ROSE & IVY In Conversation With Kate Mara

Last time we chatted we were in the throws of a global pandemic. Thank goodness we are on the other side of it now. You’ve been busy wih a lot of new projects and Congrats on being a new mom. How’s the transition been like from two to three?

It kind of feels like, what’s one more, but the only thing is that you are outnumbered. When it’s just me and Jamie in the house with them, which is a lot of the time (laughs), we are outnumbered, especially when traveling. We have to travel a lot for our jobs and we also just like to travel so that makes it a bit tricky. As far as the energy goes it was already pretty wild before, so it doesn’t feel that different.

Last time we talked about your animal rights work and your works with the chimps in africa. Is there anything new in that space people should know about?

The chimps are forever going to be something I am involved with. It’s hard for me to get over to Africa right now because of the baby. I won’t be able to physically be there for a while but anytime I can support Liberia Chimpanzee Rescue & Protection organization, I do. The people who run it are my friends. It’s something I will always be supportive of and working towards helping build that incredible sanctuary. They always need your support and voice.

I saw on your instagram you went to a chimp sanctuary in Florida.

I did, it was amazing, it’s called Save the Chimps and that was special for a few reasons. I had never been to a chimp sanctuary in the States before and I was able to bring my then 3-year-old daughter. My kids all know how much mom loves chimps and wants to save and protect them. So to be able to bring our daughter there was very special especially because we talk about how much we don’t want to support zoos. I think it’s important for adults and children, especially, to go to sanctuaries and see the animals being treated with love and respect. Hopefully that inspires them to want to learn more and do more. So going to a place like that with a child is quite magical.

Talk to me about The Smell of Money the documentary that you helped produce.

It’s not out yet so I am glad you brought it out. It’s a film that I am executive producing. It takes a long time to get a distributor for any movie, and for documentaries specifically, it’s a long journey. It doesn't happen overnight so we are trying to get a distributor. I am definitely hopeful we will find a home for it. We just want as many people as possible to see it. It’s about this woman, Elsie Herring, and her North Carolina community. It’s about their fight against the world’s largest pork corporation for their freedom to enjoy their lives. Right now they are unable to because the air and the water are not clean because of the stench of manure in their community. We are showing it as much as we can at festivals and talking about it as much as we can because these communities need our voice.

when Did you hear about it and want to do something about it?

I didn’t know about it which is one of the reasons why I am so passionate about it. Most people don’t know this is happening. An acquaintance of mine, Shawn Bannon—he is the director of the documentary—reached out to me and asked if I wanted to watch the latest cut to hear my thoughts. I said yes, of course. I watched it and I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I reached out to him and asked how I could help, support and find a home for it. This was a couple of years ago right before the pandemic.

I can’t wait to watch it. I think so many people are blind to the fact that these animals are treated like a commodity and communities like Elsie’s suffer.

It’s pretty heartbreaking that we have these types of horrors in our world and our country and a lot of us are unaware of it. I think the more people know about it, and talk about it, the more call for action there is.

Do you want to keep producing to make people aware of animal welfare issues and its impact on the world?

This was the first documentary I produced. The thing I am passionate about, specifically, is that it’s not a vegan documentary. It doesn’t matter what type of food you eat. It’s a human story and it’s about the way we treat animals, each other, and what we will let happen to our neighbors. The things that go on that we are shielded from or kept secret. It’s about environmental racism. It’s definitely been a learning experience and I am interested in producing more but acting is my first love.

**Now to talk about Class of 09, it’s such an interesting concept how the show is split into three separate timelines.**

I read it a year ago and I was excited about the possibility of working with Brian Tyree Henry. The first two episodes were really interesting and I liked the idea of exploring three different times lines of a person and of a few different people’s lives. The AI aspect was part of it but it obviously isn’t as prevalent as it is now. Now it feels like the timing is creepy; I hope it doesn’t ruin so many parts of our existence. In so many ways technology has saved us but it also can do the opposite. My hope it that it doesn’t.

You star alongside the lovely Sepi, who I met last year, I know you guys are close friends. She’s awesome. To walk away with a new bestie must make the work even more rewarding.

Oh yeah. The most exciting and hardest part about being an actor is going to new places and having to create a home in a new city and a new house, with or without members of your family. Me and my daughter were in Atlanta for seven months and my other son and husband would come back and forth to be with us because he had school. It was challenging trying to be with each other as much as possible but not being able to. On set you really do create families. The best part about it was getting to work with this incredible group of actors and create the community that we created. We would hang with each other on the weekends, we basically celebrated everyone’s birthday—this was through covid—and at some point or another got covid while we were filming.

Getting back to the AI topic, do you think ai is a threat to artists and the creative community?

It definitely is a threat, it’s one of the things we are fighting for with the writer’s strike and SAG contracts, but it shouldn’t be. It shouldn’t even be available in that sense.

**You’ve also done some podcast series like The Big Lie. What has that experience been like?**

It’s way easier (laughs), you can do it from anywhere. It’s much less time-consuming. We are still able to be home with my family. It’s great. I love it, it reminds me of when I was a kid actor, I used to do jingles and singing and you were in a booth solo in the dark. It’s fun and easy and of course, podcasts are so big right now. There is a lot of content, so it’s fun to do all different types of audio.

**You are also in the upcoming season of Black Mirror. I know you can never say much, but Can you say anything? I read that you said it was one of the best experiences.**

It really was, it was a pretty quick experience because each episode is a standalone and you are only filming an hour episode, which takes a couple of weeks. We filmed it in England and it was a small cast, which was great. All of the episodes are so disturbing and twisted, but it was weirdly a peaceful experience despite the story. I credit that to the director, the other actors, and the production. You know being pregnant you never know what it’s going to be like or feel like and having to hide a baby bump, but it just wasn’t a problem and it wasn’t a concern. I credit that to the production; I’m excited to see the other episodes.

It’s been so great catching up with you but before I let you go, I’d love to hear what is fueling and exciting you right now?

Succession was fueling and exciting me and now it’s over (laughs). That was my favorite, I would attempt to stay awake to watch it. My family is that’s literally it. With all of the strikes and the uncertainty of it, but there is a real clear schedule with a house full of kids and activities. It definitely keeps you busy and focused on other things, which I am grateful for in times of uncertainty in our industry.

In Conversation With Kate Mara