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Lights, camera, Action!

Action Talent agency draws on wealth of accomplished athletes from Sea to Sky corridor to appear in films, TV series, ad campaigns
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The next time you see a sporting goods ad on TV or watch a film that features any high-adrenaline action, take a closer look at the actors. Recognize them? They may be your neighbours.

See, athletics and health is a big industry today and many companies and casting directors are seeking out real athletes to fill roles on screen. A Vancouver-based sports agency, Action Talent, has built up a substantial roster of athletes/actors and many, it turns out, are from the Sea to Sky region.

Today, Connie and Annalise deBoer, a mother-and-daughter team of dedicated businesswomen with a solid knowledge of the film industry, run the agency. Originally from Alberta, Annalise started out in the industry modeling and acting. Eventually she became interested in working behind the camera, going on to study film production at Vancouver Film School. But an interest in talent management lingered from her days growing up acting and modeling. Eventually Annalise's agent in Calgary, Patti Falconer, formed a partnership with Connie, bringing her in to the business to open an agency in Vancouver.

"She got us so interested in it and she said 'you know, you need to get out to Vancouver because that's really Hollywood North," Connie recalled.

They both came out to work at that agency and eventually got word that a businesswoman was interested in selling her action talent management company, Action Talent. That businesswoman was another well-known Whistler resident, Sherry Boyd, partner of legendary skier Rob Boyd.

Boyd's niche talent management model, which focuses on finding athletes who specialize in a range of sports to play parts in films and TV shows, fascinated the women immediately. Here's how it usually works: a casting director or client comes to Action Talent with a role to fill. Then, Annalise and Connie sift through their roster of athletes and create a list of people who fit the requirements. They give that list to the client to filter through. Finally, a shortlist of candidates audition and, with luck, someone is cast in the role.

Connie purchased the business in 2008 and the deBoers have been running the agency for almost a year and a half now. Boyd still consults occassionally, bringing her expertise and athletic connections to the table.

The deBoers were fortunate to start out with an established roster, and have added significantly to it. Today, their list of athletes has reached almost 500, almost three-quarters of whom are from the Sea to Sky area. Those athletes are involved in over 100 different types of sports and activities, ranging from recreational to advanced, expert, professional and sponsored professional.

"We really prefer quality versus quantity. Even though we have that many people on the roster, we cover so many different sports that really, per sport, that's not a ton," Annalise said. "We have a vast array of people, but we kind of sort through and make sure that the person's skill level is high, but also that they'll represent our agency properly."

Today, they've reached the point that they rarely have to go out and actively recruit for a role.

"The athletic world is a very small community - everybody knows everybody in some way, shape or form," Annalise explained. "We did a submission for parkour, and that's a small, elite group of people that actually do free-running or parkour, so as soon as you contact one, pretty much the entire community knows what's going on."

Their actors/athletes don't act as stunt doubles; rather, many play principal, non-speaking roles. And in many cases clients or casting directors aren't looking for elite athletes, because they may detract from the star role.

"So the average person that does recreational sport could land a movie part," Connie said. "That's the cool part!"

And athletic ability isn't the only thing that factors into the casting equation: some clients are looking for a certain "look." Others are looking for bilingualism or other abilities.

"The SportChek commercial that we just cast with Austin Ross from Whistler, he is the principal skier, so in the ad campaign you will see his face," Annalise explained.

In that case, Action Talent's athletes/actors effectively become the face of the company.

"The key is, as a booking agent, to be able to read the mind of the client or casting director and interpret what they're looking for and match it." Connie added.

"Honestly, I believe that every look has a place."

Their athletes have appeared in a wide range of projects: they had 62 skiers, many of whom were from the Sea to Sky region, featured in Hot Tub Time Machine; more local skiers and snowboarders involved in season four of the TV series, Psych; print campaigns for the Hilton Hotel Whistler and Mini Boden Clothing Catalogue; and skiers and a cyclist in the BMW/E-Car commercial, just to name a few. Action Talent's athletes were also cast in an assortment of PSAs for VANOC leading up to and during the Olympics.

"We loved being involved with the Olympics," Connie said. "Lise-Anne Beyries, who is actually the woman that told me that Sherry was thinking of selling the business, landed the part of the mountain climber that did a climb on Tantalus on the 'welcome to Canada' commercial, and I was so thrilled!"

The Hollywood production The Big Year , which stars Owen Wilson, Jack Black and Steve Martin, is currently filming at locations in Vancouver, Squamish and Whistler. So far, Action Talent has booked one actor in that project - they have someone playing Steve Martin's limo driver - and are hoping to secure a few more general spots as extras.

Despite fears of a weakened industry because of the economy and an at-par Canadian dollar, the DeBoers are confident that people will continue to come to B.C. to shoot.

"There are very few places that can compete with Vancouver in the film industry, so honestly we didn't see a lot of slow down," Connie said.

"We just love the way the business is going, we love the direction: it's unique and it's a healthy lifestyle for people who want to be into film."