When Olivia Applegate was cast in the SXSW film The Honor Farm, she didn’t even have a headshot. In fact, she had stopped pursuing acting all together.
Now, she’s a working actress in Los Angeles who has booked several features, including a supporting role in the SXSW opening night film, Song to Song.
Born and raised in Austin, we asked her how it was shooting The Honor Farm in her hometown:
“Wonderful! Austin has such a special place in my heart. Every time I come back, be it to work or visit, I leave feeling reconnected and re-inspired,” Applegate said.
The teen horror focuses on a girl who finds herself headed to the forest for a late night adventure after her prom night falls apart. And while it has its scary moments, this movie is not your typical horror film. It’s really about a young woman’s journey of self discovery and figuring out who she is and what she really wants (you can hear more about the film from director Karen Skloss here).
Applegate plays that young woman. “The character description fit me to a ‘T’ and the project sounded too cool to pass up,” she told Austin.com.
In 2017, you’ll see her in a variety of projects that were too cool to pass up. Two indies she shot in Austin in 2016 are set to come out later this year: Fluidic, written and directed by Jeremiah Jones, and Here We Are, written and directed by David Bellarosa.
She has also started creating her own projects and has two in editing that she’s prepping for to submit for the next round of festivals. They’re currently titled Grace & Grit, which she made with Blair Bomar from Austin, and Pink Lemonade, co-created with Jessica Lu (of “American Horror Story” and “Awkward”) and Christian Sprenger (of “Atlanta” and “Baskets”).
We asked the 20-something how the transition from Austin to LA has been. “Pretty smooth, surprisingly,” she said. “There is a great community of Austinites living in Los Angeles and that definitely helps!”
Not surprisingly, SXSW was the first film festival she ever attended (in 2013), and it remains her favorite fest. She also participated in 2015 as part of the cast of Krisha, which won the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize.
Since the ATX is a place that’s near and dear to Applegate, we asked her to share some of her favorite haunts.
Favorite place to see live music: The Belmont or The Continental Club
Favorite Austin musician: Her former band, Magna Carda, who happens to be playing the SXBoil at Empire on March 12 and at the Scoot Inn on March 18
Favorite Texas actor: “Too hard to choose,” she said.
Favorite film or TV show shot in Austin: After Honor Farm and Song to Song, she lists “Revolution.” Though she may be biased as she had a small, recurring role.
And finally, we asked what advice she has for other Austinites looking to get into the biz.
“Keep it real and love what you do.”
You can see The Honor Farm at four times during SXSW.
Saturday, March 11, 11:55pm, Stateside Theatre (World Premiere)
Monday, March 13, 11:45pm, Alamo Lamar D
Tuesday, March 14, 9:45pm, Alamo Lamar B
Thursday, March 16,12:15pm, Alamo Lamar B
Featured photo by ATX Gossip
If you would like to read more about movies, TV, celebrities and other entertainment, you can check out Dani Dudek’s website ATXgossip.com.
