ED- It is with the greatest pleasure to introduce Actress Ceallach from the land down-under, Australia. Ceallach, we are both of Scots/ Irish decent, so for me this is a personal pleasure. We understand that you have many GREAT talents, none the least of which you are actually a Doctor. Tell us of your early days at the University of Queensland and Griffith University.
C- I loved campus life, not all study I must say…I was performing more in choirs and bands and stage performances when I should have been studying. I have always had an academic side to me, an inquisitive nature if you will. I have 4 honor degrees which I gathered over 8 years full-time and then specialized as a Surgeon. I started my surgical training in Obstetrics & Gynecology and then generalized later and have been until last year working in Neurosurgery assisting with skull base tumor microsurgery. Even now I perform Plastic Surgery assisting Australia’s’ leading Nip/Tuck Surgeon to keep my skills up, but just one operating list a week as my time is being devoted to my passion for film. The time is now coming that I will be soon laying down my scalpel and I feel honored to have been part of Medicine and Surgery as it is the ultimate service of beneficence I believe.
ED- This is an amazing accomplishment. What encouraged you to join the world of Entertainment?
C- I have been in the entertainment industry since I was around 8 years of age. To me performing is the ultimate form of self expression and self actualization. I can’t remember a time when I have not had a play or performance to prepare for. I also am a choreographer in hip-hop and contemporary dance which keeps me reaching for new heights in personal creation .
I have always been involved heavily in dance, music, and theatre and I also enjoy the production side as well. I was fortunate to have a family of performers and “Drama Queens” and was raised by my mother who loved a classic vintage diet of “ Classic Old Hollywood Movies and Stars – Cary Grant, Rock Hudson, Robert Redford, Audrey Hepburn, Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Robert Mitchum, Sidney Poitier ,Gregory Peck, Paul Newman. I also like Directors like Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock. .As a medium, I enjoy film the most. My secret hideaway and safe haven is a movie cinema. As soon as I enter, just the lighting and atmosphere immediately makes me feel like I am home, and once the lights go out, I am transported into another realm.
ED- We learned that you were in a number of theater productions namely ‘Merry Ann Sweet’, ‘ Steel Magnolias’, and ‘Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow’. This must have been exciting for you. Please tell us all about this aspect of your career and the roles that you played.
C-Yes, these have been my most recent theater roles. I have been in over 20 I would say to date starting from age 11. I also love musical theatre and have been in musicals such as Rocky Horror , Fame, Footloose and Grease and was cast as Sandi in Grease, because my voice is the same pitch as Olivia Newton-Johns, so her songs suited me well. Theatre is a very good grounding platform for actors, very fluid and dynamic. I think every serious actor should at least be involved in theatre at some stage in their career, which can only benefit the craft and enhance performance skills in so many ways.
ED- You are also an accomplished singer and song writer. Please let our readers know something about your work in this field.
C- As an Actress, performing encompasses a 3D nature to me. My songwriting is just an extension along with singing and dance and acting. I write mainly for friends who need scores for shorts for film festivals and such things although was approached by Universal Music last year but my focus is Acting and always has been, hopefully in the future there will be film projects combining my love of music as well. My work was recognized by the UK International Songwriting Competition with 9 awards in 2008 which was a thrill, to say the least, as I compose solely by ear and do not conform to conventional composition principles.
ED- In 2009 you were also in the productions ‘Lost’ and ‘Where is My Epidural’. Please tell us about your experience in these films.
C- I was asked by friends to help them with shorts for film festivals so this was a wonderful experience. Lost was a very sad drama involving a Mother and her child at the beach and basically the child ends up getting washed away into the ocean, and the last scene is where I am just sitting on the sand staring out to the sea , Where is My Epidural was completely the polar opposite, where I am about to birth a rather large baby, was promised by the Midwife an Epidural (yeagh right !!) and of course have to give birth a la naturale ! Very funny and challenging to say the least and my screen husband was taking all the abuse as well as trying to be supportive.
ED- We also understand that you have been cast in a role for the upcoming films ‘A Father’s Choice’ in Australia and ‘Visionary’ in the UK. Can you give us a sneak preview behind the scenes of these new projects?
C- Yes, my agent was sent a script for me to read recently whilst I was at a meeting in Ireland. The Director was keen on attaching me to the cast and I was very impressed with the script so I agreed to jump on board. A Father’s Choice is a Australian Feature Film that will commence shooting in July in Sydney by Ultimate Films Australia. It is Family Drama based on a true story and was written and is being directed by BJ McBride. It is a tale of one man’s battle to do what is best for his children. The loss of his wife, who is my sister in the film, leaves him stranded and he has to find a way to save his family, or
ultimately they will fade into memories of loss. I am playing the character of Georgia Thomas who is madly in love with her fiancé, has just learned she is pregnant, who has just been through her sisters death and has a wedding planned a few weeks after her death, all amidst car accidents, a huge family crisis and lots of tears. My other project which I am very much looking forward to being a part of is ‘Visionary” by Neil James-Movies. This will be filmed in the UK hopefully sometime later this year. It is a superb script written by Neil James and the tag is ‘Yesterday, a girl was murdered. Today, she told someone everything.’
ED- What are your plans for the future, and what new projects are you looking to venture in?
C- I have been very fortunate in that I am now also represented by a New York Publicist . My publicist is Leo Gettz from Leo Gettz Media Group who has worked with Hilary Clinton and Tommy Hilfiger to name just a few, so this is a great privilege to have Leo on my team and I am sure he will be a tremendous supporter . I have also just been made a Global Ambassador for International Environ Skin Care and Make-Up founded by South African leading Plastic Surgeon Dr Des Fernandes which is a great honor. I am also on
the producers wish list with Jennifer Aniston and Naomi Watts for a big budget LA Feature for female lead and in negotiations with that at the moment. It is an action epic and I get to be a Scientist-ex CIA operative which would be very exciting. There are talks about Eric Bana which would be great having two Aussies in the lead in a LA production. I have been sent some wonderful scripts from many genres both indie and studio, although thrillers/horror and dramas are my favorites. I am in negotiations for several features at present all overseas so I do intend and will be leaving Australia, by the end of 2011. As I am just starting out in Film this year, I just hope to be involved in projects that will allow me to grow and have the creative opportunity to portray and deliver characters of such breadth and quality that will make the film experience for everyone a memorable experience. I want to be able to deliver messages and visions of change and empowerment in peoples lives, to provoke and entertain, that’s all !
ED- Ceallach, You are a very beautiful and talented woman. We are certain that any future ventures that you enter will be a great success. Please keep our readers informed of any new projects that you become involved in. We love to update our readers with all the news of the people that we have interviewed. We want to thank you for this chance to interview you and certainly wish you well in all that you do. It has been a pleasure.
C- No thank you ED, for allowing me to have the pleasure of this interview with you !
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