You won the ACTRA Manitoba Award this year for your performance on The Pinkertons, CONGRATULATIONS! Tell us about that experience and that role. Thank you very much! It was a thrill to be nominated alongside Ray Strachan, Arne MacPherson, Steve MacIntyre and John C. MacDonald, and to be able to celebrate many of the many amazing accomplishments of our talented artists. The Pinkertons turned out to be an experience that I will always cherish. I actually didn’t think there was going to be much work past the first couple of episodes as I wasn’t sure they knew what they were going to do with the character. He was added to the story late as part of many changes, and I was convinced he’d be just a static character on a couple episodes. Thankfully the writers and producers seemed to like what he brought to the story and decided to incorporate him as more of a presence as the show went on. Due to the extremely short turnaround time from first draft to shooting each episode, it was necessary to make choices as we went along without knowing what was in store for him down the road. We had no series bible that could act as a guide and influence my choices with some additional information. Sometimes it can be difficult if an actor isn’t privileged to the character’s journey, but it became very exciting to me because I felt I had more of a hand in shaping his story, and because the writers were open to collaboration and discussion regarding the character. It turned out to be one of the best experiences of my career. I absolutely loved Sheriff Logan. There were so many areas to draw on, but I tried to play him as a man at odds with…

You won the ACTRA Manitoba Award this year for your performance on The Pinkertons, CONGRATULATIONS! Tell us about that experience and that role. I’d had several auditions for the series, and of course, every one seemed like the role of a lifetime, so not getting every one was disappointing! I just kept feeling grateful for the opportunity to act – because each audition is hard-earned, and is a gift. I’d had a really hard week leading up to my audition for the role I ended up getting. I’d had a mental health breakdown, and had been in the hospital. I’d heard the day before the audition that the role was “mine to lose”, which puts a lot of pressure on a person not to lose it! I didn’t even know if I could muster the audition, but working on it gave me a lot of strength. The character was so different from me in so many ways. I was able to let go of a lot of sadness by channeling some deep-down-inside rage to do the audition, and then “capping” it as acting teachers will tell you to do. Playing the role a short time later was another challenge – a lot of people on set knew that I had been in the hospital, and why, and mental health breakdowns can be embarrassing. Nothing like that had ever happened to me before. The cast and crew were so amazing – nobody brought it up, and everyone treated me like I was normal. That included the incredible director Doug Mitchell kicking my ass to get my best performance, and it was so much fun. It was very cool to be on set with my beloved ACTRA member friends, like Rick Skene, and a new friend, Kevin Ramberran, who is phenomenal,…

You won the ACTRA Award this year for your performance in A Warden’s Ransom, CONGRATULATIONS! Tell us about that movie and your role. How was that experience for you? Thank you. It’s an honour to have received this award. A Warden’s Ransom is a film starring Diane Neal who plays a prison warden. A high risk inmate has just entered the prison & has offered 50 million dollars to anyone who can break him out. I play Quaid McCullough, a person who was unjustly committed. The warden realizes that I’m one of the few people that can help her when everyone tries to break him out. The cast & crew were amazing. I loved working on that film. When did you become an ACTRA member, and what was your first union gig? I became an ACTRA member 15 years ago. My first gig was on The Adventures of Shirley Holmes. I played a photographer by the name of Axel. I attended an open casting call & got the role. How has being a part of ACTRA benefited you? Being part of the ACTRA ensures that we’re paid minimum rates for the work we do. It also ensures that we receive residual payments. Money is also put away for our retirement each time we perform under a union contract. What has been your favorite film/role thus far? I’ve enjoyed all the roles I’ve played so it’s difficult to choose. One role that is significant is that of Billy Beal where I played the lead role in an independent film called “Billy.” I co-wrote, co-produced, & co-directed the film. I’d lost my memory in a car accident & began writing the script as a way of getting my memory back. When we were going to shoot the film I wanted to recast…

You’re coordinating the ACTRA Manitoba Awards Gala out of the goodness of your heart (thanks btw!), what event coordinating experience do you have? I have been event planning since I was 13. I ran for student council president (and won) for the sole purpose of organizing sock-hops & spirit week (HA!). I have been making excuses to plan and organize projects ever since. I think it’s in my blood. When I see potential in something or someone, I want to help it not only come to life, but give it the push it needs to actualize its potential. I have been managing my sketch comedy troupe Hot Thespian Action for the past ten years and have created (or co-created) a few other performance troupes including a Deaf mime troupe called 100 Decibels. As a manager and mentor, I have been the driving force behind the shows we create and perform. All of the skills I have honed through these experiences lends itself directly to event planning and project management. So I have decided to contract myself out doing just that. Over the past year, on top of performing, educating and creating as an artist, I have Production Managed a promotional video with MFM & On Screen Manitoba (https://vimeo.com/148643654), I have joined the Winnipeg Comedy Festival team planning/hosting their after parties, rounding up sponsorships and marketing the festival, and I have also coordinated a few weddings in-between. When Jan Skene asked me to join council to be the chair of the ACTRA Awards, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to give back to this beautiful community and to show them what I’ve got hidden up my sleeve. When did you become an ACTRA member, and what was your first union gig? Oh man, good question. I am…