Joanne Gale plays the female protagonist Kate in Survivors.  Having worked with the Director, Adam and Producers Ellie & Phill on the short film Sunset 9:04, Joanne was the natural choice to play Kate in Survivors.  In between a tonne of projects she’s currently hard at work on, she took a few minutes to sit down with us here at HQ for an interview.

HQ: First off, tell us a little bit about yourself?

 JG: I’m currently 23, mainly living and working in London. I enjoy climbing ( small ) mountains when I’m not working on new projects.

HQ: Where have audiences seen you before?

 JG: I have a mixture of experiences working on stage and on film and would like to think I’ve played a good variety of roles so far. I’m certainly keen to push further and try new things in the future.

HQ: Why did you decide to take part in Survivors?

JG: I guess pretty soon after Sunset 9:04 and the idea that something more could be made out of that idea and project. I was certainly keen to work with the team and that story world again. Adam got in touch with the first full script and it all just started rolling. I was and am so pleased to have been kept involved.

HQ: What attracted you to working with the team?

 JG: Some of us had worked together before so it felt right. I enjoy working with the same people and it was exciting to try this much larger project with them. To have more people involved, both behind the scenes and in front of the camera, and to see other people’s talents was both inspiring and interesting.

HQ: Do you have any particular method when you prepare for a role?

JG: I try and use different tools I’ve been grateful to have picked up from other actors, teaching and reading over the years depending on what I think maybe needed. I try and keep an open mind but do some research. I currently like finding and looking at images. I read what I have available to me, that often has clues.

HQ: What approach did you take to your character? As an actor.

 JG: I read the script over and over, it might sound obvious but I learned the lines. I also spent a lot of time thinking about how she might sound, her expressions and what being around her might be like. Like if she was to cry, I wanted her tears to be specific and not a kind of go-to emotion. I thought about her situations, her attitudes and what challenge the plot provides to those for her.

I think with this, it’s also important to be willing to drop or alter those as new ideas developed both in rehearsals and in production. In pre-production, Adam and myself shared a number of long emails with thoughts so I took those into consideration. I can only hope I’ve done her some justice.

HQ: What was filming Survivors like?

JG:  Tiring at times! The shooting was intense. But it was fun to be able to work a lot, be able to jump into things, chuck in ideas. I appreciated that. There were a lot of jokes and a lot of laughs. I ate too many cheese sandwiches.

HQ: Finally, what advice would you give to new people trying to make their first project?

 JG: I think everyone has different views on what success in this industry is. Some sayings I find helpful are ‘think outside the box’ and also that ‘behind every actor there must be joy.’ I think a good ethos for any industry is to work hard, be honest, be humble and a good person and hopefully good things will come along.

Joanne is currently working on “The Deliverance Of Sanctuary” which is due to embark on a tour of India and Bangladesh, with a flying visit to the Himalayas for a performance as well. Recently she has worked with Muzzle The Pig on a comedy sketch and appears in a web series for Hoot Comedy.

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