I stepped away from stunts and into acting right around when stunt people started getting put into motion-capture stuff.
When I was on 'Xena,' I remember the sound guy and the director at some point being like, you have to make sounds when you fight, and I was like, what are you talking about? You're never going to use it. But they hounded me for a good couple of hours, and basically it was, you need to act, you can't just perform the moves.
My becoming an actor was a massive shift for me, and a terrifying one.
I don't surround myself with a lower quality of human.
As a stunt woman, I took it upon myself to be a bit of a jock about it. So you wouldn't see me vulnerable, you wouldn't see me hurting or sad because I was there as a professional to do my job. Nobody likes to see a girl get hurt - that's the truth of it - so I had to put them at ease so they would let me do my job.
With acting, it's my job to be emotionally vulnerable and accessible.
What I've had to learn is that I'm also fragile.
Usually, what happens with women that aren't comfortable with fighting is they're afraid of getting hurt, or hurting someone. All it usually takes to get them going is to make them feel safe, and make them feel like they look cool while doing it. And once they get a little more comfortable, they're gung ho!
I'm pretty comfortable on any set where I have something to do.
I know this sounds ridiculous, but I'm not much of a fighter.
One of the things I really like about TV is the family, the maintaining of the family camaraderie. Film has it, too, especially when you're on location. It's like summer camp. You'll get really close, really fast. But, then you'll have to say goodbye.
I think I'm one of those actors who has come around the backside of something, you know? I came in the backdoor without even realizing that that's what I was doing.
When I started to trust myself to be an actor, and to be considered that way and consider myself, that is when people started to see me in that way because that was the truth then, as opposed to me being a stunt girl going, 'Please see me as an actor, please see me as an actor!' when I didn't see myself that way.
It never occurred to me that being a stunt girl would get me recognized in any way, because the whole purpose of a stunt person is to not be known.
As a stuntwoman, I never wanted anyone to ever feel afraid for me. I didn't want anyone to ever feel sorry for me.
I keep myself safe both physically and emotionally in my working environment by 'being one of the boys.' In my head, subconsciously, that was my safe place.
The producing thing has come quite naturally to me. I feel like for directing, I would like to be more technically-savvy. I want to have the language under my belt, and I also want it to be a project that is very personal to me, for my first one.
Yes, generally speaking, I get to do my own stunts.
If you give anything less than 120% as an actor then you end up looking uncomfortable.
I am very, very painfully human.
