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Local actress gets start on big screen
By Justin Goble
 Though Jackson County may be a far cry from the glitz and glamour of Tinseltown, at least one actress has gotten her start here.
Sylva native Cara Reid has recently finished production on “Just Like the Son” and “Dirt Nap,” two low-budget Screen Actor’s Guild movies that have a chance to be shown at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
For Reid, acting was something she came across while attending Smoky Mountain High School.
“Freshman year I was watching three of my friends dance and sing songs from the show ‘Anything Goes,’” she said. “I said, ‘I could do that.’ I was hooked from there. I’ve always been a singer, so to get in a musical was the biggest thing in the world.”
Reid said that, after finding out that one could major in acting and could make a career out of it, she knew that it was her calling. Because of its celebrated Bachelor of Fine Arts program, she attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
“My experiences at UNC-G were really good,” she said. “I was in the BFA program, which kind of turned into a small conservatory. The focus was mainly on acting. We were given more attention than most.”
At UNC-Greensboro, Reid performed in 10 plays and one film. Her portrayal of Abigail in “The Crucible” was lauded by critics. According to the Carolinian Online, she “seemed to enjoy playing up her character’s villainy, making her all the more compelling to watch.”
Reid said that her experiences at the school helped her develop “a solid work ethic,” along with other, less tangible skills that are an essential part of an actor’s craft.
“I gained a more positive form of self expression and I learned to take the risks that actors are afraid to take,” she said. “There are risks when you have to delve into a character. It’s going to those dark places that make us uncomfortable.”
Reid commented that the character of Abigail was a good example of taking such risks, which made it a difficult role to portray.
“A big part was finding the inner evil of Abigail so that people will believe it,” she said. “That’s what becomes the hard part of acting. It takes talent, sure, but it also takes a lot of will power to find that. But that is part of the rush.”
Now, Reid is switching her focus to films. Though accomplished on stage, she said performing in front of the camera holds certain challenges that she has to work hard to overcome.
“I was trained in theater, so the more experience I get in film, the better,” she said. “There’s so many takes. You have to do the same thing 10 takes in a row, and you have to have the same emotion as the first time. You have to have your game face on.”
Aside from dealing with her own performance, Reid said that working with other actors for so many takes also posed a challenge.
“What I was trained with was immediate response,” she said. “You’re responding to the other actors. The response from another actor can change from show to show, but you have time between shows. In film, the response from actors can change with every take.”
However, Reid said working on lower-budget movies is a great way to begin the transition from stage to screen. Though the afforementioned obstacles did present themselves, she said that the focus on the actors and story made the work a little easier.
“There’s not much funding, minimal crew and budget to pay for production and actors,” she said. “They’re really about actors and plot. They don’t have the privileges that feature films have, such as special effects and amazing lighting. I liked that because it is what I am used to. I was able to work well in that situation.”
Now that she has a some screen roles under her belt, Reid is planning to move to New York City next year to find work.
“I have a few options to work with agents,” she said. “I’ll probably start freelancing and see who I can get the most work from.”
Reid said that while she is excited to be moving somewhere where she can pursue her acting career, her move to New York is turning into a scary experience.
“I’m terrified,” she said. “It’s the fear of the big city. The culture shock from Sylva, N.C. There’s the fear of being on my own in pursuing what I was meant to do.”
Reid credits her parents, John and Nelda, as being very supportive in her choice of career and moving to New York.
“My parents have a lot of faith in me,” she said. “They didn’t want me to live so far away, but I think that they realize I know what I’m getting myself into. ”
As for the future of her blossoming career, Reid said that she will take it all one step at a time. And while many other actors actively pursue the fame and fortune their vocation entails, Reid said she is more concerned about the next job.
“Everybody wants to be rich and famous,” she said. “But what I’ve said my entire career is that I want to work. I want to succeed in what I love to do. I’ll always choose my jobs wisely. If it were to happen that I was offered a huge role in a feature film, of course I would take it. It would give me more prestige, and more prestige would get me more work. I’m on my way, but it takes time and patience.”
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