Actor, Helena Marie, plays Whitney Cortez in the Family Channel and CBCC’s new television series, My Perfect Landing. The show features talented young gymnasts, and Helena’s character moves to Toronto with her family to start a gymnastic club. Read about it more below!

Hi Helena, thank you for answering our questions today! Tell us about yourself and how you got into acting. Where did you start and what pushed you to pursue a career in entertainment? What was your big break?

It’s my pleasure, thanks for having me! I started acting during my last year of high school, and then studied theatre in college. When I first started to pursue it professionally I basically just did everything I could. I took all the classes I could afford, I acted in student films, short films and indie projects, I narrated audiobooks– you name it, I did it. The more I did, the more I knew that this was the path for me. I needed to perform. Working on Stagecoach: The Texas Jack story was a huge milestone for me. I got to play a kick-ass character alongside some truly heavy hitters like Judd Nelson and Kim Coates.

Jake Raymond completed his feature film, Ashes, which will be making the festival circuit starting with a world premiere at the 2017 Milledgevile Film Festival in Georgia. The film is about a man who explores and experiences his grief in losing his parents by fulfilling their final wishes. Jake talks to us about creating, writing and what inspires him. Check out the interview below.

Tell us about Ashes and your character, Liam. What was it like playing a character who experienced tragedy and going through that journey? 

Ashes is a passion project and my first feature film as a writer and producer. The motivation for the film was to create an acting opportunity for myself and my friends. There are so many talented actors these days, most of the time just getting an audition is a win in itself, so I wanted to write a script that I could cast my friends in and give us all an opportunity to work together. Along the way I found a whole new love for film-making and I’m excited to continue my career not only as an actor, but also as a filmmaker.

In the story, we find my character Liam, after discovering his parents’ final wishes are to have their ashes scattered where they first met. Joined by his closest friends, they set out to explore the place for themselves as they navigate old memories while creating new ones.

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