For Nanaimo teenager, Sydney Howlett it all began when she was a cat.
“When I was five my mom put me into the Gingerbread Man,” Howlett told the News Bulletin. “It was a mini-play and I was just a cat in it, but after that I was always interested in acting.”
Howlett, 17, has seen her love for acting blossom into a promising career.
Recently the Woodlands Secondary School student was nominated for a Joey Award.
“I was kind of in shock,” Howlett said. “I still don’t know how to react.”
Howlett earned the nomination for her role in the short film Game Companion. She is just one of six Canadian youth actresses to be nominated for a Joey Award.
“I’ve been acting since I was five years old and I have never had anything like this happen before,” Howlett said. “It’s mind blowing.”
She will head to New Westminster on Sunday (Nov. 16) for the award ceremony.
“I am really excited,” she said. “It’s pretty amazing because I wasn’t expecting it at all.”
In addition to Howllet’s nomination, another Nanaimo actress, Jasper Parsley-Kehoe has also received a Joey Award nomination for her role in Mining Moon.
The Joey Awards recognize young actors and actresses across the nation for their work within the film industry.
The awards were originally called the Canadian Youth in Film Awards, but were renamed to the Joey Awards in an effort to simplify the name.
Following the award ceremony in New Westminster, Howlett will be working on another movie project and finishing school.
“I’ve always loved movies and film because to me … when you watch a movie I feel as if you’re trying to understand the human condition better,” Howlett said. “To me, being an actress is trying to find that in yourself and try and portray that in a movie.”
For more information on the Joey Awards, please visit www.joeyawards.com.
arts@nanaimobulletin.comTwitter: @npescod
