Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Anne MacDonald.

Hi Erin Anne, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
It’s great to talk to with you again! I’m originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, then went on to study musical theatre at The University of Miami, and have been a proud New Yorker for quite some time now working as an actress, writer and producer.

Well, I just lied. I moved to Connecticut last fall, but, Fairfield County, so, still basically New York. (Didn’t lie about the job things; I still do those things.). I believe that this is relevant because the way the landscape of how the industry is finding its way in the post-pandemic era is the only way I was able to move out of the city. There are benefits and detriments to this shift, but I certainly wouldn’t have been able to continue doing what I’m doing living out here pre-pandemic. I’m producing a feature with a team that is splayed all across the country, and I think that prior to this “era of Zoom,” people would have been far less willing to say, “Okay, yeah. We can make that work.” The detriments … well, maybe I can get into that later.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Okay! I’ll get into that now!

I know I’m not alone in saying that we, as actors, miss being in audition rooms. A person’s energy felt in a room is something that cannot be replaced over Zoom, and getting as close as you can to replicating your authentic self on camera is truly an art. At first, I was like, cool! I don’t have to go to the city for this audition! I can do it at home! Fun! But then you realize the things you’re missing – the banter. Getting notes live. Oh, and your lighting and your sound and your reader, all the things you took for granted when you went into a casting office. But, as a producer, it’s been very helpful to be forced to learn as much as possible about putting all of that together.

On the production side – well, this is just funny to me – I now have what I refer to as my “Mall Office.” Yes, a mall. My boyfriend works from home and we live in a loft so when I can’t take a meeting at home, I go to the mall. I think it is the quietest mall in America. It’s like a very clean airport with no people in it. I don’t know how they’re still open, but I hope they stay open, and I also think they probably know me there by now.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Self-tapes. Oh, the self-tapes. We used to do some, now we do gajillions. I am very fortunate to have a couple of very good friends who are regular readers for me, and I include my mother in this pool of people. Let me tell you, there is nothing like having your mother read sides with you playing a pimp and you are auditioning for the role of the prostitute. My mom is a Catholic school principal, and if I get a last minute audition, she will close her office door and read with me for whatever role it may be. Bless her heart, pun intended.

What am I proud of? One of my friends who I work with is a STICKLER for eye line on self-tapes, and he has helped me so much in making my reads better. He puts tape on the wall, the floor, stops rolling if I look down – he is obnoxious in the best way possible. I give him a lot of credit for how much better my auditions have gotten since working with him. Self-tapes – for me, at least – gotta have your eyes on camera. I love squirming and putting my hand over my mouth and I don’t even realize I’m doing it. Doesn’t read on camera. For me. So, I’m proud of how I’m working on honing that specific craft.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
When I am memorizing lines, I always do it on the treadmill or the rowing machine. When you’re working out, it’s harder to think about sounding “right” and you’re learning the lines in a way that you’re not just learning the words. You can’t think so hard about pronouncing words correctly instead of what the scene is about when you’re sweating your ass off and out of breath. That’s been very helpful for me.

I love the Scriptnotes podcast. There is a wealth of knowledge in there about filmmaking of all sorts.

I learn a lot from any “making of” shows, such as “The House that Dragons Built.” Am I nerding out on it and enjoying it, yes, and I’m not necessarily learning a lot, but what I am learning is what I need to learn more about. And then I go from there.

I credit my Dad for a lot of this curiosity which led me to where I am now – when I was a kid, I watched Beauty and the Beast so many times that I guess he was just, like, that’s enough, and he went out and bought “Beauty and the Beast: Work in Progress” which was the film in its entirety but at different stages within the animation process. That had a really huge impact on how I looked at filmmaking.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.erinannemacdonald.com www.vickysbigbreak.com www.enmediany.com
• Instagram: @erinannemac @vickysbigbreak @enmediany
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/erinannemacdonald
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-anne-macdonald-87852764/