I am incredly honoured to host an interview with Ana Ularu whio played Charlotte D'Albret in "The Borgias". The interview was conducted by my dear friend Dragos Moldoveanu of Asociaţia „Institutul pentru Studii Renascentiste” (The Institute of Renaissance Studies Association – AISR) and kindly translated into English for Loyalty Binds Me.
The Romanian actress Ana Ularu (born in
1985) portrays Charlotte d` Albret in the third season of the
historical-fiction television series The
Borgias (2011). She had the kindness to answer a couple of our questions.
Cinema lovers know Ana Ularu from the
award-winning drama Periferic (“Outbound”),
directed by Bogdan Apetri, as well as from O
vară foarte instabilă (“A Very Unsettled Summer”) and Sunt o babă comunistă (“I'm an Old Communist
Hag”), both having the premiere in 2013.
This year, Ana will be seen in the
upcoming drama Serena, starring
Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper, and also in Thursday, along with François Arnaud, her partner from The Borgias` television series.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: First, thank you for accepting the
invitation of Asociaţia “Institutul pentru Studii Renascentiste” (The Institute
for Renaissance Studies Association) to talk about your supporting part as
Cesare Borgia's wife. It is a privilege to have you as an interviewee.
Both
yours and historical television series fans enjoyed watching you in The Borgias. The Borgia dynasty, whose fascinating saga is depicted in the
series produced by Showtime, is
one of the most illustrious families of the Renaissance Age. Prior to television broadcasting, what was your information about the
Borgia family?
Ana ULARU: As a Cervantes High School graduate, I studied extensively
the history of Spain and I came tangential to a short discussion about the two Popes
the Borgia family gave to the Vatican. But, obviously, the pop culture chronicled
rather the bloody facts and the fascinating
figure of Lucrezia. What I had read about them disappeared somehow under a whole
lot of other information gathered from other readings, so, it was very nice
when I started to do my documentation to find out all sorts of information
about them and especially about Charlotte d'Albret. I found out that Her Majesty Queen Anne is one of the descendants of the marriage between Cesare and Charlotte, the House of Bourbon-Parma...
I hope I'm not mistaken.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: You anticipated my next question concerning
the historical information. You portrayed the Duchess Charlotte d'Albret, wife
of Cesare Borgia, son of Pope Alexander VI. Therefore, how did you document for
the role?
Ana ULARU: I read everything I could find about Charlotte, I searched for her
portraits, I worked with a choreographer for the
Ball Scene and I discussed some small costume wearing technicalities with Gabriella Pescucci, the series'
brilliant costume designer. I also had a very short meeting with a dialect
coach for the accent. Speaking French, I found it quite simple to include items
of musicality and specific phrasing in her accent.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: You said, some time ago, that “nothing
is more depressing for an actor than to
sit at home and not be called”.
How did you react when you got the call about a role in The Borgias series?
Ana ULARU: The
story was much more enjoyable than a simple phone call. I went to London to have an audition
for another project, when I received an email with a few text pages for another
one. After lengthy preparations for the first, I had only a few hours before I
begin the journey for the latter that proved to be the Ball Scene from my
episode. I was very happy to find out that I got the part. Then it came the training
period, travels to Budapest for costume fitting… and all the beautiful rituals in
the life of an actor.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: How would you depict the relationship between historical characters Charlotte d'Albret and Cesare Borgia, as it was described in the
episode entitled “The Wolf and the Lamb”?
Ana ULARU: I decided along with François (who
plays Cesare Borgia) and Kari Skoglund, the Director, that, although it is a
marriage of convenience that serves Cesare for getting an army for a
counterattack, it would be very interesting that, between the two, there is an
attraction between two young, powerful, intelligent and with a sense of humor people. Already it settled
that young noble women can experience absolutely disastrous arranged marriages, so Charlotte is fortunate
to have destined a handsome and intelligent young man, and with whom she can negotiate very clear and open her preferences.
She refuses to live in Rome, she detests the excessive idealization of love and
she somehow understands his affection towards someone else, even though she
doesn't know who is the object of this affection. It is decided in my episode
that the Vatican can grant the Papal Bull for divorce, and the two remained
married until Cesare's death (despite the impressive number of his illegitimate
children). So, we created a relationship with humor and fireworks, Charlotte being
like a cup of champagne prior to
victory.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: Most of the scenes were filmed along with François Arnaud, the Canadian actor who played the famous Cesare Borgia. Personally, I was impressed by the interpretation of the scene of their last night together. How would you describe the collaboration you had with François Arnaud? What actors you also met on the set?
Dragoș Moldoveanu: Most of the scenes were filmed along with François Arnaud, the Canadian actor who played the famous Cesare Borgia. Personally, I was impressed by the interpretation of the scene of their last night together. How would you describe the collaboration you had with François Arnaud? What actors you also met on the set?
Ana ULARU: François is a very
talented actor and a wonderful partner, and, after two
projects together, I can say that I won a beautiful friendship. We are born a
few days apart from each other, we have a similar sense of humor, we always had
either a tacit understanding about the
direction that we want to offer for a scene, either very interesting discussions about the dynamics of our characters (in both movies). I
love playing with François, I
feel very free to improvise, to discover interesting
aspects in a scene. It was also nice because, on the set, I once again met with
Sean Harris (Micheletto character) with
whom I became friends and collaborated
on Serena, Susanne Bier's film, an excellent actor,
with David Johnson, a DOP (Director of Photography) with whom I worked three
times in videos directed by Wiz (Magnetic Man and The Hurts), with Thure
Lindhardt (Rufio character), who was a member of the jury for Shooting Stars in
2012. I left with a very pleasant memory, I worked with a wonderful team and I
felt appreciated and spoiled even if my presence there was brief.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: What was the most enjoyable time you
lived on the set?
Ana ULARU: The whole experience was excellent.
The Ball Scene remains a very difficult scene, logistically first, but very
pleasant, it`s a negotiation
and a very interesting exploration to
play. The first night after wedding scene was again a very nice moment, a scene
so simple and gentle, a discussion, a relaxing time for the characters. I think
the most fun I`ve had was during the choreography
lessons.
Dragoș Moldoveanu: Thank you once again for your kindness and look eagerly the
movies that will occur this year. I hope your phone to ring more often and conquer the Romanian and European public with as many roles!
This interview was conducted by Dragoş
Moldoveanu, President of Asociaţia „Institutul pentru Studii Renascentiste”
(The Institute of Renaissance Studies Association – AISR).
