On October 20, 23 second-year students in Niagara College’s Acting for Film and Digital Media Program had the chance to get up close and personal with Canadian actor Travis Milne.
Milne, who is best known for his role as Officer Chris Diaz in the network drama series Rookie Blue, joined students virtually from Vancouver to answer their questions about the entertainment and digital media sector.
For professor Lori Ravensborg, the session was particularly special, as Milne was her former student in 2005 at Red Deer Polytechnic in Alberta.
“For me, it brought me great gratitude and joy to reconnect with him and, I’ll admit, to get kudo’s in front of the students for my small part in his journey,” said Ravensborg. “He spoke a lot about preparedness and bringing your A game when you get on a film set, commitment to the work and to a positive mindset throughout the highs and lows of this difficult career in the arts, and always being kind and professional because you are always likely to work again with anybody you meet somewhere down the road.”
The “Up Close and Personal” session took place in the live studio at the Welland Campus and is part of Ravensborg’s course, ACTN 1304. The class gives students the chance to interact with three to four industry guests during the semester, including actors, producers, directors, agents and more.
Milne shared funny stories from his time on Rookie Blue, sharing how much he learned being part of an ensemble cast in a big budget network show.
“He took time with each student and was generous with his time and responses congratulating them on their research prepping such great questions,” said Ravensborg. “He encouraged the students to never limit themselves and trust that as they change and work along the way, their process and ability with their craft will grow.”
The goal of the course? Ravensborg says students get a “reality check” about the nature of the entertainment biz from professional performers.
Acting student Zoe Ravera from Chesterville, Ontario stressed the value of hearing from people in the industry, and explained that her questions for Milne centered around his acting process for specific scenes, and the steps he took to land the role.
“Acting is a very scary career choice, and my class is in the position where we start to go out on our own and have to market ourselves,” said Ravera. “It also validating to know that Canadian actors from around this area can make it. I remember as a kid always being told Canadian actors never make it, it’s always the American actors but over the last few decades Canada has become much bigger in the film industry.”
Ravera’s biggest takeaways? Maintaining a positive mindset, creating your own work, and always being prepared for set.
Milan Fernandez from St. Catharines – originally from Honduras – was curious about the steps Milne took to find an agent and how he grew his character for television over more than five years on air.
“Guests like Travis offer the opportunity to really demystify the ins and out of the industry as it operates right now,” said Fernandez. “Travis was the lead actor on a show that lasted multiple seasons, which isn’t something many actors do so he offers a rare perspective into that experience.”
Fernandez explains that the current climate of the film industry is dynamic following the pandemic and union strikes.
“I think the biggest thing we get out of the guests coming is the connections. This industry is all about networking, and having connections like this will be incredibly beneficial once were working in the industry,” said Ravera.
Originally on Global/ABC, Rookie Blue can now be streamed on Netflix.
Later this term, the students will connect with Juno Rinaldi, one of the starts of Working Moms (CBC and Netflix), Emmy-nominated Director Melanie Orr, and casting director Jason Knight.
