One El Of An Actress

Chiswick's El Krajewski takes centre stage in ‘Love does Grow on Trees’

Chiswick has its very own answer to Sienna Miller as budding actress El Krajewski takes centre stage in the short film ‘Love does Grow on Trees’, featuring in the BFI London Film Festival starting next week.

El, 20, who grew up near Chiswick and also featured in Holby City in May, says that her participation in ‘Love Does grow on Trees’, a film which won the Newcomer of the Year award at the 2008 Rushes Soho Short Film Festival, was serendipitous: “my agent rang me up one afternoon and asked if I was free the following morning because they had a short film for me. The girl who was originally cast had had to drop out at the last minute, so I had one night to get to grips with the character – not just learn the lines, but really understand the role!”

The film is a coming of age story about a young boy – Danny, played by Luke Ward Wilkinson, of TV series, Wild at Heart. Initially the film takes a humorous insight into the teenager’s discovery of porn, but eventually he turns his attentions to a real girl he meets at the bus stop – enter El, stage right.

The film’s director, Bevan Walsh, says,“The film is me looking back at all the girls the shy teenage me fell in love with but never spoke to; and how most teen boys are just looking at porn because they are inquisitive. It’s a stepping stone to growing up, by the end of the film Danny is well on his way to becoming an adult”.

On discovering El, Bevan enthuses, “Finding El was just pure luck to be honest; we didn’t even have time to meet her before the day of shooting. I had no idea what she’d be like or if she’d be able to pull it off but I was put at ease pretty quickly because she was lovely and enthusiastic and luckily, she could act!”

‘Love Does Grown on Trees’ is set to go from strength to strength over the coming months, as it goes to the Uppsala International Short Film Festival in Sweden, the Berlin International Short Film Festival, the Leeds International Film Festival and the Foyle Film Festival in Northern Island, to name a few.

As for El, with her filmic debut underway, her star continues to shine, saying of her ideal role, “The script is what influences me - I have to fall in love with the script!”, and as for ‘Love does grow on Trees’ – she says “It was an amazing experience, and I am so lucky to have been chosen to do it”.

Bonnie Friend

October 10, 2008