kitchen sink drama films

Talking Acting, Filmmaking, and Storytelling with Kate Perry

Having caught Kate Perry’s fantastic character-based showreel on her Twitter account, we couldn’t resist reaching out to talk and getting a little more insight into the woman behind the video and talking about acting, filmmaking, and storytelling with such a talented performer.

Could you introduce yourself to our audience and give us a little background on your work? 

Hello, I’m Kate Perry from Derry, an actor/writer/sketch comedian from Northern Ireland. My passion for storytelling began at ten years old, watching Westerns in a town called Dungannon. I’m from a family of twelve children so my elder brothers would take the younger ones to ‘the pictures’ on Saturday mornings to give my mother and the neighbors a break. That’s where I fell in love with storytelling, westerns, and cinema. I loved the genre for blending the comical and serious, farcical and cerebral, highbrow and lowbrow. I believe these elements have influenced my style of writing ever since. 

I have written one-woman shows, sketches, radio plays, and short films. I live in London now but prior to that, I spent time in South Africa, the US, and Ireland. 

You have been sharing your showreel via Twitter, which includes a series of comedic characters, can you tell us more about this and if there is a plan to expand on the concept? 

I began my writing and performing character comedy while living in San Francisco doing spots in the evening at a club called The Marsh. I had a full-time job at the time as an events manager so never thought of making the commitment of moving into the arts full-time. However, due to the encouragement of friends and co-workers, I developed the characters which eventually turned the 10 mins spots into a one-hour one-woman show. I toured the show in Ireland to critical acclaim, came back to the US, quit my job, and returned to Ireland to live in Dublin. I continued acting and writing and wrote a sketch show called Do Not Adjust Yourself for the Dublin Fringe Festival which led to writing opportunities at BBC NI, which led to commissions for BBC Radio 4 and RTE Radio 1. I also went to college for the first time in my 40s and did an MPhil in creative writing at Trinity College and then a master’s degree in screenwriting at the Institute of Arts Design and Technology in Dun Laoghaire. I moved to London in 2011, kept performing, and eventually took The Very Perry show to the Edinburgh Fringe. On the back of that, I was invited to the San Francisco Theatre Festival and The United Theatre Solo Festival in New York, where The Very Perry Show won the best comedy award. I have been working on other projects ever since but now I'm back writing new material and developing other comedy characters.


You have a short film currently doing the festival circuit and winning awards, what can you tell us about the project and how it came about? 

I was originally commissioned by BBC Radio 4 to write a fictional short story for a series called Under My Bed with the remit of exploring memories and stories of what characters might have found stashed away in the dark. I called it Ruthless

I came up with the idea of a ten-year-old boy who finds a prosthetic leg under the bed and how he uses it as currency to get something he desperately wants, which is the latest T. Rex album, Electric Warrior. He has also recently lost his mother, his father has shut down emotionally and they are stuck in a mire of grief. The problem is that PJ is skint and his Da is on the dole so PJ comes up with a cunning plan to get the dough, involving a pawnbroker, a sock, and a prosthetic leg.

I wanted to explore that sense of loss lifted with moments of comedy and lightness using the backdrop of the troubles and the glam rock movement happening in Northern Ireland. In Belfast, in the early 70s something was in the air and it wasn’t a bomb, it was a revolution. Glam Rock was drowning out the noise of armored cars and as British soldiers patrolled the streets, kids were glued to Top Of The Pops, entranced by Marc Bolan, the androgynous, satin-clad, glitter-god. 

In a nutshell, the prosthetic leg and a T. Rex album become the conduit for overcoming grief. After I wrote the radio play I knew it would make a good film so I adapted the story to a screenplay and applied for funding through Northern Ireland Screen. Luckily they liked the script, I found a producer and we shot the film in Belfast in 2019. Ruthless is currently on the film festival circuit and has won 5 awards so far and been nominated for six so I’m over the moon for team Ruthless


Is there a particular role or project that you are working on at the moment you can tell us about and is there a particular role you would love to be cast in?  

I am currently writing a children’s book called Saucepan Eddie. Hard to talk about as it’s in the early developmental stage so not sure where it is going….but it’s going somewhere. 

As for a role I’d like to be in, I was cast as one of the Yoga Mums in season two of Ted Lasso and would happily jump into that lycra again!

To learn more about Kate Perry and her work see:

Kate Perry Twitter

Kate Perry Youtube.

Kate Perry Website.

Source: https://bit.ly/2koHjFF

Talking Acting and Directing With Paul Andrew Goldsmith

We wanted to take a look at the life of a full-time actor and creator, asking questions about the journey and upcoming projects with the help of Paul Andrew Goldsmith we were able to gain a little more insight into the world of an actor/director as he prepares for his new work.

Can you tell us a little about yourself, your career, and your own projects and plans? 

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

I’m Paul Andrew Goldsmith, a professional creative based in little old Norfolk. I’ve had a very varied career including theatre, film, and TV work, and particularly proud to have been able to make my full-time living from the industry. It’s nowadays so hard to actually describe your profession, I act, I direct, I write and I teach. I literally do as much of anything I can in order to earn a living. I consider myself really lucky to be able to do so. Though let’s be honest we can all forget about 2020. 

Alongside my current project, my first feature film, I’m excited to get back to directing the  Warner Bros show, ‘The Polar Express’ this year and taking our street theatre show, ‘Ulysses’ out in the summer. 

So far in your career has there been a milestone that you want to share or a project you are particularly proud of? 

When I first started out full time as an actor I set various goals to achieve, 1st theatre tour, 1st film role, getting on spotlight, 1st agent, and so on. I think it’s always wise to have a stream of achievable targets that can adapt as you go but you must start out small so you don’t feel like a failure early on. It’s also worth keeping that list to always look back on to remind yourself exactly what you have achieved and how far you’ve gone. I think this is very true for the past year of lockdown when many of us have felt it’s not happening. 

As for milestones that make me particularly proud, I think it’s probably two. The first time I got paid for my work and secondly the first time I was able to pay others as a result of my work. It’s an incredibly empowering feeling to be able to bring employment to other creatives through things you’ve created. Again, especially after the past year. ‘NOTE I promise that’s the last time I’ll refer to the unwelcome visitor of 2020. 

What has been the biggest challenge you have faced so far as either an actor or as a director? 

Self-doubt and imposter syndrome for both. It never truly goes away however many years you’ve been active and how much work you’ve done. However, you can dampen it again by reminding yourself of the things you have achieved. 

You have a new project that you are crowdfunding. Can you tell us a little more about it and what was your motivation for creating it?  

When I was first starting out as an actor, I wanted a job to help earn yet be flexible enough to enable me to book acting work. I became a support worker for adults with learning disabilities. I found that I was a natural with the work and soon became a home manager before eventually opening my own day service. During my time working in the industry, I was alarmed at some of the treatment that goes on, intentionally and unintentionally with lifestyle choices being decided by care plans and risk assessments. I felt true freedom of expression and choice was regularly blocked and very often just to suit a particular organization rather than the person paying for those services. At the time I realized there were stories to be told, particularly a situation I observed with two service users who were clearly in love, yet kept apart. I began noting things I noticed that I felt could become part of a theatre show or film and now, some years later, I’m ready to bring it all together in a film. 

SAGACITY –

When a support worker realizes two men with learning disabilities have fallen in love at a daycare center, he fights for their rights to form a full relationship but is thwarted constantly by governance, staff members, and the care home management. 

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

I’m currently sourcing funding for the film in a variety of different ways as it is essential for me to be able to pay all those involved. Sadly 2020, Damnit I mentioned it again, wiped a huge amount of my savings out so I’m starting again from scratch. 

We’re all in the same boat so I’m asking people to just ‘Buy me a coffee’ from as little as £2 or to follow/share media as much as possible to raise awareness. 

Is there any advice you would offer someone entering into the creative arts and media? 

Believe in yourself. Be open to every opportunity, often the small things become lifelines and away into something far more. Get to know others, but always work based on what’s best for you and what works for you. Whilst many will claim there is, there truly aren’t any rules to what the industry is for you. It’s the arts, after all, it’s supposed to be for everyone. 

To learn more about Andrew Paul Goldsmith or his current projects see:

Paul Andrew Goldsmith Vshowcards.

Paul Andrew Goldsmith Twitter.

Sagacity Campaign.

Sagacity Twitter.

Sagacity Facebook.

Source: https://ko-fi.com/paulandrewgoldsmith