“It’s all cringe, I’m very aware of that”: Charli xcx on film and making Erupcja

Set in Warsaw, Poland, the film, released this Friday, follows two women as they complicate their romantic lives, against the backdrop of a volcanic eruption. Directed by Pete Ohs, Erupcja stars and is written by Charli, Lena Góra, Will Madden, and playwright and actor Jeremy O. Harris.

In conversation with Ohs, O. Harris and Madden last night at Picturehouse Central, London, Charli said of her move into film, “Especially in my position, being a musician who wants to act, that’s inherently cringe anyway. It’s all cringe, I'm very aware of that. Also, I am very new to this and wanted to sit back and learn and only really throw suggestion into the ring when I felt very, very passionate about it, or like it was going to be additive in some conversational way.”

“I wasn’t really feeling that desperate to prove myself or be right. I was intimidated, but also really excited to watch the flow. If we ever did this process again, I feel I would be a lot more vocal, but hopefully not in an annoying way.”

Speaking on the unique collaborative process of making Erupcja, she recalled: “Getting together, writing every single day, and then immediately shooting what we had written, was so immersive. It almost felt like theatre in a way. It was very spontaneous, and very inspiring. I just hope that this film encourages other people who are actively making films already to perhaps consider working this way. People who are aspiring filmmakers to go out, grab a camera, and work with their friends in this way.”

Earlier in the day, Charli announced a 24 July release for her next full-length LP, Music, Fashion, Film, sharing a black-and-white cover art with industry titans John Cale, Marc Jacobs, and Martin Scorsese. The record will include recent singles “SS26” and “Rock Music”, followed, presumably, by a film-centric third single which completes the established title pattern.

During the Q&A, O. Harris asked the British artist if lead single B-side “I Keep On Thinking Bout You Every Single Day And Night” is about her Erupcja character Bethany and Góra’s character Nel, to which she replied, “No, but it is about someone you know.”

On working with Góra: “We didn’t know each other before the shoot, and then as we spent these days together, we became more entwined and we got to know each other quite hard and fast. It really did kind of feel like that thing of meeting someone you haven’t seen for years and years and years.”

Erupja is the latest in a slew of film releases from the BRIT and Grammy award-winning singer and producer – acting, writing, producing and scoring projects including A24’s Mother Mary, and Aidan Zamiri directed mockumentary The Moment. Upcoming releases include Gregg Araki’s I Want Your Sex, and an untitled Kyoto movie from Takashi Miike.

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Last Saturday, Charli and her husband, The 1975’s George Daniel, held a surprise fan-focused ‘Conversations’ event and DJ set in East London, where the pair played a mix of BRAT rock remixes, past sleeper hits – “pink diamond”, “Trophy”, “Roll with Me” – and new material including punk-inflected B-side single “Playboy Bunny”.

Later that night, Charli made a secret appearance alongside New York artist The Dare at the final party of phone-free club night Lost, inside its abandoned cinema location in central London.