Todd Brendan Fahey interviews ‘’American Pie’’ actress Shannon Elizabeth

We all remember her as the “foreign exchange student from Czechoslovakia” in the smash hit American Pie; though not directly responsible, she has caused more untidiness in the bedrooms of adolescent males and grown men than…well, probably than any girlfriend or wife has ever accomplished. Actress Shannon Elizabeth recently wrapped up the filming of Swing Away — a golf comedy with romance and heart — and which has been produced by my 30-year pal George Elias Stephanopoulos, who I met while in a “semester-abroad” program at University of London-Union College in 1985; an attorney by day/indie movie powerhouse somehow in his other hours, Mr. Stephanopoulos successfully optioned the world’s bestselling golf novel, Golf in the Kingdom — written by Michael Murphy, who founded Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California — an enclave of meditation, psychedelic exploration and goings-on which are likely Classified. Golf in the Kingdom was optioned by Clint Eastwood and explored for a decade; then purchased by Warner Brothers and sat upon for years. From pen to theater audiences, 40 years would pass.

Invited to the isle of Rhodes, Greece in May for 11 days by George Elias Stephanopoulos, I was privileged to interview the cast of Swing Away — an exceptional group of minds, which include several of the most-acclaimed actors of Greece; an incredibly talented Scottish actor/comedian/singer-songwriter and the incomparable John O’Hurley (Seinfeld’s recurring “J. Peterman”), a lightning-quick mind and who I will deem now a genius.

*All (or most…) photos and videos taken on and around the set of Swing Away are proprietary by contract, and hence the delay in mine reportage of these wonderful days, “hanging out and Dancing With the Stars.”

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Todd Brendan Fahey Interviews Shannon Elizabeth

Interview of June 18, 2015; published August 20, 2015

[Hi Todd — Sorry for the delay. Been catching up since coming back from Greece.]

Todd Brendan Fahey: Please introduce and describe your character in Swing Away

Shannon Elizabeth: My character is Zoe Papadopoulos and she’s a golf pro on the LPGA tour who gets suspended for bad behavior and escapes to visit her grandparents in Greece to regroup and find herself again while riding out her suspension.

How did you learn of this movie, and what made you interested in portraying the role of Zoe?

The film was brought to me over a year ago by the producers. I met with a previous director and then Michael Nickles who came on board as our final director and fearless leader. I read many rewrites of the script and once Michael came on board and got his hands on the script, I was sold. I also had the pleasure of meeting Manos Gavras in LA over a year ago and his involvement and passion for the project and working with me made me excited to work on the film too. It’s always good to work with good people who have a similar vision as you do for the project.

Are their any parallels to your own life which you could bring/draw upon for the development of the character of Zoe?

There are many parallels to this character and my own life. I am a very competitive tomboy type of girl, just like Zoe. I played professional poker and competitive tennis growing up. So the athlete has always been a part of me. I also am a very passionate person with an occasional temper, just like Zoe. I’m also a caregiver, nurturer type. So playing a role who gets to help people and take care of the village and this little girl was such a nice change from some of my past roles. I felt like I was getting to play something much closer to who I am.

Director Mike Nickles made a point in his interview with me, that he is happy to allow actors (generic, both male and female) to bring to the script ideas which would make a better movie; please tell of some examples that you witnessed of this occurring while shooting Swing Away.

Michael was always open to hearing our ideas about what the character might say or do in any situation if we wanted to change things a bit. He was very collaborative. Especially because there were daily rewrites being done and sometimes things needed to be cut down. So he was always considering all opinions on what was important to the character or storylines and what wasn’t.

This being a movie with a cast of predominately Greek actors (and being produced by Greek-American and Greek producers/investors), what did you see in the performances of the Greek cast which was unique and different from your previous experience with actors?

It was a lot of fun for me to be able to work on a film where a lot of the dialog was in another language, including my own. I was able to watch the passion that comes through in the Greek actors when they’re speaking Greek and what they do with their hands and voice when they speak. It really helped me when it came time for me to say my lines in Greek.

Of young performer Viktoria Miller, who plays golf prodigy Stella, please describe your experience with her — both as characters and as humans on- and off-set.

Victoria and I became very close. If I had a daughter I’d imaging her being just like Victoria. She’s an absolute love and a very bright girl. You could see her constantly watching us and registering things in her mind and then implementing them as an actress. Her memory is incredible. What she was able to do by the end of the movie was very evolved from the beginning, just from immersing herself in the experience. She’s got a very bright future ahead of her no matter what she decides to do.

Thanks so much!!

Shannon Elizabeth

Ganesha Productions