Marnie Baxter grew up in the Shetland Islands in the North of Scotland. Marnie doesn’t remember a time when she didn’t want to be an actor. She watched films like Singing in the Rain and The Philadelphia Story and Blazing Saddles – and she loved Blazing Saddles. Marnie loved the idea of being a part of something and knowing what happens behind the scenes.. Like being in a secret club.
indieactivity: How did you become an actor?
Marnie: I remember plucking up the courage to ask the director of the youth theatre in Shetland (which was brilliant by the way..) if he thought I had what it takes to become an actress.. It was backstage at a pantomime and we were in the smoking room (shows my age..) he said he thought I had talent yes, if I was able to gain some confidence in my abilities within myself. That little conversation gave me the courage to begin. I then went to Dundee and did a foundation course in theatre arts, followed straight after by 3 years at the Conservatoire, Scotland (then the Royal Scottish Academy for Music and Drama). The rest is a muddle of working and resting, endurance and sheer joy.
indieactivity: What acting technique do you use?
Marnie: I don’t generally use one method. The most important thing for me is research and studying the character’s decisions. Why someone does something – and how I can bring myself to that. I have to know my lines back to front in order to feel comfortable on stage or screen. That’s the work, then connecting that to the character and the other actors I’m working with.
indieactivity: What wrong impressions do actors hold about acting?
Marnie: I think the biggest thing I have learnt over the years is that acting isn’t solely about talent. It’s mainly about hard work and courage and perseverance.
indieactivity: Do you take courses to improve your craft?
Marnie: I have done, but in London classes can be very expensive and because I’m also a mother a lot of the class timings don’t suit me. I set up a little actor’s improv group a couple of years ago – which was the catalyst for the project I’m working on at the moment, Bad Mother.
indieactivity: What acting books do you read?
Marnie: I go through phases of reading books about acting, I find biographies equally as interesting. My favourite go to acting book is David Mamet’s True and False..
indieactivity: How do you keep fit as an actor?
Marnie: I am very active. I see a trainer one or two times a week. I also walk everywhere. Mentally – I watch a lot of films and I love going to art galleries, and I read.
Marnie Baxter playing ‘Anna Politkovskaya’ in Anna
indieactivity: How do you prepare for a role?
Marnie: I need to rehearse and rehearse and rehearse for stage – less for screen as it’s a very different process. Either way I read the script a lot, I say the lines over and over, and I allow myself to drop into the character, whoever it is.
indieactivity: How do you create a character in a script into a person?
Marnie: I am all about research. Knowing I have done all the ground work (the lines being a huge thing for me – I need to know them inside out) allows me the freedom to let go and be vulnerable and in the moment when I perform.
indieactivity: How do you stay fresh on a production set?
Marnie: I never stay in character really. I like the atmosphere on a film set and I enjoy being a part of it. I find if I’ve done the work before I don’t need to worry about in between takes. The best work one does as an actor is about letting go and being in the moment.
indieactivity: Describe a memorable character you played?
Marnie: I have played lots of characters that I’m proud of but the one that stands out for me is playing Anna Politkovskaya, the Russian journalist at the Edinburgh Festival in 2014. Anna Politkovskaya was an incredible woman with a brilliant mix of strength, compassion, intelligence and courage. It was so inspiring getting to know her through her writing, and I worked very closely with the rest of the company to devise/create the show. It was a memorable and fulfilling experience.
indieactivity: What do you want most from a director?
Marnie: Honesty, kindness, a bit of humour and a strong work ethic.
indieactivity: What actors do you long to work with?
Marnie: Cary Grant (I know – I’m too late..)
indieactivity: Why?
Marnie: His timing was incredible, impeccable.
indieactivity: What advice would you give to actors?
Marnie: Don’t be afraid to create your own work. The things I am most proud of in my career have come from getting together with colleagues and creating what we want to be a part of. There is more control in your career than you realise – but it’s hard work and you have to get on with it one step at a time. (Don’t get overwhelmed by the big picture. Find an idea you feel passionate about and work slowly to create it).
indieactivity: Briefly write about your career?
Marnie: My most recent film credits include playing the lead in ‘Dancing Shoes’, a short film in the web series ‘Packing/Unpacking’ for Matthew Hurt and Oli Mason,‘The Tormented’ for Blue Monkey Films, and the BAFTA awarded ‘Running in Traffic’ for Dabhand Films. Recent television work includes a recurring role in ‘Shetland’ (Series 2 and 3), ‘Eastenders’ and ‘Doctors’ for the BBC and comedy pilot ’Sunset Dreams’ for Tremendous Pictures.
I have also worked extensively in theatres all over the country. As I said, I played Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya in the critically acclaimed ‘Anna’. I travelled to Palestine with the same company to devise ’Al Nakba’, which depicted a family’s endurance of the prolonged bombings in Gaza, and went on a National tour of ‘The Flood’, a two-hander about the effects of war on a young relationship. I played Rachel Corrie in The Jasmine Road, a play devised by the company and based on her short life.
Theatre producing credits include ‘Lunch’ by Steven Berkoff at The Kings Head, ‘High Brave Boy’ by Rod Wooden for the Gilded Balloon, and ‘The Time Step’ by Matthew Hurt, directed by Linda Marlowe and Josie Lawrence.
I am currently producing my first short, Bad Mother. It’s a film about trust, fuelled by fear, and it’s based on a true story. Take a look at the ongoing crowdfunding campaign
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