How did he become involved with the film and bring this much influence and talent to the production? We spoke to him to find out.

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Can you start by telling us a little bit about you?

Well, I am a working actor, producer, director and human.  More accurately l am working on my humanity while being an actor, producer and director as well as teacher.  I also am a friend in my spare time!  I started off by doing sock puppet plays from behind the couch when I was three, or so says my Mother.  Then I graduated to being taken to plays and caught in the wonder of Fiddler On The Roof, when the lights went down and magically (in my future high school gymnasium) a little house appeared with a man on the rood playing a fiddle!!  Then I watched every movie I saw from the silent era forward and was doing impressions of Bogart, Cagney and W. C Fields when I was 4-6 years old.  I got hooked on telling stories and did all kinds of plays in school, then videos, then eventually graduated from that same high school and went onto UBC.  I got a BFA in Theatre from UBC in 1996 and did as many plays and student films as I could get into to learn more of the craft.  I have since worked in over 120 TV shows, films, MOWs and done many animated shows as well as voice overs for commercials on radio and TV.  I have also produced a few film projects and directed a few.  The one I am most proud to be a part of is, Patterson’s Wager.

Can you tell us about your role in Patterson’s Wager and how you became involved?

My good friend Corbin Saleken called me up one day and said, “Hey, I have this film I want to make.”  The rest is history.  I immediately said yes to being a part of it, because everything Corbin does is incredibly good.  We have known each other for over 20 years and I have been fortunate enough to have been asked to be a part of some of his projects in the past.  Corbin sent me the script, I read it and loved it!  He asked me about playing a part and helping to cast it and I of course said yes!!  We then had chats about who we saw playing each part and we basically had the same or similar people in mind and set about asking those people if they would like to be involved.  They said yes!  My role as Co-Producer grew as well as the project grew, it was a big learning curve, let me tell you!  The crew was amazing and I worked into their vibe as the film went on and my acting part was over.  Cause if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.  I play as a team member on and off camera and it worked great.

What did you do to get into character for this role?

To get into character for this role I borrowed the life experience that I saw in my father and grandfather.  I myself am not a father so I looked to the love and affection that my Dad and grandfather gave me and used that as my template.  Corbin gave me the chance to play a father and I will never forget that!  I experienced the joys and sorrows of parenthood in this role, that is something I will never be able to properly thank him for.  Plus I drew from other mentors in my life, my girlfriend’s father who was a mining engineer for many years and my uncle.  There is a lot of family in this movie so I used my family and the emotional connections I am lucky and was lucky enough to have with them.

You were also involved as the Casting Director for this film. What can you share about that experience?

Luckily I have been able to work in the Vancouver community for the past 20-25 years and I have worked with a lot of people and know a great many quality actors that we have.  When it came down to casting, once I had read the script I just saw the people I know in the parts I had read and talked to Corbin about it and we got everyone we wanted!!!  Once everyone read the script they all said yes!!  So that was the majority of my job, the script did it!  We only really had to look for one character, Otter and we luckily found her in the wonderful Michelle Creber!! What a wonderful young actress she is.  All the major parts were played by incredibly talented actors like Garry Chalk, Anne Openshaw, Fred Ewanuick, Chelah Horsdal, Tom McBeath, Gillian Barber… in fact and all the supporting cast.  Honestly I thought everyone involved did a wonderful job.

Thinking back, what was the moment when you knew you wanted to be an actor?

I remember the moment I became an actor, it was in styles class with JB Brockington at UBC.  We were in scene study and everything gelled for the first time and I was gone and my character took over!  Every since then that is what I strive for!  I think I made the conscious choice to become a professional actor once I completed my training, it was so satisfying doing something I had trained so hard for! Prior to that I had always loved acting and being part of a good show, because the theatre, TV and movies had given me so much entertainment.

What books and authors have been influential to you throughout your creative journey so far?

My favorite author is Richard Bach, who has written many books.  Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah is one of my favorite of his books and of all time.  It is a book about being, being yourself, being human, just being.  Also I really loved Kirk Douglas’ autobiography, The Ragman’s Son.  It shared the hope I already had that if you worked hard you would find a measure of success.  I read it coming back from Europe on the plane, bought it in Heathrow and finished it on the flight.  I have re-read both of them a few times over the years.  I also really like Piers Anthony who writes amazing fantasy and sci-fi as well as my guilty pleasure of Clive Cussler novels.

What advice do you have for new actors entering the industry today?

My advice to actors entering the profession today is… and I am going to quote Peter O’Toole here, “Study!”  Study your future life’s profession.  You must have a solid base of training in order to have a fulfilling career.  Enter a university, college or other credited training program and learn as much as you can.  It is easier and easier to “make” films these days but the quality of a lot of these films is questionable.  Just because you like movies and watch them does not make you a good filmmaker or actor.  You have to get experience.  Now you can gain that experience by making your own films of course and I encourage that, however make sure that there are people on the film that you can learn from.  Acting is a craft, take time to learn your craft and your will have a long career.

What do you like the most about being an actor in Vancouver?

What I like the most about being an actor in Vancouver is the variety of shows I have the opportunity to work on, as well as the people I have had the chance to work with!  I have worked with the cream of the crop of our Vancouver acting crowd, the excellent, dedicated professional crews, producers, directors, designers, office personal, everyone!  I have also been able to work with a lot of big names in our industry.  All in the beautiful setting of Vancouver.  Having a great life here with wonderful friends and lifestyle.  Kits pool in the summer, biking, snow boarding on the local mountains and the wonderful friends and support team I have in them.  Wow there is no one single thing!  They are all related.  Plus great professional agents that make my life easier too by doing such a good work!

What other projects are you involved with at the moment?

I am currently working on developing a web series with the same production team as our short film, Not Indian Enough, which I directed, which got into VIFF.  I have also just worked on a couple murder mystery MOWs and I hope to be back on Amazon’s The Man In The High Castle.  I do a bit of commercial casting with Kirsten DeWolfe from time to time at GO Studios and I also teach at School Creative (GO Studios) and I find that very satisfying as well.  Giving back to the new actors coming up today and passing on the knowledge that was passed onto me and keeping the knowledge flowing between generations is important

Where can we find out more about you?

You can find out more about me at my website, AlexZahara.com.  There you will find all my demo reels for on camera and voice work, lots of photos and articles as well.  And just punch name into google and see what happens!

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Thanks to Alex Zahara for speaking with us!

Patterson’s Wager will screen at the Vancity Theatre on April 17th as part of the Canadian Film Week series and on April 20th for Canadian Film Day.

Tickets are available through VIFF.org

The post The Biz Interview: Alex Zahara appeared first on Biz Books.

Chelah Horsdal took some time away for her very busy schedule to talk to us about her role in the film and her most treasured career accomplishments.

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Can you start by telling us a little bit about you?

I’m a Vancouver native who’s been at this acting gig for fourteen years. I love my dog more than most people & feel that chewing with your mouth open should be punishable by death.

Can you tell us about your role in Patterson’s Wager and how you became involved?

Alex Zahara approached me in the waiting room for an audition around pilot season 3 years ago. He said he was producing a film with one of his university friends and that they’d talked about me as their Audrey. I read the script and quickly said yes. Simple as that.

Recommended Reading You Can Act On Camera Click a cover for more details The Art of Voice Acting Secrets of Screen Acting

What did you do to get into character for this role?

Audrey’s two clear driving forces for me were her love of Charles and her desire to stay on the straight and narrow as a reaction to growing up in a family of oddballs. I can relate to both of those things. Growing up the child of hippies, raised by a single mother while going to an upper-middle class high school (Lord Byng), I relate to wanting to fit in… all the while feeling like it’s a mask I’m wearing. I determined Audrey to have that same struggle. That motivated most of her objectives for me.

You’ve enjoyed a lot of success in both film and television. What do you enjoy the most about each medium?

Preparation wise, I don’t see a huge difference. The catering is usually better on TV. I love the chance to explore a character over the course of a full season or seasons. Although, as Canadian cast, it’s not as common that we get the roles with a strong narrative. The exposure to working with a myriad of directors, the sense of family that forms 3-4 episodes in, the security of a longer run of employment…those are all awesome. In film, I experience two extremes…the big budget world, where we as a Canadian, I’m generally a service provider; and independent, where I have so much more creative freedom. There are benefits to both, usually one pays the bills and the other feeds the soul. It’s rare to find one that does both.

What’s the biggest challenge facing the Canadian film industry right now and what have you been doing in your own way to deal with it?

Our contribution as artists is often under valued. When the world of MOWs got to the point of shooting an 85 minute movie in 11 days and paying people in sandwiches (basically), I said enough, and stopped doing them. I won’t work for less than scale & wish that more of my peers would hold the line with me. I also find the designation of ‘cross board block shooting’ pay structure on episodic TV (shoot 5 episodes in one day and be paid for only 1) to be absurd and won’t work under that agreement. This is all to say, we will only be treated as valuable if we demand it. It’s a great source of frustration and I think it’s does harm to our industry.

To be clear, I’m not talking about independent or $100/day agreements….I’m talking about For Profit productions where the people at the top are making enough to pay their bills.

What have been some of your most memorable career moments?

A tiny role opposite Sir Ben Kingsley, one of my heroes; filming a classic guns-blazing-shoot-out on season 3 of Hell On Wheels; filming the pilot for Wishing Well (formerly Wish List) for CBC; and, most recently, finding out that The Man in the High Castle expanded my small role from season one to an all-episodes deal for season two…that’s a big deal for me. Oh! And meeting my dog on Marley & Me 2.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in your career so far?

To value myself, have the courage to say no and trust that more work will come.

What books and authors have been influential to you throughout your creative journey so far?

Acting-wise, Stella Adler (The Art Of Acting), Ivana Chubbuck (The Power Of The Actor) & Ellen Burstyn (Lessons In Becoming Myself).

Writing-wise: Save The Cat & Big Magic are my current go-to.

What other projects are you involved with at the moment?

We’re into filming season 2 of The Man in the High Castle, which I’m in love with; I’m doing a couple of days on When We Rise, which is such a powerful & important story to be a part of; I’m on the other side of the lens having written & plans to direct my first short this year and continuing work on a documentary about my father’s life & career. But, mostly I’m involved with prepping my garden for the summer.

Where can we find out more about you?

I still love Twitter: @chelahhorsdal

Or you can poke around on my website: chelah.com

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Thanks to Chelah Horsdal for speaking with us!

Patterson’s Wager will screen at the Vancity Theatre on April 17th as part of the Canadian Film Week series and on April 20th for Canadian Film Day.

Tickets are available through VIFF.org

The post The Biz Interview: Chelah Horsdal appeared first on Biz Books.

With a Golden Honu Award for Best Foreign Feature at the Big Island Film Festival for his film Patterson’s Wager, he’s eager to share the film with local audiences in just a few days at the Vancity Theatre.

O. Corbin Saleken gave us the lowdown on the film and his process in bringing it to life.

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Can you start by telling us a little bit about you?

I am a Vancouver-based filmmaker whose primary goal is to make engaging, original stories.   I love it when a movie surprises me, when it takes me somewhere I haven’t been before, so that’s the kind of experience I’m trying create for an audience.

How did you get started in the industry and who were some of your early inspirations?

I got my start making movies back in high school, using a VHS camera to make bad skits and horror movies with my brother.  I eventually went to film school at UBC.  After graduating, I just kept plugging away, making shorts and writing scripts, until eventually I decided to take the leap and make Patterson’s Wager, my first feature.
As far as early inspirations, I’m a kid of the eighties, so I was hugely inspired by filmmakers such as Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter, Robert Zemeckis, and James Cameron.

Recommended Reading You Can Act On Camera Click a cover for more details The Art of Voice Acting Secrets of Screen Acting

You’re the writer and director of Patterson’s Wager. What can you tell us about the film and how you got started with it?

Patterson’s Wager is a romantic comedy with a dash of fantasy.  It’s about a man named Charles (played by Fred Ewanuick, from Corner Gas and Dan for Mayor) who discovers that he has the unpredictable ability to see two minutes into the future.   The key word here is “unpredictable.”  Charles can’t control his ability, nor does he know when it’s going to happen, which introduces a significant amount of uncertainty into both his life and the life of his girlfriend Audrey (played by Chelah Horsdal, from Hell on Wheels and, currently, The Man in the High Castle), to whom he wants to propose.

The impetus for the film was twofold.   The concept came to me when I was thinking about useless superpowers, and how I could introduce a single fantastical element into an otherwise grounded story.  I figured that being able to see a minute or so into the future wouldn’t really allow you to do anything spectacular, but it would be just enough to seriously complicate matters.  I then used this conceit to explore particular themes in which I’ve always been interested, these being trust, faith, and the nature of belief.

What should audiences expect from the film?

Audiences who see Patterson’s Wager should expect to see an original story that they haven’t seen before.  It’s a film that comes straight from my heart and mind, and its narrative journey is as unpredictable as are its main character’s “superpowers.”  Audiences can also expect to have an engaging, thoughtful, heart-warming experience that leaves them feeling particularly good when they exit the theatre.  At least, that’s my hope, and, judging from some of the comments I’ve received from audiences who’ve seen the film at festivals, it seems to be what a number of people have felt.

In your own personal experience, did the film change a lot from how you originally envisioned it during the writing process, or was it close to how you imagined it?

Honestly, the film turned out pretty much exactly as I envisioned it, to the point where many of the line readings were uncannily similar to what I’d imagined when I initially came up with the dialogue.   This only happened because people just kept saying “yes” to me whenever I approached them about contributing to the project.   This list of incredibly generous individuals includes the all-volunteer crew, the great cast, the people at William F. Whites and Sharpe Sound and Skylab, and everyone else who gave me access to a particular location, who loaned me or let me use a special prop, who carved me a special prop, and who sewed me a special costume.

What was the biggest challenge for you in making the film and how did you handle it?

The biggest challenge in making Patterson’s Wager was deciding to do it.  I knew that I was going to have to self-fund the movie if I wanted it to get made, which would require a huge financial and time commitment on my part.  I also knew that it would require access to a whole bunch of external resources, such as top-notch actors who’d have to be willing to work for next to nothing.  Despite these limitations, I was also determined that I didn’t want to go ahead if it meant I would have to compromise my intentions in any way.  If I couldn’t do it the right way, I didn’t want to do it all.

I handled this challenge by initially engaging three key people: my long-time friend and the movie’s eventual co-producer (and co-star) Alex Zahara, and the super talented cinematographers Nelson Talbot and Graham Talbot.  Once these guys were onboard, I started adding more and more people to the roster, until eventually I’d gained enough forward momentum that I couldn’t stop even if I wanted to.

What advice would you have for other directors who want to direct their own screenplays?

To answer this, I shall quote a writing instructor I once had, who said that every writer’s problem is that they can’t see their screenplay’s biggest flaw.  Now, I don’t necessarily believe that every screenplay has a big flaw, but when you’re directing your own script it’s certainly easier to overlook, or simply be oblivious to, some problems that might be there.  For example, I will admit that there was one scene in Patterson’s Wager that I overwrote.  It was an important monologue with which I, the writer, was a little too enamoured.  Unfortunately, I, the director, hadn’t realized that I’d overwritten the scene, so we shot it the way it was written, which meant that it was eventually left to me, the editor, to fix it.

I guess, then, my advice is to be very critical of your own script, and make sure you ask for feedback from people you trust.  More importantly, make sure that you listen to this feedback.  If you truly understand the story you want to tell, you’ll be able to apply this feedback in ways that will make your project stronger.

What books and authors have been influential to you throughout your creative journey so far?

My two favourite authors, the ones who’ve had the biggest influence on the way I think about stories, are Jonathan Carroll and Neil Gaiman.  Both of these writers have a knack for creating original narratives, ones that often mix the fantastical with the quotidian, which is something I also like to do.   I’ve also been influenced by D.H. Lawrence, Iris Murdoch, Brian K. Vaughan, Alan Moore, and Roald Dahl. Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach and E.M. Forester’s A Passage to India are probably my two favourite books.

As for film-related books, I loved Hard Core Roadshow, which is about the making of what I consider to be the greatest Canadian film ever made, Hard Core Logo, as experienced by the movie’s screenwriter Noel Baker.  Another great book on filmmaking, and just life in general, is Herzog on Herzog.  During pre-production on Patterson’s Wager, I found Master Shots Vol 2: Shooting Great Dialogue Scenes to be particularly useful.

What other projects are you involved with at the moment?

My next project is probably going to be a short film that will also feature Fred Ewanuick. I’ve written a bunch of feature scripts, so I’m hoping that I can use Patterson’s Wager as a springboard to get one of them made. My dream project is called Peach Fest, it’s kind of the Canadian Dazed and Confused. I’ve got another one called The Dummy Factor, which is about a group of kids investigating a possible local connection to some child abductions.  I’ve also got an unconventional ghost story that I wrote with my cousin Ben Rollo.

Where can we find out more about you and Patterson’s Wager?

You can find more information about Patterson’s Wager at PattersonsWager.com, facebook.com/PattersonsWagermovie, and @PattersonsWager on Twitter.

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Thanks to O. Corbin Saleken for speaking with us!

Patterson’s Wager will screen at the Vancity Theatre on April 17th as part of the Canadian Film Week series and on April 20th for Canadian Film Day.

Tickets are available through VIFF.org

The post The Biz Interview: O. Corbin Saleken appeared first on Biz Books.