In my neverending quest to highlight those who are often in the background and may be inadvertently overlooked by the casual viewer, I happened upon the delightful and talented Taylor Hastings. Hallmark audiences are very familiar with her skillset since she has appeared in a wide assortment of the network’s movies, but sometimes we forget to probe further to discover the stories of these supporting cast members. Recently, I had the opportunity to chat digitally with Taylor, and I am happy to share her interview in anticipation of the upcoming Hallmark Channel premiere, Welcome To Christmas.
RH: What inspired you to become an actress? What kind of training have you received?
TH: I began doing musical theatre at the age of eight. My mom had suggested to my brother that he join this musical theatre summer camp, but he wasn’t that interested. But my incredibly shy self was, much to everyone’s surprise. I did that camp, and then never stopped! After high school, I switched my focus to film and TV and did a conservatory program in Vancouver focused on acting in those areas.
What was your first professional job in the business and what are your memories of it?
On the set
Witches of East End
My first professional acting job was for the Lifetime show, Witches of East End. I was insanely excited! My role was this young woman leaving a party with her boyfriend after maybe partying a bit too hard, and she stumbles upon a couple of bodies that had been left by some supposed horrible creature that got a hold of them. We shot in a little wooded area outside the very creepy Riverview Hospital at about 2 am. It was pretty spooky…but so much fun! I also remember being so nervous about being in the wrong place or not being found by the AD’s that I didn’t use the washroom once for the entire day!
Your past Hallmark work is VERY extensive, so I’ll let you tell me what your most memorable Hallmark movie moments are. Feel free to elaborate.
I feel so lucky to get to be a part of the Hallmark family; all of my time on Hallmark sets include great memories! That being said, in Hearts of Christmas, I played a young mom who finally got to bring home her newborn baby from the NICU. On the day, they had four teeny tiny babies on set that would take turns playing the role of my baby girl. In the scene, Sharon Lawrence (who played a beloved NICU nurse) hands me my baby. We had rehearsed a few times with a little doll, but it was time for the real baby to come in. When Sharon handed me the baby, I couldn’t contain myself – I burst into tears in the take! It was so special to get to do that. What was even more amazing, was that I found out a little while after that the mom of the baby I held was a friend of a friend!
With Catherine Lough Haggquist
In addition to your Hallmark work, you’ve appeared on The Good Doctor and Supergirl. Any special moment from any of those shows that you can tell us?
The Good Doctor was an amazing experience and provided a couple of “firsts” for me. My first time on a studio lot with a huge, built set (it’s like walking into a real hospital). And my first time performing surgery (on a very life-like body, I must add!). It was a very fun, new challenge.
Supergirl was just filled with all sorts of exciting moments! It is pretty magical to see Supergirl in person in her full Supergirl costume. It took me a few moments to clue into the fact that it was Melissa and not really Supergirl. There were also a few fun flying stunts happening in one of my scenes, but unfortunately, I had to wait until it aired on TV to see what happened, because I was meant to have already died at that point in the scene and had to keep my eyes shut. But it sounded really exciting!
You’ve also done some producing and writing. Please tell us a little about your work in that capacity.
The Ride Home
In the past two years, I decided to try on a few new production hats. It started with writing my first short film script, which I brought to director Laura Adkin, who agreed to take on the project. We filmed The Ride Home in the spring of 2017. The film turned into something really beautiful, largely thanks to our incredible cast who included Hallmark alumni such as John Cassini, Caroline Cave, Lisa Durupt, Catherine Lough Haggquist and Veena Sood. This kicked off a passion for producing, and I decided to take on as many independent projects as I could manage in order to learn as much as possible! Since The Ride Home, I’ve produced five short films, and I am in the works to produce multiple others and have gotten the opportunity to travel to different festivals with these films. It’s a much different world producing a short film on a tiny budget than working on a Hallmark film, but gratifying in an entirely different way!
You have two Hallmark Christmas films coming up this year–Christmas Joy and Welcome to Christmas. Please tell us a little about your character in relation to the storylines of each and any favorite or BTS moments you would like to.
In Christmas Joy, I play Ashley Jules, the about-to-pop assistant to Ben (played by Matt Long). Usually, Ashley is around to make sure all of the Christmas activities go smoothly, but with baby on the way it gets a little harder for her to help! My favourite part of playing Ashley was walking (or, waddling, rather) around with my big, pretend belly. Our director, Monika {Mitchell}, kept insisting that I sit or that someone help me…until remembering that I wasn’t actually pregnant. But us ladies have to look out for each other – it was very sweet!
Welcome To Christmas
In Welcome to Christmas, I play Chelsea! I absolutely loved playing this character. Chelsea runs the local coffee shop in the town of Christmas and works together with her fellow locals to convince executive, Madison, that Christmas is the best place for a ski resort.
Welcome To Christmas
This film was such a blast to work on! We got to shoot in Coquitlam and Revelstoke…and both locations required multiple camera pauses for bears crossing our paths and trying to be in the scenes! We were always on the lookout! It was also so much fun because we had this small group of townspeople that conspire together a lot in different scenes, and I became friends with this group of actors so quickly, and that made for so many great memories while shooting. One moment in particular, at the end of a scene before the director, Gary {Harvey}, called “cut” we all huddled together in an improvised moment that none of us had planned. Once Gary did call “cut”, we broke down into a giggle fit. I’m curious if viewers will be able to pick out the moment!
Any other upcoming works you can mention?
I recently got to shoot a really fun character in the show, The Detour! I love any chance I get to sprinkle some comedy into my work and this one was less of a sprinkle and more of a pour! The Detour is such an insane, fun show, and you can look for me in season four which will be airing sometime in 2019.
Since you have done a lot of work with Hallmark, what do you think is so special about this network and why do you think it has continued to experience such unprecedented growth?
I think Hallmark films have earned a spot in a lot of homes as a new Christmas tradition, which I think is wonderful. They’re heartwarming, hopeful, beautiful movies that encapsulate the nostalgia and joy of Christmas – I think everyone could go for a little bit of that!
Do you have any special holiday traditions you would like to share with us?
My grandparents are probably the most enthusiastic Christmas morning participants you will ever meet. They have instilled in our family this insane desire to wake as early as possible (we usually have to tell my grandpa that he needs to wait until at least 5 am before waking anyone else up)! My grandma also always makes crepes for breakfast that we gorge ourselves on after presents, stuffing them with Cool Whip and fruit. It’s a big undertaking, and it’s a bit trickier for her to do nowadays, so last year I took on the crepe making responsibility in my family. Early rising on Christmas morning and crepes – I don’t think we’ll ever give those up!
Photo by Wendy D
There is no doubt about it. Taylor is an asset to the Hallmark Network on so many levels, and the fact that she is laboring intensively in acting, directing, and more demonstrates her innate love for and devotion to the numerous facets of the TV and film industry. I simply adore the fact that she is a gifted woman in the industry who has consistently persisted in fueling her passion for entertainment and the arts. Thankfully, Hallmark has afforded her many opportunities to demonstrate her abilities, and I am confident for so many more occasions to highlight this skilled artist in the weeks, months, and years to come.
Please make it a point to tune into the Hallmark Channel tomorrow night (December 9th) for the premiere of Welcome To Christmas, yet another chance to celebrate the season through the talents of the cast, crew, and more who have made the decision to work with this leading network this holiday season. If you are in Canada, I don’t see any scheduled showing of the film as of now, but I am hopeful that will change. However, there is a good chance that both Hallmark viewers and W Network viewers can catch the replay of Christmas Joy by checking your respective schedules for the next time this movie will air. Additionally, please consider visiting Taylor at the links below and following her on social media. I expect great things from her in 2019 and beyond, and I am expecting that her career with Hallmark (and other networks) will continue its steady advancement. Furthermore, I am immensely honored to be able to spotlight her here today.
FOLLOW TAYLOR
