G'day. I'm Longleberry, nutritionist, author, actor, TV presenter and professional oversharer. This podcast is all about celebrating failure because I believe it's a chance for us to learn, grow and face our blind spots. Each week I'll interview a different guest about their highs as well as their lows, all in a bid to inspire us to fearlessly fail. Hello, welcome to the pod today. This episode is a little bit of a rework episode because the wonderful actor Travis Jeffery has already been on the pod before, but recently he played one of the leads in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. You might have seen it, it's been out for a couple of weeks now, in Australia, all over the world, America and I wrote to Travis and I was like, "Hey, are you cool if I re-released this episode, the episode you're about to hear?" Because he's got this incredible career, he's been on Pirates of the Caribbean, Angelina Jolie's unbroken and he's that quintessential working actor. It feels like he's always working and he goes, "Yeah, of course you can release that episode if you want, but we can also have a new chat, it's been four years since we spoke on the pod." So we did just that and that will be next week's episode, but this week's episode has got so many gems in it. I was also very new in my acting training as well, so I was asking all these acting students kind of burning questions. So if you are a creative, this episode is for you. Travis, thank you so much for jumping back on the pod. That episode is going to come out next Monday, but this episode is the episode we recorded four years ago. He was one of the first guests or in that first kind of like 100 guests of Philcy Failing, so I hope you the listener love this. We recorded it in the middle of COVID, so it was recorded on Zoom, but yeah, I hope you love it. Travel your religion and I can't wait for next week's episode and having you on the pod again. Big love. Hello and welcome to the podcast. Travis, Jeffrey, I saw some of the incredible work you've done and the body of work of your career and I'm like, "Whoa, got to speak with this guy." So it's lovely to have you here and I really want to deep dive into your career, a bit about the process and you've played quite differing roles and some of them looked from the outside really grueling on some different levels. So should we start with unbroken? Yeah, let's talk straight in. So unbroken. That was an amazing experience. That was kind of my first big gig out of drama school. Oh, which was Whopper, right? Whopper, yeah. Yeah, the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, which is in Perth. That's a really wonderful school and yeah, so I graduated and I had a couple of bit parts. I did a role on Anzac Girls, which was a wonderful show and then got unbroken, which just, yeah, the whole experience was incredible. I was playing a Scottish prisoner of war in World War II. So I had to drop a bunch of weight, but that one, which was a great experience straight out, lost 20 kilos over two months. No, because that's what I watched all the B-roll stuff and a lot of the behind the scenes and everybody looks proper emaciated. Yeah, yeah, which is, it's not the healthiest thing to do, but you really want to honor these men that win the camps. You've got to do your best to fill the role and do it justice. And it was my, as I said, my first big role was with Angelina Jolie directing, which is incredible. So the motive, like I found it quite easy, like the first couple of days were horrible because I was just in a huge calorie deficit, which isn't the healthiest thing to do, but the motivation was there, made it really easy, but it was the quietest set I've ever been on just because everybody was just fatigued and starving. So when we'd be offset, just sitting around together, just sitting in a circle, just thinking about food, not talking, just trying to get through there. Do you know how many calories they got you down to, or you had to go down to in order to do that? So I was, so throughout the audition process, I started and I pretty much just moved onto like meal replacement shakes, which I think are in the couple of, yeah, I think they're only a couple of hundred calories each. And I tried to find the ones with the most vitamins and that sort of stuff to kind of keep something going into my body, but I was just having like three or four of those a day. So not much. Yeah. So you know, that's what Victoria's Secret models do before the, I've heard them talk the same way, but in the behind the scenes, there's a fair bit of footage of Angelina Jolie like being a director, but there's this, it feels like this is real gentle quality about her and a softness. Would you, what was it like working with her? Absolutely. She's the, I always really looked up to her as an artist. I think she's amazing. So when I got the role, I was sort of terrified to meet her just, you know, because she was an icon and somebody who really inspired me to do what I do, but I was kind of terrified. You hear all these horror stories about, you know, people just not being very nice. You meet them and then it just ruins your perception of them. But I met her and she was the most down to earth, wonderful person. You know, she does a lot of humanitarian work and that, like, and sometimes it's hard to, it's like, is this legit or is this just, you know, to what you want the world to see, but she was just completely genuine and down to earth and a really great director, really good with communication. I guess because she's been an actor for so long, she just knew how to speak to actors and, yeah, it was just a really wonderful process and a really good production to kick off with, you know, it was just, I was just very lucky. Where was it shot? We shot a bunch of it was shot in Sydney and then a bunch in Queensland. We shot up on Fort Minton and then we came down to, which is in Brizzy and then we came down to Sydney and we shot on Coquatoo Island. Of course. Yeah, but I think a lot was shot in the studios and they went up to Matt Tamborine and he kind of speaks to all the crew and production people and like, it feels like three different films, you know, where at some point we're shooting the Olympics and then we're in the war and then we're in the studios. But yeah, it was all over the place and shooting on Coquatoo Island was amazing, just kind of to see how they could, well, I don't really need to, it's got all the structure there already and it kind of looks legit and then they just come in and cover it all with snow and you know, you're in a POW camp in World War II. Wow, to flip that on its head, I've taught at a yoga festival on Coquatoo Island. Yeah, right, right. I thought that gets some pretty good raves going on in Coquatoo Island. Yeah. But, you know, how you spoke about the energy on the set, because it was a Prison of War set for some of this movie, could you feel some of that energy as well? Absolutely. Yeah, like, I've, I've been very lucky and I've done a lot of war projects about war. I think I think I've paid like seven or eight soldiers so far. And you can always feel it, like people come in and they really want to honor it, they really want to give it their respect, their deserves, and you're always going to have a lot of fun on set. You're going to make a lot of great relationships. That's, you know, one of the main reasons to do it is the people you meet and you get to work with, but you can definitely feel it on set of those productions. It's a little bit more somber, I guess, because you're always being reminded of the content and you don't want to, you don't want to have too much fun because you're like, oh, well, you know, these guys had to do it for real and we're here to honor that and, you know, want to take it seriously. So yeah, you can definitely, definitely feel the respect in the air and everybody just puts, you know, 150% in because everybody's working towards the same sort of goal of just honoring these people that have sacrificed so much and getting the best production possible. So yeah, I watch an interview with the actor that played, is it the bird? Yeah, yeah. Bad, it's not bad, but that's the worst way to say it. But, and he said after that, there was a really grueling scene that they shot where he was kind of like inflicting a lot of pain and he said he threw up straight after shooting that scene. I was like, and I watched the scene because I was like, I've got to see this, but it, and I've seen the movie and I, although it's like confronting, there's a, there's a lot of, it feels like there's an undercurrent of hope. And I imagine that's a pretty amazing project to be a part of, you know? Yeah, absolutely. And I guess for him, like his role was kind of, you know, to be the antagonist the entire time, but for us, it was about survival. So we can form those, you know, mate chips on set and, you know, we can muck around together, but for him, he was just kind of in this corner, sort of separated from the cast. That was something that Angie wanted to kind of do to sort of help facilitate just not a comfort between us, you know? So kept them separate and, and he's, he's an incredible musician and I'm not sure how much film stuff he'd done before. So I can imagine, he'd done nothing. Yeah, that was his first spoken in English. Yeah, right, right. But he was incredible how he just dived into it. And I can imagine it would be incredibly confronting having to, yeah, just jump headfirst into a role like that. It's pretty amazing first role to kick, kick off with. Totally. And also for you coming straight out of Whopper and being able to land something like that, like that's pretty massive. Yeah, it was, I just felt so lucky. It was, yeah, it's just to see how it works at the top, top level, you know, like how, how productions that big work and just how long did the shoot go for? For you. I was, I think they went for about three months. I was on, I was shooting for six weeks. Oh, that's, I feel like that's still pretty solid. Yeah, solid. It's, for a lot of Australian productions, I've worked on it's usually around four to six weeks, just because, just because there's less money and we're trying to pump stuff out. But I worked on Pirates a few years ago, which was four or five months. That was my next question. So I interviewed an actor on the show called Michaela Banis and she is kind of very famous for my cloud's daughters back in the day. And she's done an amazing playthrough of stuff, but she was on a movie, a Scooby-Doo movie. And she said, Lola, I was on screen for like no more than a minute. And she's like, I still collect royalties from that. She's like, it was to this day, the most rewarding thing financially. And I was like, it must be a whole different ballgame going from, because you've done so many Australian projects. And you've been on a lot of Australian shows, like Love Child, Home and Away, I've seen, like you've done your stint of in the Heights. I think you're on the Heights. Yes. Yeah. So he's one of the Heights yet. Yeah. So I feel like you've done your stint of Australian stuff. And then it comes, they're like right now it's time to become a British soldier on Pirates of the Caribbean. Now I am a Pirates of the Caribbean fan, like Superfan. My favourite soundtrack of all time. I write books and every time I write books, I listen to the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack, because it's really fast, but because of the orchestra you're bringing kind of focus. It sounds great. Yeah. Awesome. Yeah. That's my hack. But so what, please tell me what was Pirates like, I'm excited for this? It was amazing. Again, that was like, you go on to unbroken and it's like, wow, this is the biggest I'm ever going to, you know, the biggest set I'm ever going to be on, then you're going to Pirates. And it's just a different level. Like it's a whole different ball game. I guess because the franchise just has made so much money so they can pump so much money into it. But it's kind of, it was, there's quite chaotic. I remember my first day on set, I rocked up and I was playing a British maybe officer and everything was kind of chaotic. And they got me in my uniform and it was red. I'm like, no, I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to be blue. And everyone was like, no, no, no, it's fine. You're red. Go to set. I was like, okay. And I kept trying to find the third A days to chat to and I was like, hey, guys, I think I'm in the wrong, wrong uniform. They're like, no, no, no, it's fine. It's fine. It's fine. And then I get on set in the first, first A day he goes, hey, bud, you're dressed in the wrong thing. I was like, oh, yeah, I thought so. I was trying to tell someone and, and he's like, quick run back, get changed. And then so I get changed. Everybody's really hectic trying to find stuff that fits me because they'd sort out the other uniform. And then I get back to set and the first day he goes, hey, you see that guy over there? Follow him. Run. Action. I'm like, what? Oh, and so that was my first take for my first shot on Pirates of the Caribbean. Just rock up and go, hey, chase that guy, yell at him. Go. Oh, great. Got that out of the way. That's our way to like dive straight in. Hey, was that shot at the WIT Sundays? Is that right? That was all over the place as well. So we shot some stuff at the studios in Queensland. And yeah, and then just outside of that on a farm for all the town stuff. And it was just like the scale, like just they build working shops and all that kind of stuff. And if you've anybody had seen the film, there's the the guillotine scene in the marketplace. And that took like four or five weeks to shoot that sequence. So just for four weeks, you'll be rocking up doing the same thing over and over. And yeah, just the scale. It's just mind blowing. Did you get to see any of like the heroes like Jeffrey Rush or Johnny Depp in action? I crushed paths with Jeffrey Rush really briefly. Saw Javier Badem really briefly, which was kind of like my fan crush. And I like caught him at the best moment. He was so in the film, there's the young Johnny Depp. Yes. And so he was just meeting the little boy playing him. And I overheard him say, he's like, hey, buddy, listen, I'm going to be really mean to you on screen. But then off screen, we're going to be best friends. I was like, oh my god, that's the best thing I've ever heard. And then that's just like, oh, wow. So he's a good person as well, which is which was nice to see. And then cross cross paths with Johnny Depp really briefly and got to work a lot with David Wenham, which was to tick off for me because he's such an Australian legend. Yeah. So fun. Well, speaking of Australian legends, that takes me to your next. I don't know if I'm doing this in chronological order, but I spent a lot of last night watching Gallipoli. And I mentioned to you before we started recording my boyfriend's a music producer. And he heard the bit where you're singing, like there's a few moments where you sing. And he's like, who's that? He can sing. And I was like, I'm passing that on in the podcast. So and he doesn't come to it. Because I can definitely not sing. Good at Wauper. I know I'm jumping around a little bit about Wauper. Was it a lot of theatre training and voice? Yes. So that's I think it's changed now just because screen is such a big part of the industry. But when we were there, we kind of spent our first two years doing theatre training. And then in second year, you do a stage play every four weeks, which is good. So you're jumping out shows, which is good. And then you finish on the Saturday night, and then you rock up to rehearsals for your next one on Monday. And then kind of towards the end of second year, that start bringing in film. And then in third year, you would have have film classes. What did you love most? I got into drum school having only done theatre. So I was like, no, no, I'm going to be a theatre guy. That's that's all I want to do. And then I started playing around with the film and I was like, Oh, wow, this is really, this is really what I want to do. I guess because like, you know, they're all based in the same thing, which is, you know, being honest and telling the truth and stuff. But theatre, it's such a different kind of, you know, it's bigger. You've got to reach the background, all that sort of stuff. And I just, I really enjoy the honesty of film. You know, you can just be really honest and yeah, just sit in it. And so when I started working on film and TV stuff, I really kind of fell in love with it worked out. That's what I actually wanted to do. Yeah. Awesome. And then I saw, did you study in New York as well? I did. A couple of years ago, I was lucky enough to get an MEA scholarship to the Atlantic acting school, which is like a lot of myosna kind of staff and practical aesthetics, which was really cool. Just living in New York for six weeks was the biggest part of the training. It was, yeah, it was awesome. And yeah, the school was great and that went a bunch of really cool stuff and made a lot of really good friends. Oh, so good. I know I've digressed and jumped around. It's my style. So we were talking about Gallipoli now. Yeah. So last night we were emailing each other and I kind of watched the first episode and then I watched lots of little segments and scenes online. And then you were like, oh, episode five is my fave was my favorite to shoot. And I was like, oh, well, great. I'm going to go back and watch. And that had been some of the stuff that I'd watched. And I was like, here we go. I've got to watch the really hardcore scene again, where your character is kind of like, I feel like marches into slaughter. Is it a bit rude to say? I don't know, not rude, but I don't know. It's, yeah. Unfortunately, that's exactly, yeah, battle is a neck. Yeah, the neck. Yeah. Unfortunately, that's what it was. It was just, just miscommunication by the officers and just having no concern for human life, just sending these boys to the death. And the hardest thing about those kind of things is that they know it's coming. Like, I think for the neck, there was four waves. So you just hear wave one go and you watch all your mates just get mowed down, go wave two, let's go. And the whole time they were trying to stop it. I think, yeah. Full on. Yeah. What Gallipoli does really well is it captures kind of the incompetence of the people running the show and just a disregard, which is really heartbreaking. You know, just these kids just went over there to protect their country and get some, have an adventure and didn't know what they were getting into and just end up in situations like that. But yeah, that was a really, really beautiful one to work on. I guess, you know, with unbroken and parts and all that kind of stuff, it's really cool, but it doesn't hit home like the Anzac's, you know, being Australian. And just before we started shooting, I was lucky enough. I went on a little trip with my mum to, we went to Gallipoli. Wow. Yeah, I went to, because I really wanted to sort of pay my respects and kind of get a feel for the place and kind of sit like I went to the neck and I sat in the trenches and just kind of tried to, yeah, get to, because you're never going to be able to fully understand the horror that these guys went through in those moments. But just be able to be there and get a feel for the atmosphere and see how ridiculous it all was. Like they talk about when the Anzac's landed, they would just, they landed in the wrong spot at a cliff face, just to get there and stand in front of it. And they were supposed to run up that and, you know, capture the land and you just go, this is impossible. Yeah. Yeah. So did you get cast in the role and then go to Gallipoli? Because you were like, I need to feel this. Yeah. Yeah. So I got cast and I, I'd always really wanted to go to Anzac Cove and to wander around and, so there was a bit of time, like we did our boot camp week and then I think I had like three or four weeks off shooting and luckily the production like, yeah, you can go, just make sure, you know, you get back on time to start shooting. So yeah, it was great. We went with my mum and we spent a few days there and it was just amazing. Yeah. Wow. And is that kind of, there are some actors I speak to and it feels like their process is, I guess, to find the truth within the, within the story that they're sharing and it feels like that might have been as to get as close to the experience as you, as humanly possible. Is that good process? Yeah. Absolutely. I think the good thing about film, I think what makes film easier is a lot of the time that it is as close to real as possible. So you rock up to set and you're in the mud, you're wet, you're cold. Obviously you're not being shot at. That's something that we always keep in mind. It's like, you know, we're going home to our hotel at the end of the day. Our lives aren't hard, but they make it easier for us to kind of get there with, with the situations they put us in. So, yeah, going to Gallipoli to try and get a sense of that was definitely, you know, you want to try and act as little as possible. So the more information you can get that gives you an understanding of what you're about to do, the better for me, I find. Did you have a dialect coach for that? Because your accent was, it felt so iconically, Ozzy, but also of the era, the way listening to you speak. Great. No, I think that's just growing up on a farm. I guess, like, as soon as you go, Oh, World War One, you kind of, I guess you lean into it a little bit. Yeah. You know, and it's a fine balance because you don't want to sound like you've taken a piss, you know, totally going too ochre. But I'm glad. Thank you. That's good to hear. Well, also consuming you in spinout as well, because you played the kind of like, there's like this, I guess to your character, Sparrow, he kind of felt like soft and sweet, but he also felt very astraliana. Yeah. Yeah. So that was the same sort of thing. We shot that out in Sheppenham, which is a few hours away from where I grew up. So I kind of felt very comfortable there. And, you know, I met a lot of people like Sparrow and you go, Oh, that's the kind of guy I use. And yeah. So just to get out there and that looks like a lot of fun. That was amazing. That's that's still one of my favorite shoots. I guess because of how fun it was, like I've got the shoots that I find the most satisfying, you know, like Gallipoli and danger clothes and those sort of things. But in terms of how much fun we had, like we're all put up in the same kind of hotel complex and ship it in and a lot of the extras were locals. They just like put out a Facebook post and go come cheer it out, made up BNS ball. And so we made mates with a lot of those guys and still keep in contact. And we were down at the local pub every Friday night with them. And yeah, so it's just a really, really lovely vibe. And we all got really close, which you want, which shows on screen, I think. And yeah, that was a lot of fun and getting to play Sparrow, who was just like the biggest sweetheart. It was just a lot of fun. Yeah, it was great. Yeah, your character felt very lovable. Yeah, yeah, kind of like the like a sort of a doofus best friend gets himself in these situations that you don't know how he did that. But comes out the other side. I actually found a video on YouTube of you giving tips for actors. And I don't know if you know that I study acting at the moment. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's rare that actors kind of share their tips. And this sounds like a weird thing, but it feels like something quite sacred. And I kind of understand that as well. But I saw a video of you on YouTube and it was like tips, tips for actors. And I was like, man, these are tips for life. All right. Can you remember these tips? I remember shooting the video. I don't remember the pills of wisdom that I, I will relate. So number one was BU. And I'm like, yeah, I think that's another thing with acting. We think we have to put something on and be something we're not. The next one is my favorite. And that was work hard. And I think that a lot of people think when they see an actor, oh, wow, they've just got to learn lines and memorize lines. And it's like, I feel like that is like the tip of the iceberg. You know, one of my teachers is Ian Sinclair, who's a, he's like a quite a big theater director in Australia. Yeah, it's amazing. Yeah. And he says, that's the most common question they get asked. And you learn all those lines? Yeah. And he goes, if only people knew, you know, like all the work that someone does. And at school, like the motto of the school, you'll hear like walking down the corridors is you're training for the Olympics. Yeah, treat this like you're training for the Olympics. And I'm a pretty hard worker by nature. But I was like, yeah, whoa. And one thing that I've wondered about is like, if you're going in for an audition, how often, sorry, how much preparation time do you often get with sides? So when they deliver your audition piece, they're like, here's your five pages of sides. You've got a self tape or whatever. How, how, what's that window of timeline? It usually can be anywhere between a couple of days to a week or so. They don't usually know. But it's kind of good in some ways where you, because I think one of my biggest things, and I think a lot of people speak, it's just overthinking it. So it's good to just kind of like, do the prep that you need to do, and then just get in there and do it. And one of the biggest lessons I learned, and that was one of the tips that you brought up was it takes so much pressure off when you, when you can be yourself, because when I left drama school, you know, doing Gallipoli, and that sort of stuff, I was like, I'm an actor, I will act, will act like my pants off in every situation. But one of the greatest things I've ever heard is that you will never be a more interesting actor than you are a person. And that's who they want to cast. Like, you go in there, and they'll see you being yourself adding whatever you want to, what interests you to the role, your version of the role. And that's, that's why you'll be cast. You'll never be cast because you do what you think their version of the role is. Yeah. And then the, and the next point was actually you said audition, like, and you said, like, often you'll read something that's like, well, this character is seven foot tall and really buff or something that you think that you're not, and often doing that audition might mean that you get called in for the next set. Yeah. So you're always kind of auditioning for the next one, you know, so you go in there and you, you do the best that you can, and you might not be right for it, but you might be right for the next one. And that's happened to me a couple of times with, when I was in drama school, I was lucky enough to audition for Squeezy Taylor for Thunderbelly series. And I got very close to playing, playing him. And that was in my third year of drama school. So that was an incredible experience getting from, you know, back and forth, and get a taste of the audition process. And then I missed out on that one, but then Anzac girls came along through that and then Gallipoli. And, of course, yes. So it's always, yeah, it's, you know, it's really heartbreaking. And we're talking about failure and stuff. And, you know, when you don't get a role, it can feel like failure. But, you know, as long as you take, you learn something from every experience, it's not a failure, is it? So totally. You can't, it takes a long time to kind of build up that resilience, I guess, and not taking things personally. And knowing that it is, you're getting better with every experience, rather than I have to nail every audition, I have to get every job. It's like, no, no, this is making me a better actor, better human. Totally. And one thing I've learned at drama school is these styles of humans are really good at beating themselves up anyway. Absolutely. That's why we do it. So it's like, go easy on yourself, because there's an element of also like trusting and throwing caution to the wind and kind of going, I've done the work. Let's just let it fly now, you know? Yeah. And, yeah, something that took me so long to, I guess, to know that it was okay to do, and I guess to work up the courage to do was to take risks and to know it might not be perfect. You might not nail it every time. I think especially in Australia, and I guess it's everywhere, like there's not a lot of money, so you feel like you have to be perfect or you're not going to get the role. You feel like you can't do anything that interests you, you can't put your own little flair on it, because that might ruin your chances for next time. Totally. I've gotten to the point where I'm really enjoying doing things that, adding what I want to add to these roles, and you know, with Bloody Hell, we've got to learn Finnish and play twins. And I just saw the trailer. It looks so fun. It's like comedy and horror, right? Yes, yeah. And so, was it shot in Australia, even though it's American accents? Yes, so that was shot. Yeah. So that was shot in Queensland, well, some studios up there. How long did that take to shoot? That was about six weeks, I think, and now a couple of weeks. I'm now asking really random questions, but it's just so nice that you're so open and it's so fascinating to hear the BTS of it that we often don't have access to. Well, go for, yeah, I don't mind sharing. No, I think that's a superpower. I love it. On your list as well, you said, like, be respectful. And I think in this world, there is a bit of ego, and you touched on it when you were talking about working with Angelina Jolie and how she was, you hear, like, people that are of that level of success can often be dickheads, but she was the pole opposite by the sounds of things. Yeah, yeah. So, yeah, I get where you bring the be respectful point out, but do you find there are egos in this industry? Well, in Australia, most of the time, there's a pretty, like, blanket, no, dickhead rule policy, which is awesome, because we just don't have time, you know? And for the crew, it's too hot. Like, when choosing, it's too hard, it's still everything. Like, you don't want to rock up and have to do your job and then deal with someone like that as well. Like, of course, there are people like that, but I think everything's changing. Like, I don't think that's as tolerated as, yeah, I think we're past the era of mega super movie stars. Like, you know, you'll get them, they'll pop up. But, like, if you don't want to work with somebody, you're not going to get them back. And I think that's, yeah, and I think that's where a big, like, these, yeah, these are people who don't treat, I think don't treat everybody with the respect that is of like, one thing that I always try to do is treat everybody on set with the same amount of respect as I treat my mum. Like, that's something I always tell the younger actors. It's like, you know, pick up your clothes in the costume room. Like, don't leave shit lying around. Don't, yeah, just be nice. Like, everybody's job is just as important as yours. Like, any actor who thinks they're the most important person on sets, not, you know, not doing it for the right reasons. Totally. Again, it comes back to this list of, like, I feel like this is like a life hack list, not just for actors and artists. And I, my favourite one, well, I know I've got a few favourites, but I love that expect nothing, appreciate everything. Yeah. I feel like that's powerful. If you go in without expectation, then everything's a bonus. Yeah. And I think that ties into taking, taking away from every opportunity, like, take, you know, make sure you learn something, just appreciate everything that you've got. It's not like, oh, I missed that. I didn't get that role because I'm not good. It's like, well, I didn't get the role, but I learned a bunch doing it. And I think, jumping back to people, you know, the people when you come across these people on set, it's usually people who are quite entitled. They're like, yep, I should be here. I'm meant to be here. I deserve to be here. Like, obviously, if you've done the work and you've earned it, you deserve to be there. But I think, yeah, expecting nothing takes that pressure off. Yeah. In auditions and roles. And it's like, well, I'm just going to go in there, do my best. Probably nothing will come from it like the 95% with the other ones where nothing comes from it. But if something does, great. Yeah. It's such a great attitude to have. Yeah. And when it does happen, it's even better. Yeah. That was unexpected. Totally. Okay. So your next project is bloody hell, which we just touched on. So that's out the 8th of October, is that right? Yes. All over Australia, it's set to Victoria, I think, at the moment. Of course. So we'll see. Yeah. So hopefully, I'll start plugging in some stuff soon when the trailer gets released and have some more info and but yeah, 8th of October. Awesome. And so you play Finnish twins, right? I do, yes. How on earth did you go with learning a Finnish accent? It was very difficult. Yeah. And I didn't, I didn't have to learn a Finnish accent. I just had to learn Finnish. So I don't speak any English. Oh, wow. Amazing. So that was a really interesting, like, I always love to challenge myself. But this was a particular one that I may have almost pushed it a little bit too far. I was doing a play at the time of auditioning where I had to learn Italian. Like proper Italian as well. Like not an accent. Oh, wow. No, like learning learning. So it was just this fast, this really fun sort of fast comedy where I had to learn a whole bunch of Italian for it. And then this audition came through and I was like, oh yeah, I can learn a Finnish accent. Great. Box trying to learn Italian and my brain just started to just get packed. And then I did it and got a call back and they're like, no, no, it's in Finnish. Can you, can you learn? Can you just learn all this Finnish? And I was, my brain was about to explode. And I remember my final call back. It was just a self-take, which means you just do it at home. Yeah, send it off. And I'd just come back from a huge day of rehearsals and they sent through the Finnish and like you're playing it and Emma, the accent and dialect coach, you know, she was speaking the Finnish and it's so fast and it's so tricky and my brain was broken. And I was like, oh, this might be the first time I ever had to pull out of doing an audition. And then I was like, no, I'll just, I don't think there's going to be any benefit to wait. Let's just do it now. So I went downstairs, nobody was home, so I had to do the audition by myself. And I just wrote the Finnish, Finnish phonetically, which is just writing the sounds up and sticky tape them around the room. I was doing these scenes just reading a little bits and pieces. And that's the only way I could get through. And then later I edited my housemates voice into the audition. So it sounded like I had somebody there with me. And it was really interesting. I think what got me the role is that I edited, I used I'm moving and edited myself in twice. So I had one side of the camera and then the other side of the camera. So it looked like I was twins and really I find twins. I found that later just for time and money restrictions. And they were really struggling. So when that audition came through, they're like, great, yes. And then they realized that I was just one person. So when you shot that, did they, because you're obviously playing twins, do you have to shoot it? How does it work shooting twins? So it's always been a dream. I think it's every actor's dream to play twins. And I was really interested in the process and I was like, oh, great, this is going to be so cool. There's going to be heaps of time to transition between characters. Because I tried to make the characters as different as possible. Because on paper, I think what they wanted to go for in the beginning was kind of like those horror movie twins, where it's like they move in sync and speak. But I was like, how can I turn that on its head and do the most opposite thing possible? So I made them very different. So on set, I was like, great, this is going to be a really cool process and being Australian film. And I'm sure it's on every film. There's no time. So I'd finish one to win. And I'm like, hey, you know what the costume place is? Run to it. Get changed. Come back and do it. But everybody was supportive and it can be with costume and makeup and the director and the producers. But it was just like, we don't have time. Let's just do it now. So it was good. And it was a really great lesson of being able to just go, okay, well, I don't have time to overthink this. Just do it. Yeah, in the moment. Yeah, which I think really helped the performance in part. Yeah, but yeah, sorry, how they do do it is a lot of the time they just shoot when the film does come out and you'll see it is that they shoot like two sides of the camera. So I'll, as one twin, will be on the right and then, you know, on the left for the other. And then they can just split screen it and kind of how I did it in the audition. But a lot more complicated. I can't wait. I can't wait to see this now. I'm very excited. Yeah, it's a lot of fun. And I got to see it a few weeks ago in Queensland and with the cast and crew screening. And it's great. It's awesome. It's so much fun. I think people are really going to love it. It's like, it's a pretty niche sort of area, but I think it's fun for everybody. We need fun right now, too. I think it's a perfect time for it. Yeah. So do you have any dreams of like, and I know this is a really weird time to ask this because of all the COVID stuff, but do you have any dreams of heading overseas and pursuing your career over there? Because you've done so much in Australia. Yeah. I think absolutely. I think most actors do just because it's a bigger pool. There's more work. There's more money for these productions. So they're kind of a grander scale. And I love living in Australia so much. So if I can keep working here forever, I would. But I definitely would. I'm working on my visa application at the moment and stuff like that. So I can go in there. It is so full. I just got my green card, dude. Oh, congratulations. It has been a three-year process. Well, I'm at the beginning, so great. I'll see you in three years. Yeah. It's full on. It's full on. Like, absolutely. Definitely open to that. But I've started to try and, and I think COVID's really pushed me to do this. Take the reins a little bit more on my career and my trajectory. So I've started writing a lot. You've directed to, haven't you? Sort of. Me and me just made a short film called Punnap Island. No, it is something I'd really be keen to move into. But at the moment, just kind of using this downtime to focus on writing and kind of upskilling and learning the producing sort of rights. And so me and a friend have got a film that I've written that we're having to shoot in, like Super India in January to Simba kind of time, which is cool. What's that called? That it's a working title at the moment. It's called Unsied. Oh, cool. But it's been a very loose process. So it's kind of one of those films where it's like it will name itself during this shoot. I write books and usually you have writing, I'm writing a book at the moment, and you have a right, a working title for like, nearly the whole manuscript. And it's not too like the last month or so that they're like, all right, let's go with this title. Yeah, yeah. That's normal. It's interesting that you say that you're interested in producing as well, because I kind of feel like directing, writing, acting, I feel like that's the similarities, whereas I feel like producing that's like a completely different skill set. Yeah. So I think it's more just an awareness of how it all works, is what I'm really interested in, because like the more you understand on set, and that's kind of whenever I chat to younger actors is, is, you know, just when you get on set, just pay attention to as many people as possible. And the way, you know, if you understand how it works, you can make it a smoother process for everybody else. And with time and that sort of stuff, you know, if you know how the lighting guys work and, you know, how sound all works and when you should be places and what they need to do and what's stressing the producers out and that sort of stuff. So, yeah, directing and writing would probably be more of an avenue I'd follow fully, but producing, it's just kind of helping producers film, I'm just kind of learning as much as I can about it. Totally. And it's such a young age, like that's pretty young to be playing with producing as well, I reckon. Yeah, it just, it's kind of, yeah, and I think I was heading that way anyway, I'd started writing at the start of the year before everything sort of shut down, which was really good. I think if everything shut down and I hadn't started writing, I might not have been in the swing of it. And I'm like, no, I'm not doing anything for this, you know, because there was such a lot of pressure on everybody. And I think people were feeling the pressure of like, oh, there's, there's nothing to do. What should I, now I've got time to do all these really amazing things, which is horrible pressure to put on people. But I was lucky that I started earlier. So I was kind of in the swing of it. So it was something that I always wanted to kind of move into. But having the time with that would shut down and everything. Yeah, just, just it's given me a time to just, yeah, absolutely. I want to try and always make it as productive as possible and just learn, learn something throughout this time. Totally. Sounds like you've nailed that too. Sounds like you've done it. Can I ask, and I know you've already done so many awesome things. What would be like a bucket list goal kind of dream work for you that you haven't ticked off yet? Like HBO is always an incredible show. I was really lucky I did an AMC show. I did the preacher a couple of years ago. So that was a tick off. Yeah. So HBO, but what I really like, I'm a huge Pixar fan. I just think Pixar is the best thing in the world. And I think they're so smart. Like working with kids in my part-time job, like I think what Pixar have done really well is just being able to get through to kids and adults at the same time. Totally. Really hard issues. Yeah. So like I'd love to voice a Pixar film at some point. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Big time. I reckon that would be epic. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. And you've got that full, I remember the first time I saw Happy Feet. I don't know if that's Pixar or not, but I remember Steve Irwin was a voice as like a walrus or something. And I was like, oh my god, life goal. I want to be a voice. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. So good. Thank you so much. This has gone so fast. I'm going to end with, I know a lot of my kind of like classmates will be listening to this with very eager ears. And I sent to my scene partner, we're working on Tennessee Williams at the moment. And I sent him my scene partner, your show reel. And he's like, oh my god. So we're all very, we're all in our infancy about kind of like journey. And I just, if you've got any advice for people that are studying, acting, or even just a creative person that's kind of like, oh, this is kind of something I want to explore. What would it be? Yeah. I think a really big lesson that I've learned is to not take yourself too seriously, really be flexible with everything you do. Like it's great that you guys are studying, like you're already taking the first step, like you always have to do the work. Over the last few years, I've really learned that experience is what you get paid in as an actor. Like, you know, we're not in it to be rich, because none of us are going to be rich, you know, in Australia, unless you're a megastar. So being okay with doing free short films, you know, do us free play reads, just always keep working, because that's how you're going to grow. And a lot of the films that I've worked on, I've come from doing short films with producers that I've become friends with, and they just kind of snowball. And so, you know, you always have to have pride in your work, but don't be too proud. Don't be like, no, I'm an actor. I won't work in a cafe. I want, I want to do things for free, because that's what we are. And, you know, glorified baristas, like, you know, I'm working in a cafe for so long, poured so many beers, work at a daycare now to pay rent in between gigs. You know, I think there's a bit of a stigma with actors. It's like, no, you know, we've got to be these glamorous sort of thing. And it's not like it's not glamorous. It's a lot of fun and it's amazing, but you've got to be okay with putting in the work. And sometimes the work won't be acting work, just be pouring a beer so you can pay rent and pay for your classes. And yeah, so just be open to everything. Yeah, I love that. Thank you so much. My pleasure. Yeah, it's been a total, total honor to have you on. And you've shed so much of your heart with us and your journey. I cannot wait to keep following your journey because I am just, yeah, you've got another fan over here. So thank you so much. Oh, you've got a fan too. Thank you. You're a legend. Thanks for having me. It's really lovely to be here. Great chat. Thank you. Anytime. And in the show notes, I'm going to put some of your work in the show notes so people can check out some of your stuff. And the trailer, I'm sure will be out for Bloody Hell by now. So I'm going to make sure that everyone can see it. Awesome. Thank you so much. Big love. Bye. Lots of love. Chat to you soon. Bye. That's a wrap on another episode of Feellessly Failing. As always, thank you to our guests. And let's continue the conversation on Instagram. I'm at Yummo Lullaberry. This potty, my word for podcast, is available on all streaming platforms. I'd love it if you could subscribe, rate and comment. And of course, spread the love. [BLANK_AUDIO]
