Actress Tina-Marie has a schedule filled with exciting new projects. Her spot in “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” just aired October 20th, and she has an important role in the award-winning crime drama “Broken” that premiered this month on VOD. Other projects in post-production are “MoonTime,” “The Last Chapter,” and “Prof.” Her stories from the sets are fascinating and her enthusiasm is contagious! Get to know this talented actress and learn why amazing philosophy #seebeyondwhatyousee is so important.
Colleen Bement: “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” is such a fun show! Tell us about your guest appearance on October 20th’s episode ‘The Need for Speed.’
Tina-Marie Springham: Omg! So much fun! Too much fun! The entire day (which turned into two) could hardly be called ‘work’. The whole experience was beyond memorable and a blessing beyond expectations!
Getting cast in The CW’s “DC Legends of Tomorrow”, (my first CW network show) and having the opportunity to work this summer on such a fun, vibrant and funny set, with an incredible cast and crew was thrilling and I literally had to pinch myself for a multitude of reasons. One, I am a big fan of Jes Macallan (stemming from her role as ‘Josslyn Carver’ in the ABC drama series Mistresses) and although sadly, I did not get to work directly with her the two days I was on set, it’s still so cool to share IMDB credits until we actually do. Two, I am a HUGE fan of “The Chosen”, a television drama based on the life of Jesus of Nazareth, created, directed, and co-written by American filmmaker Dallas Jenkins, and while on the set of “Legends”, I turn around to see that I am working directly with Shayan Sobhian (who played “James” in “The Chosen”). Ya, I got a little “fan-struck” for sure. I was able to connect and chat with him in the green room in between takes, & got spoiled when he played guitar, it was a little mini-concert, and he even graciously ensured I got the photo op I had requested before I left the set on the second day! He truly is a class act. Shayan & Adam Tskehman and Nick Zano were hilarious on set and kept us all in stitches on the ‘hot train’.
I was beyond giddy as well, when I got to chat with director Alexandra La Roche and watch her in action behind the camera! I learned a lot from her that day! It should be noted that the Costume and Wardrobe department did a stellar job with the 1925 attire, and the Hair and Make-Up gals Sarah & Sam & were amazing and made me feel like I was a star in the HMU chair! I hope to get another chance to work with this stellar bunch again!
CB: Let’s move on to your latest film called “Broken.” What can you share about your character? What was it like on the set?
TMS: In the Remi (Bronze) Award-winning crime drama “Broken”, written & directed by Patrick Phillips, I had the opportunity to play “Janice” the local diner’s waitress. Janice is a lifer. She and her greasy spoon are a staple in the town of Hope and a friend to all who frequent her establishment, from the travelers passing through, to the regulars in town, & especially to Chief Anna Kimble, played by the talented actor/writer/producer Laura Buckles. ‘Janice’ was a really fun character to play and I got to return to my hometown of Edmonton to film. I even got my brother a little cameo appearance on set in the diner scene! It was a full-circle moment in my life, to be back home, sleeping in my childhood room, where I used to dream of becoming an actor one day. Then, there I was decades later “doing” it! Living my dreams! It was truly surreal. We filmed in December right around Christmas, so it was cold! But what a truly amazing, special experience! The cast, the crew, the production, all of it, was unforgettable.
CB: You are certainly busy lately! You have three other projects in post-production. What are you allowed to share with us about films?
TMS: I do have several projects that I cannot yet divulge details about but the ones I am able to share and they are very exciting indeed!
“The Last Chapter” is a TV docu-crime drama that blends key expert interviews and authentic archival footage to support a fictional narrative thread that explores the realities of street life in the criminal network of an outlaw motorcycle gang. Shot part docu-style combined with stylized fiction, the film chronicles the gang life cycle from entering the underworld to the dizzying and perilous journey of exiting, as seen through the eyes of the lead character, “Donnie Knotts”, a gritty warehouse worker, who moonlights as a semi-pro boxer in an attempt to make ends meet. At the time the story begins, his life is at a dead end, he constantly struggles financially and gets lured into and rises quickly up the ranks of the Death Head Motorcycle Club (DHMC). Donny falls into a dizzying spiral of booze/drugs, violence, criminality, addiction, and ultimately murder. Throughout his steadfast rise in the gang, Donnie makes choices that leave him no options and could leave him and his loved ones in grave danger.
The story is developed from actual cases to form one main storyline and the gritty handheld style of the narrative reveals the reality of the streets as they really are: full of untold secrets and lies, mired in a haze of dysfunction. I play ‘Sheila’ the badass bar owner who sees much and says nothing. In a life long ago, I used to waitress in a bar like this, so I felt very at home as “Sheila”. She may be badass but she is a thread of hope and light and a source of strength in this dark criminal world for Donnie. In spite of the long cold, night shoots, I had so much fun playing her. The director, Louvens Remy, really gave me the freedom to create ‘Sheila’ and play her as I saw her. I loved his style of directing.
“Moontime” is also in post-production. This is a really really special project that we are currently trying to raise the rest of the funds to complete posts and get to festivals. This was filmed in 2019 with an ALL FEMALE CAST AND CREW with an award-winning director and several award-nominated actresses. “Moontime” is set in the 1980s and is about a tween who has just experienced her first period and feels pressure to keep it secret, & her well-meaning mother who worries that she and her daughter aren’t as close as they used to be makes an attempt to bring them closer but things don’t flow exactly as planned. I wore many hats on this production from casting to, Location Manager, to Production Assistant, to Set Deck Assistant. At one point I was boom operator! This was a special passion project that saw over 40 females come together to create an incredibly powerful project about an incredibly powerful topic for not just young girls but all females. I even had a cameo appearance as the ‘snarky school secretary’. It was so much fun to jump from the crew side to in front of the camera back to the crew. I now am in a collaborative position with the other post-production coordinators to get this gem finished and off to festivals.
A deep & dysfunctional feature film, “Prof” is about a teacher’s potluck that goes awry as the faculty’s private lives begin to surface and spill out during the evening. I have described the project as ‘The Big Chill’ meets the’ Breakfast Club’ with a dash of ‘Brothers and Sisters’. “Prof” is a really special project, for reasons you may not think. It was a project I almost did not follow through on the audition. The day of the audition, it was downpour rain, I was so depressed and overwhelmed by life, unsure of what the “F” God was doing and wondering where were the “open doors” in my life for something to work out?
Well, I would never “not show up” so off I went, in spite of feeling heavy, and every raindrop that smacked my coat and umbrella seemed to add more and more weight with each step I took. I arrived at the address and was at the locked door, hesitating to ring and debating on just turning around and going home, and in a split moment, as I was beginning to pivot to leave, the door flew open and the guy coming out held the “open door” and said, ” you’re going in RIGHT?” I was stunned and the next thing I recall, I was suddenly standing in the audition room in front of Director/Writer Logan Mitev & Executive Producer Kevin Eade, unapologetically unpacking “Suzanne”, along with the heaviness I personally carried but that succinctly laid the foundation for ‘her’, character. What I didn’t know that day (I found out during filming) is that I was almost looked over for this role, but they took a chance on seeing me.
Also moments before my audition the camera stopped working so they had no footage of my audition to reflect on and review. However, what Logan shared with me during filming was that they had decided on me as “Suzanne” the moment I left the room. I further learned about “her” and how personal a character she was to one of the creators of this project and I was honored to be entrusted to play her. Logan was incredible to work with and the meticulous details and time he spent cultivating the safest setting to be able to be so vulnerable and raw with “Suzanne” was a life-changing experience for me. That is all I can say for now, except to say that I will forever be indebted to Logan and Kevin for taking a chance on me and forever grateful that God and ‘that guy’ held ‘the open door’.
I’m currently co-producing a short/proof of concept, “Snow White and Rose Red”. An incredible project, written and starring The Foscht Twins, Bianca & Dilara, and will be my directorial debut is in pre-production. “Snow White and Rose Red” is a period piece, fairytale, in 19th century rural America, in a life where nothing seems to get the identical twin sisters out of their ordered life and daily routine, an unexpected event alters their lives forever. Its fears and dreams intertwined and torn together. I am really excited about this project. So stay tuned on Instagram and IMDB.
CB: You’ve done a lot of voice-over work. What do you enjoy about doing that type of acting? And, were you able to work during the pandemic?
TMS: I love EVERYTHING about Voice-Over! I love the variety of work that comes my way, from corporate voice-over to animation, to educational projects, to narration. I get to work with incredible clients and an array of such interesting businesses. I love that I get to work from home and that no two projects are ever the same! I truly feel I am blessed to work steadily in Voice-Over and in 2020 I worked on several Audible projects.
CB: I love your Instagram hashtag #seebeyondwhatyousee. What do you mean by that?
Thank you! Yes, #seebeyondwhatyousee is SO IMPORTANT! It is my philosophy, you could say, and something I have lived by my whole life. It is what I taught to my confidence coaching clients, & still do share it any chance I get. It is really quite simple actually…when examining or viewing your human circumstances in life, I encourage one to look past what I call “the surface level” of it all, the human details, as seen with your human eyes, to literally see beyond what is merely situated in front of you. I encourage one to try shifting to view it from different angles, sides, views. All of those offer different pieces of information about the “surface level”. Sadly, that is where most people remain stuck. But if you can shift your human perspective to your spiritual perspective, all the different angles mentioned above, reveal something you otherwise could not see. You gain not just insight but a deeper, revelatory understanding of the circumstances that can offer golden nuggets of knowledge that your human eyes simply do not have the “vision” to observe from only one ‘surface-level view’. It’s deep I know, I am…it’s much easier to explain in a conversation. But for now, I encourage everyone to #seebeyondwhatyousee…there is so much there…waiting…to be discovered!
If you dare to #seebeyondwhatyousee, I promise, you will never settle to see things merely by the “human circumstances” or “the surface level” again.
Catch the trailer for “Broken”.
Written by Colleen Bement
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