Sarah-Maxine Racicot | From I would like to be erased to a Canadian-German thriller

In the thriller Spirit in the BloodSarah-Maxine Racicot plays a teenager who resembles the characters she played in I would like to be erased et The pact. Except that Delilah Soleil lives in the countryside in the 1990s and speaks English.

“I think I exude a rebellious energy, because there is something common in all my characters: they are outsiders,” says Sarah-Maxine Racicot. However, in an interview, the 20-year-old actress only embodies gentleness and eloquence.

Revealed in the web series I would like to be erasedin 2021, Sarah-Maxine owes her first role to her mother. “I did a bit of theater at school and my teachers would say to my parents: ‘I think she’s got something.’ It went over my head, because at the time, I was really into dancing and singing. My mother followed casting agencies and believed that I would like to be erased was a golden opportunity. But I never sent anything… My mother did it behind my back and I can’t say how grateful I am,” says Sarah-Maxine with emotion.

She landed one of the main roles at the age of 15. The web series directed by Eric Piccoli won, among other things, an award at Cannes and the performance of the young actress was praised. Since then, she has notably played in the series The escape, The pact, Me neither, Dance! et Reasonable doubt. So how did she end up in the movie? Spirit in the Blooda Canadian-German production shot in English?

“In 2022, I took a year off, because I had been filming all fall, and I went to Toronto for a month to do an intensive acting workshop. It went really well, so I told my agent at the time that I would like to try the English-speaking world,” says the woman who grew up in Boucherville.

Elle tente sa chance pour un rôle qui semble être taillé sur mesure pour elle dans une série de Prime, mais n’obtient pas de retour. Toutefois, la directrice de distribution la remarque et l’oriente vers un thriller qui sera tourné en Ontario. Quelques vidéos d’audition plus tard, la réalisatrice canadienne, Carly May Borgstrom, lui rend visite à Montréal.

A monster in the forest

In Spirit in the Blood in French version), Delilah Soleil quickly becomes friends with newcomer Emerson Grimm (Summer H. Howell). “Delilah is the black sheep of her community,” explains Sarah-Maxine about her character. She is hyper confident, but hides deep insecurity. She opened up to Emerson, because she too is an outsider. »

It is never specified that Delilah and her mother are Quebecois, but their accent stands out in a homogeneous, very religious English-speaking environment. The place where the story takes place is not specified either or the year, but we imagine ourselves at the turn of the 1990s. “Without technology, the environment is more worrying, because if something happens , we have nothing. We’re in the woods, no phone,” emphasizes Sarah-Maxine.

Emerson believes she was chased by a monster in the middle of the forest. She is ridiculed at school, but Delilah supports her new friend. Especially since another of her friends has been missing for a while. “Delilah wants answers. She is completely incomprehensible and so desperate that she clings to anything,” explains Sarah-Maxine.

Spirit in the Blood is not quite a horror film, but has moments of intense suspense.

For her screenplay, Carly May Borgstrom was inspired by a traumatic childhood experience, when an attempt was made to kidnap her, Sarah-Maxine informs us. “No one believed her!” she emphasizes. As a woman, sometimes no one believes us. It makes you want to revolt. »

This is what Delilah, Emerson and other village girls do, in a way, in order to escape toxic masculinity and religious doctrine.

The actress has fond memories of the “feminine energy” of the set and filming in the forest at night. “I’m a bit of a princess, so anything natural, baby… But I had a blast and it took me out of my comfort zone. We quickly forget the inconveniences and all that remains is the positive that nourishes your game.”

Sarah-Maxine is currently filming the final season of Pact and plans to do another English improvement workshop next summer, this time in Los Angeles. She also wants to continue with CEGEP, but thanks to her mother, the young woman already seems to have found her career.

Spirit in the Blood is on display.