Jose Vargas
Hi Cybil Lake. Can you give the readers a rundown of who you are and what project you have worked on before? First of all, thanks for having me. I love your magazine. I’m an actor and a writer. Most recently, my film Central Park Dark was distributed by High Octane Pictures. I wrote, directed, and acted in this film along with Tom Sizemore.
What made you pursue filmmaking? Being an actor and writer, I thought filmmaking would be the perfect mix.
What was your drive behind making Malibu Mother of Two? How did you come up with the idea for Malibu Mother of Two? Malibu Mother of Two is a dramedy about Nina, a popular New York wellness writer and influencer, who moves to L.A. with her two boys while struggling to remain sober and renegotiate the ‘open marriage’ she thought she wanted.
I didn’t realize how close to home this show was until we were shooting the sizzle reel. Playing the role of Nina made me understand how close this character was to myself.
Like Nina, I moved from New York City to Los Angeles with my two boys. One large difference between my life and the show is that my husband and I don’t have an open marriage. In the show, Nina had asked her husband for an open marriage but then she regrets it. I had a friend who had an open marriage. I was fascinated with the concept, wanted to explore the idea in a story form, and have it ripe with drama. I’ve partnered with the producer Ceci Cleary whose film To Leslie was Academy nominated for Best Actress.
What roadblocks did you face when you were starting out? As an actor, I’ve experience endless rejection. I don’t think my experience is unique. The rejection has prompted me to write my own roles.
What is your greatest film achievement till date? I’d have to answer Central Park Dark because I sold this film and it received distribution. Also, we had so much press for the film including national news and that was exciting and fun.
What type of interactions are you looking for from viewers that watch your films? Pure entertainment.
How do you juggle your professional life and personal life? When the kids are at school, I have time to write and work on auditions. When they are around, I attempt to give them as much attention as I can.
Can you tell us more about all your upcoming project(s)?
Besides, Malibu Mother of Two I’m working on a feature I wrote called White Lies and Darker Ones. This is a thriller script. Ella, a mother who seeks revenge for her daughter, instead uncovers her small town’s darkest secrets and realizes that the trauma for which she seeks justice may not be her own at all.
Can you tell us about a funny anecdote regarding actor Tom Sizemore that you had worked with? When we were at the end of post-production, we needed Tom to do some looping of his lines. So I picked him up and we went to the sound editing studio. After we were done, he said he had a few errands. There were a lot of errands! Buying cigarettes and going Wienerschnitzel for this special milkshake…the list goes on and on.
Can you tell us about the greatest moment in your film career? Some of the most exciting moments include being on The Black List as a kidnapped news reporter. Also, acting alongside Tom Sizemore in particularly intense scenes was very unforgettable.
Do you have any advice for other female writers or filmmakers out there? My advice would be similar to the advice I would give to their male counterparts. I’d suggest working on projects that hold your passion and interest for a long time because films take a while.
Do you have any advice for mother’s pursuing film making like yourself? Enjoy your children. They grow up so quickly. Ask them if they want to be involved. When my oldest son was a baby, he had a cameo in Central Park Dark and that’s one of my favorite parts of the film, of course. Also, during casting for the sizzle reel of Malibu Mother of Two, I told my boys that I was going to cast two boys to play my sons and not to be confused when they call me ‘mom’ during filming. My boys told me, “No! We want to play your boys!” So they did.
Do you think it is essential to go to a film institute in order to become a successful film maker or producer? No. Experience on film sets is the best education. I went to NYU Tisch School of the Arts but I think there’s so many ways to get a start in the business.
Which film has inspired Cybil the most? When I was in my twenties I was really, really into French New Wave films. In terms of inspiration, a big aha moment was when I saw the Boston production of Les Misérables. I was probably twelve. Seeing that production was a life changing moment for me. I longed to be in it! However, musical theatre was never in the cards for me because I’m not much of a singer.
Which particular filmmaker has influenced you the most? In my opinion, Stanley Kubrick was the master filmmaker. I don’t he has influenced me though. I don’t even understand how he did what he did. His films are in a class of their own.
Which book would you love to make a film out of one day? During the actors’ strike, I finished a novel called Hot New Listing. I’d love to make that into a film and play the lead.
If you got the opportunity to remake a classic, which one would you go for? Maybe I’d remake The Shining and play the character of Jack.
If you got the opportunity to go back in time and change something in any particular movie of yours, then which movie and what changes will you opt for? Many things flood my mind when you ask this! So many changes – small and large. I’d pay more attention to the art direction in many of the interior scenes in Central Park Dark. Also, I would have gotten a few more crew members so I didn’t have to wear so many hats. We had so many challenges –
it’s difficult to pinpoint just a few of them. And with Malibu Mother of Two, I’d ask for sunnier days when I was shooting the sizzle reel.
