Natalie Rose is a Hollywood actress who is popularly known for Risen (2021), The Makeover (2009), and The Bench: Fibonacci Experience. Natalie hails from Sydney, Australia, has a second-degree black belt in martial arts, and is a former dancer. We recently sat down with Natalie to discuss her career, life growing up in Australia and much more.
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Could you tell us where you’re from?
Yeah, so I’m based in Sydney, Australia. I was born and bred here. I spent a little bit of time living overseas, a bit of time in LA and Canada, but mainly, a lot of the acting that I’ve done has primarily been in Sydney. I’m still in Australia. Years ago, I lived in LA for about six months, working for an acting school. Then I shifted to Canada because I had some actors’ girlfriends, and I was trying to forge a career there. But after spending six months in Canada, I decided to come back to Sydney.
How has film production been in Sydney, Australia. Is it steady work?
I’m glad you asked that because, for many actors here, the work isn’t steady, and as you know, a lot of Ozzy’s head over to LA. I think the kind of gateway here in Australia is that many people use the platform here as a springboard to get recognition and then head on over. So, what I’ve probably spent most of my time doing here in Australia is more of a – “I have a couple of films going on.”
I mainly got my bread and butter from commercials. I’ve probably done about 20 commercials in the last 15 years. It’s competitive, and there isn’t much work if you compare it to the States, unfortunately. So, you got a hustle.
It is competitive. How was the last filming project you did or the one you haven’t finished?
So, because of COVID, things have just been on hold. Now, we’re ready to go. The film that’s airing currently that I featured, it’s called “RISEN.” The sci-fi movie was released on August 20 in selected cinemas across Canada and America. My role is not more of a significant party than that of the lead. The film will be opening in Europe and Asia in the coming weeks. Then, on January 22, it’ll open in New Zealand and Australia. The wonderful thing about the film is that the director, Eddie Ayria, involved a, a multicultural cast, which doesn’t always happen in Australia. He was able to film in New York, Canada, and Australia. So, it’s more like an international movie, which I think is beautiful.
So, congratulations on the release of the movie. You talked about the release that happened in other countries, Will it hit the states or not?
Oh, it’s already hit the states and Canada on August 20, but it was only in selected centers. You should be able to access it on Apple TV.
How did you start acting?
Many people ask this question. The first thing you need to do is enroll in a great acting school. Then get some experience; if you don’t have access to an acting school, you can join a community theater group. There’s a misconception that you need an agent. Before you get an agent, you need to have had done some work. If you haven’t done any work, they’re not going to look at you twice.
Then, you know there is a thing called an agent showcase. This is where the agents can come along and see you and if they like you. They’ll cherry-pick you if they don’t; you got to go back to the drawing board and do short films, unpaid stuff for a short amount of time.
There’s also a misconception about whether actors should do extra work or not. As a novice, I take that you should get on set as an extra and see what everyone is doing. Learn as much as you can, soak it up. Then, at some point, when you have your agent and you’ve got a couple of projects under your belt, you stop doing the extra work, and you start auditioning for paid stuff.
That’s incredible advice. I haven’t heard anybody break down the process quite as eloquently. I think many people have real misconceptions. They see all these people doing active TV, they may be extras and stuff, but they believe that it’s easy to do. So, did you take classes and learn the craft?
Yeah, I’ll be honest, I’m not formally trained. So, I didn’t go to a three-year degree, but I did a year acting course, which was my foundational course. Then, I did loads of camera tech, auditioning for the camera, screen test classes. There’s a great school in America that came to Sydney years ago –TVI actor studio. So, I learned how to audition for drama, sitcoms, and what that industry was like. One interesting point is that Rebel Wilson was in my class. I can’t remember others now. I got to do a scene with her. She is just an outstanding talent, as we can all say.
So, growing up was acting on your radar? Have you always wanted to be an actor, or is it just something you came upon?
I love that you asked this question. When I was young, I was a dancer, and all I wanted to be was a dancer. That was my passion. The passion became a flash because my parents said, no, that’s not happening; you can’t make money as a dancer.
So, I left the dancing, and I moved into martial arts. I did that for about six years. I’ve got a second degree black belt, love to train hard and through there, I met a girl who was an actor. She invited me to come and see her play. She was doing Othello, and I watched her up on stage. I was blown away, and from that moment, I was like, this is what I must do. I don’t know, something clicked in me, and I think that’s important. With acting you’ve got to want to do the work, not get famous. If getting famous is your ambition, you’ll be disappointed. But if you get in there and do the work, whether you make it or not, it would be better. Acting for me is like the air that you breathe.
Can you tell me a little more about any project that you’re working on, and was it your favorite project so far?
My favorite project – dare I say, is a commercial on domestic violence. It went viral in 24 hours, and it got over a million views here in Sydney, Australia. It was for a New South Wales Police Force. That was such a harrowing experience having to go to that place and act in a scene where there are children, and my partner is, you know, attacking me. I would say that’s probably my most proud just because of what it sorts of stood for and represented.
In terms of film, I’d have to say “Risen.” I did a movie years ago called the makeover back in 2008 with Martin Dingle Wall and Lara Cox. They both are well-known actors. Martin has forged a career over in America. Laura is a very famous actress here in Australia. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite make it to the cinemas. Even though it had loads of exposure, I had no control over how it turned out. I had hoped more for that movie. So, “Risen” is my favorite. I’m proud of the actors because the movie industry here in Australia is small, but the movie is screening around the world.
Well, how do you feel playing this role?
Again, another good question. Usually, I would go for all the roles and do a sort of workshop with them. However, when William H. Macy came to Sydney, Australia (he teaches practical aesthetics, it’s a great, clear-cut technique for actors), he said something that resonated with me. He said, “you will always feel like a Ford as an actor. Never look outside of yourself; the character goes within.” Often actors will look outside of themselves for the character, or what would that character do? For me, I imagined that if I was in those circumstances, how would I respond? What would it be like for me? So, I would say there’s always an element of me in the character.
Did you feel like we missed anything in this interview that you think that we should ask?
No, I think you did a stellar job. You asked great questions.
Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to speak with us today.
Check out Natalie on social media below:
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/natalierose_is/
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-rose-20b09131
IMBd https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0741589
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