INTERVIEW
HOLLY
KELLINGRAY
“Trust yourself to know when you’ve prepared enough and don’t be afraid to ask for help”
Holly Kellingray trained as an Actor at one of the top Arts Specialist Universities in the UK: The Arts University Bournemouth. She is continuing her training and specialising in the 1 Year Screen Acting Course at The Reel Scene. Holly is the Co-Founder of Hooked Theatre. Since 2017, she’s been working on new scripts, independent productions and organising Scratch Nights and opportunities for other artists. She is also the Host of the new Feel Good Factor TV on Sky Showcase (192), a show to help the nation feel better during lock-down. Holly is also a Co-Presenter of a Soho Radio show, Artbeat, which is a 2 hour monthly show all about the arts, including interviews from established and emerging artists.
Thank you so much for interviewing with us! Can you share your story on how did you get started in the film industry?
After years of obsessing over the soaps on TV as a kid (no idea why my mum let me watch them), and loving Drama in school, I decided in Sixth Form that I wanted to train as an Actress. I was so lucky that my parents were supportive of this decision as there are a lot of parents who wouldn’t be, as it’s not your usual path and it certainly wasn’t going to determine me a job. I applied for a few drama schools and university acting courses and luckily got into the Arts University Bournemouth (on Friday 13th) and decided that it was the place for me.
Who are you grateful towards your success and can you share a story about that?
I’m grateful to all of my great teachers along the way. Special gratitude goes to Brooke Jones, my friend and fellow founder of Hooked Theatre, who has been on a similar journey to me and has kept me creative and motivated at times of need. I’m also grateful to the producer, writer and director James Simpson for providing me with his wisdom and knowledge of the industry.
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Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
In all honesty, every part of my journey has been interesting. I’ve met some of the most fascinating people in this industry. Hard-working and committed people with some great stories. That’s one thing I’ve loved about this journey, is all that I’ve learnt from watching and listening to other people. It’s also a very small industry, so you are constantly bumping into people you know, or kind-of know!
Little Fools, Mountview
What has been the biggest challenge in your career so far? How did you overcome it?
I think corona-virus and the pandemic have most certainly provided me with the biggest challenge of my career so far. It’s been a tough time for everyone in the arts, watching everything we’ve all worked so hard for, almost vanish. It’s been a difficult time to be creative due to life stresses and unusual working environment. At the beginning of the lock-down, I was doing daily self-tape challenges, which kept me creative in a challenging way. I would recommend these for anyone wanting a bit of inspiration. You have to listen to your mind and body, if you can’t do anything creative right now, that’s okay. If you do one thing a day that’s creative, then great, even if it’s half an hour of writing or watching something for research. We have to be kind to ourselves right now.
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What are your ‘‘5 things I do to prepare for the role” and are you able to share a story or example for each?
1. I always warm up. It takes my focus from me into my body and backs out onto the character. I’ll either stretch, meditate or do yoga.
2. It is vital to create a backstory for your character because it places you directly into their world. I do it even for small parts, even one-liners. I always create a backstory for the character from everything that I know in the script and then I fill in the blanks.
3. Weirdly, I don’t like to over-prepare. I will always read and work with the script so I know it well, however, I find it, if I know it too well, it can lose its immediacy and honesty. So, trust yourself to know when you’ve prepared enough.
4. I will always read the script aloud with someone else as this will always show a different side to the script that I may have not seen. It also gives you that discovery chance. When you chat out the possibilities of the scene with someone else, they can give necessary pointers.
5. And lastly, I would say I like to just enjoy the process of working on a character and performing or auditioning as that character. If you don’t enjoy it, then what’s the point? So, I always treat it like I’m blessed to be working on this script and this character as no one else is.
performing with Brooke Jones at Hooked Theatre
What methods or techniques do you use to find truth in your character’s behaviour?
After working through the script, I use some of Stanislavski’s techniques. I find Meisner & Psychological Gesture work best for me for the character’s behaviour. Meisner’s repetition allows you to loosen up completely and I feel it puts me in the most alert and responsive state to perform. The psychological gesture is something I do when working on a character. It’s a movement that expresses the psychology of the character. It gives me something I can immediately help ground the character with and I know will place me into that character’s state.
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What are your top 3 tips for actors that are starting out?
Be patient. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Make your own work.
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What has been inspiring you lately?
My friends. My friends have been inspiring me so much lately. They keep me motivated and push me to be myself. I’m very grateful to them.
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What movie would you recommend watching and why?
A recent series that I’ve watched that had me glued was The Queen’s Gambit. Anya Taylor-Joy who plays the lead, Beth Harmon, is incredible to watch. She has true commitment and honesty with her character; you do not for one second believe she is anybody else. She embodies her. She thinks her every thought and you are with her every step of the way. That is a commitment to the role!
What is one message you would give to your fans?
Listen to and look after yourself.
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How can our readers find you online?
I’m on all socials as @hollykellingray
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm9340228/
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/hollykellingray/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hollykellingray/
Fb: https://www.facebook.com/hollykellingray/
