On Friday, April 24, the Patio de la Infanta of the Fundación Ibercaja will host the inaugural event of the sixth edition of the Saraqusta Film Festival. The Canary actress Kimberley Tell will attend as an awardee to open the event. We spoke with her a few hours prior to get to know her a little better and, above all, to recall her excellent work in the series Ena, which has earned her the award from this historic film festival that gains prestige with each new edition.
Congratulations on the award from the Saraqusta Film Festival. Were you familiar with the festival in Zaragoza dedicated to historical cinema?
I was aware of its existence thanks to José Ángel Delgado, its director. He and the production company Cosmos Fan produced the film Planeta 5000, in which I participated a few years ago. So when José Ángel wrote to invite me to participate in the inauguration of the Saraqusta Film Festival, I was incredibly excited. It’s unexpected for me, and I am very flattered, of course.
A large part of the credit goes to your work in Ena, where you portray Queen Victoria Eugenia of Battenberg. How did you feel about receiving such a leading role in a series that was ultimately broadcast on La 1 in prime time?
I hadn’t been given a role of that size before. In fact, during the casting, I auditioned for two characters, the queen and another, her cousin. When I went to the auditions, I felt that I could do it very well, but at no point did I imagine they would give me the role of the queen. Many times they look for actors with more experience or more media presence. But look, it was a surprise and an honor, of course, and also a lot of responsibility. Throughout the process, I felt very supported by Anaïs Pareto, the director. It was also her first major project like this. She had directed episodes of Ministerio del Tiempo and independent films, but this was her first big commission in television. So we both felt very supported by each other.
Now that some time has passed and you have some perspective, do you think this role could be decisive for your career, or is it already?
I hope so, honestly. As an actress, we always have the fear of not working again. In fact, after that, I had a break. Last year, I didn’t shoot anything. I did premiere four things, that’s true, four projects. But I didn’t shoot anything new, and that fear of when I will work again always creeps in.
In fact, Ena hasn’t been your only performance related to royalty. You started by playing Grace Kelly in the series Velvet.
Yes, that was the first thing I did. It was just one episode, but that character impacted me a lot, and I have been reminded of it many times since.
That was the beginning, and then…
After playing Grace Kelly, I moved to Madrid. The first opportunity I got was the series Algo que celebrar, followed by others like Buscando el Norte. However, I consider the series Hierro, which was filmed in my homeland, the Canary Islands, to be one of the most important projects. Additionally, I often get roles as an Englishwoman or a foreigner due to my appearance and my name, and it was actually in Hierro that I was able to speak in my accent for the first time. It was a beautiful project, with an incredible team, and I always cherish it. Later, I worked on Planeta 5000, which I mentioned earlier. It was a wonderful experience with a small team; everyone was very kind, and they treated me wonderfully.
Please tell us more.
Among my recent work, of course, Ena has meant a lot to me. But I’ve also worked on the film 1X2 by Alberto Utrera with Paco León, Stéphanie Magnin, and Raúl Tejón. Interestingly, we also shot in the Canary Islands, although the film is not set there; it was really fun, quite intense, very nocturnal, and also quite eccentric in terms of the acting.
Let’s return to historical cinema. When portraying a real character like a queen, do you feel more constrained than when embodying a fictional character?
It is always a bit daunting to play a character that actually existed. But in this case, I was able to learn a lot from her, and I researched using Pilar Eyre’s novel, which inspired the series. I also looked for other books and even letters between Alfonso XIII and Ena from when they were dating. There are also letters from people around them that spoke about them. I even found an interview with the queen when she was older. With all that, I formed a picture of the person.
I imagine your profession involves a lot of play, and wearing period costumes or filming in palace settings must really help your work.
Yes, absolutely. To start with, the corsets or the weight of the dresses place you in a different space and posture. It’s impossible to sit as you would at home. Moreover, we had a historical advisor who guided us on protocol and many details. And as if that weren’t enough, the makeup transforms you into another person. By the way, since the series covers her entire life, as she ages, I needed more time for characterization using prosthetics. It took almost four hours of preparation before we started shooting.
But you don’t just act in the series; you also sing the opening theme.
Yes. When I met Anaïs, I think it was during the first costume fitting, we talked about my music. She was very good friends with Bronquio, the composer of the series’ soundtrack. So I shared my excitement about his music. Suddenly she suggested that if I wanted to try composing something with him to see if we could use it for the opening theme or just to experiment. I wrote the lyrics as if I were Ena, and it came out well. It was about experimenting, and we liked it.
The fact is that you have a parallel career as a musician, right?
Yes, yes, yes. I have my music project, although it has been a bit on hold for a while. For various reasons, from family situations to being busy with shoots. It’s a bit paused, not abandoned, just paused. Although I also have another project with two friends where we act as DJs. We are Cool Nenas.
You don’t stop. What else do you have in the works now?
I am currently filming the second season of El centro for Movistar Plus, which is going really well. We should finish around June, and then I’ll start another shoot. But I can’t give you any details about that yet. You’ll have to wait.
We will wait. In the meantime, we can only wish Kimberley luck in this and all the many projects to come.
