We recently connected with Maddy Leane and have shared our conversation below.

Maddy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about how you’ve thought about whether to sign with an agent or manager?

I do have an agent, and she is wonderful!
I have been acting since I was a child and have gone through my fair share of agents that didn’t quite fit right. My current agent was someone I had on my vision board for years. I always kept tabs on certain representatives and watched which ones cycled through actors quickly and which ones seemed to develop actors for years until they booked. I knew I wanted an agent who was in for the long game with me and someone willing to put in the time to make this work.
I was strategic with my approach and waited until I had real selling points before I submitted myself. When I did apply I had just acted in my first TV role on the Aussie series “Neighbours” and I had also just made a short film that I wrote, produced and was the lead actor in. I sent her my film and was transparent about what I wanted and why I wanted her in particular. It took a few months but eventually, she gave me an interview and I have been with her since!

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.

My name is Maddy Leane and I am an actor, producer and writer. I have been acting since I was 8 years old and in more recent years became a filmmaker. I have two short films out at the moment. “People Holes” is a Sci-Fi/ Comedy that played at the Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival and Culver City Film Festival. And “Ex Affliction a Queer/Dystopian film that won best short film at Sydney Womens International Film Festival.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

One of the main qualities you need as an actor is resilience because it’s just so much rejection. It can be really hard when you’re auditioning and you’re at the point where you’re getting far – you’re getting called back and you’re in that final pool of actors but for whatever reason you don’t book it.
However, auditioning is the fun part, I find the most difficult thing as an actor is when you’re not getting many auditions. It’s so brutal because you can be the most prepared and ready actor but if nobody is giving you any opportunities there’s nowhere to go. I went through this a few years ago and it was awful. This was the time I showed the most resilience though because instead of waiting for opportunities to come to me, I made my own films and built my own career.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Watch the smaller stuff! Go to film festivals, watch the Indi films, and go and see theatre!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Maddyleane_