Interview – Lisa Cerasoli for her novel Nora
Jo Fades Away which led to the short film 14 Days with Alzheimer’s.
(The Memory Thief)
Lisa Cerasoli seems to have had a busy lifestyle since graduating
high school. She worked in L.A as an actor for a while and played roles in
various series such as Oh, Grow Up, Diagnosis Murder, Pensacola Wings of Gold
(Wow), The Pretender and was a series regular on General Hospital. Nowadays she
is known for her novels, On the Brink of Insanity and As Nora Jo fades Away:
confession of a Caregiver, and her new film, “14 DAYS with Alzheimer’s.”
Lisa was introduced to me via Ken Atchity who also introduced her
to her love for writing, and was the executive producer on “14 DAYS with
Alzheimer’s.”
Before I really get into our whole interview I have to
ask. Pensacola Wings of Gold. Tssk tssk - how was it to work with Kenny
Johnson? He was like one of my Oh so bad crushes when I was a teen?
If
memory serves, Kenny had the most incredible pecs sitting atop a sweet six pack
with perfectly bronzed skin and...He was a mighty fine kisser. I’m sorry; is
that what you meant? I mean, he was great to work with - he knew all of his
lines ALL THE TIME! And he’s very nice.
Ha ha ha - Okay, so now that I’m over that.
From everything I have read to date, I can see that your life
holds a whole whack of crazy but interesting experiences. I usually call these
busy lifestyles - full. What is your interpretation?
I read
in The Only Astrology Book You’ll Ever Need that due to the nature of my sign -
double Aquarius with my moon in Gemini - I attract oddballs. Also, I’m
childlike and childish. That said, I like oddballs (I might even be one). And I
outgrew “childish” when I moved from Hollywood to Northern Michigan to care for
my dying father, and then his father...and then his mother. Both my
grandparents died of Alzheimer’s. My grandmother, the fabulous Miss Nora Jo,
died in my home two years ago, surrounded by loved ones. I love acting and
writing, but I’m incredibly lucky to have been able to be there for my family.
Plus, my caregiving experiences brought out the more intense writer in me, and
a filmmaker that had been itching to come to the surface for years. In
summation, my interpretation of my life is that it is “colorful.” It keeps me
on my toes.
As Nora Jo fades Away is a memoir based on your own grandmother. How
did it feel to write and publish something that was so close to your heart?
It
made the caregiving experience more fulfilling. That might sound harsh, but
caring for someone with Alzheimer’s is extremely draining, both emotionally and
physically. My gram got “interviewed” for the book a bunch, so she felt like
she was a part of the process, even if she couldn’t remember it. It kept us
both busy. Also, when the book got published, she absolutely adored the photo I
put on the cover, which was a shot of her when she was twenty-five. She looked
like a Hollywood starlet, truly. She’d walk by the book and say, “Who is that
gorgeous girl on the cover of that book? Oh, for God’s sake, it’s me!” She was
so proud. And I felt like I had figured out how to build a bridge between the
life I had left behind and the one I had now as a caregiver. I guess you could
call that “purpose.” I felt like my old life and new one had joined forces and
I found my purpose.
I could never write reality, simply since my life always seems
fairly dull in comparison with others, what was your initial worry prior to
publishing something so personal?
Well,
I’m not so sure I believe that for a second - that your life is dull. Is it
possible that you don’t want to “lay it all out there?” That’s what a memoir or
nonfiction is to me, it’s taking “your story” and laying it ALL out there. Otherwise, it’s just
a documentation of facts, which can be drab, or dull or boring. I didn’t have
any worries regarding the intimacy of the subject matter Anybody could ask me
anything about my life within five minutes of meeting me and I’d give them a
straight answer. I’ve always been like that: an open book. The only way to
write a book on Alzheimer’s is to get down-right personal. My goal was to reach
out to caregivers, create awareness and entertain while I was doing it. Where’s
the fun in learning when it feels like work? Also, caregiving is a lonely job.
I knew I couldn’t have been the only person feeling that. And, I had yet to
read a book on the subject that defined every aspect of the illness. We had
fun. I went nuts a few times (a day). There were real scares, but also moments
that were so touching between my gram and my five-year-old daughter, Jazz,
because of the illness. If I didn’t
write about all of it, what would have been the point?
Your ratings on Amazon are 5 Star, was it a relief to have so many
readers accept, like and associate with your work?
Yup,
yup and yup! But, my favorite part since I’ve been able to tour the country
with the book and the film is seeing the relief in other people’s eyes when I
speak so frankly about my experience.
How did the novel transgress into the short film “14 Days with
Alzheimer’s?”
I had
just returned from Maria Shriver’s 2010 March Against Alzheimer’s in Long
Beach, California and I felt like there could be a faster and more “current”
way to create Alzheimer’s awareness and reach the masses, especially younger
generations. When that dawned on me, the answer was simple: film. I had to
start filming us. So, I bought a FLIP and carried it around day and night. I
pulled that thing out every time I felt any kind of “Alzheimer’s moment”
happening. And I took out the camera for quite a few regular, day-in-the-life
scenes, and to interview gram. The documentary is a culmination of all of that.
The Short Film has thus far received fifteen national awards
during 2011, ’12 and ’13 including Audience Choice Award in Boulder’s Life
& Death Matters Film Fest, a WIN at the Los Angeles REEL Film Festival,
plus Best Unscripted Film in Randy Becker’s 2013 Web Series and Indie Film
Competition. This is definitely putting something close on another level, how
did you cope with the upward spiral?
I was
happily surprised and so grateful that people wanted to “participate” in my
story, even as a viewer. Watching a film about Alzheimer’s and caregiving is a
bonding experience. My film had a zero budget and I was a first-time filmmaker.
I am indebted to Ken Atchity for stepping into the executive producer position.
He guided me through post production. I had all this film footage on my hands and
virtually no film making skills. So, we started with a one minute and thirty
second mini-movie and worked up to the twenty-nine minute final version. We’d
like to see “14 DAYS...” as a feature, so we’re not done yet!
Was the idea always to support research and patients of
Alzheimer’s?
Yes,
the idea from the onset of the memoir was to create awareness for people who
suffer from Alzheimer’s and other dementia-related illnesses, and to connect
the people who care for those people. Caregivers need to know that they are not
alone in their feelings or their endeavors. Now, bear in mind that I was
already a writer, so the idea was also to occupy my mind and my grandmother’s
time. Writer’s “need” to write. And my gram needed near-constant companionship.
“Necessity is the Mother of Invention,” that’s what they say. I guess,
together, Gram and I created a book and then a film.
How has the general public changed towards you as a person since
the release of your novels and films?
Total
strangers will whisper to me their secrets often before I even know their
names. It’s pretty amazing to know that in some way the book and film have
compelled people to “free” themselves, if only temporarily, of the stories that
burden them as caregivers.
From reading your own Bio one would think that your life has
reached the sky, where to from here on-wards?
I have
a long way to go, a lot of people to reach and a slew of new ideas bouncing
around my brain. I’d like to see As Nora
Jo Fades Away on the New York Times Best Seller list (pretty please!). Let’s
start there.
Where could fans and followers stay in contact?
And
you can find Lisa on Facebook.
I take messages and orders off there all the time.
Thank you so much for the interview!
Lisa thanks for allowing MA to get a glimpse of your very hectic
lifestyle. We wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
