Kristin Adams

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Interview With Kristin Adams By Chris 13/9/05

After seeing Childstar I was blown away by Kristin
Adams.
Another great Canadian actress in a long line of
them.
She brought so much life and talent to the role.
I think she is very talented and will go extremely
far.
Her latest role is in the controversal film Where the Truth
Lies
Me personally I don’t know why the controversy.
So casting people and directors put her in your movie as
she is extremely talented.
Here is my interview with the lovely and talented Kristin
Adams.
My new favourite actress.

1. What made you want to be an actress?

My mom, a grade six teacher, was putting on a play with her
class and let me be one of the ‘villagers’ in the
background. I was five years old, and I really enjoyed
being on stage and dressing up. After that, I really seemed
to lean toward the performing arts – I began singing solos
in our school choirs, landing parts like Glinda in “The
Wizard of Oz” and generally finding any way to be involved
in performing! From a very early age, I was quite convinced
that I was meant to be an actress. I just really loved
it.

2. Who were your idols growing up?

I looked up to actors a lot – depending on my favourite TV
show of the moment, I suppose. I would usually dream of
working with them sometime in the future.

3. What has been your favourite role to play so
far?

My favourite role, undoubtedly, was my very first feature
film role, in “Falling Angels,” Sandy Field. Beforehand, I
had been doing TV movies and guest roles on series that
filmed in Toronto. For this feature, it was quite a journey
to get cast in the part. They auditioned hundreds of girls
for the three sisters that are in the script. Months later,
we started filming and the director was so amazing, as was
the producer, and the two girls playing my sisters. We all
really bonded and became like a family. I have never felt
so happy or at home as I did with that movie, and I’m not
sure I ever will again! It was just very unique and magical
that way. It was also an incredible film!

4. How did you get involved with the film
Childstar?

I had to audition for the role of Natalie, and I didn’t
hear anything for quite a while. At some point, I heard
through the grapevine that the producers had seen “Falling
Angels” and were now strongly considering me for the role.
It was then that I really became interested in landing the
part! I went in for a callback to read with Mark Rendall,
who was playing the child star. The producers laughed at
the appropriate moments so I felt great about it and after
some nail biting on my part, I was asked to do it!

5. What was it like making the film Childstar?

Thinking back on “Childstar” now, it seemed like a very
quick shoot. I don’t believe I was really on set that much,
compared to some of the other projects I’ve done. We shot
in and around Toronto. I had the opportunity to do some
very fun things as an actress, such as the scene where I’m
in the schoolgirl outfit and am doing a photo shoot. When I
watch it now, though I sometimes I think I could have
played the role of Natalie differently; better, really.
That was two years ago and I’ve really changed as an
actress now, my ideas about acting have expanded.

6. What is Don McKellar like as a director?

Don’s lots of fun, He’s certainly his own person and he’s a
Canadian icon. I think it takes so much energy and focus to
both direct and act in the same film. (He also co-wrote the
script.) I think he was a little stressed out about the end
result, because he had so much involvement in the film.
He’s a funny guy and I quite enjoyed working with him.
Sometimes, when he wants something done a certain way,
he’ll show the actor physically. For example, in the scene
where Taylor and Natalie are dancing at the club, he kept
coming up and saying, “A little more…. cool…” and then
showing us with his arms what ‘cool’ looked like… very
funny!

7. What is it like being an actress in Canada?

Great question! I guess it’s what you decide to make of it.
We don’t have the same star system at all as the kind that
exists in the U.S. Very few people here know anything of
working actors. They wouldn’t be able to recognize them or
know their names. In a way, this is a good thing when it
comes to privacy. I find that only people who are in the
industry or who are very into film actually know me as an
actress, which is actually kind of nice, because they
usually really appreciate my work. There are plenty of
opportunities to do neat things as you become more well
known in Canada, but it certainly doesn’t happen as quickly
as it might in the States. The other great thing about
doing Canadian films is that, if any nudity is required for
your part, it is almost never gratuitous and is usually
used in a realistic way. Our films here really have a
purpose, and are very unique and groundbreaking.

8. Who are your favourite actresses and
actors?

Two of my favourite actresses are Sarah Jessica Parker, for
her spunk and realistic delivery, and Frances McDormand,
for her dry humour and again, realism. I really appreciate
actors that keep it natural and don’t push their acting by
making it over-the-top. As for actors, I enjoy Peter Krause
from “Six Feet Under” and the late River Phoenix. I’ve seen
nearly all of his films he was quite incredible.

9. What are some of your favourite movies?

My favourite movies include “Stand by Me,” “Dirty Dancing,”
“White Oleander,” “E.T.” “Mermaids,” “Dogfight,” “Running
on Empty,” and “Almost Famous.” Those are the ones I can
watch over and over again, but I’ve seen many films that
have affected me in a positive way.

10. What movies you have seen lately you have really
enjoyed?

It’s sort of pathetic, the way I’ve gotten behind in my
movie watching. When I was filming my new series “Beach
Girls” in Nova Scotia this summer, I rented plenty of
videos for my days off and saw, for the first time, “Rain
Man,” with Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, which is an
amazing movie! That’s the one that pops into mind as being
very enjoyable.

11. What are some of your favourite musical
artists?

I love music from the 50s, 60s and 70s. I grew up around
that music as my dad was in an a cappella vocal group that
covered songs from those eras. Some of my favourite
artists/bands include: Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Van Morrison,
the Beatles, Joan Armatrading, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon,
the Beach Boys, Elvis Presley, Led Zeppelin, Rod Stewart,
the Eagles, Queen, Pink Floyd, Sheryl Crow, Cyndi Lauper,
and many more.

12. What would we find on Kristin Adams stereo at the
moment?

These days, I’m interested in Gwen Stefani, as well as the
cajun music from the recent trip to New Orleans that I took
with my mom, before the disaster there. I’m listening to
all kinds of stuff on my i-pod.

13. What are your thoughts on studio remaking movies and
if you could what would you remake?

I think it can be a neat idea to remake movies, but quite
honestly, some of them shouldn’t be touched. They can be
real disasters. I think they should only be remade if there
can be something unique added to the story, and only with
actors that respect those who came before them. With those
things in mind, I would love to play Baby in “Dirty
Dancing” or Penny Lane in “Almost Famous,” both really
great parts! I don’t think they’ve ever made a feature film
about Elvis (though they have made several TV movies.) If
so, I would like to play Priscilla Presley.

14. What is your favourite genre of movies?

I generally love dramatic films, ‘slice of life’ type
movies. I like most genres, as long as they don’t go
overboard. Romantic films are nice, as long as they’re not
too sappy. They should be more sweet and cute, and
unpredictable. I love comedies, but more along the lines of
“The Wedding Singer,” and not a crappy teen film that
thinks it’s funny.

15. Who have you enjoyed working with the
most?

I have to say I have enjoyed almost every experience I’ve
had with making movies. I’ve loved working with my major
directors, Scott Smith, from “Falling Angels,” Don
McKellar, for “Childstar,” and Atom Egoyan for “Where the
Truth Lies.” They all really made it exciting to work on
their respective films. I also felt priveleged that they
had cast me in those roles. For my recent series “Beach
Girls,” the cast was mostly my age and we all had fun going
out for dinner and drinks, often. For “Falling Angels,” I
am still good friends with the two ladies who played my
sisters, and we had a blast on set.

16. Reality TV? Good or Bad?

Bad! It’s completely getting out of hand with the types of
shows they’re churning out. It seems like it will never
end, but it will. On occasion, I might find one
entertaining, but some of them you couldn’t force me to
watch. Most of them are degrading and pointless, and often,
they send out a really bad message to whoever’s watching
them. The networks seem to feel no societal
responsibility.

17. What have you got lined up next?

“Where the Truth Lies” is premiering at the Toronto Film
Festival this week and will soon be released. There’s
plenty of controversy around the film, and I’m involved in
one of the “controversial” scenes. I think all of the
nervous buzz about the movie is silly. This is a neat
script coming from a very respected director (Atom Egoyan)
with a great cast, (Kevin Bacon and Colin Firth). People
tend to overreact when there’s any sort of eroticism or sex
that isn’t completely predictable and ‘clean’ in a movie.
What century are we living in again? After that, I filmed
“Beach Girls” early this summer which has already aired in
the States and should be airing worldwide within the near
future. It’s a great six-part series.

18. Would you ever go overseas for a film
role?

Most definitely! In fact, I have. We filmed “Where the
Truth Lies” in Toronto and then in London, England. I
extended my stay and my boyfriend and I made a vacation out
of it. I think that’s one of the best parts about acting
that you can travel while you work. The more travel, the
better

Thanks to Michal Page from OAZ and of course the lovely
Kristin Adams for doing it