Julia Billington from All about E talks about getting into character, action scenes, and being true to yourself.

Julia Billington has added the anticipated film All About E to her impressive resume. She takes on the role of Trish, the one that got away and broke E’s heart. Allowing E and her husband Matt a safe haven from the villainous Johnny, old emotions that Trish buried away resurface.

Julia spoke with LOTL about her history of acting, her role as Trish, and All About E.

When did you first get involved in acting? Who influenced you the most to pursue a career in acting? 

Oh man, since I was old enough to stand! I would sit my parents down on the couch and tell them stories from the age of 3! In grade one, I was given the role of Narrator in “The Giant Turnip” and was the only child to memorise my “lines” from the storybook.

My high school drama teacher, Stephen Matthias, has to be credited as the main person who got me into acting. In grade 9 he told me after I finished playing the lead in Dags that I could pursue this as an actual career – like, make money from doing this fun thing I loved. Seriously? Okay, I’m in! There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing!

How do you relate to the role of Trish? Did you find any personality traits of Trish overlapping with your own?  

I think it’s impossible for an actor NOT to relate to their role. You always bring a little of yourself into a character. As for Trish, I think we’re both strong-headed, morally staunch women. We believe in what we believe in, and we will fight for it.

I love that Trish so firmly believes in E being true to herself that she holds her to account. She keeps saying, “Come on, I know you’re better than this. YOU know you’re better than this. Let’s be the best versions of ourselves that we can be!” That’s very me.

Are there any scenes you had a particularly fun time filming? Why?

Yes! The plane scene down at the runway. In fact, the whole hostage scene with Johnny holding a knife to my throat was fabulous! I like my actions scenes – I like doing my own stunts, getting dirty and doing it for real. I would say to Simon (who played Johnny) “You can pull my hair harder. No, harder!” But he was such a gentleman. The baddies always are!

What was the most challenging part of your role as Trish? What attracted you to this role? 

The most challenging thing wasn’t exactly about my character, but the simple logistics of an Independent film shoot! I drive a tractor in one scene, and because we were SO short on time I was taught how to drive it in a 30-second tute 5 minutes before the cameras started rolling. I was like, “Oh my god! Trish has been driving Tractors as long as she could stand! It’s gotta look so natural, and I’m a total novice!” So that whole scene I was bluffing like crazy to make it seem like all the gears and pedals were just second nature and in my body. But all my mind was saying was “Don’t mess this up!!”

What attracted me to the film more than anything was the fact that this is a lesbian love story that is original; it’s about finding yourself, and it has a happy ending. I wanted to tell a story about my culture. It was a very personal experience, and I’ve very proud of it.

What do you think is the most important message the audience will gain from watching All About E?

Be true to yourself and who you are. THEN you’ll be truly happy. You can’t be 100% honest in a relationship if you aren’t 100% honest with yourself. Life really only starts working for you when you say, “So, this is the real me. You may not like it, but it’s who I am, and I’m proud of it.”

My older friends and mentors tell me this all the time: “Once you hit 40 you start to not give a toss about what other people think. You just be yourself, and you’re SO much happier for it!”