THE FANFICTION THAT BECAME A PHENOMENOM AMONG WEBSERIES

“Stupid Wife”, from the author Nathalia Sodré, started as a fictional piece on Wattpad
in the middle of the 2010s. With the huge success of the fanfic, it became a book that
was published by the Euphoria editor in 2022, now called “Lembre-se de Nós”
(“Remember About Us” free translating).
Later, Ponto Ação Productions brought Sodré’s story to life on a webseries that would
later be released for free on YouTube that very same year. On “Stupid Wife”, Priscila
Buiar plays Valentina, a dedicated photographer and mother that has her life turned
upside down when her wife, Luiza (Priscila Reis), wakes up with no memories of their
marriage and all their life together.

PRISCILA BUIAR: MODELLING, ACTING AND REPRESENTATIVITY

Priscila Buiar is an actress from Maringá (PR), graduated in Acting and already played
other LGBTQ+ characters, like Manuela on “Magenta”. There was other considerable
work on her career, such as a Niely Gold’s commercial on which she acted alongside
with Giovanna Antonelli. Besides, she appeared on some soap operas, like “A Força do
Querer” e “O Rico e o Lázaro”, and acted on the “Hamlet Essencial” theater play,
directed by Diego Antunes. However, her most successful part it’s been as Valentina
on “Stupid Wife”, whose episodes are counting with more than a million views on
YouTube. The show is really loved by the fans and, when it came out, it was weekly on
the Twitter’s Trending Topics.
This week, the Lesbocine Crew had the opportunity to interview Buiar, that told us
about her other Productions, commented on the repercursion of the series and the
fans love. Check out the interview:

 

QUESTIONS ASKED FOR BOTH PRISCILA BUIAR AND PRISCILA REIS: 

1. Did you imagine that the show would reach so many people? After all, right
now the show has more than 30 million views! Did you expect that acceptance?
PB: Never (laughs). When the first episode reached a million views in one week,
I was really shocked with the proportion that the series got worldwide, mainy
with the messages I received about the importance and representativity that
the show has for a lot of people. While it was unexpected, it was something
that made me really happy and thankful for, because, after so many years studying, this is the first job that opened so many doors and broughtrecognition for my work.

2. With the success of the webseries, did you imagine so many fans outside of
Brazil? Can you tell which countries the show reaches?
PB: I didn’t imagine the show would reach so many people from different
countries and cultures, because it was based on a brazilian fanfic only known
on a specific niche. I’ve heard from fans that the series has reached more than
thirty countries and I also receive messages from a lot of places, which makes
me really happy.

3. The sapphic audience can be really warm-hearted. Which was the most unusual
thing that your fans gave you?
PB: All gifts that I receive are very special but something that really marked me
was to get a star named after me on the day that the show came out, because
it was like that moment was registered on the universe forever, something
beyond.

4. You always talked about ups and downs. What advice can you give this new
generation?
PB: I started working and studying theater at 9 years old, and it was just after
21 that my work got internacional recognition. I believe that each path is
relative, according to the opportunities that each person gets. For example,
some people can get a big opportunity and be recognized on their first job and
others – like me – can take a little while. Thus, I believe that no matter how
long it takes to get that recognition, you need to be persistent and keep
dedicating to what you love and want to achieve.

5. What’s the most important part about playing sapphics characters? Considering
that “Stupid Wife” came from the need of the sapphic audience to see
theirselves represented on the media, how it feels to be part of this
movement?
PB: It’s an honor to play these characters, because there aren’t enough content
dedicated for the LGBTQ+ audience, who get almost no representation even
though it’s a big community. It’s really satisfying receiving a message from a 70-
years-old lady thanking me for the way that this project changed her life
nowadays, since there was a lot of judgement and social pressure at that time,
she didn’t feel represented. And the best part of it all is being able to be on this
with Ponto Ação, that I follow and admire for a long time now, and makes this
representativity purpose for their productions.

6. Which information is missing or can’t be missed from your Wikipedia page? For
example any specific hobby, a remarkable childhood story, something that
nobody knows but it’s really important for who you are!
PB: There’s a story that nobody knows about my first television gig. I was 14
and I was on a bus, coming back from a model test – which I wasn’t approved –
when a director approached me saying that I was the right person to play a
character from a short film that they were gonna shoot and that the leading
actress had dropped the project last minute. He invited me, I accepted and with
the money from this job I was able to pay for my first model shoot and follow
the model and actress career.

7. How’s your relationship with the original piece (the book “Lembre-se de Nós”)
Did you try to get close to the original character or, with the directing and your
own interpretation, you had your own vision about the characters?
PB: I learned about the book through the invite to play Valentina and I read it
to get to know more about the story and my character’s essence. But i think it’s
important to address that “Stupid Wife” is an adaptation of the book and
because of that, there’re going to have some differences between the series
and the original piece. It was a mix between what I got from the read added by
the directing and my freedom to create and develop Valentina’s essence.

8. Is there any detail or change that you felt the need to bring the series after
reading the original piece and interpretating your own way?
PB: In general, when adapting a book for a TV show or a film, you intensify
some conflicts so that the story’s plot have nuances. And those changes and
details rely more on the script’s purpose than my point of view as an actress.
When I feel the need to change something, I make the suggestion and leave for
the directors and writers to decide whether to do it or not.

9. How was it for you to shoot the theater scene, with that many fans as extras?
What was the feeling of seeing face to face so many people that like your
work?
PB: It was really thrilling to get out of the backstage and hear the applause and
all of those people shouting my name. It was a feeling that I never had in my
whole life. The best part was when the shooting ended and we got the
opportunity to hug each one of them and really feel how our work influences,
in some kind of way, those people’s lives.

10. Bachata is a dance that you didn’t know about and it’s really important for your
characters: how was it for you to shoot the dance scenes? Mainly for Reis, that
had to shoot Luiza’s dance performance in the theater!
PB: For me it was chill, considering that my character isn’t the bachata teacher
(laughs). So it’s like I was allowed to know just the dance bases. Plus, I take
ballet classes since 2019, which gives me corporal conscience of the steps and
helps me to remember the sequences.

11. Which actresses are your biggest inspirations? Is there anyone that was
fundamental for you to follow your career?
PB: My biggest inspiration ever was Fernanda Montenegro, even more after
reading her biography. I also like Letícia Colin’s, Alice Braga’s, Adriana Esteves’s
and Marjorie Estiano’s work.

 

QUESTIONS ASKED FOR PRISCILA BUIAR ONLY

1. You were on another successful show, “Magenta”. Do you know the difference
of the alcance between that show and “Stupid Wife”? Is there any difference
that you can address?
PB: Both “Magenta” and “Stupid Wife” are independent webseries, whose
purpose is to release LGBTQ+ content. I believe that each project has your own
story and path and I feel honored to be part of both. I started working on
webseries through “Magenta” and I feel really grateful for that opportunity,
because it was when I got to practice all my audiovisual studies. It also opened
the doors for me to work on other YouTube’s projects, such as “Encontro”,
“Marotos: uma História” and “Copo Descartável”. And it was there that I met
Priscila Pugliese – who would give me the opportunity to audition for
Valentina’s role. I believe that every job is an opportunity to give your best and
if you give 100% of you, that will lead to other opportunities.

2. When did it click to you that you should leave your parents’s house and follow
the model and actress career?
PB: I Always dreamed about travelling the world. Since I started modeling I had
that on my mind, because the career would give me that possibility. But my
parents always prioritized my studies, since they didn’t have the same
opportunities. So I followed the usual path, finishing high school and going to
college (far from my parent’s town). I live by myself since I was 17 to dedicate
to acting and, at 19, I received an invate to model outside of the country, in
Mexico, so I stopped my Acting graduation to go. It was na amazing experience,
but I missed acting and studying too much. Just modeling was not enough, I felt incomplete. So I came back and finished college. I always balanced study and work.

3. Last year you shot “Som do Silêncio”. Do you have any forethought of when it’s
gonna be the short film’s première? How was it to play na Strong character like
Catarina? And how is it to play Valentina?
PB: Shooting “Som do SIlêncio” was the biggest challenge of my career!
Catarina, my character, is millitary and represents everything bad in society at
the time. Everyone was judgemental and didn’t care about mental health and
other’s wellbeing, they rejected anyone that didn’t live by the “right way”.
Playing that was really challenging, even more because in one of the last scenes
I had to fire a shot against my best friend, Ian Braga. Meanwhile, it was really
good to “achieve that” on me. I took classes to prepare myself physically and
she was also my first villain, which is way more difficult for me than playing the
hurt character and I love challeging myself each job that I take.
And playing was a good challenge, gentler. We have have cute scenes, love, but
also fight scene, flirting, break up… What I liked the most and challenged me on
Valentina it’s her confidence. Valentina is a badass, she’s confident, a mocker. I
had to find those features on me. I believe that every character come to teach
us something about ourselves and I love to find out more about me every job!

 

Both Priscila Reis and Priscila Buiar were nominated for BreakTudo Awards and
are appreciated for the way they treat the fans that are all over the social
media and really engaging. She is on Instagram and Twitter as @pribuiar,
where the actress shows her gratitude for her fans and admirers.