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If Rena Owen had never been a junkie, never slipped into the night needing a
fix, and had never gone to prison, she would never have become the star of
New Zealand's highest grossing homegrown film. In Manhattan's Four Seasons
restaurant, the actress raises her glass to toast the tenth anniversary of
her freedom - all the sweeter because of the acclaim she's receiving for her
portrayal of a battered Maori wife in Once Were Warriors.
How Owen got here is a movie plot in itself. At the time of her arrest on
drug charges, the New Zealander was living in London, spending her days as
a nurse and her nights as a party girl with the likes of Nick Cave and Boy
George. (The other day I actually said, 'Nick Cave - is he still alive?'
Because I was doing drugs with him quite a lot.") It was only while
serving eight months in prison and going through therapy that Owen realized
the real fix her life needed. The day she was released, she answered an ad
for Maori actresses to audition for a play. Owen recalls, "The woman said,
'What kind of experience do you have?' And I said, 'Some plays in high school.'
But then I said, 'What is it about?' She said, 'It's about women in prison.'
My mouth just dropped and I said, 'I've just come out of prison!' I had what
none of the other actresses had - the truth."
Owen worked her way back to New Zealand, where she found steady employment
writing scripts and starring on television. After a bit part in Rapa Nui
(she rolls her eyes at the mention of the film), she was cast in Warriors.
"I had to take myself to the edge," she says. "But I knew I'd be okay." She
smiles. "Prison forces you to develop an internal life - you're not afraid to
go into the deep, dark, ugly roles, because you've been there." |
