Last year, I had the awesome privilege of interviewing the one and only Ali Skovbye, and as a devoted Hallmark fan myself, it was a true honor and pleasure for her to grant me yet another interview this year. While her role in When Calls the Heart is not a massive one, it has been a delight to see her as the recurring character, Becky, and Hearties are ecstatic to see this character return this season. Moreover, Ali was kind enough to share much more than just Hearties news; in fact, we discussed a little bit about everything in her life right now, including her most recent role with Paul Greene.
RH: Please tell us about the movie you did with your sister. What was that experience like, and would you like to do it again?
AS: It was really exciting shooting a movie with my sister. It’s very hard booking sister roles, especially when you are seven years apart. So I got the call first ( my sister and I have different agents) and afterwards, Tiera and I were trying to figure out who they booked to play my sister. Then three hours later, they called and booked my sister. There was a lot of celebrating in the living room that day . The movie is called A Murderer Upstairs. Josie Davis plays our mom, and it should be airing in the next couple months on Lifetime.
I would definitely work with my sister again. We are super close and she’s my number one fan and supporter . I would be grateful for any opportunities to work with her in the future .
A devoted fan{Lisa Colangelo) asked about volleyball championships, so please tell us a little bit about when you got started in volleyball and if you are still playing.
Hi Lisa …I do play volleyball. I’ve been playing since I was in grade three. I wasn’t sure this year if I was going to try out again as I have been pretty busy with acting, and you can’t really miss too much volleyball if you play on a club team. But I love it so much, so I tried out for two teams and made both teams. It was a tough decision for me, but I’m happy to say that this year I’m playing for Air Attack and we are hoping for a really strong season. We don’t play our Provincial championships until the beginning of May, so keep your fingers crossed .
Will we ever hear you sing in a movie or show again? Any plans to do more with music?
I’m not sure. I do audition occasionally for singing movies, but so far haven’t booked anything where I need to sing. I do take singing lessons and have a few songs up on Sound Cloud. Mostly covers, but there are a couple of originals . Hopefully, one day I will get to sing again .
What can we expect to see from Becky this season? Can you tell us in how many episodes your character appears?
You won’t see as much of Becky as you did last season , but the episodes I’m in are pretty emotional . I can’t give anything else away unfortunately. I’m super grateful to be called back this season and to get to see all the Hope Valley kids, and of course my brother Cody again. As well as all the adult actors on the show. I do have a scene with Paul Greene, and then later we booked a movie together so that was super fun too.
I’m not sure what the future of Becky is in Hope Valley, but it’s really interesting reading all the fan storylines about my character and what they would like to see happen to me once she finishes engineering school. Let’s see if any of them become a reality in future seasons . I was also super grateful to be a part of the Hearties reunion this year. So amazing to meet all the fans and see how passionate they are about our show. Here’s to many more seasons to come
I believe Gourmet Detective 4 will be coming up some time this year. What do you love most about being a part of that film series?
L-R Christine Willes, Dylan Neal, Brooke Burns, Ali Skovbye Photo Credit: Copyright 2014 Crown Media United States, LLC/Photographer: Katie Yu
I was really excited to hear that there will be another Gourmet Detective movie. Thank you to everyone for watching and making that possible . And to you also Ruth, as I know you have been supporting us from the beginning. The best part of that show is seeing all the same people each time. It’s like we are a big family . And Brooke {Burns} just had a baby !!! I’m also just really happy for Dylan {Neal} because he’s such a nice guy and I’m happy he gets to continue creating more Gourmet Detective movies .
I know you’ve been on The Man in the High Castle. Will we possibly see you in season three? What do you enjoy most about that series? Why do you think it has become so popular?
It was super cool being on that show . My grandma grew up during the war in Holland so it really was strange for her to see me in that costume and watch that scene in the classroom. I think originally they intended to have a bigger story line between Quinn {Lord} and I, but the writers must have taken a different direction. I was just grateful to be a part of it and work with Quinn. He’s a great actor. I haven’t had a chance to watch season two as I’ve been filming for the last two months, but I think the show is so popular because the story is so unique and the actors are incredible. As soon as I get some free time, I will binge watch season two.
Please tell us about how you got the role in Campfire Kiss. What can you tell us about your role? What was it like working with your incredible co-stars?
I auditioned for the role back in December. I had worked with the director James Head in another movie called My One Christmas Wish, so I was really hoping I would get it so that we could work together again . He’s an amazing director . He knows exactly what he wants and he always finds a way to get everything done. And he’s honest. He’s encouraging, but not over encouraging . He keeps it real .
I play Lacey, who is Paul Greene’s daughter in the movie. He takes me to a weekend camp to try and bond with me and we run into Danica {McKellar} and Dylan {Kingwell}… and that’s where the adventure begins. It’s a really fantastic movie with a great cast. It will air in March, I believe, on the Hallmark Channel.
Paul Greene spoke so highly of you when I chatted with him. He said that you and he have the same kind of humor. Any behind-the-scenes stories to share that illustrate this?
Working with Paul was soooo much fun . We hit it off right from the beginning. We have a lot of similar interests . We both play volleyball and we both like to sing. He has a son the same age as me, so he knows what it’s like to have a teenager around. And of course we have the WCTH connection having just worked together the month before. I just felt really comfortable acting around him and he always had a way to make me laugh. I swear I’ve never laughed so much on a set before . I hope we will get the chance to work together again . Maybe a Campfire Kiss 2 ???
Any other upcoming works you can mention?
I just have the two movies coming out right now. Both should be released in the spring. Currently, I’m just catching up on all my missed schoolwork. It’s pilot season right now so there are lots of auditions and tapings, so let’s see what happens .
If you could make a movie with any five industry professionals in the Vancouver area (at least two need to be ones you haven’t worked with yet), whom would you choose and why?
Hmmm that’s a tough question .
1. Monica Mitchell – She’ a strong female director and is super talented .
2. Terry Miles -because he’s a Vancouver-based writer and director . My sisters have done a couple of movies with him and he’s great.
3. Madison {Guppy} and Sydney {Grigg} – they are my best friends and they are also actors, so doing a movie with them would be super fun.
4. Jameson Parker – he’s the head of Development at Brightlight Pictures (and also my sister’s boyfriend), so it would be cool if he could produce a movie that I’m in .
5. Gary Hawes- Because I have heard he is one of the nicest first ADs in the city and apparently also a talented writer.
6. And lastly Paul Greene – he was my favourite ” fake dad”, so it would be fun for him to play my dad again in a future movie.
Oh I guess that’s six. But I think I covered producers, directors, actors , AD’s. Phew that was tough.
Regrettably, I didn’t get to meet Ali when I was up in Vancouver back in November, but I feel as though she and I have related on a genuine level. As I told Ali’s mom earlier this week, Ali has matured in such amazing ways, and reviewing her answers this year gives me a sense of pride in her accomplishments. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention the phenomenal young woman Ali is becoming. As a mother of a teenage daughter myself, I am very much in tune with the young people of today. My daughter often shakes her head in dismay at the way her friends act, talk, and think. My daughter chooses to be positive, and oftentimes, it is difficult to find other young people with a similar outlook. Too many teenage girls major on the minors–appearance, boys, fitting in, looking cool, etc. While those things are important, they should be on the periphery, no matter what society insists. I can honestly say that I would love for my daughter to select Ali as a role model because Ali has chosen the better things in life to place at the center of her universe–family, friends, gratitude, benevolence, and simply enjoying life. In addition to that, she’s a crackerjack actress! There is no doubt in my mind that Ali is wise beyond her years, and I am convinced that her mother has instilled core values within her, and Ali has chosen to follow the right path as opposed to the easy path. In so doing, Ali has impressed me as few young women in the business do. I have interviewed my share of young people, and while I adore every one of them, Ali and I have a connection–probably due to the Gourmet Detective franchise. Ali has chosen humility over fame, sincerity over deception, and kindness over malevolence. As long as she keeps this positively sweet gaggle of people about her, nothing will prevent her from attaining every goal, dream, and wish within her heart, soul, and mind. Be sure that you tune into the Hallmark Channel this Sunday (February 19) for the show where we will have an opportunity to see her prowess this season,When Calls the Heart. Additionally, I would invite everyone to connect with her via the links below and support this rising star on every leg of her journey. (Oh, and thank you Paul Greene because I would say that the picture I chose above was one in which Ali has the absolute biggest smile I have ever seen grace her face! I am rejoicing that these two have become so close!)
FOLLOW ALI
BE SURE TO TUNE TO THE HALLMARK CHANNEL ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 19TH TO WITNESS THE RETURN OF WHEN CALLS THE HEART AND SEE ALI RETURN IN THE CHARACTER OF BECKY FOR SEASON FOUR!
