Interview with Mortified star, Marny Kennedy

In casting the lead role for Mortified, the Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF) cast its net wide, auditioning hundreds of young actors at casting calls across the country. They finally found their girl in the outer Melbourne suburb of Melton: 11-year-old Marny Kennedy, whose performance as the lively, smart-lipped Taylor Fry won her an AFI Award.

We sat down with Marny to find out what it was like to star in her own TV show at the age of just 11, what she has in common with Taylor and how her role in Mortified changed the trajectory of her life.

Tell us about how you were cast as Taylor.

It was 2005. I was in grade six at the time, so I was 11 years old. I remember it was a bit of a cattle call, I think it went out to a lot of Aussie kids across the nation. The audition came up and I remember it really vividly: I remember rehearsing it, practicing in the living room with Mum.

So, I did the audition, got the call back, and Mum and Dad were very much like, ‘just remember there's a lot of little girls up for it as well, so don't get your hopes up’. Then I think it was the next call back, they flew a bunch of the final options up to the Gold Coast and did a sort of workshop in this little hall… There were so many amazing actresses there and I think I was probably a little bit too young, a little bit too short, not exactly what they had in mind, but I think Pino [Amenta, director] just saw something in me.

I flew back home, back straight into my grade six classroom and just sort of went about my business as usual. And then I'll never forget, my Mum, my nan and my sister turned up to my classroom and I remember them walking up and as soon as I saw their faces, I just knew. I don't think I'll ever, ever, for as long as I live, forget that moment. Because it was essentially the moment my life changed forever.

What was it like? The experience of shooting and being on set and starring in your own show at the age of 11?

Honestly, it was one of the best times in my life. Here we are as kids on this beautiful stretch of beach, filming every day. It was an incredible crew, incredible cast. I don't know how to articulate it – it was just such a special time in all of our lives.

For all of us kids, it was our first job. We were super green – but we were surrounded by incredible adult actors and the crew. Since then, I've worked with some incredible crews, but that first one was just phenomenal in helping to sort of bring us all up, I guess. They hold a very special place in my heart.

I feel so lucky to have cut my teeth on a show like that because it toughened me up – you're pulling big hours on those shoots and I was in most scenes, so it helped put me in good stead for the rest of my career because I think everything in comparison sort of felt like a walk in the park!

I don't think any other project has even come close to feeling as magical as Mortified did.

What did you love most about your character, Taylor? Did you relate to her?

Looking back now, I think there's so much of me in Taylor… but then I remember being at that age and finding it ridiculous, all the things that she would get up to in order to avoid embarrassment. I think a lot of what Taylor was experiencing coincided with my own experiences, but I felt like my life was probably a couple of years ahead of where she was at and so it was really lovely to be able to go and experience all those sorts of heightened fantasy sequences, which felt very integrally childhood based. It was really fun to do all of that and get to play.

Taylor and I have a lot in common. I think I’ll always carry a little bit of her with me.

What sort of impact has Mortified had on your life?

It shaped my entire life trajectory. When I look back on the entire scope of my life, Mortified was arguably the most significant moment in my life – I can't even put into words how formative it was. It was the experience that formed me into who I am, even today.

It's set the tone for how I approach every single job, but beyond the work side of it, it was a life experience that truly did shape me into the woman I am now. And I still carry that experience with me all the time, and I always find my way back there. I just spent six months up on the Gold Coast and I took myself back to the house, back to the little places just to remind myself. It's super grounding, I think, just to check in and remind yourself where you came from.

Do you think if you hadn’t landed the role of Taylor, you still would have pursued acting?

I definitely always had the passion for it and was very much driven towards that, particularly growing up and performing on stage. But had it not been for [Mortified], I don't think I would have fallen as in love with the industry. Your first experience, obviously for anyone, shapes how you approach it. That could have been an awful experience and I would not have continued on, but because it was such an overwhelmingly incredible experience, there was no going back. I don't think I even had a choice at that point. My heart was just like, we're doing this. After experiencing [Mortified], it absolutely formed the rest of my trajectory.

As you know, the ACTF is celebrating its 40^th anniversary this year. What other ACTF shows did you love as a kid?

I've got an older brother and an older sister, and we were such a Round the Twist family. We’d get home from school and that was the first thing you’d chuck on Channel Two. Because Mortified has a similar fantastical sort of element to it and Pino worked on that, there's a little bit of continuity there.

I remember watching that and that’s a vivid memory of my childhood, and I think for so many older kids who grew up in the early 2000s. And I think that's why we're so lucky in Australia to have those quintessential Australian shows that push the barriers.

How does it feel to have been part of a show which, like Round the Twist, has left a huge legacy in Australian children’s TV?

The thing that I love about the ACTF – and Mortified is an example of this – it doesn't dilute things to the point of assuming that kids can't keep up. I think that's why I loved Mortified so much: it did feel relatable and ACTF shows take kids seriously and assume that they're intelligent enough and emotionally empathetic enough to keep up. And that's what I love about Round the Twist as well and have such beautiful memories of watching it – and that's why I don't take it lightly when I get people coming up to me every now and then who go, “I used to race home and watch Mortified”. That's not lost on me because I remember what it was like as a kid to do that with my brother and sister. I love it so much when kids do [approach me], or adults. I'm so honoured every time because I know how I felt about those shows, and so to think that I was a little bit of a part of someone's childhood or those memories is so special.