Kathryn Prescott – Finding Carter

Q) What made you want to be a part of “Finding Carter?”

A) I had gotten attached to the project when I was still in England. I usually came to Los Angeles when I had enough money and I would just stay around and audition. Then, I’d go back to England and make back my money so I could come out again. I auditioned for the show on tape with my friend. Then, they asked me to re-tape it and they flew me out to audition. Really soon after I got the part and had to go and shoot it. What I really liked about it was that it was a show namely about female relationships. That’s not to say that the male characters aren’t as important or three dimensional as the women, but I think it is rare that you see a show that is centered on female relationships or each other regardless of the romantic relationships they have to men. There is this thing that we always talk about when we’re discussing “Finding Carter” that is this theory about how women are represented on TV. It’s these crazy laws that you go, “That’s not true!” but when you try to think of a film or TV show that goes against them you think, “Oh my gosh! Women are being seriously misrepresented!” I remember reading this and the show was about Carter’s relationship with her many mothers, her sister and her friends.

Q) Was there anything about the role that you added that wasn’t originally scripted for you?

A) I feel like Terri [Minsky], the writer, had a very specific idea of what she wanted, but I feel like it’s very collaborative and Terri is very polite and will let you rewrite lines sometimes. It’s very collaborative so I am probably what she wanted (I hope I am) and we kind of talk about it and figure it out together. It’s a really nice environment to work in.

Q) How has filming “Finding Carter” been different or similar to filming other shows you have done before the UK?

A) Before I came here, I did not know what Craft Services was. Craft Services on all the other jobs I had done would be like a plate of cookies. They were good, but it wasn’t like on “Finding Carter” where we had dim sum as a snack. That blew my mind! The production has a bigger budget here, generally. Even with low budget projects, I’m always amazed as what counts as “low budget” here. There are things about UK productions that are really cool as well.

Q) Well, what can you tease is in store for the next couple of episodes of “Finding Carter?”

A) The next episode is about her finding her feet in a new environment with new friends and kind of figuring out who her friends really are. I think she is a bit confused. She gets a lot of guy interests, but I don’t think she is trying to get that. It’s probably something that is coming to her because she is not trying to get it. She is just kind of stuck between a couple of guys and you see her relationships with her sister and biological mother get better. Lori (Milena Govich) is back in this episode and you find that she has been around Carter for awhile. In episode five, it gets really juicy and funny and crazy – but in a good way!

Q) What is your favorite aspect of Carter?

A) I like that she is a young girl, but she’s also an old soul in a lot of ways – I think in the way she sees people and the way she kind of sees through people a little bit. She can’t do that to herself, but I feel like she is really good about working out other people. I think that makes her mature for her age, but she is still very much a sixteen year old girl. She’s kind of lost and finding herself. The rug gets pulled out from under her and it makes it even harder for her to find herself. She is written true to a lot of sixteen year old girls that I have met and knew, but she is not stereotypical. I like the mix of maturity and immaturity to her. 

Q) What makes MTV such a good fit for the show?

A) I feel like what is good about it being on MTV is that it’s not necessarily a show about good family morals. It’s kind of a show about people in families fucking up a little bit, but somehow finding their feet and finding their way. Eventually, they forge these unlikely strong bonds. I feel like it’s a bit more messy. It’s not more real, but more dysfunctional. For some people it’s more real. I think it shows the different layers of the characters.

Q) You are a part of social media sites like Twitter. How  has it been interacting with fans of the show and getting the immediate feedback from them?

A) It’s cool. It’s really nice. It’s cool to see peoples’ reaction when it is on TV. Social media is kind of weird. It’s hard to judge because you have a biased view on things since the people are obviously coming to your Twitter page are interested in you anyway. So, you’re either going to hear really good things or really bad things. People who really, really like you will come on and say something or people who really, really hate you will come on and say something. So, I feel like you never find the people who think you are okay. Before I got Twitter, I was really opposed to it because I didn’t see the point. My sister said it was such a great way to connect with people and share a video or something that you think is important. For her, she has thousands and thousands of followers and she said, “Thousands and thousands of people will see that. If it’s about something you feel is important, that’s a really good tool for spreading the word about things.”

Q) There is great cast chemistry to the show. Did it come naturally or did it take some time to develop?

A) That came completely naturally. They are all so funny, lovely and real normal people. I remember we went out all together the second week we started. We all went out and were talking. Some other people came over to us and were talking to us, assuming we all were friends for years. They couldn’t believe we met two weeks prior!

Q) What would else would you like to be sure to share with fans of “Finding Carter?”

A) Keep watching because it starts getting really interesting! Episode five, six, seven and eight get really interesting…