Actress Tanna Frederick has a leg up on some of her peers, and it has nothing to do with her considerable chops.
Frederick has independent auteur Henry Jaglom in her corner.
Jaglom, whose films include “A Safe Place” and “Venice/Venice,” has taken Frederick under his wing, casting her as the lead in his last three films.
“It’s a scary world out there. Everyone has a different opinion on how you should present yourself,” Frederick tells WWTW. “To have one person as the captain, telling you, ‘I think this is a good move for you. I believe in your talent, don’t change anything.’ It’s really refreshing.”
“I’m lucky to be the beneficiary of that. He’s watching over my career, grooming me training me,” she adds.
He’s also giving her some rather juicy roles to call her own.
Jaglom’s latest feature, “Irene in Time,” stars Frederick as a woman sorting through issues involving her late father. Irene (Frederick) can’t seem to find a man who can compare to her daddy, even though he was far from an ideal father – or husband to her mother.
It’s typical of Jaglom‘s work, she says. Bold. Direct. In your face.
“That’s his style,” she says. “He doesn’t mince words.”
And many of the critical scenes in the movie featuring women reflecting on their ties to their father occurred naturally.
“Those chat scenes were all improvised. Henry met with certain actresses before [the shoot] and talked about their fathers. Then, he cast them for those scenes,” she says.
“They were speaking from their hearts, a really true place in their lives,” she says.
Irene sings from her own heart throughout the movie, musical vignettes which become like supporting characters as the story unfolds.
It wasn’t Frederick’s idea to sing in the film.
“I’m terrified of singing. I can’t even sing Karaoke,” she says. But singer/songwriter Harriet Schock, whose songs Frederick sings in “Irene,” insisted she come on stage and sing during one of her shows.
Naturally, Jaglom was in the audience that night and decided Frederick could carry a tune well enough to perform some of Schock’s songs in “Irene in Time.”
Frederick first teamed up with Jaglom for “Hollywood Dreams,” a vibrant indie about an actress struggling to make ends meet. The pair will team again for “Queen of the Lot,” the sequel to “Dreams.”
She recently was asked to audition to play a mom on the new “90210” reboot but turned it down. Life in the indie trenches is tough, but she’d rather work on projects she believes in.
“Nobody knows my work. That comes along with being an independent actress,” she says.
(Photo: Tanna Frederick plays a woman who can’t shake the memory of her late father in “Irene in Time.”)
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Nice shout-out to the Indie Film arena, WWTW!
Not every indie film – or indie actor – is worth the shout. But indies truly need support these days, and I’m more than happy to offer it.
Tanna Frederick and Henry Jaglom are geniuses for finding each other. She’s the perfect actor for his quirky films and plays. Jaglom consistently entertains in that personal, in your face kind of way and I like that. I’ve seen many of his films and I’ve often felt like I was right there in the scene as opposed to watching something happen. I love that. With the addition of Tanna Frederick, he’s got a whole new dimension of raw emotion and energy to work with. Frederick is larger than life on the screen and her character is both hilarious and pitiful in Irene In Time. – and so are her dates! It’s a must-see for women with father issues and the men who try to date them. What human being walking around this planet doesn’t have issues? Granted the lack of a parent screws some people up – royally – and Irene (Frederick) is a prime example of that. She actually made me feel a little less crazy. So put down those dating self-help books (ohmygawd, they’re awful!) and go see Irene In Time. A little laughter (a lot of laughter) is a good thing.