- 14 minutes ago
Actress Anna Cathcart can’t sit still. “I’m learning what patience looks like and how to slow down,” says the 22-year-old Canadian. This summer she wrapped season three of Xo, Kitty—her Netflix series set in Seoul, South Korea. The hit drama stars Cathcart as Kitty Song-Covey, a character she first played seven years ago in the film franchise To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. Season one of Xo attracted 14.3 million views in its first week—while season 2’s premiere week reached 14.2 million—hitting Netflix’s top 10 in 90 countries. When not filming, Cathcart is narrating an Audible audio series, Middlebridge Mysteries, and voice acting for the 2026 Angry Birds Movie 3 (the first two surpassed $500 million at the box office). On social media, Cathcart is leveraging her 11 million followers into brand partnerships with companies including Fujifilm and Aveeno. “No matter what you do, you must also be a content creator,” she says. “You’re putting up a mini billboard any time you post something...That’s immediate marketing.”
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FunTranscript
00:00Often I get in my head of like, who am I to think that like all my dreams are gonna come true and like all these big goals that I have, like maybe they're too far away.
00:06I'm like, actually, who are you to think they're not?
00:17Anna Cathcart, thank you so much for joining me today.
00:20I'm so excited to talk about your very budding career right now.
00:23Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited.
00:25So you have had a crazy last couple of years, but you guys just wrapped Exo Kitty, the show that you star on, this summer.
00:31What have you been doing since then?
00:33Oh my gosh. It's honestly been really crazy because, yeah, we finished season three a few months ago.
00:38And I've been going to college the last few years as well, kind of like in pattern with a season, a semester, a season.
00:43And for the first time, I'm not going to school and I'm not shooting right now.
00:47So I'm learning what patience looks like and how to slow down, which is really hard for me because I think I thrive really well off being chaotic because I'm a very anxious person and I'm like a little chaotic on the inside.
01:00So when my outside world also matches that, we do well.
01:04But things are a little quiet on the outside world right now and now I'm just kind of freaking out.
01:08So learning what that looks like and I'm also getting into producing, which has been so fun and very rewarding.
01:13So having things to work on just at a different pace than I'm used to.
01:16Totally. So what does a day in your life look like right now?
01:18Oh my gosh. Well, every week is definitely different.
01:22I try and wake up early and work out because it makes me feel a lot better.
01:26And those days that I do that, I always am like, at least I'm productive.
01:29I think that's a tough thing with a lot of like ambitious people and hardworking people is the lack of productivity.
01:34It feels like immediately like you failed the day.
01:37And I don't think that's true because rest is productive as well.
01:40And I know that logically, like if I don't rest by the time I reach my goals, I'll be too tired to even do my best there.
01:45And like this, this is productive to slow down, but learning that.
01:49So working out, hanging out with friends a lot.
01:51I like went and hung out with everybody like every day.
01:54I had a different hangout plan when I came home because I missed my friends so much.
01:56And I'm still living in Vancouver, which has been great.
01:59So just enjoying like Vancouver summer.
02:01I love that.
02:01So you have been acting for a couple of years now.
02:03Obviously, you are really well known for your show XO Kitty.
02:06But prior to that, you've been in multiple other projects and you started in commercials.
02:10What was that experience like?
02:11Do you remember your first day on set?
02:13Oh my gosh, my first commercial was for Campbell's Soup.
02:15Okay.
02:16I was six years old.
02:18I literally just had to go and eat soup.
02:21Had no lines, no script, nothing.
02:23That was like one of the greatest days ever.
02:25And then I did a commercial when I was 10 and nothing else.
02:28It was just one commercial at six, one commercial at 10 for Crayola Chuck.
02:32Okay.
02:32And that was like a big turning point.
02:34And I think about that day quite often because I remember leaving and turning to my mom and literally
02:38being like, that was the best day of my life.
02:40I was like, if I can have that feeling and do that more, let's do anything to make that
02:45happen.
02:46Like that was truly a turning point.
02:48And I'd only ever done commercials, like commercial auditions or anything in advertising.
02:52And then when I was 12, I got a new agent and I did my first audition for film and TV.
02:57And I ended up booking the lead, which was very, very shocking to my whole family and to me
03:03because I'd never really done any other acting other than those two commercials.
03:07And I didn't know anyone in film and my family is very far from that industry.
03:11So to book a lead of a TV show and I had a very quick turnaround.
03:16They asked me to go to Toronto like four days later and move there for seven months and shoot
03:20this show every single day.
03:22And I was 12, like I had no idea what I was doing.
03:25I had never been on a real set and like seen lines before, like I was very fresh.
03:30So that was a crazy experience and kind of was my foundation to the rest of my career.
03:35And now it's been 10 years, which is wild for me to think about.
03:38And I learned so much of what I use day to day now on that set.
03:42And I was really lucky to meet really great people at that time.
03:45Yeah.
03:45And that was for Odd Squad, correct?
03:46Yes, for Odd Squad.
03:47Okay, very cool.
03:48What do you think drew you to acting in the first place?
03:50You know, I feel like a lot of kids say, I want to be an actress.
03:53I want to be a pop star.
03:53I want to be so many things, but like don't act on it because it's hard to act on it at
03:57such a young age.
03:58So what was that process like?
03:59What drew you to like actually take action?
04:01Yeah.
04:01I mean, to be honest, I really didn't think it was possible either.
04:04I felt like it was saying like, I want to be an astronaut.
04:06I don't want to be a fighter.
04:07Like you just like throw out things.
04:08And I'm really grateful that my family was like, okay, well, like if you're so excited about
04:12this, let's take a shot at it and try.
04:14And we were so green to everything too of like, what is an agent?
04:17And like, what does this mean?
04:18And like, my parents were trying to make sure that I was getting into something that was
04:22positive and safe and good for me.
04:24And even at the start, like when that did happen, that was like, this was like the last
04:28expected option of like, I thought you'd audition maybe, maybe do another commercial,
04:32do a guest star if even, and then like go to school and do a normal career.
04:36So this was very unexpected.
04:37But yeah, I think my sister did a few commercials too growing up and I wanted to do anything
04:42she did.
04:42And I was like, idolized her since I came out of the womb.
04:45I was like, you are my everything.
04:46And she still is.
04:47So I think that also definitely helped inspire me.
04:50Yeah.
04:50You said that you learned a lot from that first experience that you use today.
04:54What are some of those either like skills or just like life experiences that you feel
04:57like have really informed how you go about your career now?
05:00Yeah, I think a big one is even just the simple things that how a set works and how to act
05:07in a professional manner and knowing even like lingo and like what this acronym means
05:12and that kind of stuff.
05:13No one's teaching you that before you go on your first set.
05:16And I think I've seen a lot of adult actors get into the industry later and those things
05:21you're not learning in theater school.
05:22You're not learning beforehand.
05:23And I feel very grateful that I've had that foundation because I've seen it happen where
05:28someone doesn't know what they're doing or doesn't know where to go or doesn't know
05:31what's going on and they're seen as unprofessional or people roll their eyes at them.
05:34I'm like, that's so unfair.
05:35And I find that like that's so frustrating that that person doesn't know because why
05:39would they?
05:39They don't have those months of training or someone figuring it out like on other jobs.
05:43I feel like they sometimes ease you into it.
05:45But on a set, you get there your first day and like, I hope you know what you're doing
05:48and I hope you know what a 10-1 is, which is literally just going to the bathroom.
05:51Like all of those things that were like, oh, you just should know this already is so unfair.
05:55But at 12, you're allowed to not know.
05:57And I was really lucky to be on a set too where you had room to mess up and room to ask
06:02questions.
06:03And so much of our cast, really our whole cast were all kids.
06:06So that like had that environment and like foster that energy to be like, you can mess
06:11up and you can learn here.
06:12And I'm so grateful for that daily because a lot of sets, unfortunately, aren't always
06:16like that.
06:16I am really interested though in this transition from you being a child actor and like coming
06:20into these sets, being green, being, you know, unexperienced, kind of finding your
06:24way through that.
06:25And then transitioning into now as an adult, I'm sure that transition does a lot to like
06:30your psyche.
06:31For one, just like the intention behind what you're doing from it being like a passion,
06:35something you're interested in to it turning into a job.
06:37What was that experience like for you?
06:39Yeah.
06:39To be honest, it kind of freaked me out when I had like the first day I ever wanted to go
06:45home or I was like, oh, like I'm so tired.
06:48I just want to be wrapped.
06:48I was like, hold on.
06:50You used to be upset when you were wrapped.
06:52You used to want to do nothing else but be on set.
06:54What is this feeling?
06:55What does this mean?
06:56And I was really hard on myself about it and was like, does this mean I'm not meant for
06:59this?
06:59Or like, am I ungrateful?
07:01Like, come on, Anna, you're living the dream.
07:02Like, stop.
07:03Stop being so tired.
07:04I'm like, actually, I think this is just adulthood and I think this is a career now.
07:09And it was a hobby.
07:10And for so long, it was just like this dream, cool thing to do.
07:13My friends go to soccer practice and like, I go to set and I love this activity.
07:16And then it started becoming like, oh, I'm actually a businesswoman and this is my job
07:21and this is like a product.
07:23And it's weird to think of it in that way sometimes because I'm like, I'm also my own product.
07:27But it is like, it just changed like everything and my lens on it.
07:32And I think allowing like, no matter how much you love your job, you're going to have days
07:36where you want to go home and there's going to be days where you're tired.
07:38And that doesn't mean you don't love it and it doesn't mean it's not meant for you.
07:41But it's just changing that, like framing that relationship really did kind of freak
07:45me out those first few years.
07:46And that really hit when I did the first season of XO Kitty.
07:49I was 18 and I just graduated high school and I never worked as like an adult.
07:56So I had different rules and different hours.
07:57And we were shooting so far away from home as well.
08:00And everything just changed at once.
08:02And that was like a really big transition time.
08:04Yeah.
08:04I want to talk about shooting away from home as well.
08:07Many of your shows and your projects have been across Canada, across the U.S., in Korea.
08:12How do you feel about like not having a home base or being somewhere else for so many months
08:17of the year?
08:18What is that experience like?
08:20I think the last few years with XO Kitty, it's all been in Korea.
08:23But those are like four months of the year or three months.
08:27And then I come home to Vancouver and having a home base somewhere that is not so industry
08:33infused.
08:34Like it definitely is.
08:35And we have a great industry in Vancouver, but I find going to a city like L.A. or New
08:40York is very inspiring.
08:42And I love going there, but there's a fine balance between inspiring and consuming.
08:47And I think if I was in those cities after just shooting in a very intense way for many
08:51months, it could get a lot very quickly.
08:53But to have a home base like Vancouver and to come home to my family and be around my
08:57friends has made such a big impact.
08:59And I do feel like I have a home base and a home there.
09:02And especially because I've been going to college and I think that changed things a
09:06lot to have like a community and an environment and a place where also was my own, but it
09:11wasn't work and it wasn't related to my career, I think has made a really positive impact on
09:16me.
09:17Yeah, I can totally understand that.
09:19About college, you are studying sociology and creative writing, correct?
09:22Yes.
09:23Why is that something that you wanted to go into?
09:24Especially, I mean, those things can have something to do with acting, but in many ways
09:29they're very separate.
09:30Yeah.
09:31I think, I mean, a lot of people have asked me like, oh, you're going to film school
09:34or you're probably doing theater or something like that.
09:36And I think a big reason why I wanted to go to school is because I wanted to use another
09:39part of my brain that I haven't been using in my career.
09:42And I always dreamed of going to university and my whole family basically has gone to UBC and
09:48that's where my parents spent and my sister loved it and like, I just dreamed of doing
09:51that path as well.
09:52So I always wanted to go, but I also want my career to stay in acting and stay in producing
09:58and in this industry that I felt like this was a chance to learn something totally different
10:02and kind of do it for, for like the joy of, the joy of it and the joy of education and
10:08just like learning, which was really, really fun.
10:10And I was very privileged to have like, have the ability to have that angle with school
10:14and know that like my career isn't even about this.
10:16So I'm not like as stressed about what's going to happen when I graduate or this and
10:20that.
10:20It's like, I'm here because I want to learn and I want to become an adult as well.
10:23I feel like a campus is a place that is so, so specific and like you're with people who
10:28are your peers and you're all figuring yourself out.
10:30And as a kid, I was around adults all the time on sets and I was not in those environments
10:35necessarily.
10:36So it was very special for a lot of reasons.
10:38I know you've talked about before too, in a recent interview of yours that you and your
10:42character Kitty kind of went on this journey at the same time of like moving away and
10:47like growing up and finding your people and, you know, just finding your kind of way in
10:51life.
10:52How often do you feel like you in kind of like intersects with who you're playing and
10:58how do you separate it?
10:59Do you try and separate it?
11:01Or what is the mindset behind keeping Anna, Anna and your characters, your characters?
11:05It is interesting, especially because I've played Kitty for so many years.
11:10It's been eight years now, which is wild.
11:12And having just like a healthy relationship with it, because I know that so many people
11:17in the world know me as this character and we definitely do have our similarities.
11:21But I think, yeah, season one was like our greatest overlap.
11:26Our Venn diagram was like really merging.
11:28A circle.
11:29It was a circle because I was fresh out of high school.
11:32I mean, it was different because Kitty is in high school, but I was like learning who
11:37I am as a person by myself and figuring out what independence looks like and what do I
11:41want in my life period and like what am I searching for?
11:45And going to Korea and living like in a hotel with my castmates felt like dorms.
11:49Like I was like, we are in a place that I've never been to.
11:52And being like wide-eyed looking out the window is like literally how the show opens and was
11:55literally me coming from the airport that like that feeling, I was like, this is not a stretch.
12:01Like I know how this feels to be in a brand new place and be just excited to like grow
12:05up a little.
12:06And that definitely has like been a fun kind of like someone to hold hands with while you're
12:11figuring that out.
12:11And while you're growing up, it's like we're doing it together.
12:14Is it easier to act when you feel like you can relate to the experience so much or do
12:18you feel like that then clouds things too much for you?
12:20Yeah, I think for this type of show, it definitely can be very helpful.
12:23And like just thinking about how would I feel in this scenario and how would Kitty feel?
12:27And I feel like I know her well also, which helps.
12:31And finding like the new version of her with the show compared to the movies made a really,
12:35really like just like interesting challenge and really fun to re-meet her.
12:40It was kind of like seeing an old friend.
12:41And I'm like, I know you, but I don't know you right now.
12:43And like, let's find out who she is.
12:45So that was really cool to reestablish.
12:47So yeah, let's talk about that transition from the To All the Boys franchise where you first
12:51started playing Kitty to now having on offshoot a show that was created around you and this
12:56character, that similar to how we're talking about, like going from a child to an adult
13:01actor, going from a supporting role to a lead role probably really changes your experience
13:06on set.
13:07Definitely.
13:08I feel like, I mean, one, it was very unexpected.
13:11And when I first auditioned for To All the Boys 1, like that first movie, I was 13.
13:16I like don't even know if I was the one who got the audition.
13:19It was probably like in my mom's inbox.
13:20Like I was fully a kid and that was just a singular movie.
13:25It wasn't even attached to Netflix at the time.
13:26It was not like this big franchise yet.
13:28It was attached to those three books that Jenny Han wrote, but it wasn't, it wasn't
13:31at all what it is now.
13:33And if you told me then that like I would be here at 22, still part of this character's
13:38world, I would never have believed it.
13:40So having that transition was like first just mind blowing.
13:43I had to like wrap my head around it.
13:44And then yeah, going from a supporting character to a lead definitely changed things a lot.
13:48I think season one, I was kind of like, I don't actually know what my job is.
13:54And I don't know what this is, even though I'd done it for many years and was like, I'm
13:57familiar with acting.
13:58I'm comfortable with it.
14:00But being a lead on a show like this and with this type of pressure and this type of
14:04audience and it being on Netflix and my name being so heavily attached to it and like
14:08that was a new sense of pressure that I had never felt.
14:12A lot of it was also internal.
14:13And then a new sense of leadership that I also hadn't had the opportunity to really
14:18step into.
14:19But I loved it and I loved getting the chance to do that.
14:22And I feel like what I received the most, the most like outstanding feedback on or the
14:27most positive feedback from directors and producers or CEOs of companies or whatever, it's not
14:34just like how I show up as an actor, but how I show up as a leader and my, my attitude towards
14:40things and my spirit on set and how I take over that role.
14:44I think that's what gets noticed, which has been really interesting to see.
14:47And I feel like as a lead, you're kind of a team captain.
14:50And that's how I like to look at it is like, I'm not just going to show up and do my lines
14:53and leave.
14:53It's like, I feel like it's my job to also make sure everyone is feeling included.
14:57And the cast are all feeling like a big like family and all of that is falls, I feel like
15:03on kind of that team captain role.
15:05And I don't know, I think I like to like lead with the mindset of you can't like always
15:09be the most accomplished person in the room or even talented, but you can always try and
15:13be the kindest and you can always try and be the most hardworking.
15:16And I think those things sometimes get overlooked, especially in an industry where we're told
15:21it's very like cutthroat and it can be very harsh.
15:24So you got to like push people down sometimes to get where you want.
15:26But I also think like there's always a way to do it respectfully and do it kindly and
15:31that that is going to get noticed.
15:33And that doesn't mean like let yourself get pushed around or don't stand up for yourself
15:37because being kind and being respectful is also being kind to yourself and having a lot
15:41of self-respect.
15:42And like that gets noticed and that gets felt even subconsciously, I feel like in a workspace
15:47and no matter what kind of like what kind of industry you're in, someone in a leadership
15:52position, I feel like I've been told by a lot of people it trickles from the top.
15:56And I feel like I've seen that firsthand.
15:58Every single person in your workspace is important.
16:00And every single person that is here, there's a reason why they're here.
16:03And even if you're just getting bagels in like the coffee room, that's important and
16:07you're needed.
16:08And like making sure those people feel like they're important and respected.
16:13And I know that often doesn't always happen.
16:15And I don't know, I feel like trying that out that is very valid too if you don't like
16:20leadership roles and there's space for everybody and like just kind of dipping your toe into
16:25that of like I think no matter what role you have, you can also try and be like the best
16:30version of that ever.
16:32Like even if it's like, oh, I don't do anything important.
16:34I just like whatever, I'm an intern.
16:35It's like you can be the greatest intern that this company's ever seen.
16:38And like I also think my parents have always taught me that of like work with what you
16:41have and do the best you can with that thing.
16:44And it doesn't mean doing it like showily or trying to like show off or whatever, getting
16:48people's faces, but just like I will get your coffee better than anyone's ever gotten your
16:52coffee.
16:52Like I think that is kind of how I've been raised and I lead with that as well.
16:56There's no small roles.
16:57There's no small roles, literally.
16:59No, I love that.
17:00You now are also coming into some producing roles.
17:03So from these, you know, lead acting roles, these production roles, what do you think
17:07makes a really efficient set today?
17:09Oh my goodness.
17:10I am learning that constantly and producing is fascinating to me.
17:16It's so fun and I've dreamed of doing this for a long time, but I'm learning that so much
17:21of what happens like before you get to a set is very, very important.
17:25And so much of that also is like pushing rocks up hills, hoping they get over it and then
17:30like watching the rock go down the hill.
17:32And then you're like, well, should we go to a new hill?
17:34Like it takes so much and so much motivation and so much like ambition and just not giving
17:39up.
17:40And so much of that work that happens before you get to a set really does show once you
17:44get there, if something is running smoothly or not.
17:46A lot of producers have told me like, once I get to set, if I've done my job correctly,
17:50I should be doing nothing.
17:51Like once you're there, it's like everything should be going smooth.
17:54And I think a productive set, like time is always in any industry is like using your time
18:00wisely and honestly just like being nice to people.
18:04Like I will always come back to that because I've seen that in both ways of when people
18:08in power or when, when anybody is just like kind, respectful people, the place all of
18:13a sudden is a happier place to be, which then people work harder.
18:15People like working.
18:16People want to come in with enthusiasm versus the opposite.
18:19And if it's can very quickly go downhill and be a toxic environment, then everything
18:23starts falling apart.
18:24And everything starts getting worse and worse and piles on top of each other.
18:28And like, yeah, I think that's like really what makes a good set is good people.
18:33Do you think that you're this way because you're Canadian?
18:34Because I feel like a lot of Americans say that all Canadians they've ever met are like
18:37the kindest people ever.
18:39I mean, I'll take the claim.
18:41No, I love that though.
18:42But I think that all those points are like so true.
18:44And, you know, back to what we were saying before, regardless of what industry you're working
18:47in, the more you can do beforehand to like set yourself up for success is you're golden
18:52after that, you also have gone from, you know, in front of the camera roles to some voice
18:57acting roles, both in like audio stories and also upcoming Angry Birds 3.
19:02Yes.
19:02Can you tell me about how you're thinking about new projects, new mediums, what you're
19:06interested in, especially as like so much is changing in the entertainment industry?
19:10For sure.
19:10I'm so, so excited for what's going to happen next.
19:14And I have so many big dreams like all over the place.
19:17But yeah, getting to work in voice has been really fun.
19:20And it was a wonderful way for me to still be working while going to school because I
19:24think that was a big thing too.
19:25I was like, oh, if I do another project, then I'm like leaving and I don't want to be out
19:28of Vancouver or whatever.
19:29And this was such a wonderful way to stay active, but still be at home and still get
19:32to focus on other things at the same time.
19:34Angry Birds was like one of the funnest work, like one of the funnest things I've ever done.
19:38I loved it so much because there's like, it's such a playful environment.
19:41There was a lot of like, just improv, just do whatever you want.
19:44And I was like, if you tell me that, like I will go for it.
19:46Like, it was so fun and just getting like the email, like, this is what your bird looks
19:51like.
19:51I was like, this is the coolest thing ever.
19:53Like, I can't believe, like, it's just such a different way of exploring a character and
19:56like getting to perform, but really focus on like details that you also don't get to
20:01like rely on the same things.
20:03Like normally you rely on your face and your movements and your hand movements, whatever.
20:06I'm like, this is just, this is all you got is just your voice.
20:08It was one tool.
20:09And like, that was really fun as well to kind of figure that out and crack that code.
20:12You mentioned before too, especially moving from child actor to adult actor, as you have
20:17kind of gone on in your career, realizing that you are a business woman and this is, you
20:21know, a business that you're building for yourself.
20:23You also mentioned that you kind of realize you are the product in some ways.
20:27How has that impacted your ability to like bring your full self forward or maybe reserve
20:31a little bit of yourself if you need to?
20:33What has that meant for you as you're both like on a set, but also like engaging with consumers
20:38on social media or the many different ways that you interface with people today?
20:41Yeah, to be honest, it can be like a weird, like mental thing to get your head around
20:47of like normally if you were a business and you were comparing yourselves to other competitors
20:52like in the market, that would be like a smart, a normal thing to do.
20:55But when I'm doing that, I'm comparing myself to like other women and that's not always a
21:00great thing for you to do.
21:01And like, that's a really weird thing to figure out.
21:03So I'm definitely still in the process of like how to do that healthily.
21:07Um, I think social media is a great, great tool and it is interesting that now I feel
21:12like no matter what you do and what you focus on, you kind of also need to be a content
21:16creator and you kind of also need to utilize that because it's just such an easy, great
21:20way to reach people.
21:21And it's so helpful and it can be really like open up opportunities.
21:26And I've seen that firsthand, like how, how much it can impact things, but it's a tough
21:30balance because I also have never wanted to be a content creator.
21:33And that's not what I'm hoping to do longterm as well, and having that balance of like,
21:38what is the purpose when I post and what is this actually going to do?
21:41And I think I put a lot of pressure on myself for sure, but I have framed it.
21:45In some cases it's like, you're putting up a mini billboard every time you post something.
21:49And what I can get really like trapped in this cycle of is like, if you had a billboard,
21:54you would have a team and you would work on drafts of what that could look like and you
21:56would talk about it for days and blah, blah, blah.
21:59But I am a 22 year old girl by myself in my bedroom trying to decide what photo I should
22:03post.
22:04But I'm like, well, millions of people are going to see this and this is going to impact
22:07what I could possibly do in the future and impact how people see me and perceive me.
22:10And like, I can absolutely very quickly spiral with that and get really stressed because
22:16I think, yes, I should be kinder to myself, but also I believe a lot of what I was saying
22:20is also true.
22:21Like, this is important and I think it matters with like now in this current age of social
22:28media and just of industry in general, people love knowing like, who are you?
22:32Not just who your character is, but who are you and like, why should we care and why do
22:35we want you to be in our next project and all of that?
22:37And it's constantly changing and you kind of just have to keep up and like keep running
22:42on the hamster wheel and figure it out as you're going.
22:44And it is really interesting because years ago that was like, you didn't have to worry
22:48about social media.
22:49Other job attached to your job.
22:51Are you feeling pressure from like within the industry to stay active on social media,
22:55especially as so many consumers today, to your point, like they love creators and they
22:59may, might want to see them not just on their phone screen, but on a big screen as well.
23:03Is there, what are those conversations that are happening within Hollywood surrounding
23:07how social has changed so much lately?
23:09Yeah, it is really interesting because I, I have heard how much that can be involved in
23:14like the casting conversation of like it's immediate marketing for that project.
23:19If you are, you are advertising for it and you're posting the trailer and you're doing
23:23that, that it is important to have a platform and a space where people like know you and
23:29care about what you're doing.
23:30And I think it, I can get very, I don't know, I can get like very worried about that because
23:37it is also my one space where I have control.
23:40And this is also a big thing where as an actor, you don't have control of what your character's
23:44wearing or what they're saying or what their morals are or any of that.
23:47It's not you.
23:48But to a lot of the world, it is you for that brief moment.
23:51And my social media is like the only spot where I'm like, I get, I get to pick.
23:56I can control.
23:57I can, I can show you who I actually am.
23:59And like knowing what that is at the same time as like figuring out who you are as a 22
24:04year old, like it's already a weird time of you just learning like what, what is Anna?
24:10What am I like all of that, so kind of just figuring out those layers as I go and like
24:16trusting myself at the end of the day that I know what's best for me and I can rely on
24:22my instincts more I think is a big thing.
24:24Yeah, totally.
24:25With social media, also things like AI and just so many other tech advancements are really
24:30impacting industries like Hollywood industries across the board, but definitely there's really
24:35kind of contentious conversations around how it might impact Hollywood moving forward.
24:39What are your thoughts on how it might or might not change the industry?
24:42Do you have any reservations about with these advancements in tech or just being in front
24:47of so many more people, how that's going to impact what the industry means moving forward?
24:51Well, we've seen like so many shifts already.
24:53Just, I mean, streaming isn't directly AI or anything, but like just this new age of like,
24:59what is this looking like?
25:00What does media look like?
25:02There's a lot less of a rule book than there used to be.
25:04And I think there's a lot of entryways into the industry as well that we didn't used to
25:09have of like living in LA used to matter so much and going to pilot season and doing this
25:13and that.
25:14And now like you could have started in tech and now you're working in film.
25:17You could have started in social and now you're working in film.
25:19Like all of those things are so vastly like changing and they're shifting constantly.
25:25And it definitely can feel scary and uneasy just because anything new is a little bit
25:29scary because you don't know what that's going to look like for you or what it's going to
25:32look like as like a future industry in general.
25:35But I also think with those shifts like comes new opportunities and comes like new exciting
25:41paths as well.
25:42Like with streaming and with everything that's new now is like our show.
25:46We reached so many people that we wouldn't have gotten to like all over the world in
25:50different countries in like a simple little button.
25:53Now you're watching our show.
25:54And I think that also allows more room for diverse media.
25:57And I think like having a wider audience as well has allowed like more diversity on screen
26:03and what kind of stories you want to tell.
26:05And that's been really exciting with these advancements.
26:08So I think there's a lot of like good things that can come from it, but I totally understand
26:12people being reserved about changes because change is something that you could rely on for
26:16so long.
26:17I'm like, I know how Hollywood works.
26:18I know how I know like the pattern here.
26:20It's scary.
26:21Of course it's scary because you just don't know what it means.
26:23In terms of those new streaming opportunities, whether it's like multiple different streamers
26:28or a totally different medium like audio, like film, there are so many ways, like you
26:32said, to enter the industry today.
26:33Do you have one that you're most excited about continuing to pursue moving forward?
26:37Oh, I'm really excited to keep producing and knowing what that means.
26:41I'm like constantly asking people like, what do you actually do?
26:45I see you around all the time.
26:47You're always on a set, but like, I literally, I literally don't understand.
26:50And I'm still figuring that out.
26:51And like, what I love is that so often the producers are like, you know what, I don't
26:55even know.
26:56And like, there's so many titles within that title and just exploring like a more creative
27:01side of getting to be like part of the storytelling in a different way that as an actor, you don't
27:06always have that chance because often you're fulfilling someone else's vision or someone
27:10else's story.
27:11And it's so cool to be part of it from day one.
27:13So I'm really excited about those opportunities.
27:15And I'm just excited to shoot something different as well because I love Kitty so dearly and I'm
27:20so grateful for what she's brought me, but I'm like bursting to do something new.
27:25I think there are so many titles that are like that, like a consultant or a CEO.
27:30It's like, I don't know day to day what that looks like.
27:32Yeah, she's like, what does that actually, like sure, but what do you really do?
27:34Like, yes.
27:35A hundred percent.
27:36I hear you on that.
27:37My last question for you is as you are venturing into this kind of new era of you as an actor,
27:43what is your best piece of advice to either yourself when you first started or up and coming
27:47actors today knowing what you know now?
27:50I think your dreams might be closer than you think they are.
27:54And something that feels very out of reach and very impossible might not be.
28:00Because for me, if you had told me, like I'd said earlier, like years ago that this one
28:05to all the boys movie was going to bring me here this many years later as an adult, I like
28:09simply just would not have believed you.
28:12And that was right around the corner that like often I get in my head of like, who am I to
28:16think that like all my dreams are going to come true and like all these big goals that
28:19I have, like maybe they're too far away.
28:21Actually, who are you to think they're not going to happen?
28:23And who are you to think they're not right around the corner?
28:25Because you've just as many like reasons to believe they are.
28:29And I think that's my advice as well to people starting out.
28:31Like it can feel so vast and like this big, scary ocean of like, how am I going to dip
28:35my foot into like the world of film and TV?
28:38But it's possible because happened to a random girl in Vancouver that truly did not expect it.
28:44So it's, it's honestly possible.
28:45That's the perfect way to end.
28:46Thank you so much for joining me today.
28:48I cannot wait to see all that you have in the works for the future.
28:50And you're Burge.
28:52Yes, thank you.
28:52I'm excited.
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