Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nell Teare. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Nell thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
My film, Bolivar, which is my first feature, is an incredibly important project to me. When I was a little girl, my mother would dream out loud to me and my brother and sister about all of us making movies together someday. She was a television and stage actress, but gave up her career to become a mother. It was easy to see that she missed it everyday. She passed away in 2011, and this film was very much inspired by the experience of losing her. Bolivar is the story of a woman named Maggie, who has lost her mother and is haunted by her past. In the flashbacks to her childhood, I cast my sister as the mother, my brother as the father, my nephew as the brother and my nieces as the younger versions of Maggie. I was able to honor my mother’s dream after her death. I loved every moment.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I was born and raised in Texas. Mostly, in Houston, but also on my family’s blueberry farm in Huntsville and my parents childhood hometown, Beaumont. I started performing with my mother on stage at the age of five and that became my life. I was a musical theatre performer until my early thirties and around that time I started directing. I write, direct, produce and act. I love to collaborate and celebrate artists and I am most proud of the relationships I have developed in this business. As far as the work goes, there are so many aspects of my career that I never saw coming and I love that. I can’t wait to see what I’m doing around age sixty.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
I am so inspired by other artists. I love to listen to stories and to experience other types of creativity. It is an absolute gift to be constantly surrounded by writers, dancers, musicians, editors, designers, actors, directors, painters – that to me is the greatest reward for choosing a life in the arts. Don’t get me wrong, I love to create, but seeing and being seen by other artists is like breathing fresh air. It makes the world magical.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
I am driven by the desire to understand the human condition. Why we do the things we do – feel the things we feel. I have never believed that we can know the big things, but that by really investigating and studying the small things, we can get close. So I guess I am driven by the desire to excavate my own existence and what it means to be human.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.nellteare.com
- Instagram: @nellteare
- Facebook: Nell Teare
- Linkedin: Nell Teare
- Twitter: @teare_nell
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/rOgeRqSiCzs
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3293769/