Author: Shaudi Bianca Vahdat
Nicole Clifford in a scene from Glass Casa.
You might recognize actor Nicole Clifford from her appearance in shows like Zoey 101, Heroes, or Everybody Hates Chris. More recently, she was one of the stars of the dark comedy murder mystery Glass Casa. Nicole plays Bianca, the fun-loving friend and former writing partner of a bride-to-be whose bachelorette party is about to take a disastrous turn.
We asked Nicole about the hardest scenes to film in Glass Casa, how the cast perfected their chemistry, and what it was really like to wear that dragon onesie day after day.
On landing the role
So you play Bianca in Glass Casa. How did you land the role?
I was doing a lot of self submitting at the time. So I just found it on one of those breakdown websites and submitted for it.
And I just want to give a very special shout out to my dear and old friend, Tony Pauletto, who is also an actor and a writer/director who I met in acting classes years ago. He is the person who helped coach me and record my audition. And it was one of those times where I was like, “Did we do really good with that one?” He was like, “I think we did.” Did a little high five and, you know, life went on, but then it came back around and I was like, “I knew it.” I just knew.
Do you remember what scene you did for your audition?
Yes, it’s the scene towards the end of the movie where Bianca starts to be like, “I think I know what’s happening…” It’s just a little spiral scene of trying to tell your friend why they shouldn’t trust their instincts, why they should trust your instincts. Very fun.
On finding Bianca
What were your first impressions when you read the full script?
I read it like twice in one day because, for me, reading the script as many times as possible is the most important way, or maybe the most direct way to understand why your character does things.
Reading the script for the first time with Bianca in mind was very fun and interesting because I was like, “Okay, first of all, I’m on so many pages, how exciting!”
And then second of all, I love a murder mystery. And really early on when we were doing table reads, I spoke to Laa, the writer-director, and was like, “Am I getting a little bit of Clue vibes here?” Which was one of my all time favorite movies, like a cornerstone of my childhood. Clue from the mid 80s, Tim Curry is a God. And just kind of Scooby Doo-esque.
Picking up those little things, even in a script, is really, really exciting because it’s one of the things I love about watching movies, when you see something and you’re like, “Oh my god, that’s definitely an homage to that other thing! Oh my god, that’s Tarantino!” [Finding homages is] one of the great things about being a cinephile. And when you can see it even in the script, that’s so cool and really exciting.
Was this your first time being in a whodunit or murder mystery?
Yes. And [it’s] my literal favorite genre— like thriller, suspense, mystery, that’s my jam! That’s my favorite stuff to watch. So it was really cool to be in it and be like, man, I hope someone somewhere out there is like, “Oh, I love this type of movie!” And then I’m in it. ‘Cause I had so much of that growing up.
Was there an “Aha!” moment either in reading the script, in your prep work, or on set where you felt you really got who Bianca was?
In all honesty, I think I’m the kind of person who is forever a perfectionist. So I think if I ever actually had that moment, I’d be like, “I don’t think I should play this part.”
Because knowing the character you play is super important, obviously. But for me, the thing that keeps a character grounded in reality is a pinch of unknown.
Because I’m a human, right? And sometimes I do things and I’m like, “Why the hell did I react like that?” And then I have to go sit and ruminate and be like, “Ah, we were triggered because of that thing we tried to bury 26 years ago!”
So I really, really feel like I know who Bianca is, but I don’t know that I have that “Aha, Eureka!” moment, because I don’t know that I’ve ever had that moment myself, for me as a person.
I know who I am, but I don’t know why I do everything I do. I would love to. But in the evolution and discovery of being a human and interacting with people in the world, Eurekas never occurred to me as a part of the process.
It’d probably be really cool. That’s probably what Meryl Streep does. She reads three lines in and she’s like, “I’ve got it. Let’s go.” But me, no. I’m more of a sifter in the Old West, trying to find little nuggets, being like, “I think that’s about a quarter of a gram.” It’s honest work.
So it sounds like your process is to stay in that discovery mode.
Yeah, because I think, if I know everything that this character does and all the motivations for this character, it feels like I can’t be surprised on set. Or if I’m surprised on set, I’m not surprised, I’m jarred. And I don’t know if that would gel with the situation or the circumstances. So I’m like, “Know the lines. Know the character.” But knowing everything feels futile, and maybe not necessary, because I like the spontaneity. I like being caught off guard, but not thrown off guard.
On why the shoot felt like summer camp
What were the vibes like on set?
[Laa] gave us so much room to play. It was really, really nice.
That’s also one of the great things about being on set with a female lead of the project. Because I believe that women communicate a lot through intuition and nonverbal gestures and stuff. So it was really cool to [be with the other actors between takes] and we would all lock eyes and read each other’s faces and be like, we’re gonna go again. And then we’d all nod at each other like, I think I know why we’re going again. Let’s go again.
Laa was really great about [being] like, “I built you an amusement park, go play.” We were like, “Okay! La la la la la.”
I mean, it sounds like you all developed kind of like a secret nonverbal language with each other.
Yeah, [we were shooting for] a little over two weeks. And it was very much like a nuclear family. We were filming at that gorgeous house. Which [was] so nice. Gorgeous, incredible set to film on.
And then Laa was letting most of the cast stay in her actual house, just a couple of miles away [from set]. So it really was like going to summer camp. Like, “Oh, we’re gonna go see all the counselors today. And go put on a show today. And then we’ll go home and sit and watch a movie and make s’mores and then do it again tomorrow!” It was really awesome. And it was my first real feature film experience. So I was like, “Man, if this is it, I’ll take some more. I’ll take some more. Thank you.”
All of you staying together must have really helped your onscreen chemistry.
Absolutely. And I think it really helps with that sort of nonverbal communication because when you observe someone in their downtime, or when they don’t feel observed, you really get a sense of who they are and how they approach life or their general vibe and energy. So that later when you’re on set, in front of people, you can clock it. So [we’re a] very tight-knit group of gals actually.
It’s been really magical and beautiful how close we’ve all gotten. I’m gonna know and love these girls forever, so that’s just a nice little extra cherry on the sundae.
Nicole Clifford (left) and Harley Bronwyn in a scene from Glass Casa.
On that dragon onesie and her toughest scene
Well, here’s a question that’s a little bit of a pivot. You wear a dragon onesie for a large portion of the film. Was it comfortable?
It was comfortable in the sense that it felt nice to be in, but I love fashion. So getting to watch the girls change into other outfits, I was like, “Oh, that’s cool.” About day 10, 11, I was just like, “I’m sweating in my own ecosystem here.”
It was very cute and very fun initially. And then the longer it went on, the more I was like, “I just want my skin to feel the air again!” But it played really nice with Bianca’s journey in the movie. ‘Cause she does get a little crazy-peel-off-my-flesh for a minute there.
But yes, it was a love-hate relationship when I took it off at the end.
Do you remember a scene that was either particularly challenging or rewarding to shoot?
I’d say probably the most challenging was when we had to carry Jon [Huybrecht] the stripper up and down the hallway and around. That’s a long hallway. And Jon is a gorgeous, handsome, svelte man, [but] still like 6’3. We were little girls. And then Justin [Justin Michael Terry, who plays Charlie]. I love Justin, but he wasn’t doing that much helping, it didn’t feel like.
So definitely the most challenging day was trying to physically carry someone, to where we’re not putting him spread eagle to the camera, trying to be considerate to his privacy needs and then also carrying the weight. And then also being like, “Don’t carry the weight here [in the face]. We’re supposed to be reading lines here.” That was a very physically laborious one.
And Jon was such a great sport. What a perfect corpse. It’s not easy to play a corpse. It’s not easy. Especially with buns exposed. He really locked in and was just like, “Nope, I’m unconscious.” I don’t know if I can do that with my cheeks out.
[Also] I really, really liked filming the group scene in the living room at the end, where Bianca’s like, kind of spinning out on all of these theories, but she knows she’s circling something real.
So it was great to just have everybody in one room. We’re all really just sitting and chilling on the couch, but there’s a lot of exposition and plot verbally happening. Those are always fun for me. Cause I like a wide frame, I like everybody here, getting everybody’s energy together and kind of ping ponging off of people.
On why you need to see Glass Casa
So who should watch this movie?
Honestly, the movie is for everyone. Like, my mom watched it with my niece, and she was like, “We both loved it.” So honestly, the movie is for everyone.
If you can’t find something to like in it, that’s okay. But it’s so fun, it’s silly, it’s kind of scary, there’s the mystery, there’s the romance, there’s the adventure, there’s highs, there’s lows. There’s a stripper for God’s sake! It’s just all really fun.
It’s a movie made by people who really love movies. So if you like movies even this much, you gotta see it. You gotta!
Last question: is there anything you wish I’d asked you about that I didn’t?
Set romances. There weren’t any, but it would have been nice to be asked. Ask me about drama. There wasn’t any, but I could have feigned some. [Laughs] No, not really.
A huge thank you to Nicole for taking the time to chat with us!
Check out Nicole’s Instagram for her recent short film, and to get updates on her upcoming project, The Door, about people in the food service industry. You can also catch her in the short Boyfriends or her many other credits!
Please note: this interview has been edited for length and clarity.