Björk on the crucial difference between acting and making music
After fronting the Icelandic alternative rock band The Sugarcubes, Björk started a solo career, taking the music industry by storm with her first album, Debut. Blending genres from jazz to house music, Björk became known for her innovative approach to pop music, as well as her distinctive voice. The 1990s saw Björk rise to stardom with the help of albums such as Post and Homogenic before she expanded her repertoire in 2000 with a leading role in Lars von Trier’s Dancer in the Dark.
While the singer had featured in the Icelandic film The Juniper Tree in 1990, Dancer in the Dark came after Björk had already established herself as a pop powerhouse. Working alongside von Trier, one of the biggest names in modern avant-garde filmmaking, Björk was sure to make waves with her role in the film, and luckily her performance was well-received.
Dancer in the Dark follows the singer as a factory worker, Selma, who lives in poverty with her son, facing gradual vision loss. Desperate to keep her job and save money to afford surgery that’ll prevent her son from facing the same fate, she finds refuge in Hollywood musicals.
The film was rather divisive, receiving many glowing reviews alongside others calling it a terrible piece of work. Still, Björk’s performance was widely praised, and in an interview, she explained, “Playing the part was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done in my whole life. It was a great relief when I received the award [‘Best Actress’ at Cannes Film Festival] afterwards.”
Explaining the difference between making music and acting, she elucidated, “When I make music, I’ve got a certain instinct, which tells me if it’s good or bad. It doesn’t matter if I get bad reviews, because I’m always ten times harder to myself.”
“That’s why I’m not very affected by critics, because I don’t care what other people think. But during the filming, I didn’t really know if my acting was good or bad, so I gladly accepted all the flattering talk from the movie business,” Björk continued.
She added, “I think everyone occasionally wants to become an actor. In the movie you’re working on a dialogue, which is something you try to avoid as a musician.” This led her to discuss the natural introversion of many musicians, “Just look at when you’re recording an album, for example. You are totally isolated.” However, acting allowed Björk a different creative experience; she described Dancer in the Dark as “a very interesting adventure.”
