The Wonderful Life of Ayelet Zurer
Written By Vaughn Stewart
Photography by Ben Cope
Clothing and Styling by Jonathan Marc Stein
MUA and Hairstylist: Yaniv Katzav
When you’re talking to Ayelet Zurer you quickly realize something; She knows who she is and she has her life together. Cool America sat down with her to talk about her acting career, goals, love and harmony.
Hi, Ayelet. When did you first get the acting bug?
I wasn’t a girl who dreamed about acting or movies. I was not aware the option existed. I loved movies and was always watching them with my older sisters. We would sit far from the TV watching Egyptian movies, while I was smack close to the screen. I would be so taken by the story, sometimes cry when the drama was over the top, and they would all laugh at me, so I figured crying was shameful. One afternoon, I was playing with my friends outside, fell and hurt myself. I ran home crying and passed right by the door, where my dad hung a new mirror, he’d bought. As I ran, I was able to get a glimpse of my red tearful face. Something made me stop and I went back to get a better look at myself. I was fascinated with the way I looked when I cried. I stood there crying, fascinated by the way it looked. I think it was in that moment that I saw myself from the outside and yet from the inside; something actors experience. A strange thing. In any case it was a revelation.
What was you first professional job?
Don’t ask. A photographer and neighbor looked for a teen for a sofa sleeper ad. He gave me the job. I had to lay on a teen sofa that opened to a bed. The slogan of that ad was “the best lay” which had double meaning, obviously. It was horrendous; particularly for a teen. This was the 80’s so I am glad something like that can’t happen today.
Let’s talk about Finding Alice. Your role as Alice seems very intense?
Yes, it was. Alice is a film director who has “everything;” a famous husband and a relatively good career teaching film and making commercials, plus three kids yet she feels stagnated in her creative life, with a massive writer’s block and maybe a mid-life crisis. The story ends where she is completely letting go of her own boundaries and morals in order to achieve perfection in her art. She burns like a phoenix and takes everyone around her. I loved playing the journey between the two polar ends. It was intense and I had to ride that roller costar so that the audience would ride it too.
Are you working on any other projects currently?
I am working on my own projects. That’s what I do in the lulls between jobs. And soon “YOU” will come out on Netflix so you can see me there in different and a very a fun role.
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