Premiering June 1st on Netflix is the movie A Beautiful Life, starring actor and songwriter Christopher and actress Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas. We at Survived The Shows had the great pleasure of talking with actor Sebastian Jessen about his experience on the Netflix movie A Beautiful Life and the challenges the role of Oliver gave him. Check out the full interview in the video below!
What’s been the main element in Oliver’s character and the movie in general that fascinates you the most?
SEBASTIAN JESSEN: I was fascinated by his sort of desire to follow his own dreams, instead of just doing the obvious – becoming part of his father’s financial empire. There are clearly some, outside expectations of him that he doesn’t want to live up to. And I think that was an interesting story to tell, really. As for the film and the script it kind of tells that anything can happen. Even the most unexpected can fall like into your hat and be completed life changing. So the importance of seizing the opportunity when it’s there and not letting it pass.
For all the people looking forward to watching the movie, how would you describe A Beautiful Life in just 3 words?
Love, friendship and dreams.
Talking about your character, Oliver, what can you tease about him and his arc in the movie? What can people expect from him?
I can say this much that Oliver is absolutely crucial to Elliot getting the opportunity in his life that he gets. Then Oliver disappears from the story for a while. But when he returns, everything starts to sort of fall apart for Elliot in his life. He tells some truth that don’t really fit into the life that Elliot lives after he has become successful. I guess that answers your question without saying too much.
Talking about your work on set for A Beautiful Life, how would you describe your experience and work with director Medhi Avaz, the cast and crew?
We just had a good time on set, especially with Christopher and Artalan Ismail, the guy who plays the producer. They are like really funny and they created a very good atmosphere and it was just a joy being on set. It was very obvious to me that everyone on set both in front and behind the camera had the ambition to create the best possible result. I think that really shines through. We did everything, all of us, so that was amazing. And regarding Mehdi, I could talk about Mehdi all day if I had to. He’s a great guy. I would actually say I kind of love him a bit.
I had the the opportunity to play the main role in his first film, Why We Live. And he had no resume, no experience making films. He had nothing to show me and he actually didn’t have any money. But I believed in him like 7 years ago and in his vision and his script. I think we made a really, really good film and ever since then I have been involved in all his projects and I dare to say that there will be more in the future, hopefully.
Your character in the movie has a complex friendship with Elliott, played by Christopher. How was it like for you to build this friendship both on and off-set with him?
The chemistry has to be off-set in order to work on set. It was wonderful. We had so much fun, we enjoyed ourselves and we actually helped each other out. He tried to teach me to sing, which he failed miserably. You’ll see that in the film. I helped him with the lines and if he had any questions in connection to the role or acting, I would always be there – if not in person, then on the phone. We hanged out a bit quite a bit, we had a beer once in a while and just talked about life, our kids, our wives. It was getting closer and closer. It was really nice.
The interview with Sebastian Jessen has been edited and condensed for lenght and clarity. Watch the full interview at the top of the article!
A Beautiful Life, starring Christopher, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas and Sebastian Jessen, premieres June 1st on Netflix. Get a preview below!
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