#and then had to make the template yourself 😑

[ohsnapitzlovehacker]

transcript of images down belowwww 

Starring as Anya in the musical Anastasia and offering her voice to Carol’s spunky best friend Wesley on the hit animated series Speed of Light is sure to make people stop and take notice. But for actress Meghan-Nichole Parker, she’s just getting started.

Dropping hints on social media, longtime fans were excited to see what the young actress was up to, after revealing she would take a break from the show to start filming on the adaptation of a well-beloved Christian Anderson tale with her boyfriend, actor Rory Silva.

The Snow Queen sees Parker taking up the reins in her directorial debut starring an all-Black cast. “It’s very daunting, don’t get me wrong,” Parker says. “For one, I’m already fending off insinuations that I shouldn’t even be calling the shots when my background is musicals and acting. People said I wouldn’t be a good Anya because I’m Black, so here I am proving everyone wrong again.”

Parker spoke to LPR’s Amanda Dion about finding her footing in the film industry and how everything she’s gone through before now prepared her for this moment. Hear the radio version at the audio link and read for an edited transcript.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

_________________________________________

 Amanda Dion: So I’m guessing there’s absolutely no way I can get a spoiler about the season finale of Speed of Light is there?

Meghan-Nichole Parker: [Laughs] No way! If my boyfriend and twin have to stay in the dark, then so do you. Sorry.

Speaking of, how does it feel to be working so closely with your boyfriend on a high-profile film?

Is it getting hot in here? Oh God, high profile? Ha, so working with Rory isn’t the scary or nerve-wracking part. I’ve known him my whole life, loved him for more than half of it, and there’s a connection there that transcends words and emotions, you know? So it only felt natural to take this next step with him at my side. I love acting and performing, but I’ve always wanted to have more control over the story. Over the vision and what ideas are presented to the audience.

But I was also terrified. I didn’t have any formal experience, and when I was on Broadway, there wasn’t exactly time to go out and learn those skills. And then I was talking to my cousin [Shane Parker] about wanting to branch out, and he’s like “Hey, we’re filming Sapphire’s music video—yes that Sapphire— for her new single,” and that experience was one of the most fun things I’d ever done.

There was your first directing gig!

Yes! Even though I was learning on the fly, and it was a stressful four nights, and the last time I handled a camera was high school! But I did it! I was hooked, and I remember going home that weekend and calling Shane up and telling him “Hey, I wanna do more of this. I’ll be a PA and do coffee runs or whatever! How do I find more opportunities?

And some time went by, and I did my own thing, worked on a few of my cousin’s sets as a PA, and then I went to the Starlight Indie Festival, met my now close friend and screenwriter Benny Ortega, whose short film won an award, and that idea was the basis for our adaptation of The Snow Queen.  

Do you see yourself becoming a director full time?

Do I see myself leaving acting behind? No, not at all. Do I see myself becoming more serious about directing and developing that craft? Definitely. I’ve started taking the directors that I love, watching their work and studying their films like Gina Prince-Bythewood, Stella Meghie and Ava DuVernay, for obvious reasons, and then Steven Spielberg and Hayao Miyazaki and Wes Anderson too.

It’s amazing how life works!

Wow, yeah. You set goals for yourself or try to, and you find yourself drawn towards other things. And at the end of the day, I have to remind myself that it’s okay. I’m not required to be the same person I was a year ago, or even five years ago. I mean, there are certainly things that haven’t changed, like wanting kids, and singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl, but I’d like to think the things that have changed about me are good ones.