THE M AGA ZINE FROM AC TR A TORONTO

VOLUME 24 ISSUE 2 FALL 2015

NEW LAW TO PROTECT

CHILD PERFORMERS!


Presidents Message:
Putting Solidarity into Action
How to Eat a Sandwich Like a Pro
by James Gangl ... 20

by David Sparrow ... 4
Equity and ACTRA talk of
New Law to Protect Enhanced Relationship by David Sparrow... 23
Child Performers ... 6
Members News ... 24
Welcome New Members ... 11
Your Council and Stunt Committee
Actors in Between by David Gale ... 12 Election Timeline ... 27
Show Up by Clara Pasieka ... 17 Highlights of Council Activity
2014 - 2016 ... 28
ACTRA Toronto Council /
ACTRA Toronto Sta ... 19 Lives Lived ... 30
(L. to R.) David Macniven, Jack Newman, Shereen Airth, Richard Hardacre, Randi Shelson, Stephen Waddell, Clara Pasieka, Grace Lynn Kung, Nicole St. Martin,
eresa Tova, Carole Paikin Miller, Don Lamoreux, MPP Paul Miller, David Sparrow (ACTRA Toronto President), Ferne Downey (ACTRA National President),
Heather Allin, Barbara Larose, Leah Pinsent, Sue Milling, Art Hindle, Angelica Lisk-Hann, Donal Hansman, Karen Woolridge. (photo: Jag Gundu)

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Performers

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PUTTING
SOLIDARITY
As you might expect, concern over evolving technologies and
David Sparrow
Dear ACTRA Toronto
members,
It's been a busy year on set, in the halls of government and in
the oces of our industry partners, working to advance the
ACTRA Advantage and to celebrate the value our professional
performers bring to the economy and to productions large and
small. Your dedicated Council and sta are working on many
complex les, delivering on our Operating Plan of putting
Solidarity into Action. Let me highlight a few for you:
BARgAining
e IPA expires on December 31st of this year. Negotiations
with the CMPA and their partners, the major U.S. studios, will
take place in October and November. ACTRA Toronto has
held 15 focus groups with everyone from Background
Performers to Stunt Performers, Principal Performers to Voice
Performers, Diversity, Youth, Women and Senior Performers.
Members shared their concerns about our largest agreement.
(You can send your thoughts to ipa@actratoronto.com.) Our
asks will be honed by our Bargaining Committee.
the internet are top of mind. How will we be compensated
when everything is made for digital exploitation? e value our
professional performers bring to a production doesnt change
based on the medium in which the production is exploited.
Video on demand may replace conventional broadcasters but
the content remains the same and performers should be fairly
compensated and their residuals protected. As we said in 2007,
e internet is not for free!
HiStoRic Win
On the cover, some great news: Bill 17 a law to protect child
performers in the province of Ontario received Royal Assent
in May! the new law protects all child performers and
enshrines in law collectively bargained industry best practices.
It is a big deal, and our reputation as organized and tenacious
advocates was recognized by MPPs across all party lines.
cRiSiS AveRted
e Ontario Budget was presented on April 23rd. ankfully,
it maintained the domestic tax credit at current levels while
eliminating the grind between the provincial and federal
credits. ats a good thing. However, it cut the foreign service
tax credit from 25 per cent to 21.5 per cent. at was bad. But
worse, the budget called for immediate implementation of
those cuts on the very day it was announced. Projects already
underway or substantively planned and budgeted were left
trying to decide whether to reduce the number of episodes or
seek a new location.
Speaking with one voice helped to avert the immediate crisis.
With our industry partners in FilmOntario, we made clear our
concerns to the Ministers of Finance, Labour and Culture.
Many meetings later and just hours before the budget was passed,
the government agreed to grandfather projects already
underway. it was an excellent outcome, conveying to foreign
and domestic producers the stability of our industry and
our region.
PuBLic PoLicy
e CRTC, a body whose mandate is to regulate Canadian
broadcasting and communications and protect Canadian
voices and culture, made some bizarre announcements which
INTO ACTION
are expected to make Canadian Content even more scarce on
our screens. Case in point: a new pilot project modies the
Canadian Content points system drastically, so that the total
points for Canadian key creatives may be as low as 2 out of 10
so long as 75% of the budget is spent in Canada. In theory, one
Canadian actor could work on a Canadian-authored lm, shot
in North Carolina with a U.S. cast, a U.S. director and a U.S.
crew and, as long as the post and some of the marketing was
done in Canada, they might qualify for Canadian Media Fund
nancing, federal tax credits and count as Canadian programming
for a broadcaster. Many of the CRTC decisions do not take
effect until December 2016 so there is time to make our views
known. ACTRA took part in the CRTC Lets Talk TV
consultations and will continue to make its objections known
at every opportunity.
AND, there is a federal election on October 19, 2015. e coming
federal election on october 19, 2015 will give every ActRA
member an opportunity to make to make their views known
on the cRtc and on other arts policy at the ballot box.
e coming federal election
on october 19, 2015 will give
every ActRA member an op-
portunity to make to make
their views known on the
cRtc and on other arts
policy at the ballot box.
counciL eLectionS
In October, we will be holding elections for your 24 ACTRA
Toronto Council seats.
Voting will be held online. Make sure you take time to review
the candidates. Decide who will best represent our collective
voice on issues large and small. en vote and encourage other
eligible members to vote too. To be eligible to vote, you must be
an ACTRA Toronto Full Member in good standing by October
9th, 2015.To be eligible to vote, you must be an ACTRA
Toronto Full Member in good standing by October 9th, 2015.
Trying to build a performance career in Canada can be daunting.
Training, networking, marketing, auditioning committed,
modern actors work full days. Many of the variables that aect
our day-to-day business are outside of an actors control. ats
why im an ActRA member. As actors, our individual
confidence may wobble occasionally but were all in this
together and the union makes us strong.
In solidarity,
David Sparrow
President, ACTRA Toronto
New Law to Protect
Child Performers
Aer half a century of ACTRAs ACTRAs history
eorts on behalf of cultures most protecting minors
vulnerable contributors, Ontario Film, stage, TV and commercials have always employed child actors.
Jackie coogan, after whom Californias law to protect minors
has a law. What a remarkable earnings is named, was one of Hollywoods first child stars. He
became a star aer appearing in Charlie Chaplins e Kid (1921) at
historic achievement! the age of seven. Canadas Mary Pickford was
seven when she performed her rst role on
stage in Toronto in 1899.
In Canada, ACTRA has been bargaining to
protect children in the recorded industry since
its early days. Protections for minors can be
found in the 1966/68 edition of ACTRAs
National Commercial Agreement.
Over the years, ACTRAs minors provisions
improved steadily through bargaining the IPA
and the NCA. Substantive gains were made in the mid to late 90s and
are improved with each new round of negotiations.
In the early 2000s, the unions (ACTRA Toronto, DGC (Ontario),
Nabet and IATSE) started a Health and Safety Section 21 Committee with
the participation of the producers association and the Ministry of
Labour. As well as developing general safety guidelines for the
industry, they developed a Child Performers Guideline. e Guideline
covered both live and recorded entertainment. But it was a guideline
only, a best practices recommendation informed by ACTRA and
Equitys agreements, but not a legal requirement.
ACTRA Toronto began talking to MPPs to alert them to the risks
minors face working without rmer legislative protections. In 2005,
ACTRA Toronto presented a brief to Ontarios Standing Committee
on Arts and Culture proposing Status of the Artist legislation. e
brief included strong recommendations to develop legislation to protect
child actors to the same extent that they are protected under ACTRAs
agreements. In 2007, MPP Cheri di Novo, a former child performer,
proposed a bill to protect child actors. In 2013, MPP Paul Miller
presented Bill 71. ese previous attempts at legislation died as most
private members bills do: casualties of the political process. In 2014,
MPP Paul Miller tried again with Bill 17, which became the legislation
we have today.
e Protecting Child Performers Act comes into force on February 5,
2016. e legislation protects child performers in ve essential areas:
grace Lynn Kung and clara Pasieka celebrate the unanimous passage
tutoring, income protection, parental supervision, age-appropriate
of ird Reading of Bill 17. (photo: Jag Gundu)
work hours and health and safety. Between now and February, agreed
amendments and rules and regulations will be written.

After half a century of ACTRAs efforts on behalf of cultures
most vulnerable contributors, Ontario has a law. What a remarkable
historic achievement!
INTERVIEW WITH
THERESA TOVA
ACTRAs Childrens Advocate

Since 1992, ACTRAs Childrens Advocate, eresa

Tova, stands out in has been unrelenting in her
defense of child performers. Sta Editor Karen
Woolridge asked Tova to look back at the battles and
the victories leading to Bill 17 becoming law.

Karen Woolridge: Youve been defending child performers since eresa Tova
when, eresa?
eresa tova: My own kids since 1992 and for the union since 1993
or 1994.

K: How did you become aware of the risks child actors face?
t: By the time my son was seven and my daughter ve they both had
agents and were working in the biz. In the rst year, I ran into so many
problems. e producers I was working with as a parent didnt know
I was an actor and that I knew the rules. Anyway, I had three
grievances in the rst year.

K: What sorts of violations?

t: One time, I was shooting so I sent my daughter to her set with a
chaperon. She had four or ve days on this movie and she was kept
overtime every single day. I told my chaperon it wasnt allowed but
they would go to her and say, Is it ok? e time they kept my
daughter ve hours into overtime, I went ballistic. I called Production,
Where is my daughter?! You promised she would be home by now.
I threatened to call the police. I called the union. ree grievances
and we won every one. ose were the bad old days.

K: How did you move from Stage Mom to Childrens Advocate?

t: Eda Zimler, who was Stewart at the time, called me in and said,
You obviously understand what should be happening, and youre
right. Would you think about doing this for all kids? So I took over
as the Childrens Chair and I created a Childrens Committee. I was
on set one time as the Childrens Chair. I saw six-month-old babies
with fake prosthetic ears in hot velvet costumes in the sun in the
middle of the summer. We grieved that production and got a nancial
settlement that allowed us to produce an educational pamphlet for
parents called Just Say No.

We had so many horrible situations. But the one that sticks out most
for me - there was a four-year-old child whod been on a set for two or
three days and had bonded with the woman playing her mother. But
she hadnt met the male actor yet. is is what Production decided to
do to get their shot: they had the male actor come out, didnt introduce
him, or prepare the child for what he was about to do. e actor was
instructed to come up to the child, with camera rolling, place a gun in
the childs hand and force her to shoot the woman playing her Mom.
Squibs, blood, everything. Totally freaked the child out to the point
where an IATSE crew member pulled the plug on the generator and
called ACTRA.

Sarah Polley, Award of Excellence recipient, takes a special interest in

Samantha Weinstein, winner of the ACTRA Award in Toronto for
Outstanding Female Performance at the age of 10. (2006) (photo by Jag Gundu)
New Law to Protect
INTERVIEW WITH THERESA TOVA ACTRAs CHILDRENS ADVOCATE... continued

Soon aer, I was asked to sit on the IPA bargaining team for the 95- K: Fortunately the baby was found.
96 agreement. At the time, our minors section was nowhere near t: Yes. So Tabby took the next step and said, Parents of non-union
what it should have been. Tutoring was not what it needed to be, nor performers need help too. So we made presentations in libraries for
age-appropriate work hours and breaks, nor healthy food. I brought the general public and said, is is what you should ask for. So bless
parents into the union for the rst time to hear their concerns. We Tabby for bringing that to the table.
created a list of 21 proposals for minors alone. My biggest help was
Sarah Polley. We sent her our 21 proposals, asked for her opinion It really does take a village (to raise a child). I remember nathalie
gauthier, an agent, whod been a child actor from Montreal. She
and asked whether, if she had experienced any of these things, would
she write us back with support for our proposals? Well, bless her soul! called us about parents using their childs money to pay the mortgage
and it was because of her that we got the Minors Trust started, using
Each time the producers said, You dont have any evidence, I swear,
the California model.
I had a le of back-up documentation from Sarah with dates, many of
them from that very year. We got 17 of those 21 proposals passed Im very proud of all our collaborations: with agents, our incredible
and the remainder in subsequent negotiations. I remember going sta, our Presidents and Councils, educators, police, our elected
down to the hotel lobby, the morning aer we got agreement on the champions: MPPs Cheri di Novo, Peter Tabuns, and Paul Miller.
17 provisions, and going up to some of the producers and saying, Im
a little in shock that we got what we got from you guys. ank you.
And one of them said, We all have kids. It was the right thing to do
and the right time to x it. But when you talk about ACTRAs agreements,
the best thing we ever achieved was the language in the preamble to
the minors section.

K: e parties agree that they shall be guided in all respects by what is

in the best interests of the Minor, which shall always prevail
t: Always. e kids come rst.

K: Were you involved in the collaboration with the Ministry of Labour

that led to the Child Performers Guideline, the precursor to the law we
have now?
t: Yes. I remember (staer) Indra Escobar and I meeting with Don
Brown from the Ministry of Labour. Our workplaces and categories of
work were new to Don because he came from a background of hard
hats and asbestos. We were talking about kids spending long days
under hot lights and missing school. We showed him our agreements
and the first Health and Safety Guidelines for the entertainment
industry were basically taken from ACTRAs agreements, verbatim.

K: There was a news story that got Tabby Johnson fired up about
protecting non-union child performers.
t: It was a non-union casting call for babies for an unspecied lm.
An unsuspecting parent took their infant and handed him o to
somebody theyd never met who said, Ill just take the baby in the Tabby Johnson elds questions
room and audition him. And the parent waited and waited and at an ACTRA Toronto information
waited and the person had stolen the baby and le through a back session for parents.
door.

Child Performers
Shirley Douglas, Shannon Kook-Chun, Amariah Faulkner, and Elizabeth Van Wyck spoke at a Queens Park press conference
in 2013 pressing for legislative protections for child performers.
K: How has ACTRA changed the way it monitors child safety?
t: Our Stewards read the script and flag scenes which could be of
concern and address it with Production before the shoot. We work
with our Stunt Coordinators when there are athletic requirements.
For example, a parent will say, Sure my child plays baseball. But they
dont realize their child will be sliding into home plate at ve dierent
camera angles for 10 takes each for eight hours straight.
K: Tell me about getting Bill 17 passed into law. I hear Canadian
Media Production Associations (CMPA) Chief Negotiator
Reynolds Mastin joked about getting Tovad at a Christmas party.
What was that about?
t: Lets just say I dont give up easily. e passage of Bill 17 was
ground-breaking, and there are a lot of people to thank. Ive visited
parliament and the legislature many times in my leadership role at
ACTRA. Id never seen anything like this. To see all three parties come
together. When Shirley douglas spoke to Committee about Bill 17,
all the MPPs were awed. Her experience on Wind at My Back,
which employed a number of children well, she told them about
children being tutored in the paint shed where the crew were wearing
protective masks but the kids were not. She was very persuasive. And
the wonderful clara Pasieka, YEAAs Co-Chair, talking about
her experiences as a young teen actor asked to do sexual content she
had not even experienced yet. How angry she was at her mother for
not letting her do it and how thankful she is now that her mother put
her foot down, knowing she wasnt old enough. To have those two
voices at Committee. ey heard us loud and clear.
e law covers stage work as well. Im very proud that Equity worked
side-by-side with us and really made some important conceptual
changes. And the fact that both producer organizations (Professional
Association of Canadian Theatres (PACT) and the CMPA) came
onside as well was the icing on the cake.
K: Whats next?
t: Were taking a new look at our Minors Trust. Should children have
more than 25 per cent of their income le when they turn 18? Also,
were helping other countries which dont have a performers union
to learn from our standards. And always, always - education. Because
children grow up and soon theres a whole new crop of cutie-patooties.
While the act will require monitoring to make sure that it does what
its supposed to do, it will become law and be implemented on Febru-
ary 5th, 2016. We need to make sure the law is interpreted in the way
it was intended. We will be working hand-in-hand with our industry
partners. e Act to Protect Child Performers, as its now called,
has to work in concert with education law, health and safety law,
labour law, and labour law.
Not everything in the law is going to make everyone happy. But every-
thing in the law is to there to protect the child. We want lming to
happen as much as anyone.
I was interviewed for a legal magazine and the interviewer said she
knew unions worked hard to get people to become union members,
but questioned why ACTRA would work so hard for non-union peo-
ple. And I said, but dont you know thats what good unions do? We
ght for the protection of ALL workers.
K: We raise the oor.
t: is is what we do. It is the best of what we are.
New Law to Protect
Child Performers

ASK TABBY AND TOVA

Scams:
ose ads that you see in newspapers Were looking for babies. Oh gosh. Or maybe your kid is begging, I wanna be on that
cartoon, Mummy. Parents do less research about companies advertising like that than they do buying new shoes.
Google the company plus the word scam. If they have a history scamming people, youll nd it. ere are so many scams, in
the acting school world, in the modeling convention world, where people, and Im not exaggerating, will charge parents $3,000 to
make their four-year-old a star.

Agents:
A good agent can really help protect you, provide a buffer between your child and exploitation. Get an agent who
has signed on to the Entertainment Industry Coalitions (EIC) Code of Conduct. Check out ACTRA Torontos agent
dire c tor y for EIC and TAMAC agents, t hen ask around. L in k to ACTRA Torontos agent dire c tor y :
w w w.ac t ratoronto.com/performers/agents-directory/.

Balance:
I want parents to remember that their kids childhood is more important than the business or the money. We
have kids starring in big TV shows up here and then running o to do pilots in L.A. when theyre eight years
old. How do you nd balance in a life like that?

checking in:
Sarah Polley, at one of our Members Conferences, asked the kids if they
wanted to be there and encouraged parents to check in with their kids on
a regular basis. Interests can change at this age. Kids shouldnt be there if
they don't want to be.

Stay with your child:

Dont leave your child unattended on set! Nobody knows your childs needs better than you - whether your
child is scared or needs to go to the washroom. ink of a set as being like a construction site. A set is nothing
like a daycare.

to view all the Ask tabby and tova videos go to ActRA torontos
youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/ActRAtoronto

WELCOME
New Members Unlike most conventional banks,
Creative Arts truly understands my
work, finances and future goals as

Fall 2015 a Canadian performer.

Adamo Ruggiero

SARAH ABBOTT NNEKA ELLIOTT MADISON MACGREGOR

By artists.
DAVID ABEZIZ
REMI ADEYINKA
M J AGRA
JONAH AIN
SAM AL ESAI
LUKAS ENGEL
TALIA EVANS
CAM FERGUS
TAYVES FIDDIS
EMMA FINDLAY
AVA MACGREGOR
ELLE MACGREGOR
KYLA MADEIRA
MEGAN MANE
TAYLOR MCKAY
For artists.
JORDAN DARRIUS ALLEYNE LOLA FLANERY KEIRA MCNEICE
JON AMBROSE GARY FOO CAMERON MCPHAIL Adamo Ruggiero has been acting professionally for
BUDDY ARBUCK JOHN FRAY DINA MESCHKULEIT years. A veteran performer, with credits including
EVA AVILA JOEL GAGNE MELINDA MICHAEL
IMAN AYORINDE ELIANE GAGNON SAMANTHA MICHELLE Degrassi: The Next Generation, Make the Yuletide Gay,
MATTHEW NICHOLAS BACIK CODY GALLANT TONYA (T.J) MILNE The Neverending Story and The Next Star, his
AMIR BAGERIA LUKE GALLO ALEX MOKHTARZADA
ALESHA BAILEY JULIA GARTHA AVIVA MONGILLO accomplished career features stage, film, TV and PSA
RYAN BAINBRIDGE JAMES GODFREY SAM MORA-DAVISON credits.
ALYSSA BAKER ADAM D GOLDHAMMER JORIE MORROW
LEEANN BALL VICTORIA GONCALVES MICHAEL MUSI
FODE BANGOURA ALEXIS GORDON MITCH MYERS Adamo was one of the first performers to join Creative
ANNA CLAIRE BARTLAM JAMIE GOSSE SYDNEY ALEXANDRA NEILLY
SAVANNAH BASLEY CHRISTO GRAHAM GARY NEUMANN
Arts. He has his finances with the credit union, as well
RACINE BEBAMIKAWE HANNAH GROSS CLAUDENE NEYSMITH as a number of other accounts to support his day-to-
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LAURA BENSON ISIAH HALL JASON OLIVEIRA
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I trust Creative Arts with my finances and thank
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ACTORS IN

by david gale

Above:
Krystal Hope nausbaum plays Amanda on Between.

12 ACTRA TORONTO PErForMErS

Something is denitely rotten in the town of Pretty Lake. e body of everyone
over the age of 22 is lying in the streets, the town is quarantined and the kids are
in charge. Spoiler alert? not so fast. on Between, the new canadian series
broadcast on city and netflix, these events occur in the first two episodes
and establish the shows premise.
Created by writer/director Michael Mcgowan (Still Mine and Score: A Hockey Musical), Between is
notable for a few reasons. Filmed in southern Ontario, Between has a large and diverse ensemble cast
of 61 mostly young actors and all but one is Canadian. e series premiered in May, broadcasting
one new episode a week on City in Canada and Netix internationally. Releasing Between in this
manner was an experiment for Netflix. Typically Netflix posts entire seasons on their SVOD
(Subscription Video On Demand) service, even with their own original programming. This
weekly broadcast style avoided spoilers in Canada and created a global buzz and possibly a new
model for Netix.
e young cast of Between (including a newborn) had to contend with signicant life events in the
series. I interviewed ACTRA Toronto performers Jesse carere, Shailyn Pierre-dixon, Kyle Mac
and Krystal Hope nausbaum to discover how they managed life and death on Between, the Netix
experiment and being a young actor.

A veteran of multiple television series including Skins and Finding Carter, Jesse Carere plays Adam,
the smartest kid in high school. With so many young actors involved, I asked Carere about profes-
sionalism on set.
Jc: I think whats interesting about actors, even young kids theres something about them that is
almost old [Its] the fact that they're working in such a professional environment and in such a big
production Even the little kids they come in and theyre really sweet and they do their [acting]
thing and theyre really good and its like theyre mini adults.
dg: What is it like to be on a Canadian show broadcast globally week-to-week on Netix?
Jc: It feels big, like we were making a show for everyone in the world. We were told o the bat
that it would come out everywhere that Netix exists We had to separate that while were mak-
ing it though so that we didnt get wrapped up in that or feel the pressure.
dg: Where were you in your career when you landed this part?
Jc: I hadn't worked for two years and then the past years been pretty nice to me so I'm
just grateful.

FALL 2015 13
 dg: What did you do during the time you weren't working steadily?
Jc: I was in Los Angeles going into audition rooms a lot and trying
to make impressions. I made a lot of friends my home is split
between here in L.A But thats what everyone tells you, that its not
easy. You have to put your work in. So I understand that. I just have
to gure out how to pay the bills now.

One of the younger cast members whos making an impression

is 12-year-old Shailyn Pierre-dixon. Its been a remarkable year for
Pierre-Dixon. Besides starring in Between, she played Young Aminata
on the mini-series e Book of Negroes.

dg: Was playing Young Aminatas extreme emotions hard for you?
SPd: I found it very dicult. I had to break down too. At the end
I realized that they wouldn't have chosen me for the role if they didnt
think I was right for the role.

On Between, Pierre-Dixons character, Francis, lives on a farm with

her older brother Gord. I asked Pierre-Dixon about handling the
deaths of Francis family members.

SPd: I had to get into the character and feeling how my character felt,
because my father dies. And its just hard for Gord and Francis. ey
also have their grandfather who died (e other actors) did help
me a lot and cheered me up if I didnt feel the mood Everyone on
set was great.

With the adults gone, Pierre-Dixons character was forced to do

grown-up jobs. She talked about Francis work in the town.

SPd: She helps around the orphanage and when shes not (there) shes
either with her brother or on the farm. So she does have a really big
job in the storyline. Which I nd really cool because I just love the
farm.

dg: What were your favourite scenes to shoot?

SPd: I got to shoot with a tiger.

dg: Were you frightened?

SPd: No, I had a few scenes actually. It was a very calm tiger, it was
old. It didnt really care. It was more like, Okay, I'm here. I know what
Im doing. Im just walking around.

dg: Do you think it was an ACTRA member?

SPd: Umm, I dont know.

Kyle Mac plays Ronnie, one of Betweens most extreme and misun-
derstood youths. A nalist on CBCs reality show Triple Sensation in
2007, Mac has since made a career in lm and TV playing brooding
bad boys with heart. I asked Mac about landing this role on Between.

KM: Before this one I didnt work for six months or more. is part
was kind of a total uke. I had actually prepared something totally
dierent from what Ronnie is in the show. I had sunglasses and I was
doing this super cool, drug-dealing, quick-talking, super slick dude.
And Michael McGowan said, You can throw out those sunglasses
and pretty much everything youre doing and just approach it
again Michael gave me a little more backstory and I did it one more
time, and I got the part. I never had a callback.

Mac is possibly the only actor whos been a series regular on two
Netflix series: Hemlock Grove and Between, both shot in southern
Ontario. I asked him what eect being on these shows has had on his
social media life.

KM: I joined Twitter and Instagram for the show. For the rst time
in my career I get a bunch of messages from fans and weird fan art
pictures. But the fan interaction, how closely you can interact so
quickly, I think is fascinating. And its also rewarding to respond to
somebody. Were dealing with some teens, so the reactions are so
ecstatic. When Ive used Twitter and tweeted Michael J. Fox and he
responds to me, its amazing!

One of the most moving and encouraging performances comes from

Krystal Hope nausbaum who plays Amanda. Nausbaum has Down
Syndrome and nearly didnt get seen for the part. I asked Nausbaum
to explain why.

KHn: It was supposed to be for a character that was male. My friend

Dylan also auditioned for that role. ey also wanted a female to
audition for it, to see if the Netix people would do a female part. So
I auditioned for it and I blew their minds and I got it.

e production agreed and they rewrote the part for Nausbaum. I

asked Kayla if starring on Between has changed her auditions.

KHn: A lot of people out there just dont know what people with
Down Syndrome are like. And they discriminate [against] them. And
its actually unfair because the people that dont have disabilities are
playing disabilities roles Its hard for me so I ght that every single
day, because theres not a lot of roles for people with my disability.

dg: Does your agent ever send you out for roles not calling for people
with disabilities?
KHn: Yes. Recently my agent said that they are doing a 15th season
of Degrassi and theyre looking for a role for someone who has short
hair. And I have short hair. And I auditioned but its not supposed to
be someone who has a disability. I never got the role.

dg: Have you been recognized on the street?

KHn: Yeah! One time I was out having dinner and one person came
up to me and said, Were you on Between? I said, Yeah, Im on that
show! ey said, Im starting to watch it and I really love it.

Season 2 ofBetweenis in the works but the future of Pretty Lake residents

remains a mystery. One thing is certain, if these four young actors
are any example of our next generation of actors, ACTRA Toronto
can look forward to a bright, diverse and inclusive future.

neW AcRonyMS
What is SVOD and AVOD?
These are revenue models for online video content.
First there was TVOD (transactional video on demand). The consumer pays
a transaction fee and iTunes, for example, rents it to you or delivers it to you to
own, known respectively as Download to Rent (DTR) or Download to Own (DTO) or
Electronic Sell Through (EST).
As we move into bargaining the IPA, you might hear about SVOD and AVOD.
What are they?
SVOD is subscriber based video on demand. The consumer pays a flat monthly fee
for unlimited access to, for example, Netflix programming.
AVOD is advertising supported video on demand. An example is YouTube.
The consumer watches video content for free but the content contains advertising.
A portion of the ad revenue is paid to the content provider.
The New Media Sub-Committee and the Bargaining Committee are looking at fair
models to pay Use Fees to performers on SVOD and AVOD distributed content.


It takes hands to build a house,

but only hearts can build a home.
~ Author unknown

Belynda Blyth Bus: 416-699-9292

Sales Representative Cell: 416-371-3717
bblyth@ rogers.com
www.belyndablyth.com
Your Key to Success ACTRA member since 1985

RE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd., Brokerage

2237 Queen Street East, Toronto, ON M4E 1G1

ACTRA Toronto Council
Whos Who
PReSident
david Sparrow dsparrow@actratoronto.com
PASt PReSident
Heather Allin hallin@actratoronto.com
vice-PReSident, MeMBeR-At-LARge
Wendy crewson wcrewson@actratoronto.com
vice-PReSident, coMMunicAtionS
david gale dgale@actratoronto.com
vice-PReSident, eXteRnAL AffAiRS
Art Hindle ahindle@actratoronto.com
vice-PReSident, MeMBeR SeRviceS
Jani Lauzon jlauzon@actratoronto.com
tReASuReR
david Macniven dmacniven@actratoronto.com
vice-PReSident, inteRnAL AffAiRS
eresa tova ttova@actratoronto.com
ACTRA Toronto Sta is here for YOU.
ActRA toRonto
geneRAL contAct infoRMAtion
tel: 416-928-2278 or toll free 1-877-913-2278
email: info@actratoronto.com
Website: www.actratoronto.com
Address: 625 Church Street, 2nd Floor,
Toronto, Ontario, M4Y 2G1
Sue Milling, Executive Director
Michelle nagel, Executive Assistant Tel: 416-642-6716
coMMeRciAL AgReeMent inteRPRetAtionS
Judy Barefoot, Director Tel: 416-642-6705
Kelly davis, Steward Tel: 416-642-6707 kdavis@actratoronto.com
cathy Wendt, Steward Tel: 416-642-6714 cwendt@actratoronto.com
coMMeRciAL Audition cALLBAcK inquiReS
claudette Allen Tel: 416-642-6713 callen@actratoronto.com
coMMeRciAL cHeque inquiRieS
nancy dickinson, Examiner Tel: 416-642-6721
tammy Boyer, Examiner Tel: 416-642-6739
Lyn franklin, Examiner Tel: 416-642-6730
coMMeRciAL PAyMent inquiRieS
Brenda Smith, Coordinator Tel: 416-642-6731
Laura McKelvey, Senior Commercial Coordinator Tel: 416-642-6728
coMMunicAtionS
Karl Pruner, Director, Tel: 416-642-6726
Karen Woolridge, Public Relations Ocer Tel: 416-642-6710
Luca de franco, Public Relations Ocer - Web Tel: 416-642-6747
Shereen Airth sairth@council.actratoronto.com
farah Merani fmerani@council.actratoronto.com
Maria del Mar mdelmar@council.actratoronto.com
catherine disher cdisher@council.actratoronto.com
Richard Hardacre rhardacre@actra.ca
taborah Johnson tjohnson@council.actratoronto.com
Joel Keller jkeller@council.actratoronto.com
Angelica Lisk-Hann alisk@council.actratoronto.com
Jani Lauzon jlauzon@actratoronto.com
colin Mochrie cmochrie@council.actratoronto.com
John nelles jnelles@council.actratoronto.com
Jack newman jnewman@council.actratoronto.com
clara Pasieka cpasieka@council.actratoronto.com
eric Peterson epeterson@council.actratoronto.com
Leah Pinsent lpinsent@council.actratoronto.com
nicole St. Martin nstmartin@council.actratoronto.com
MeMBeR AdvocAteS And oMBudSPeRSon:
taborah Johnson, Child Advocate tjohnson@actratoronto.com
Jani Lauzon, Diversity Advocate jlauzon@actratoronto.com, ext. 6618
Shawn Lawrence, Ombudsperson slawrence@actratoronto.com, ext. 6604
finAnce And AdMiniStRAtion
Karen Ritson, Director Tel: 416-642-6722
indePendent PRoduction And BRoAdcASt dePARtMent
Mimi Wolch, Director Tel: 416-642-6719
gail Haupert, Steward. IPA, Videogames. Sta Liaison: Voice, New Media
Tel: 416-642-6709 ghaupert@actratoronto.com
clare Johnston, Steward: IPA, Reality. Sta Liaison: YEAA, Health & Safety
Tel: 416-642-6746 cjohnston@actratoronto.com
Barbara Larose, Steward: IPA, CFC, Co-op, Student Films.
Sta Liaison: Minors, Background Performers
Tel: 416-642-6712 blarose@actratoronto.com
erin Phillips, Steward: IPA, Animation, Audio Code, CBC, NFB, TIP, TVO,
PSAs, Documentaries, Industrials. Sta Liaison: Stunts
Tel: 416-642-6711 ephillips@actratoronto.com
cindy Ramjattan, Steward: IPA, CityTV, CTV, TIP, Zoomer, New Media.
Sta Liaison: Diversity Tel: 416-642-6738 cramjattan@actratoronto.com
toRonto indie PRoduction
Tasso Lakas, TIP Coordinator, tlakas@actratoronto.com Tel: 416-642-6733
MeMBeR educAtion couRSeS
Holly Gray, Receptionist Tel: 416-642-6741
goRdon PinSent Studio BooKingS
416-928-2278
MeMBeR SeRviceS (dueS & PeRMitS)
Indra Escobar, Director Tel: 416-642-6702

By James gangl
How to Eat
a Sandwich
like a Pro
My rst career was in marketing. I worked as a brand manager
for Hershey Canada, Unilever and Heinz so when I started
auditioning for commercials I came at it from a marketing
angle, thinking like The Client. The Client is the marketing
department of Coca-Cola or McCain or BMO. eyre the
ones who appear at your callback and sit quietly in the room
staring at their laptops. ey are the money. ey pay for the
commercial and for them its all about messaging or what the
commercial communicates to the consumer. A commercial
actors job is to decode that message and translate it into a
performance. Breaking down a script as both a marketer and
an actor can give you a signicant edge. Heres how I do it:
Sell the promise not the product
Many products solve the same problem and therefore
marketing is what dierentiates them. Take two snacks, Snickers
(a candy bar) and Protinis (single serve chicken strips). Both
Snickers and Protinis solve the hunger problem but make very
dierent promises.
In a recent Snickers campaign, a bunch of dudes are doing
dude things with their pal Godzilla. eyre hanging at the
Last year I got paid $6,000 to
eat a turkey breakfast sand-
wich. I also sold car insurance,
beer, breakfast cereal, real
estate advice, nancial services
and hardware. If it sounds like
Im bragging, I am;
i eat a sandwich like a pro.
beach, ogling girls, dancing at a house party and nally one of
the dudes says, Godzillas actually pretty cool. His pal
responds, Except when hes hungry. Cut to Godzilla on a
rampage, crushing cars and liquefying buildings with his laser
breath. e tagline appears: Youre not you when youre hungry.
Snickers isnt selling a snack, theyre promising a better you
through hunger relief.
Protinis has a spot featuring Olympic medalist Hayley
Wickenheiser rushing to pack lunches, hitting the ice and
working at a computer late at night. Protinis are touted as e
Ocial Snack of Everything but Protinis is not selling us a
snack either. Protinis is promising us time savings.
When breaking down a commercial script, articulate the
promise not the product. This will highlight the brands
positioning and inform your performance. At your next
audition for Voss Artesian Water dont chug the bottle; Voss
promises class. In contrast, at your Gatorade audition
chugging the bottle might underscore the promise of rapid
rehydration. When acting in a commercial, sell the promise not
the product.
 Play the Promise not the Product

identify the marketing tactic to inform

your performance
Marketers use a long list of tactics to get us to buy their products. James Gangl is an actor, writer
Identifying the tactic will help the actor raise the stakes in the and improviser. He does research
scene. Here are the most common tactics used: for the hit CBC radio show on ad-
fear: vertising Under the Inuence and
If you dont use this acne cream your friends wont see you, recently won the Kari Award at
theyll only see your pimple. the Bessies for best actor in a com-
mercial. Catch him in between
Shame: your favourite TV show.
If you dont buy this insurance your family will be le with
crippling debt. twitter.com/jamesgangl

Social Ascendance:
People in the know drink this whisky.
entitlement:
You work hard so you deserve this vacation.
Morality:
Because you love your cat youre going to feed her the very best
cat food.
Once the tactic is identied, the actors job is to turn the screws.
In the Snickers example, marketers use fear, implying that you
become a monster when youre hungry. We therefore see all
the actors laugh at Godzillas jokes when he is satiated and fear
for their lives when hes hungry. Conversely, Protinis appeals
to Moms sense of morality: a good woman does it all, kids and
career. e actress job here is to illustrate how Protinis helps
her excel in all areas of her life despite the demands of her day.
Marketing uses tactics to manipulate us into buying product.
As actors, we turn up the volume on those tactics through
performance. But how loud should the volume be? Articulating
the Promise and identifying the Tactic nally leads us to the
true acting challenge, namely, nailing the tone.
Spokesperson, man-on-the-street, and walk-and-
talks deserve their own paragraph because the
actor becomes the brand.
ese are the spots where at some point the actor stares directly
down the barrel of the camera and tells you why they love their
razor, or car, or reverse home mortgage. ink of the Canadian
Tire guy or the Roll Up e Rim guy. e key to nailing tone
here is to imagine who you are talking to and why you are talking
to them. In the case of a razor blade, youre probably just
talking to your buddy. Its no big deal, you just like the razor.
If youre selling life insurance, youre probably talking to your
spouse and its because youre concerned about the future. e
actor must be trustworthy and, unless instructed otherwise,
your job is to inform your audience, not to hard sell
them. We circle back to the same acting imperative: Be
Real (while looking directly down the barrel of a camera).

nail the tone

is is where the actors chops come in. In general, be real.
Tone varies wildly and hence playing real will bring the promise
and tactic of the commercial to the surface.
Despite using drastically dierent tones, most commercials are
comedic. For example, Nissan touts its fuel economy by making
the gas station seem like a horror movie, saving with
Scotiabank allows parents to escape from their kids, and
Cadbury creates a fantastical laboratory that distributes
chocolate from air balloons. All of these examples are comedic
but their tones are entirely different. If the copywriter and
art director have done their jobs correctly, a world will
be created around the actor. All that is required of the actor is
a true and honest performance. Always start real and the
director will steer you towards a smaller or bigger performance.
Obviously, not all spots are comedic. Life Insurance, Mental
Health Services, Legal Advice all tend towards a more stoic tone
but the job is the same. Be real!

Screen grabs from James gangls award-winning cheerios commercial, How to Dad.
http://bit.ly/1gr237R

Putting it all together: How i ate a sandwich
professionally
In an hour and twenty minutes I got paid $6,000 to eat a
sandwich professionally. Looking at the script through the
clients eyes and translating the marketing message into a real
performance helped me nail that role. Heres a summary of how
I did it using the pointers suggested above.
e Client wasnt selling a Turkey Breakfast Sandwich, they
were promising a great way to start the workday. Picture the
sun rising and me in a crisp business suit taking the second
bite of a turkey breakfast sandwich. Putting the promise into
performance, I enjoyed the sandwich while looking crisp and
e tactic was entitlement. Im good at what I do so I deserve
a great breakfast. Translated into performance, this was all
about what I was eating. With each take I tried to taste
something dierent. Was that a bit of tangy cheese? Mmmm,
that turkey sausage patty is super savoury! Wow, that English
mun is so god this is good!
Finally, the tone was a simple slice of life. The spot featured
different workers from all walks of life enjoying the same
breakfast. Hence, I avoided hamming up how much I enjoyed
the turkey. I just enjoyed it. When some our from the English
mun got on my lip, I brushed it o. I was real.
By understanding the Clients promise, tactic and tone I ate that

alert, ready to tackle a day at the office right after a delicious sandwich like a pro.
breakfast.
And now you can too!

 Equity and ACTRA
talk of enhanced
relationship
Two unions represent the interests of
professional performers in English-speaking
Canada: ACTRA covers work in recorded media and Equity
covers live performance. However, the lines between those mediums
are blurring in our fast-evolving digital universe. Many producers of live
performance are looking to expand their audiences by streaming or recording their
productions. ACTRA Toronto has been working closely with Equity in those cases, but
as the media landscape continues to change, questions on how best to encourage the creativity
of producers and performers while protecting our Intellectual Property has folks talking.

Working together isnt new. Many professional performers are members of both unions, and weve been
working together to see important legislation like the new Protecting Child Performers Act passed here in
Ontario. Last December, we were able to revisit and update our longstanding Reciprocal Agreement (RA),
rolling out the modernized and streamlined ACTRA/Equity RA to our respective memberships in January.
And we continue to lobby governments together to improve conditions for artists in Canada.

Now were discussing the possibility of a closer, more-enhanced relationship, examining how our two unions can
strengthen the political power of Canadian artists in live and recorded media while at the same time helping both
organizations to better thrive in the 21st century. These joint committee discussions are still in their very
beginning stages. Only time will tell what form a new relationship will take, however, a stronger strategic alliance,
the sharing of expertise, resources, benets, space and sta are all on the table for discussion.

We are denitely two unique and successful organizations, similar in some ways and quite dierent in others. ere is
a lot to discuss and research. At this time, no decisions or commitments have been made. In the end, the guiding
principle will be to ensure real benet for the members of both organizations and for the arts in Canada.

Well keep you abreast of our discussions as we go along. Decisions leading to an enhanced
relationship will only be undertaken through consultation with our respective memberships and
with elected National and Branch Councils. Any major change to the governance of either
organization would be put to a referendum of our respective memberships.

Until then, if youve got any questions or helpful information, send it along to
jointcommittee@actra.ca.

David Sparrow
President, ActRA toronto

 Member News
change to Member By-Law
Cool Day Jobs in the Biz
Q - A casting director would like me to direct an audition
session next week. does ActRA have any rules about this
type of work?
e Independent Production
Agreement (IPA) contains a
Statutory Declaration for Cast-
ing Directors. It says that
C a s t ing Directors and those
they employ are not eligible to
work on an ACTRA Performer
c ont r a c t or B a ck g rou n d
voucher on that Production.
ACTRAs By-Laws set out the
Work Rules by which every
member should govern them-
selves. Some of those rules
ensure that members in a posi-
tion to engage or negotiate
terms for performers do not
have an unfair advantage over
other members seeking work.
ese rules extend to members
who are agents too.
Q - does the same apply if im running auditions for a
radio commercial or a cartoon?
Yes. e same rules apply in the Voice and Commercial world.
If youre hired by production or casting to direct an audition,
cast or engage other members you should recuse yourself
from auditioning or accepting a role. e purpose is to ensure
a level playing eld, no undue inuence and no wasted time
for your fellow performers.
Q Has ActRA negotiated a rate for being a reader?
Yes. The rate for taking part in another Performers IPA
audition is currently $30.35 per hour or $152.25, whichever
is greater (IPA A2804). The r a t e f o r t a k i n g p a r t i n
a n other Performers com-
mercial audition is currently
$81.50 per hour with a
guarantee of $326.50
which includes four hours
work time.( NCA 908) Both
types of work require
ACTRA contracts.
 Member News
New membership card
a big hit
ACTRA Toronto is feeling the love for its new
hard-plastic membership card. e card is a rst step
toward a smartcard able to connect with the membership
database. ACTRA Toronto also has a long-range
dream to make the membership card capable of
functioning as a paperless Background voucher.
We dream big.

Another reason to carry

your membership card
at all times
Of course you bring it to set each time. And you carry it with
you so you can get your MAP discounts, right?
www.actra.ca/main/members/member-benefits/map-discounts/
But how about this? A member lost her wallet. A good person
picked it up, found her ACTRA membership card, and called
ACTRA to nd out if they could return it to her via her union.
Nice person. Happy member.

Bargaining Committee Announced

Six ACTRA Toronto members have agreed to serve as team members or alternates on the IPA Bargaining Committee:
david Sparrow, catherine disher, grace Lynn Kung, Shawn doyle, Sarah gadon and Rick Howland. is is time-consuming,
challenging work. If you see these wonderful people, please give them your thanks.

david Sparrow catherine disher grace Lynn Kung Shawn doyle Sarah gadon Rick Howland

 Member News
ACTRA Awards Submissions
e ACTRA Awards in Toronto will be held on Friday, February 19, 2016
at the Carlu. Submissions are open now but will close on November 1, 2015.
Go online to submit at:
www.actratoronto.com/performers/community/the-actra-awards-in-toronto/actra-awards-submission/

Any Toronto member in good standing may submit a performance by

a Toronto member in good standing. The performance must be in
a principal role. The first public exhibition of the program must have
occurred between November 1, 2014 and October 31, 2015. Do your
p ar t to ma ke sure outst anding C anadian p erformances get the
recognition they deserve!

Young Artists Award

L.A.

Congratulations to ACTRA Toronto member emilia
Mccarthy who won the 2015 Young Artists Award for
Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries, Special or
Pilot (Young Actress) for her performance as Taylor
Dean in Disney Channels Zapped, shot in Vancouver.

Train professionally on camera for film acting

Diploma Programs - Earn a diploma in 4 months
Certificate Programs - 1 month training
Create Film Scenes for your demo reel working with Award Winning Director
Part time classes - evenings and weekends - for kids, teens and adults
ACTRA Member receive 10% discount

Your Council and Stunt Committee Election Timeline

October 21
ballots distributed
October 2
candidates
statements due

November 20
ballots returned

September 25
nominations close

December 1
newly elected Councillors
join Council with voice
but no vote for
2 meetings
January 5, 2016
Election of Treasurer and Vice-
Presidents. Election of 12 National
Councillors and 6 National
alternates.

HIGHLIGHTS
OF COUNCIL ACTIVITY 2014 - 2016

ACT YOUR AGE (AYA) CHILD PERFORMERS

Actors Dont Retire video
Actors Gym
Bill 17 becomes law!
Holiday Cabaret Parent Information Sessions

AGENT OUTREACH CONFERENCE

Creation of Toronto Talent Agents Association COMMITTEE
Background Talent Agents meet Background Casting Directors Nicole St. Martin
Member Conferences,
now with free childcare

AWARDS COUNCIL Katie Boland at CRTC

COMMITTEE CRTC Flash Conference video
Low-Budget Digital Guidelines
ACTRA Awards in Toronto, Lets Talk TV public consultations
as fabulous as ever under new Chair
Maria del Mar

BACKGROUND DIVERSITY
Apprentice Caucus re-invigorated
COMMITTEE
Full Member Background Committee formed CastingDiversity.ca talent database goes National
AABP Caucus continues strong Diversity Casting Go-See
CastingBackground.ca Mosaic International South Asian Film Festival
Deaf Film & Arts Festival
CFC Actors Conservatory makes diversity commitment

BARGAINING
Stratford Agreement
Soulpepper Agreement
NCA deal full day rates restored for online
commercials!
TiP rates increased
Farah Merani

28 ACTRA TORONTO PErForMErS

eyve been busy! LooK WHAt tHeyve AccoMPLiSHed!
A big thank-you to this Council as their term winds up.

David Gale

EDITORIAL STUNT
COMMITTEE COMMITTEE
Performers on Set quarterly CastingStunts.ca
newsletter taken to sets and available Concussion education and baseline testing
online New ACTRA Toronto Stunt Award
Performers magazines twice yearly Stunt Committee promotional clip reel
Angelica Lisk-Hann

FINANCE COMMITTEE
Clean audits
Balanced budget
TORONTO ACTRA
WOMENS
COMMITTEE
MEMBER SERVICE TAWC Youth Retreat
Aer-hours hotline TAWC panel on harassment
Help with Worker Health and Safety Awareness Nell Shipman Awards
AFBS Financial literacy workshop BravoFact commits to 50% gender equity
New hard-plastic membership card Toolkit 2.0 mentorship produces Girl Couch
CastingACTRA.ca

VOICE
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Torontolmworkers.com video and website promoted to L.A.
CastingVoice.ca
Industry Relations hires
New voice booth in the
ACTRA Advantage Research Project
Gordon Pinsent Studio
Northern Ontario satellite oce
Mayoral candidate industry roundtable Audiobooks research
Zaib Shaikh appointed City of Toronto Film Commissioner Catherine Disher
New reciprocal agreement with Equity

YOUNG EMERGING
Changing Workplaces Review

ACTORS ASSEMBLY
PARADES COMMITTEE (YEAA)
Pride Parades YEAA sells out ReelWorld
Labour Day Parades Mega TiFF party trends city-wide

Clara Pasieka
Colin Mochrie at World Pride

FALL 2015 29

Daniel John Paul Conley
1946 - 2015
Dan Conley, son of John and
Pauline Conley of Windsor,
passed away suddenly, but peace-
fully, in his Toronto home.
Survived by his loving wife,
Robin Leigh, brother Shawn,
sisters Kathie and Erin, nephews,
nieces, loving Aunt Joan and
Uncle Gus orburn.
Dan attended the University of
Windsor, Faculty of Drama, acted
at the Stratford Festival eatre
and was the recipient of the 1970
Chalmers Apprentice Award.
Dan leaves behind a long career in the lm/TV industry as an ACTRA
member and a 35-year I.A.T.S.E. 873 member.
In a career he loved dearly, he brought smiles to every set he worked
on. A man of charm and unending warmth, he lled his life with loyal
friendships. His memory will remain in the hearts of those fortunate
to have known him.
There will be a memorial celebration of Dan's life in Toronto
in September. In lieu of owers, a donation to the ACTRA's Fund of
Canada would be appreciated.
Robin Leigh
Lionel Train.
Jonathan Crombie
1966 - 2015
Jonathan Crombie was one of
those rare people who could ruin
your night simply by leaving. As
an actor, he was very accom-
plished. ere was the Gilbert
Blythe thing, of course, as well as
his stellar work at Stratford, his
stint as the best-looking male
Skippys Ranger, and his stirring
turn as the Colonel in Satherbys
Request. He soared on television
in Mount Royal and Slings &
Arrows, and on Broadway as the
other Man in the Chair. But
when I think of him and the
thirty-plus years we worked, ate, drank and played together, I think of
the absences, the many dreary evenings that would have been saved
had he just walked through the door in his baseball cap and torn
jacket, with the ubiquitous knapsack slung over his shoulder that
contained, I assume, all of his wordily possessions. Unfortunately, he
was hard to pin down. Jonathan would participate only if the event
were spontaneous, and so there was a kind of ongoing lie in which of
all of his friends were complicit; that all dinners and parties and
movies and outings, n o m atte r h ow c are f ul ly pl an n e d,
were impulsive, spur-of-the-moment things.
Even so, when invited, Jonathan would reply, Ill be there, or what-
ever. Or whatever was his get-out-of-jail free card and he played it
constantly. He was on his own trip, thats for sure. He thought deeply,
and liked to ask the big questions. He didnt like owning things, and
was proud of the fact that he could move apartments by calling a cab.
He was a very private man and, yes, eccentric, but loyal, generous and
kind-hearted. He did not live life so much as wrestle it into
submission, but he never burdened anyone with his problems. More
than anything he was fun, and it is this extraordinary ability of his to
twist life and work and the world in general into something supremely
enjoyable that makes his sudden death at age 48 so hard to accept.
A big thank you from all of us, Jonny. Well see you again soon, or
whatever.
Bob Martin co-wrote e Drowsy Chaperone and originated the role
of Man in the Chair. He was a fellow member of Skippys Rangers with
Jonathan and co-created Slings & Arrows in which Jonathan played
R J ADAMS
DON BERNS LISE LEBEL
JAMES BIROS SHAUNE LEGRIS
JAAP BROEKER LILLIAN LEWIS
ANGELO CELESTE LOIS LILIENSTEIN
MARIO CORNACCHIA BRIAN MACDONALD
JAMES FLETT ISRAEL SIMON
EILEEN GOLLERT ALEESHA SODHA
LYNNE GORDON ROBERT C. TERRIS
EDWARD L GREENSPAN STAN TULLY
ARTHUR HILL JOSEPH VIDA
JOHN CLIFFORD HUNTER PATRICIA ANN WATSON

Susan Petrie Alberta Watson

1951 - 2015 1955 -2015

I rst noticed Susan in my sister's Elegant, intelligent and erce was

yearbook. She was extremely
photogenic and her smile so
warm and friendly. A year later,
when I got to high school, Susan
was starring in her own TV series
for the CBC, Toby a Canadian
take-o of Gidget. We became
very close. Susan ung open the
doors and windows of a brand
new world for me and that was
where I wanted to be. She was
gorgeous, wise, an old soul yet
naively honest and sincere, and
so generous with herself. She
introduced me to her friends, people in lm, theatre, and television,
glorious, exciting people.
Coincidentally we both got parts in Don Shebib's movie Rip-o. What
splendid fun. Evenings before a day of shooting we read our scripts in-
side out and made sure we were completely prepared. It was magical
to share my rst professional acting experience with my best friend.
roughout the 70s Susans career blossomed. She was dedicated and
worked very hard and a lot, appearing in numerous lms, television
shows, and theatre productions all across Canada. She worked with
Canada's greatest directors and writers, most memorably starring in
David Cronenbergs Shivers. She was a Canadian star. There was
always talk about going to L.A. and sometime in the early 70s she
finally went. At this time she also met and fell in love with aspiring
director Allan Eastman. ey had a dream to produce a lm that
Susan would star in and Allan would direct, and that would be their
calling card in L.A. However, when they got to Hollywood, fate
intervened and her dream faded. Susans last professional acting job
was in 1977. She returned to Canada briey for her marriage to Myles
Reiss in 1981.
Late this April, I got a call from Susans husband that she had passed
our Alberta Watson. Alberta was
a magical performer, so talented,
so compelling to watch. I rst
met her when I asked her to
share some of her experiences at
an ACTRA breakfast with
emerging talent. She said yes be-
fore Id f inishe d t he pitch.
A l berta was willing to share
not only the good things about
having a career in the industry,
but also what to be wise about,
like following your own inner
voice and asking for what you
need. Shed just returned from L.A., her success in Spanking
the Monkey something she took in stride. She was playing Senator
Madeline Pierce in La Femme Nikita at the time and I watched just to
see what shed do next.
With my rst large role, I called her for advice. She said, Youve done
all the hard work, just have fun and play. ats the kind of woman she
was, always putting things into perspective. I remember how much
she loved her dog, how much she delighted in her relationship with
her husband Ken, how much she loved him. I remember how warm
and welcoming her home was, that she enjoyed watching figure
skating, especially the Olympics, and how proud she was of
Canadians who stood up, helping others to reach farther.
I particularly noticed her strength and honesty during the 2006 IPA
negotiations. She was a strong supporter of performers rights and of
what we are due. Each morning of negotiations I looked forward to
seeing her determined, proud face. Somehow she helped make it
possible to go back at it, over and over again. Even when facing
difficult battles of her own, she never let her union down, never let her
fellow performers down. She was a force of nature - gracious, brilliant
and generous to the last.

away on April 16th. He was shattered. She was 63 years old. ey had
We lost Alberta on March 21, 2015. I miss you, my friend. Your star
been together for 37 years. With him, Susan found the love and trust
shines bright on all of us.
that were so important to her.

Actor Derek McGrath, who had known Susan even before I had, said Heather Allin
I was in love with her then." I thought for a second and replied, "So Past President, ACTRA Toronto
was I."

Ann Evans


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