Written By: Jayme Face
American Pie: Girls’ Rules is the latest film to come to the iconic franchise and we talked to one of its stars Natasha Behnam about the new film, girl power and what she’s been working on during quarantine!
Photography – Joe DeAngelis
HMU – Carissa Swany
Styling – Cameron Cipolla
upfrontNY: Can you tell us about American Pie: Presents Girls’ Rules and your character, Michelle?
Natasha Behnam: This is the first American Pie that is female driven. Obviously, we are very excited about that. I grew up with these movies. It’s such an iconic franchise in the world of comedies. I’m so honored that I get to join it and so glad that we have a female led version because I think it’s super important and super overdue. I’ve been saying this is a very real part of life. When I read the script, I was like “Oh my gosh! Me and my friends went through this! We had the same experiences.” So, I’m glad that this iconic franchise gets to add our voices into it. I loved my character Michelle too because she’s super confident and curious. I think it’s super important we have female characters like her because again it’s just a slice of real life. We’re not doing anything crazy here. We’re just saying hey let’s destigmatize sex. Women can talk about and enjoy sex. They shouldn’t be shamed for that in any way because it’s just a normal part of life.
upfrontNY: Like you said it comes from a long line of films in the franchise, but is a little different. How does it stay true to the other films?
Natasha Behnam: I think it definitely lives in the same world. There’s still a lot of sex and it’s very raunchy. It follows a group of friends who are following these things together. So, it definitely follows the same tone as the other films. Of course, we have a Stiffler too, played by Lizzie Broadway, and she’s amazing! So, the formula is all kind of the same we just put our own voices into it.
upfrontNY: Can you tell us about Cupid for Christmas?
Natasha Behnam: We actually shot the entire feature this year in 2020 which was wild, but production did a real incredible job keeping it safe, adding in all the Covid precautions. It was a real learning curve for all of us. It’s a really fun holiday Rom-Com. I’m really excited that I’m going to have such a different flavor of movie coming out, especially for my parents because they have now had to sit through American Pie. It’s very cute. I play Philomena; she’s a dark, sarcastic, edgy character. She’s very different from my character in American Pie. I’m excited for the world to meet her. It should be coming out this Christmas season so a nice feel good movie for everyone during the holidays.
upfrontNY: You are also a writer and director, how has being an actor helped you be a better writer/director and vice versa?
Natasha Behnam: Yeah, my acting background shows up a lot in my writing because I have a lot of fun with character building, writing dialogue, all the things actors love when you read a script. I think that’s what I put out into my writing, so it’s really nice to exist in both worlds. A funny thing that I learned when I went to film school, learning about being a director and a producer I thought it would be really helpful for me on the other side of the camera, but what I found was there was a funny thing happening where I had to shut off that part of my brain or else I would be acting. I would be thinking ‘oh I need to stand right here because the cinematographer wants this shot and he wants to get the light in this way, so I kind of have to move my neck to the right’ so then I wasn’t being present or being in the moment. I had to learn to separate those parts of my brain. I’ve loved that I’ve been able to explore all different facets of this industry and just not boxing myself into one thing or another because I enjoy all of it so much. Eventually, I want to be writing and acting in my own stuff like Ramy Youssef or Mindy Khaling or Phoebe Waller- Bridge. Michael Coel is a huge inspiration for me! I’m obsessed with her show, I May Destroy You. Women like that are very inspiring to me and that’s what I want to do.
upfrontNY: You mentioned some, but what women in the industry would you love to collaborate with?
Natasha Behnam: There are so many. First of all, like I mentioned Michaela Coel and Phoebe Waller- Bridge are two of my absolute favorites because they write and act in their own material which is something that I want to do. I am obsessed with Ilana Glazer, anything she does. I want to meet her. I want to work with her. I think she is so incredible. Barbie Ferreira has been such a huge inspiration for me and I just have so much respect for her as an artist. Absolutely no question now a days my biggest girl crush and I really just want to be her best friend is Geraldine Viswanathan! I am literally waiting until we do a buddy comedy together.
upfrontNY: Being a woman in the industry, being a Persian- American, what stories do you want to be told?
Natasha Behnam: I would love to see a show where there is a Persian family because obviously, that’s my family. It’s such a fun, beautiful, lovely culture that is not main stream. There’s certain shows like Ramy out which are really huge for the Middle-Eastern community because I had never seen a show like that before. Here’s the thing, the whole thing does not have to be about the culture. That would be incredible, but even just to see myself represented, just a character that’s Persian here or there is huge and amazing for me. In the shows that I write the lead character is Persian and it’s not always about that, but you do see her family and you meet them. Normalizing different backgrounds and different cultures on our screens is what I want to see.
upfrontNY: Can you tell us about some of your projects Fleeting, Company, and Soulmates?
Natasha Behnam: Soulmates is a pilot and a series I’m working on right now. It’s about a girl who can travel between dimensions, but she is really not focused on that. She’s more worried about the fact that this guy is ghosting her, not just in this dimension, but he’s ghosting her in a hundred dimensions. She’s like very self-obsessed and it’s just such a fun show. I really believe in it. I’m just waiting for the right people and the right pieces to fall into place to get it made.
I have another show that I wrote called Company about five roommates navigating their twenties. They accidentally turn to prostitution to clear a debt they unknowingly accumulated. It’s ridiculous.
They’re both dark comedies. They are very fun, ensemble comedies which is what I love.
Fleeting was this short film that I made during quarantine actually. Me and my friend Emerson Niemchick, we directed it, we shot it, we acted in it because obviously we couldn’t use a crew or anything because of Covid. So, we did everything just the two of us. It is a more personal detailed slice of life relationship. I was just feeling some type of way one day and I wrote it. I shot it that week and it’s been in the Marina Del Ray Festival and the Indie Shorts Festival. It’s getting such a positive response that I wasn’t expecting. I just made it for myself which is what I typically do with my art. If I feel like I have something to say I’ll make it and put it out there and hope it resonates with someone. It’s been a fun and a good experience to see it gaining some traction.
Photography – Joe DeAngelis
HMU – Carissa Swany
Styling – Cameron Cipolla
upfrontNY: Are you getting used to filming with these new precautions or is it still lending itself to technical obstacles?
Natasha Behnam: That’s tough because in one way this all feels so normal at this point. We now know the precautions that we have to take, but at the same time I’m looking forward to a day when you can have a hundred people on set without any worry of infection. That’s beautiful. That’s why we love the industry because there’s so many people involved and there’s so much connection. Until then I think everyone is doing a really great job adjusting and being safe. I don’t know it’s just going with the flow of it.
upfrontNY: There are some issues that are close to you; can you tell us a little bit about how you get involved?
Natasha Behnam: I think that in a certain way society has become quite individualistic. I don’t know if that’s because social media over the past few years has made us more isolated from one another, but I feel that there is sort of a lack of empathy in our society. I think empathy is really important and that’s radical empathy for everyone who isn’t like you. So, I don’t know if I’m doing anything special with my activism. I don’t think that I am. I’m just trying to be a more empathetic person and hopefully by doing that other people can also do that. I mean 2020 was such an important year for people to wake up and notice especially with Black Lives Matter whether they wanted to look at it or not. I think it was really beautiful that it was a wake up call for all of us to step up and just listen and elevate each other’s voices. Black Lives Matter is not a new thing. It needs to be a movement and not a moment as so many people have been saying. It’s something that we all need to integrate into our lives. I keep thinking of something I heard which is when you walk onto a set and you look around and everybody is white that is where we speak up. That is where we use our voice and say why is there no black people working on the set, where are the people of color. That’s one example, but there’s little stuff everyday like donating or reading an article or showing up to protests, if you’re able bodied and healthy and that’s your route. There’s so much that we can do no matter how big or small. Trying to be a little bit more understanding and listen to the voices that have been shut out for so long is what I’m trying to do.
upfrontNY: Is there anything Else you would like to let our readers know?
Natasha Behnam: Overall I’m so grateful. I’m so thankful for the positive feedback that we’ve received on American Pie. I hope it can affect people and bring some joy into everybody’s somewhat dark times. One thing I am learning that I really want to advocate for is that it’s okay to not have all the answers right now. I have to remind myself that everyday. It’s okay to not know what you stand for or know exactly what’s right as long as everyday we’re trying to be better and we’re trying to learn. Even with American Pie coming out with young girls seeing it, it’s okay if you don’t know where you fall on the spectrum of sexuality. It’s okay no matter what it is. And with activism, with immigrant rights, with refugee rights, with Black Lives Matter, it’s okay to not know how to shout and use your voice. Just try. Just show up. Just learn everyday which is what I am trying to do.
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