ScreenTalk

Geraldine Brophy describes herself as a character actress, but her television and film roles have been very memorable ones. She played the lovable Moira Crombie in Shortland Street for four years, before moving on to roles in Serial Killers, The Insiders Guide to Love, and Outrageous Fortune.

One of her favourite roles was playing the control freak bureaucrat Marion in Seven Periods with Mr Gormsby. More recently Brophy danced up a storm on Dancing with the Stars, and had a small but memorable part in Peter Jackson’s remake of King Kong. In 2008, she received a NZ Film and TV Award for best actress for her lead role in the feel-good feature film Second-Hand Wedding.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Brophy discusses:

• Having a wonderful time on Shortland Street playing the lovable Moira
• Playing a “plumptious woman with a rampant sexuality” in Seven Periods with Mr Gormsby
• The joy of performing on Dancing with the Stars even though she knew she’d never win
• Working with Peter Jackson on King Kong
• Working with director Paul Murphy on Second-Hand Wedding
• How her many acting roles have changed her life

This video is available on YouTube to embed and distribute via a Creative Commons licence.

Credits:  Interview, Camera & Editing – Andrew Whiteside

Craig Parker made his television debut in the 80s soap Gloss and then went on to Shortland Street where he played a womanising social worker. After checking out of the long-running soap, Parker played an elf in Lord of the Rings, a doctor on Mercy Peak, a villain in Legend of the Seeker and a diplomat in Diplomatic Immunity. Some of his other screen credits include Hercules the Legendary Journeys, Xena and the soon to be released Spartacus.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Parker discusses:

• How terrifying Gloss was but how it taught him about TV
• Playing annoying social worker Guy Warner on Shortland Street
• The fun of Hercules and Xena
• Fighting with Lucy Lawless on set
• The dangers of on-set catering on Mercy Peak
• An awkward sex scene with good friend Robyn Malcolm
• The enormity of Lord of the Rings
• How he loved making Diplomatic Immunity despite it not being a complete success
• Being part of the yet to be screened TV series Spartacus

This video is available on YouTube to embed and distribute via a Creative Commons licence.

Credits: Interview, Camera & Editing – Andrew Whiteside

For more than 20 years, actor Peter Elliott’s career has spanned theatre, film, television and radio. His most notable screen credits include playing Rex on Gloss, Dr David Kearney on Shortland Street, and more recently he was the TV ad face encouraging us to take civil defence seriously.

As well as TV drama, Elliott has fronted and narrated a range of documentary TV series such as Captain’s Log, Explorers, Frontier of Dreams and Secret New Zealand. He also wrote and presented Jungle Rain, a documentary about Agent Orange. Elliott was the first celebrity to appear in Intrepid Journeys. Now 50, Elliott has recently added a new skill to his repertoire – directing theatre.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Elliott discusses:

• The experience of being a ‘star’ in Gloss and why he had to pretend to be single
• How he got burned out and burned by his four years on Shortland Street
• Why he thinks male characters get a rough deal on the soap
• How being part of Captain’s Log was a dream come true and a boost to his morale
• What a confronting experience it was visiting Kenya in Intrepid Journeys
• The great experience of being in Until Proven Innocent and the talent of co-star Cohen Holloway
• And how he has finally become comfortable with himself and his transition into being a director

Award-winning actor Robyn Malcolm has become one of our most loved performers, and has been voted New Zealand’s sexiest woman two years in a row.

Since joining the cast of Shortland Street in 1994, Malcolm has played a diverse range of gritty characters. Her TV credits include the tele-feature Clare, Mercy Peak, Serial Killers, and Shark in the Park. Her most recent award-winning TV role is Cheryl West in the TV 3 hit Outrageous Fortune. Malcolm’s film acting credits include Perfect Strangers, Absent Without Leave, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and The Lovely Bones.

As well as acting roles, Malcolm has been a panellist on How’s Life?, starred in an episode of Intrepid Journeys, and presented the documentary Our Lost War: Passchendaele – a personal story about the World War I battle in which her great uncle died.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Malcolm discusses:

• Getting the acting bug in school
• How she thought Shortland Street would be her only TV role
• The challenging experience of playing a cervical cancer survivor in the tele-feature Clare
• How playing an ex-porn star turned teacher, and kissing Craig Parker could be included in her list of career lows and highs
• The emotional intensity of the documentary Our Lost War: Passchendaele
• How proud she is that Outrageous Fortune has changed the way we see ourselves on television
• And how a prediction that her career would consist of acting as mothers and whores has come true

This video is available on YouTube to embed and distribute via a Creative Commons licence.

Credits:  Interview, Camera & Editing – Andrew Whiteside