Ella Cannon

Photos by Edward Samuel

Ella Cannon is an Australian female actor with her sights firmly set on the bright lights of Los Angeles.  I had interviewed her before and this time I did it face to face.  What first impresses me about her is how professional, nice and how lovely she is to talk to.  She talks about heading over very soon to America to study at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, a fine acting school that will no doubt help her on way to some good acting jobs.  Ella, like every actor I seem to know – and probably every actor in general – is always doing something.  The next day Ella was off for a full day on set for a short film and is also currently dedicating much of her time to rehearsals during the pre-production phase of an independent horror film titled Wraith.  Ella also runs her own production company, titled Imaginary Dog Pictures, which is currently in the final stages of pre-production for a new Australian sitcom.  Ella started this company with some fellow actors whom she met whilst studying at the TAFTA studios.  I asked her about John Orcsik, the owner of TAFTA and Ella said she enjoyed working with him very much.  Ella & John performed Australia’s first ever recreation of George Orwell’s War of the Worlds on live radio broadcast together along with Steve Bastoni and Colin Budds, which she said was a very different and exciting opportunity.

We briefly spoke about what it is like being a cat walk model for L’Oreal in Mexico.  Ella said it was a wonderful and surprisingly challenging experience and she laughed explaining how it was her inability to walk elegantly in high heels that prompted her to retire early.  Another thing which is a passion for Ella is music.  She told me she gets nervous performing her music but she isn’t nervous when acting.  She puts this down to a fear of being judged as herself rather than a character when opening up to a large audience.  She likes to write and play her own music as a therapeutic outlet, but acting is her thing and that is what remains at the forefront of her pursuits.  I am impressed with how easy she is to interview.

We spoke briefly about what needs to be done about the film industry here in Australia.  Ella believes that the problem stems from a viscous circle.  There isn’t enough work here in Australia so all the big shot actors, directors and producers travel elsewhere, however due to there being no big shots around our pool of resources becomes extremely limited, making growth in our industry impossible.  Ella also noted how Australia tends to ‘recycle’ actors for most of the lead roles in Australian productions and it is much harder to get your foot in the door here than it is over in the states.

Ella has been auditioning for work in the states via video audition.  After an extremely busy pilot season with some great feedback Ella has decided it’s time to fly over and give it a crack in person, she will be packing her bags in a couple of months time. The future is looking bright for this talented actor, I for one can’t wait to see what she does next. I’ll be supporting her in what ever she does acting wise.

*Ella would like to acknowledge the loss of a wonderful Australian Actress, Pia Brightman, who sadly passed away this year before she was given her very deserved moment in the spotlight.  Ella would like to recognise her in this interview so that her name can be heard by the people she no doubt would have touched through the television screen had she been given the chance.