Interview: LUCIE PANKHURST, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

A former dancer herself, Lucie Pankhurst has choreographed and movement directed for television, theatre, commercials, and film. The films she has worked on include Florence Foster Jenkins starring Meryl Streep, Maleficent starring Angelina Jolie, and Snow White and the Huntsman starring Kristin Stewart.

More recently, she was the choreographer for one of my favorite films of the year, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. You can check out my video review of the book and the film here. I was thrilled to have the chance to chat with her about what it's like to choreograph for film and her work on the Guernsey movie.

Lucie Pankhurst

How did you first become interested in choreography? 
I fell in love with music first and by the time I could toddle, I was wigglin'! Music evoked stories and feelings in me that I could live out and exorcise through dancing. My parents were supportive of this development, for which I'll always be grateful, so I started doing creative movement classes before committing to the absurdly short life of a professional dancer.

I understood how short it was going to be, so prioritised performing while I could and learned from some of the most gifted and successful choreographers at that time, but I'd been steadily working as a choreographer all along. For me, choreography, the making of the dance, was part of being a dancer...and, in truth, when you've been doing it for all of your conscious life, your default setting is to see and experience life in terms of movement and dance.

Glen Powell and Lily James

What's the process of choreographing for a film like? 
It depends on the requirement, on how much the dance has its own significance within the narrative. So, Florence Foster Jenkins had an uncut sequence of dance, because that character was taking the floor and dancing, as part of his story. That lead to three months of tutoring, as well as the choreography of the sequence itself. With Snow White, the movement on screen was incidental, used in this case to show Snow White and her Little People getting more comfortable with each other and having a moment of enjoyment while on a dangerous quest.

In any case, the script is first to contextualise the movement, followed by the music for me to prepare for the first meeting with the director, who'll describe what they want the scene(s) to serve. Then, communications with the 2nd A.D. to schedule sufficient rehearsals, which will be filmed and shared with the director, producers, costume department and talent in question to practice and refine before shooting.

How would you say choreographing for the screen is different from choreographing for live dance or theatre? 
With live dance or theatre, you have to put emphasis on links and continuum in a way that is eradicated by the editing process of television or film.

The choreography in The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is beautiful. Was there anything in particular that inspired you? 
Thank you! My inspiration was easily found. I love jazz music of pretty much any era with a fervent passion, so the scene in the jazz club was dreamy for me. As usual, I research and check that I'm historically accurate - a process that is inspiring enough in itself. Lily James has a dance background, so could pick up choreography pretty much through osmosis and Glen Powell committed his efforts and attention to the task with an energy that was an utter credit to him!

From the Guernsey movie

How does choreographing something set in a historical period like the Guernsey movie or Florence Foster Jenkins differ from something like Maleficent?
If I'm working on a scene that demands historical dance, it really is my duty to all who have gone before to research as thoroughly as possible. Maleficent, although set in a fairie tale, was an approximately medieval fairie tale, so I researched medieval dance and the special interest groups that keep this alive.

Do you have to take the costumes the actors will be wearing into account while choreographing? 
The ladies and gents of the costume department are often wonderfully a few steps ahead of me and insert crafty elasticated gussets and splits into skirts...!!

How do you work with lead actors like Lil James and Glen Powell who might come in with varying levels of dance experience and need to be worked into dance numbers? 
I work as required and as rehearsal and availability render possible. Often, the actor in question will proactively request what they feel they need.

What was your favorite part of working on the Guernsey film? 
This isn't a great answer, but all of it. It was a joy working with the director, Mike Newell, who also had a great appreciation of the impact of well-captured dance in a scene. Lily James and Glen Powell couldn't have been more gratifying to work with and to top it off, I had wonderful dancers!

Is there anything that you're working on now that you're excited about?
I've just finished filming the Horrible Histories Movie, which was a fairly relentless series of joys...so I'm pretty excited to see how that comes out!

You can find out more about Lucie Pankhurst from her website. You can also follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

Photos taken from Lucie Pankhurst's website or from the Guernsey trailer. 

Meet Carly Heitlinger of The College Prepster

I'm so excited that I finally get to share this with you! I had to write a feature story for my Media Writing class and I chose to write about Carly Heitlinger because she's one of my favorite bloggers. I was so happy when she said yes! 

Not many can claim the profession of full-time blogger, but Carly Heitlinger of The College Prepster can. In between Instagramming photos of her toy poodle and exploring New York City, Carly writes posts and makes cute graphics for her blog. Her posts cover everything from fashion to lifestyle advice to frequent giveaways. In addition, she does collaborations with brands, like her recent work with Teen Vogue and Sperry Top-Sider.

A native of Tampa, Florida, Carly started her blog in December 2008 when she was a freshman in college. She attended Georgetown University, where she majored in marketing.

In a recent email interview, she said, “It was great to be able to take what I was learning in the classroom and apply it to my blog and vice versa.” Carly cultivated a preppy aesthetic that appeals to many college girls across the country.

            After her graduation in 2012, she moved to New York City and began work at the Levo League, a start-up company run entirely by women. Its purpose is to provide resources to women to help further their careers, such as mentors, career networks, and job boards to find openings.

Of her time at Levo League, Carly says, “I wore tons of different hats and learned so much throughout that year. It wasn’t without its challenges, but it was a great ‘first job’ experience.”

            This past September, Carly made the difficult decision to quit her job to pursue blogging full-time. She was feeling overwhelmed by working full-time and running her blog and decided to take the chance to see if it worked for her.

“The switch was hard because I didn’t think I would like it,” Carly recounts. “I thought I’d get bored, but it’s been nice to only have to focus on it...and then have a ‘life’ at night and on the weekends instead of working around the clock like I did at college and when I had another job.”

Seven months later, she is happy with her decision and is supporting herself financially with her blogging and brand collaborations.  

            Without a desk job, her days are much less structured. “Every day is different,” she says. “I might have meetings or phone calls or a photo shoot. You just never know!” The ability to work from home allowed her to get her toy poodle—Theodore Fitzpatrick, otherwise known as Teddy—who even has his own Instagram account. Carly has blogged very candidly on the joys and difficulties of owning a dog.

“It’s nice to get an honest perspective about owning a dog, especially in New York City,” says Stefanie Miller, a reader of The College Prepster. “Most people constantly flaunt their adorable pet, but Carly actually discusses how much of a responsibility and a challenge it is.”

Carly's dog, Teddy

            Carly runs a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Tumblr for The College Prepster. With a Twitter that boasts 24,500 followers and an Instagram that has nearly 65,000 followers, social media is clearly an important part of promoting Carly’s brand.

“I think it’s great because readers can pick and choose which platforms they like the most,” Carly says. Her social media represent both her blog and her personally.

            Carly has partnered with brands like Kate Spade, Sole Society and Jack Rogers. She says that she loves the end results of the collaborations though there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work that goes into them. Though working with a brand can be fun, there are also “brainstorming, negotiations, contracts, execution, etc.” to deal with, she says.

            Most recently, Teen Vogue featured a collaboration between Carly and Sperry Top-Sider. Carly and her friend, Mackenzie Horan of Design Darling, went to Westport, Conn. and Newport, R.I. to take photos with new Sperry Top-Sider products. The photos of Carly and Mackenzie wearing cute New England preppy pieces are on Teen Vogue’s website.

            This preppy aesthetic is popular with Carly’s audience. Katie of Katie Kitty Cat is a frequent reader of The College Prepster. “Carly’s blog embodies a sense of sophistication and practicality that makes her blog relatable and enjoyable to read,” she says. “Whether it’s a post about fashion, films, or life advice, you can always take something useful away from her posts.”

            As for tips for aspiring bloggers? Carly stresses that starting with the right intentions is crucial. Her blog shows that blogging is enjoyable and rewarding, but also hard work, as Carly is very open about the amount of time and thought that go into writing posts. “Beyond that, coming up with original content and being authentic in your blog is the best thing you can do!” Carly says.

Find Carly at www.thecollegeprepster.com or follow her on Twitter or Instagram. 

All images used with permission of Carly Heitlinger.