We were lucky to catch up with Alicia McDonald recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Alicia 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?

In the past few years working as an actor, I have worked on a wide variety of different films that have been incredibly meaningful to me – complete with characters I have really resonated with, stories I’ve been really proud to tell, and lasting friendships formed on set. While all of these projects mean a great deal to me, ultimately, the project most meaningful to me is my current project – a film called “Last Summer”. “Last Summer” follows a group of six teenagers in the summer before their senior year of high school. Having grown up along the Jersey shore, I chose to center the story in the fictional beach town of Salt Harbor, New Jersey. The story that ensues is rooted in recklessness and highlights how mistakes made in youth can follow us for the rest of our lives.

My journey with “Last Summer” began in June 2024, when I returned to writing after a lengthy hiatus. Writing again felt like returning home. I set out to create a captivating mystery that would leave audiences guessing as to what would happen next. In “Last Summer”, no one is exactly who they seem to be. Katherine, Sam, Mia, Liam, Harper, and Noah are multifaceted individuals, some of whom are harboring dark secrets or struggling with finding themselves, finding a place to belong, or finding the distinction between who they want to be and who their parents want them to be. These six each see the world so differently: some feeling like they are lost and drifting, while others feel they are exactly where they are supposed to be. The film examines grief, regret, growing up, and the moments you might spend the rest of your life wishing you could return to. We take a look at fate versus choice, as well as how the choices you make in one moment can alter the rest of your life (and the lives of those around you) forever. In the end, we are left to wonder – was it always going to turn out this way?

In July, I shared the first draft of the script with my good friend, Kelly Meagher. Shortly after, we decided that we wanted to bring “Last Summer” to life together. On August 7th, we took the next step and formed our very own production company – Star-Crossed Studios, from which we will produce “Last Summer” and many other films to come. I am set to direct when we take “Last Summer” to camera in Summer 2025. This fall, we lined up our very talented cast – including JoHannah James (Sam St. James), Caroline Pastilha (Mia Brown), Dylan Perez (Liam Hayes-Pierce), Mari Blake (Harper Beckett-Vanderbilt), and Matthew Herman (Noah Beckett-Vanderbilt). As well as directing, I will be playing Katherine Keller, an enigmatic girl who moves to Salt Harbor and joins the group at the start of summer 1990.

I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to bring this story to life and work with such an incredible group of people. It is so meaningful to me to be able to share something that I have written myself, complete with characters and a storyline that were once just an idea in my head, but will now be jumping off the page and onto the screen.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a New Jersey based actress and filmmaker, born and raised in Monmouth County. Growing up, I always knew I wanted to be an actor. Staring out in theatre, I spent my summers preparing to audition for the following year’s shows. Throughout high school, I was very involved in the drama club, appearing in plays and musicals such as “And Then There Were None”, “Little Shop of Horrors”, and “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”. Following my high school graduation, I studied musical theatre at Fairleigh Dickinson University. At the onset of the pandemic partway through my sophomore year of college, my classmates and I were sent home. We did not attend an in-person acting class until Fall 2021, out of due concern for mitigation of the spread of COVID-19. In that time, like so many others, I was missing performing.

During lockdown, I decided to set up a Backstage account in an effort to get involved in remote readings. Soon after, I began auditioning for films and realized my passion for acting onscreen. Playing the role of Lacey in the remote reading of the feature film “The Good Life” (Cinderella Motion Pictures) and the role of Kerrie in the student horror film “Airdrop” (Dir. Ronni Garrett) confirmed for me that I wanted to pursue film. After graduating from college, I auditioned for a while before working a full time job in a completely different industry. Over time, I realized that I was not doing right by my younger self by not fully pursuing film, and that I needed to refocus my life on pursuing that dream. Over the past few years, I have had been so fortunate to play some really incredible roles, such as Agnes in “Jersey Birdies” (RufCut Pictures), Angela in “Grindhouse” (Retro Dream Films), the Banshee in “It Still Burns” (Scotastic Productions), and Kaitlyn in “Recovery (Dir. Kelly Meagher), as well as a few featured background roles in films like “Which Brings Me To You” and “The History of Sound”. I am so excited to kick off 2025 playing the role of Kyra Kittner in feature film “So Long, Farewell” (Cinderella Motion Pictures) and work with the incredible director Eleanor Wells.

Now, with the founding of Star-Crossed Studios, headed by myself and my partner Kelly Meagher, I am so excited to continue telling stories and bring our own work to the screen together. Throughout the pre-production process, “Last Summer” has been so incredibly special to us and we are so excited to start filming. Following the wrap up of “Last Summer”, we already have so many other exciting projects in the hopper as well. We cannot wait to share more of our work with you all.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Everybody loves movies. People go to the movies for date nights, they binge watch TV shows, or stream films with their favorite actors from the comfort of their own homes. Unfortunately, though, most people are less aware of the work of independent filmmakers and their work so often goes unnoticed. With increased support and awareness of independent filmmaking, these filmmakers can continue doing what they love. I hope that support of independent filmmakers will continue to grow in 2025, providing them with the resources to continue telling stories and sharing their work with the world. A great deal of that will also come from supporting each other in our art. One goal that I have for 2025 is to support as many independent filmmakers as I can, by attending festivals, streaming their work, and sharing and contributing to crowdfunding campaigns.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I have always aspired to tell stories that will captivate an audience, featuring characters and worlds people can feel invested in and relate to. When I write, I focus on telling women-centered stories that shed light on important themes and feature compelling plot twists that keep viewers on the edge of their seat. In a time when the industry has still been a little bit slower, I found it was the perfect time to tell stories of my own and create more opportunities to work on set. Kelly and I are so excited to continue doing this through Star-Crossed Studios and put our work out there. I feel it is so important to learn everything I can from everyone I work with, and I am so excited to collaborate with everyone on the cast, crew, and production team for “Last Summer”. I am so grateful for the opportunity to make “Last Summer” and so proud of the work that we have done so far in pre-production. I cannot wait to take it to camera next summer and share this story with you all.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aliciamcdonald122/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1HQyHaSZ99/?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/@starcrossedstudiosnj
• Other: IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm16058917/
  Last Summer IMDB: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt33084896/?ref_=nm_knf_t_1&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaac58t4ya1_GvXe6YlQuSOuOTSIjpcFGZCxqFP0SJeN8jvXDECOlQ03D2Q_aem_2qnuZv8k5HmDtDsncJUr1Q
  Last Summer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/last_summer_film/
  Star-Crossed Studios Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starcrossed_studios/
  Last Summer Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@last.summer.film?_t=8rwiPd0HC8s&_r=1
  Star-Crossed Studios Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@starcrossedstudiosnj?_t=8rwiLhdZnXq&_r=1
  Star-Crossed Studios Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1HQyHaSZ99/?mibextid=LQQJ4d

Image Credits

Jess Fidel – Garden of Consciousness Photography
Star-Crossed Studios