Miranda Noelle Wilson
Miranda Noelle Wilson is an American actress/producer/singer whose credits include As the World Turns (2007-2009), The SIT Network (2013) and Buddy CoPs (2013).
More recently, Miranda can be seen in forthcoming horror/thriller The Eve (written by Even Bass and directed by Ritchie Steven Filippi) in which she plays the character 'Lacey'.
Miranda spoke exclusively to Screen Nut about her experiences on working on The Eve, her thoughts on the character and what we can expect from the film. She also discusses the start of the career and her hopes and plans for the future.
SN: Welcome to ScreenNut Miranda. Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. Firstly, I’d like to congratulate you on your ‘Best Actress’ award at the Chain NYC Film Festival. What was going through your mind when you were told that you had won?
Miranda: Thank you! It was such a great night. The film had already won its well-deserved “Best Thriller” award and the festival’s “Audience Award” that night. The “Audience Award” was a huge honor because the crew and cast worked so hard to make this film and the fact that it was so well received was really satisfying and encouraging. When the “Best Actress” winner was announced, I didn’t process it was my name that was called, at first. Then my name popped up on the screen as “Best Actress” and I realized, “Wait! That’s me!” I was excited and surprised. Winning an award for my work in this film is very special and makes me feel like I did my job! In other fields, you know when you’ve done your job right, but in acting it is different and hard to tell. And that’s all you ever strive for, to do the job to the best of your ability and to honor the work of the writer and director, and getting the award it was something I could see and say, “Oh, I guess I did my job!”.
SN: Take me back to the beginning, how did you first get into the world of acting?
Miranda: I started dancing and playing the piano at a very young age (around 3-5yrs old), however, I was an EXTREMELY shy child. When I was 7 years old, a teacher at my elementary school told my mother that the high school was casting children for their production of The Sound of Music and thought I should audition. My mother never thought I’d go for it but I really wanted to. I auditioned for and got the role of Gretl, the youngest von Trapp. It was an incredible experience. I may have been too shy to talk offstage, but, onstage, I got lost in my character and opened up. My parents could see that a light had lit up inside of me. They helped me find other opportunities to perform as I grew up. I started working professionally around the Kansas City, MO area when I was a teenager and that solidified, for me, the desire to pursue this with my life. I graduated with a BFA in theatre performance from the University of Evansville, Indiana and then moved to NYC after graduation where I’ve been working in both film and theatre for the last decade. It’s been a rewarding journey and certainly has brought me out of shell! I’m not nearly as shy as I used to be.
SN: What fuels your passion for acting, and what excites you the most when picking up a new script for the first time?
Miranda: The arts are very important and I am so honoured to have a career in bringing the arts to others. I love losing myself in different characters and the work that goes into honestly portraying each and every one of them. I love figuring out the mind-set of how people tick; what are their happiest moments, and their scariest ones, and how do those moments affect them emotionally and how is it different character to character? I feel that by accessing the depths of the characters I play, it gives me a greater understanding of others in the world outside of the small part of the world where I exist. I love that feeling. I also love the collaboration process that can go into bringing a piece to life, whether that be on the stage or on the screen. It is also interesting to see how that collaboration can also serve the development of a character in many different ways. The research and development of these characters is the most exciting thing to me when I pick up a new script for the first time. I also love scanning a new script for any fun tricks or stunts I might get to do. A new role can be a great excuse to learn a new fun skill in life! In The Eve, we all got a chance to learn some fight choreography, which was both challenging and exciting. In a new piece that I’m working on, I have to learn to play Debussy’s “Clair de Lune” on the piano.
SN: Let’s talk about your upcoming film The Eve. Tell me about the film and your character Lacey, and how that role came about?
Miranda: The film is about 4 friends that go to Martha’s Vineyard to reconnect over New Year’s Eve, however, things start to go awry and it becomes a struggle to survive the night. Lacey is the newest one to the group and a bit shy and reserved. I knew the writer and had talked with him about the script and I was lucky enough to be given the chance to bring this character to life.
SN: What were your first impressions of your character Lacey?
Miranda: Lacey was a tough one because she had the potential to blend in with the background. As I mentioned before, I was a very shy and reserved person growing up so some of those elements of Lacey were ones with which I could identify. I wanted to bring that groundedness to life in a realistic and non-stereotypical way, and also show her really working through getting past that shyness to become better friends with the others on the holiday trip. I also wanted to show the layers within her as she finds her inner strength when things start to go awry. My goal was to make Lacey nuanced and our director, Ritchie Filippi, was helpful in encouraging me to go further and achieve this goal.
SN: What can people expect to see from The Eve that separates it from other horror/thrillers that are out there right now?
Miranda: The film explores relationships in a very grounded and realistic way so that you can honestly connect to what you’re seeing on the screen. I think this helps get people roped in and have them really care about what then happens to each character as the night begins to unfold in this unexpected way. I think the film is unique in the world of the thriller genre for this reason. We aren’t so much about the buckets of blood but instead about showing how real people might handle the situation they are in. I think, in some ways, this makes the film scarier and puts people more on edge watching it because you can see an element of yourself in at least one of the characters going through the night.
SN: Tell me about some of your favourite moments and experiences whilst filming The Eve.
Miranda: We filmed The Eve in the middle of winter, January to be exact, on location in Martha’s Vineyard. Being on an island in the Atlantic Ocean in the dead of winter is an interesting experience. We had blizzards and torrential downpours. It would be 15*F one day and 45*F two days later. The environmental elements were rough but the people on the island were very generous and welcomed us with open arms. One night the whole crew was welcomed to dine at Sharky’s Cantina (by the owner who found us through social media) and it was a night where we all got to relax and bond after a rough day of filming in the elements. That was a special night. I also loved the make-up room on set, which is where the other actress (Maria DiDomenico) and I would hang out when not filming. Our make-up room was the master bathroom in the house where we were filming and we made it our comfort zone. Maria and I (and sometimes our awesome make-up artist, Talia Favale) would work on our scripts, chat about life and careers and inspire each other to take risks, and sometimes rock out to the Spice Girls or Backstreet Boys Pandora stations we created. It was a little safe haven from the intense scenes we were filming, a place where we could come and recharge, and prepare for what we had coming up next. And the bathtub was a great place for a quick nap!
SN: Who are your biggest influences and inspirations?
Miranda: Julie Andrews was an inspiration to me growing up. I, of course, adored her for her roles in Sound of Music and Mary Poppins. As I got older, though, I started noticing her other work and I was inspired by her flexibility in roles, how she could do roles like the ones in Victor/Victoria and S.O.B. It’s one of the reasons I’ve come up with the phrase “I’m your blonde, with a twist” as a brand for myself. Growing up, I was also hugely inspired by Mary Tyler Moore. I LOVED the “Mary Tyler Moore” show and was influenced by her confidence and independence as a woman on the show, and I think I knew what kind of confidence and independence and spunk she had to have as a person outside the show as well. I wanted to be that same type of confident, independent, and spunky woman. Additionally, I’m inspired by my peers in the industry. I am fortunate enough to be surrounded by a great community of friends and colleagues and we constantly inspire and push each other to the next steps in our careers. I am in awe of their talent and thankful for their support!
SN: What are some of the most challenging aspects of being an actor for you personally?
Miranda: For me, the most challenging aspect of being an actor is sometimes just getting seen! The dance of getting your foot in the door can very often be a challenging one. The Catch-22 is you have to have an agent to get the audition but you have to have gotten the audition and booked the part in order to get an agent! I feel like I’m at a point in my life where I’m starting to overcome this challenge and it’s a bit of a relieved feeling but the hustle never ends!
SN: In regards to your career, what are your hopes for the future?
Miranda: As cheesy as it may sound, my hope for the future is to have a career that spans across all mediums (stage, film, TV) and one where I am fully supporting myself just on that work. One of the most important things to remember about show business is that it is just that…a business. It’s about the baby steps building the relationships and the resume and sometimes you have to take leaps as well. I’ve spent a lot of time making the building blocks and recently I’ve taken a few leaps. It’s terrifying, it’s satisfying, and I’m excited to see what the future holds! Hopefully that future will include getting to voice a character in a Pixar movie.
SN: Aside from The Eve, tell me about some of your other upcoming projects that we can look forward to seeing.
Miranda: I am teaming up with the writer on The Eve, Evan Bass, on a short film in the spring. It’s a beautiful love story exploring the effects of Alzheimer’s on a relationship. I’m also working with three other women on an exciting new project – we’ve commissioned a playwright to write a new play and will be giving the play its world premiere off-Broadway in the fall. I will be acting in the play and the project is also my first foray into producing, which is scary and exciting! I also perform regularly with a dance-theatre company, the Treehouse Shakers, which focuses on shows for youth ages 0-18 and we perform in the NYC area as well as around the United States.
SN: Finally, is there anything that you would like to say or talk about that I have not mentioned?
Miranda: The Eve has teamed up with Indie Rights and The Eve will be released world-wide through VOD on Friday, April 24th! I hope you’ll check it out and let us know how you would #SurviveTheEve!
SN: Miranda, thank you so much for the opportunity to learn more about you, and your career. I wish you all the success with The Eve. Congratulations on your award, and I look forward to seeing what you bring us in the future. Thank you.
MNW: Thank you to Screen Nut for having me!