Hawkes credits Austin with his development as artist

Actor John Hawkes has crafted an impressive career as one of the film industry's most interesting character actors since his formative days of artistic exploration in Austin in the 1980s.

He received an Oscar nomination for 2010's "Winter's Bone" and delivers a similarly chilling performance in one of this year's most buzzed-about movies, "Martha Marcy May Marlene," which screened last week at the Austin Film Festival and opens in theaters Friday.

Hawkes says he wouldn't have been able to hone his unique creative voice without his time in Austin.

"I was able to do a lot of different things there," he says. "Beyond helping form a theater company, I played in bands and did visual art, I got roped into modern dance performances, just really learned a lot about storytelling and the creative act in general, I guess, without any kind of highfalutin education around it. The people there that I worked with and worked alongside in the creative world were mostly really talented people, and I learned a lot from them and hopefully they learned a bit from me, as well."

While in Austin, Hawkes, who still has family living in the area, performed with the punk rock outfit Meat Joy, which was integral in launching the career of musician Gretchen Phillips. The band also turned on traveling bands such as Sonic Youth to the tapes of local music iconoclast Daniel Johnston. With his Big State Productions Theatre Company, Hawkes also produced the play "In the West," a critical success that the company staged at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

After a decade in Austin, the actor left for Los Angeles, where he worked primarily on minor television shows before landing his breakout role on HBO's "Deadwood." His turn as hardware store owner Sol Star on David Milch's critically acclaimed series led to work in lauded independent films such as "Me and You and Everyone We Know" and last year's "Winter's Bone."

Though he has long considered himself a thorough preparer, Hawkes says he wanted to approach his role in "Martha" unencumbered. His nuanced and inspired performance could serve as a master class for any aspiring actor.

Hawkes' character, Patrick, operates as the father figure for a group of young people living communally in the Catskills. He rules his extended family with a complex chemistry of fear and quiet charm.

Hawkes did not research the lives of literary or historical cult leaders or rely on acquaintances to construct his character. Instead, he worked by subtraction, discarding popular portrayals and challenging preconceived notions.

"I'll often use people I know from my life as inspiration or small pieces of people I've seen or known and certainly even family members along the way," Hawkes says. "But, I don't know why, I just felt like it would be most interesting if this character was a mystery, not only to the audience but to myself, as well. It's not a normal one for me, but I almost wanted to feel like he fell from the sky and landed on that farmhouse and began to gather people."

Playing a charismatic leader poses unique problems, however. Hawkes, who rarely plays such roles, knew that the believability of his character was paramount to the success of the film.

Hawkes loved the script, but says he was not immediately sure how to approach the role of Patrick. Conversations with director Sean Durkin gave Hawkes confidence and comfort with the first-time feature filmmaker.

Hawkes says he appreciated the ingenuity and teamwork of Durkin and his partners at Borderline Films. The trio, based out of Brooklyn, divides the writing, directing and producing duties. The agreement seems to have honed Durkin's ability to collaborate while staying true to his vision.

"Sean was a specific director. He balanced his specificity in knowing what he wanted with an ability to listen to other people's opinions and make great judgments as to what would be best," Hawkes says. "He often worked from his gut. He's instinctual but also always came with a plan. It's a really terrific, very assured debut."

In the film, the titular character (played by newcomer Elizabeth Olsen) flees the compound in an attempt to save herself from the predatory Patrick and his subservient family members. A series of flashbacks and hallucinations tells how she came to the farm in the Catskills and how she and others fell under the spell of its leader, who wields his authority with few words.