and recreating what they sound like?

Taylor: bring yearning back

Amalia: What they did when they couldn’t do more.  She doesn’t like to update technology, like photos with too much detail.  We are not professionals, there is no need for that

Question.  If you could direct any book turning into a movie, what would it be?

Taylor:  The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut

Amalia: like to reread books.  She ages, so does reading them.  Like Normal People.  [tells Taylor] go and buy the rights, as Jess has done

Taylor:  it is within reach

Question.  If you could play anyone you want, who would it be?

Taylor: Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter.  Anything in fantasy, Lord of the Rings.  Have to work on the English accent, there are no American fantasy.

Amalia:  They talked with American accents in The Odyssey.  Galadriel  from Lord of the Rings, take a shot at that.  Lydia Tar, who Kate Blanchett played in TAR.  Recommended Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid, gay, NASA

Taylor: hot

Question: If you could speak to your younger self, what would you say?

Taylor: The more you learn, the less you know.  Don’t panic over things, work on your control.  You don’t always control the outcome

Amalia: if you try really hard, be prepared to be misunderstood.  Want people to be well, want others to feel well, but sometimes we don’t have all the information.  We are not almighty.

Taylor:  Can’t always get it right.  Feel gratitude for what you achieve

Amalia: Friendship and relationships – you can’t control them.  Sometimes they are only as long as they are meant to be.  Friendships evolve.

Taylor: Being misunderstood by people, sometimes they are not your people.  Some people love martyrdom.  You can’t control how someone reacts to you.  Listen to who shows up for you.

Amalia did a fan meet straight after this panel, then she had to leave for the airport straight away.  She had to be a work by 9 am the next morning.  More political campaigning. So she would miss the closing ceremony

Next time the Emilie and Ashley panel and closing ceremony