Gorgeous and determined, these are the first words that come to mind when discovering Lily Haze. She contacted us with a list of unique accomplishments and a current interest in quite an interesting fetish, as you'll see below...
1) What can you tell us about your background, upbringing, etc.?
Well, I was raised in a bad part of Baltimore City (they aren’t hard to find). When I was a kid, my mother had to teach me not to pick up the used condoms and hypodermic needles when we went to the park. When I was 8, we moved to a better, more suburban, area, surrounded by little old ladies and families.
I was skipped around in school a lot because no one knew what to do with me. By the age of 9, I was reading on a college level. I was also 3ft tall, extremely opinionated, and about to enter 6th grade. My mother, a teacher, decided to put me in private school so I wouldn’t spend my entire middle school career stuffed inside my own locker.
I ended up at a very small private school. It was theatre-focused. Our day started at 8am and ended at 4pm. Academics were in the morning and the afternoon was all arts classes, including things like Music Theory, Music History, Theatre History, and Diction. The school was K-12 but the arts classes were not arranged by age or grade, but rather by experience. We were also affiliated with a school in London and were subject to grueling yearly exams, both oral and written, in Music theory and in Speech and Drama, all at a college level. I graduated high school with 24 college credits in the bag.
It was an extremely repressive, uptight, and suffocating environment, which may explain how I ended up heading in exactly the opposite direction shortly after graduation :-)
2) Why do you think that at some point you became attracted to alternative photography?
I’d say I’ve always been fascinated with sensuality and eroticism- my childhood idols were Jessica Rabbit, Betty Boop, and Breathless Mahoney (Madonna in Dick Tracy). However, it took me until college to start exploring my wilder side.
To be honest, I was very much the “Ugly Duckling” growing up, so I was a little late in realizing my own potential to be attractive in front of a camera. But I have always enjoyed performing and I love attention, so I started asking my roommate and my boyfriend to take pictures of me in different costumes.
When I turned 18, I started working in a strip club as a dancer and it was the most exciting thing I had ever done at that point. People talk about degradation and female disempowerment in that industry and I just shake my head. You don’t know how powerful you can feel until you're up on that stage, owning the audience, feeling them all want you…
Don’t get me wrong, the sex industry is NOT for everyone and there are plenty of horrible things that happen to good people. I saw girls go terribly wrong as they drank themselves into a stupor – liquid courage to perform- and dropped out of school. But I went in knowing who I was, what I wanted, and exactly how far was too far. More on that another time…
Anyway, as I came to embrace my sexuality, I wanted to explore more and more. Fetishes are fascinating to me; even the ones I don’t find arousing on a personal level are worth knowing about. I actually want to go back to school for a degree in Human Sexuality.
3) You seem to have some experience as a dancer, are there many different styles that you’re at ease with?
Hahaha, yeah, I’ve done some dancing ;-)
But I was also classically trained in Ballet, Modern, Jazz and Spanish Dance, as well as one year of Tap. I’m terrible at remembering choreography, so I don’t know how comfortable I am with any of them, though…
4) Also you have many credits working in theater… are we right to guess that you started performing as a child?
Yessir. As I mentioned in question 1, I started at a theatre school at age 9. They ran a dinner theatre and we all performed there as part of our school. It was mandatory to be in at least 3 shows per year, but I was usually in all of them. Not all of them are even listed on my resume, since I was often thrown into the chorus or asked to fill in at the last minute when someone called out. I loved performing, but I resented the fact that, due to my height (5ft, fully grown) I was eternally restricted to playing children.
5) Is there something in particular that you look for when you go through the portfolio of a photographer you would like to work with?
Production quality, image quality, imagination, creative angles and posing, effective use of lighting, attention to detail. If someone writes to me and all they have are bikini babes posing on motel beds, I won’t give them a second glance.
6) Can you share some info with us about the Lily’s Midnight Snacks project? What gave you the idea to put yourself often on… a culinary menu?
The site is really coming along! It’s my first time building a website, so it’s a learning process, but I’m enjoying communicating with the fans and the cann-fetish community. The fetish is technically not about showing the cannibalism, it’s more based in “Damsel in Distress” scenarios and seeing girls prepared like food. There is a darker subset that likes the gory stuff, but I’m not really heading that direction. I like the idea of making the videos more like old school horror films where the scariest parts usually happen off-screen. Audiences are so desensitized now, with every director just coating their sets and actors in fake blood (not that I don’t like some of that, as well) that I am enjoying channeling the horror of the unknown, or the implied.
Bill George was actually the impetus behind the project. The original idea was a fetishistic horror film, involving cann-fetish and tickling. I thought it sounded fun and kinda campy. He and I are both huge fans of campy movies, so I signed on to star. As it developed, we realized between us we had enough ideas for plenty of short films as well.
I have actually already written the script for the first full length film (3 “twisted fairy tale” vignettes, tied together with narration) but right now, we are doing shorter 10-20 minute downloads to sell so we can fund the bigger projects.
We just wrapped our first shoot on Thursday! I had written a short scene, complete with camera angles and dialogue, so I took the reins and ran with it on the set. I was really nervous to be both the star and the director, but it actually came really naturally. I’ll admit, I did stop every now and then to be make sure I wasn’t being a bitch. They all assured me I was just being authoritative, hehe. I’m so paranoid about crossing that line because I know it’s easy to get used to bossing people around, but I am very patient and very respectful to everyone because I believe in the Golden Rule (treat others as you would like to be treated).
Did I mention I go off on tangents a lot?
7) You have a partnership with celebrated author Bill George… how did you guys get together and what kind of creative teamwork do you both share right now?
Bill is a really great guy. Besides acting as my manager, promoter, and co-producer, he has become my mentor. He was the one who introduced me to cann-fetish and explained the ideas behind it.
We met, funny enough, because he had posted an ad on Craigslist for an actress in a horror film and I answered it (don’t try this at home, kids). We have a lot of the same tastes in films and music and a similar tendency to verbosity (something I even mentioned in our earliest email interactions). We also, despite the generational gap, have some very similar world views- be willing to work hard for things you want, don’t take people for granted, and more people should read a damn book once in a while!
8) Regardless of the project, is it more enjoyable for you to play the predator or the prey?
Ah, an age old question…
I’m a switch by nature, so I enjoy both. I guess at this point, I do jump at the chance to play the predator sometimes. By nature of being “little and cute”, I’ve been so often looked down upon. It’s nice to get my own back now and then ;-)
9) It’s very obvious that you should be in a film project at some point! What kind of roles would you like to play? Or are there any super-heroines you would enjoy portraying?
::blush:: Thank you!
I have always wanted to play a Femme Fatale, since before I knew that’s what they were called. I also have a list of dream roles in musicals including: Mary Lane in Reefer Madness the Musical, The Witch in Into the Woods, and Sally Bowles in Cabaret.
As far as super-heroines… I cosplay as Zatanna sometimes, but I’d rather play a villainess or an anti-hero type. I’ve always found the anti-heroes and the bad guys so much more dynamic. My first favorite was Catwoman. She was technically a villain, but I never saw her as bad. No one that sexy and charming can be all bad, right? Plus, Julie Newmar in that outfit fueled an ardent love of corsets that has yet to waver.
10) Are there any other kinds of fetish themes that you’d like to explore? Would you ever be open for BDSM stuff, shibari rope work, domination/submission, etc.?
If there is a good chance to stretch my acting chops, I may be open to it. Generally, I would say “Bring it on” but that’s not quite the direction I’m headed at the moment. Still, I am willing to let a good artist change my mind, as long as it doesn’t hurt too much!
11) What are your favorite activities to do when it’s time to relax and not come up with more messy mischief?
I’m an internet junkie. First step is admitting it.
I’m also very into films. I love anything that can make me think or make me laugh. Creative cinematography and editing will also win my heart.
I have a tendency to download and watch entire seasons of TV shows, usually based on recommendations of trusted friends.
I also have a decent sized personal library that features everything from Jane Austen to Chuck Palahniuk, Tamora Pierce, Neil Gaiman, and my all-time favorite Kurt Vonnegut. I’ve been reading a lot of David Sedaris lately. I don’t read as much as I used to. I think all this technology has shortened my attention- hey look at the shiny thing!
12) So you already know that we would like you to come to Montreal so we could have you for dinner (not as the main course, let it be clear…!) and of course do some shoots! Tell us that this can be possible soon!!! :D
Oh man, you know I definitely want to.
Let’s say, as soon as I can get Lily’s Midnight Snacks fully operational, produce and load up some videos and photo sets for sale, and finish the initial promotion of the site…
Bill and I are working on getting the funds together to try and make it out to Kinky Festival in October, so we will keep you posted!
