Cheri Lasota is here today to share with us who she thinks would be perfect to play the characters in her book Artemis Rising.
Movie Casting for Artemis Rising
Who would I cast for my characters if Artemis Rising were made into a movie?
Nelly Furtado as Eva Maré
I always make electronic photo collages for my characters. It's just a part of my process. I had picked singer Nelly Furtado as my main character, because she had the blue eyes and olive skin I needed. When I learned that her family originates from the Azores Islands and she is full-blooded Azorean, just like my main character, I was thrilled! She has a beautiful face and stunning blue eyes. When I lived among the Azoreans for a time, one of the things that surprised me most was just how amazing their skin was. Smooth and glowing and naturally tan. Nelly's skin is like that, and she was a great model for my character.
Tyler Nordby as Tristan Vazante
Along with my Director Bill Thoma and several other of my filmmaker friends, I made a book trailer for Artemis Rising that looks very much like a movie trailer. We hired on local actors, so my two leading male characters are the two featured in my book trailer. I spent a lot of time poring through images and talking with actors. I wanted to get as close to the image I'd had in my mind through the years that I spent writing the novel. Tyler Nordby just had that sweet face and the kind eyes I was looking for. Tristan's blue eyes are a central element of my novel, so it was important that I choose an actor who had the right eye color. Tyler's personality was very similar to Tristan's, so that made it quite easy for me to see him in the role. Tyler
is an up and coming actor, who played a high schooler in Twilight and starred in a short film called Deviation.
Montetré as Diogo Cheia
Montetré is a theater actor, film actor and director. He probably wears more hats than that, but I'm losing count! He's intense, naturally talented, and riveting to watch. And I was privileged to have him in my book trailer as the driven and obsessed Diogo Cheia.
Elisha Cuthbert as Isabel Infante
Isabel is a selfish but attractive girl. Eva even calls her the most beautiful girl she'd ever seen. Elisha Cuthbert, while beautiful, can have that kind of haughty look to her when she's showing emotion. She'd probably nail this character in a film version of Artemis Rising.
Joaquim De Almeida as Conde Estrela
The first time I saw this actor, he was the villain in Clear and Present Danger with Harrison Ford. He had a mesmerizing voice and unusual but compelling eyes. He makes a good fit for Conde Fernando Estrela, Eva and Tristan's adoptive father. Conde Estrela is known in the story as a mysterious and melancholy man. Joaquim's facial expressions definitely play into that tone. The actor is also from Lisbon, Portugal.
Penelope Cruz as Maria Maré
Penelope Cruz has a sort of playful mouth and nose, but her eyes can be very serious. This combination fits Maria, Eva's mother, completely. She would have had a lighthearted personality if life and hard circumstances hadn't stolen her joy. She is a woman of many secrets.
Anthony Hopkins as Padre Salvador
Anthony is one of my favorite actors and Padre Salvador is one of my favorite characters, so he seems like the perfect fit for this character. One of the first films I saw him in was Legends of the Fall. Interestingly, my novel would not exist without this film. I first heard the name Tristan and learned about the Legend of Tristan and Isolde from this film. That led me to research it further and the rest is history. Anthony has a commanding presence and piercing eyes, and I imagine Conde Estrela to be blessed with both of those traits, despite his ill health.
Author Bio: Cheri Lasota’s first novel, Artemis Rising, is a YA historical fantasy based on mythology and set in the exotic Azores Islands. Currently, Cheri is writing and researching her second novel, a YA set on the Oregon Coast. Over the course of her sixteen-year career, she has edited fiction, nonfiction, screenplays, and short stories for publication. Cheri also has twenty-four years of experience writing poetry and fiction.
Learn more about the novel or contact Cheri at http://www.cherilasota.com
. The book is available in all digital formats and can be purchased at SpireHouseBooks.com, iTunes, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and KoboBooks.com.
Artemis Rising by Cheri Lasota Publisher: Spirehouse Books (September 13, 2011) Reading Level: Young Adult Format: ebook On the voyage home to the Azores Islands, Eva accepts the pagan name of Arethusa but learns too late that her life will mirror the Greek nymph’s tragic end. Her mother reveals that her destiny lies with Diogo, the shipowner’s volatile son. But Eva has a vision of another…
When the ship founders in a storm off the coast, Tristan, a local boy, saves her life and steals her heart. Destined to be with Diogo yet aching for Tristan’s forbidden love, Eva must somehow choose between them, or fate will choose for her.
This is an engrossing novel in which several strands of myth combine to create a complex yet beautifully simple romance. It is at its highest level an exploration of fundamental philosophical questions—the debate between fate and choice, the nature of love and desire, the tenacious and often dangerous hold of belief on the human psyche. At bottom, and the reason why you will love it, this is a bildungsroman about a girl finding her way to adulthood and a story about two lovers both separated and entwined by their beliefs.
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