Anna Castillo: “As a therapy user, psychology interests me more”

How did you get this piece of paper? Because Arde worked with Anna R. Costa at Madrid?

It was very unexpected for me because I knew that Anna was going to make an adaptation of ‘Easy Reading’ and I talked to her. But he never thought about actresses like me: acquaintance, my age, my profile… They were looking for older and some kind of disabled. I begged him to even give me a cameo. And suddenly they offered me one of the characters. I remained dead It was an intense creative process. Because the four actresses had many doubts, many insecurities.

I guess it wouldn’t be easy working with such an unrecognizable Natalia Molina as Marga…

There is a point where we entered the universe of four girls and mental retardation went up to the fourth level. For me, meeting Marga and wondering if she fucked Kevin was much more interesting than her injury. We just didn’t see him anymore. It was about finding more characters. Because Nati, for example, speaks aggressively with a very prominent political discourse. I was looking for the bodily, the inexpressive, but everything he said, for it to be meaningful. To be consistent.

Has the book been read?

No. I knew what it was about and was going to read it when they presented me with the newspaper. But they said it would be better to wait for me since they are different universes. I did it later.

Have they talked to people with disabilities?

Yes, we went to see the supervised apartments to see what it’s like to live together, the group dynamics between them. We also worked with a supervised apartment assistant who was constantly shooting and giving us advice. And I went to do many integrated dance lessons with La Troca, who was featured in the show, to see how they connect people with disabilities with very important things through art. What is my character’s journey: connecting with expression through dance.

Surprise how it moves. Does having a dance education as a child affect it?

Yes, but then dance and when I go to a party, I have an affair. Moreover, integrated dance is bodily, an artistic expression… It has nothing to do with ballet lessons.

Has your psychology studies helped you understand the characters?

I studied psychology but realized that I am more interested in being a therapy user than a psychologist. I always try to be very empathetic, especially in acting. And it was very important in this project.

What disability does Nati have? Autism? Why isn’t he mentioned in the show?.

In fact, it cannot be said what it is. Nati suffers an unexpected injury as a result of an accident. He has the knowledge and foreknowledge, but as a result he is left with the emotional, expressive and emotional management block. When I started working on the character, I thought about autism and was looking for references. But you realize that Nati is a created and scripted character. There is no equal barrier to one another because no two are the same. The beauty of Nati’s character curve has to do with this emotional incapacity that has caused so much frustration for her.

It’s irritating to see how you watch everything and not know how to react.

She feels unfair because she understands everything but because she doesn’t know how to deal with emotions, everything comes out aggressively. He connects with his essence and emotion through movement. And that sounds like a beautiful metaphor to me, because anyone can feel that art attaches themselves to something very personal and that it is a way of expressing what matters most. In fact, you can finally see how he’s more descriptive with people dancing, asking questions, making decisions…

Nati is happy to dance and ride a motorcycle.

Yes, because the wind hits it, it moves, everything moves fast…

Have you received any criticism for not being completely disabled?

It is very important to have representation of disabled characters in audiovisual. And the series was made to be an approach to those people. There are many mentally handicapped actors who could play great characters, but a girl with Nati’s disability couldn’t play the role. There is no improvisation as you have to follow a text. I think people got it.

A magnificent Barcelona is shown, especially Barceloneta. As a Barcelonan you should be very proud.

Yes, my mother is also from Barcelona; My family met at La Salle in Barceloneta… It was very special.

For Anna R. Costa, this is her first solo project. She said she’s ever felt inadequate in a man’s shadow. Did you see him excited?

Yes, of course. It was very exciting for me to see Anna’s process because at ‘Arde Madrid I fell madly in love with her, her mind, her sensibility, her art, her talent… And it was very special to see her grow up to write and produce and direct the series alone. And he did something great. I’ve never had a shoot like this in terms of entertainment, partnership with the team, facilities… It is also determined by the director. Anna gave it the best shot in the world.

On the other hand, Cristina Morales, the writer of ‘Lectura fácil’, did not like the series. What do you think of the controversy they took part in?

I stayed away because I really admire Cristina as a writer and Anna as a playwright, director, producer and everything about her. But these are different tools and codes. Adaptations never go as the reader expects, but this is inspiration, not adaptation. The novel consists of four monologues that cannot be turned into fiction as they wish. So there are many plots, many universes created by Anna. But the views are legit and nothing happens if you don’t like it.

The chain is very interesting projects.

‘Wild Sunflowers’ was an emotional challenge, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done because it was hard to bear the weight of the movie working on motherhood and very painful issues. I’m so proud And ‘Dates to Tell’ has nothing to do with it: a light comedy, a two-week shoot… It was like summer camp: short and fun. Now I’m shooting a mini-series with Netflix called ‘A Perfect Story’ based on a novel by Elisabet Benavent.