Joining me on the show today is Producer/Director/Writer, Mackenzie Donaldson! Having spent most of my time on stage and in front of the camera, I was really looking forward to sitting down with Mackenzie and hearing here insights on the entertainment industry.
Mackenzie brought such a well-rounded perspective of the industry to the table. Having come from a household where both parents were professional actors and having done some acting and being very immersed in the competitive dance scene herself, she has an intimate understanding of what it means to mean an actor. When she speaks about the industry she brings that understanding with her. At one point in our conversation she talked about how it breaks her heart to watch the actors in her life toil over the roles they didn’t get or after having a “bad” audition because she knows, having been a part of the casting process many times, ninety percent of the time you not getting the part has nothing to do with your performance.
I learned so much from Mackenzie in this episode! If you have ever had a desire to create a film or get an idea off the ground there are so many things you need to consider and Mackenzie is dishing them all today!
In this episode:
- What every actor needs to know about the casting process
- Why you should start with your smaller ideas first
- How learning to delegate is an imperative skill in leadership positions
- How the advice “stop apologizing “ after giving input is some of the best advice Mackenzie has received
Mackenzie Donaldson: Getting Your Voice Heard, Diversity In Film, and Producing on Orphan Black
A little about Mackenzie:
Mackenzie Donaldson is an award-winning Canadian director, producer, and writer based in Toronto Canada. Mackenzie was named one of Playback’s “Five to Watch” in 2015 and a 2016 TIFF Irving Avrich Emerging Canadian Filmmaker. She got her foot in the as the Executive Assistant to the Co-Showrunners of the Emmy winning; critically acclaimed; Peabody and CSA award winning; Golden Globe nominated show Orphan Black. The show has been a crazy, 5-season ride and Mackenzie is now a Co-Producer. Along with her creative producing duties, she manages the ever-growing merchandise development for the brand, executively producing two sound tracks for the show and story editing fifteen comic books and three books, among other licensing projects. In between seasons, Mackenzie is the new co-host of the first official Orphan Black podcast, the “Clone Cast” brought to you by The Nerdist.
Besides her work on Orphan Black Co-Executively Produced the critically acclaimed IPF/OMDC-funded web series Whatever, Linda, a Bernie Madoff inspired Ponzi Scheme Dramedy. Whatever, Linda was nominated for three Canadian Screen Award and has 20 plus awards to its name. It is in development with BBC America and the Mark Gordon Company with Orphan Black’s Graeme Manson attached to Executively Produce. Mackenzie has just completed her first feature (Co-Director, Producer), The Definites. And to date she has made four short films; Cheese, which was shown at festivals around the globe, including Cannes’ Coup De Coeur and Palm Springs, and has sold in Canada (CBC), France (Salaud MOrisette/Radi), and Japan (Pacific Voice); Boxing, which premiered at TIFF 2015 and has also sold internationally; Emmy a Bravofact funded short which will be released in 2017; and Little Black Dress which Mackenzie wrote, directed and produced, and is in postproduction. Mackenzie co-wrote a feature series for The Globe and Mail and you can catch Mackenzie geeking out regularly on the official Orphan Black podcast, CloneCast brought to you by The Nerdist, which she co-hosts.
Currently through her company The Donaldson Company, Mackenzie is developing a slate of television and digital series, along with a handful of feature films, and has teamed up with Stellar Citizens, Facet4, Shaftesubry Films, Smokebomb Entertainment, the Mark Gordon Company, Buck Productions and Clique Pictures to develop various projects in Canada and the US.
Follow Mackenzie!
Twitter @mackiegd
Check out Whatevert Linda!
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