Having a Laugh

#11 Unveiling Layers: Ayvianna Snow on Acting, Advocacy, and Artistic Expression

Shayla Tharp Season 1 Episode 11

Join us for a captivating episode as we sit down with the incredibly talented actress, Ayvianna Snow! From her standout performances in Burnt Flowers, The Convent, and How to Kill Monsters, to her advocacy work with Equity, Ayvianna takes us on a journey through the multifaceted world of acting and artistic expression.

In this candid conversation, we explore Ayvianna's path to becoming a scream queen, her fearless approach to nude modeling, and how she's a fan of Taylor Swift! We delve into industry challenges, discussing everything from audition nerves to the importance of arts funding in sustaining creative endeavors.

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Shay (00:13.742)
Okay. Thank you so much for being here. I'm like really excited to have you because we were both in the movie, burnt flowers, but I never actually got to meet you. Yeah. Isn't that weird how you can be in a movie and never see each other.

Ayvianna Snow (00:24.646)
Yeah, we never met.

Ayvianna Snow (00:32.23)
Yeah, I mean, I think people imagine that like the whole cast kind of meet and talk to each other and often it's not the case at all. If you're not sharing a scene, then you may well not see that person. And sometimes it's shot, like Burnt Flowers was shot over quite a long period of time. It was like three years or something from the beginning to the release and shot in different locations. I was in Essex, I was in Hertfordshire. I was, you know, so you don't necessarily.

Shay (00:49.678)
God.

Shay (00:56.59)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (00:58.854)
see one another, but you were great in it because I've actually seen the movie and you, I think, haven't seen the movie yet.

Shay (01:01.358)
yay. I have not seen the movie, but yeah, I would love to see it. And I didn't get to see anyone because I was alone for my stuff. So I just filmed alone. Yeah. I met Ro, Guru. She was one of my friends. She's the main redhead. And yes.

Ayvianna Snow (01:15.846)
You were - really? You didn't meet anyone?

Ayvianna Snow (01:28.582)
Row Haven.

Shay (01:31.054)
And she was one of my roommate's girlfriends. No, that sounds wrong. Not one of. She was my... One of the many. So she was like, no, they need another person. So you should audition. And I auditioned and I got there and was lovely. It was a wonderful process. And I loved dying on screen, but I didn't meet a soul. So it's lovely to see you.

Ayvianna Snow (01:36.55)
All right.

Ayvianna Snow (01:40.678)
One of the many, many, you know.

Ayvianna Snow (01:59.014)
And thank you for having me on and for speaking to me. It's kind of you. So thank you.

Shay (02:03.246)
Of course! I love talking to fellow like horror genre enthusiasts. Did you plan on becoming a scream queen of sorts or have you always loved the horror stuff?

Ayvianna Snow (02:15.174)
No, I think I stumbled into scream queenery. I always wanted to be an actor, but I was always very kind of open about what that would look like and what kind of work I would do. I think when you start out as an actor, you can't really afford to be fussy and you kind of take whatever you can get. So I stumbled accidentally into horror. I got an audition randomly to be in a

Shay (02:33.646)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (02:44.71)
Paul Hyatt's film, which was called Heretics at the time, which I think is called The Convent in America, which was about a bunch of possessed nuns in a convent in the 18th century. And they had already cast all the main parts. I was on some random casting website, which I think doesn't even exist anymore, called, I think it was Temple Heart Casting. And they were literally just auditioning for like the final few.

Shay (02:51.534)
yes, yes.

Ayvianna Snow (03:14.79)
people with two lines and sort of random small bits and pieces. And I applied and randomly happened to get it, why they wanted me. And then I did sort of a week of shooting in a derelict castle in Wales. It was lovely, but very, very cold. I'm always cold in this country. And...

Shay (03:25.198)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (03:34.254)
Sounds wonderful, though.

Mm.

Ayvianna Snow (03:42.726)
then that kind of led to another horror casting, which led to another horror casting, which led to another one. And then before you know where you are, you're immersed. And now I can't get out. But, you know.

Shay (03:47.31)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (03:50.894)
Exactly. Yeah. It's fun. I love doing the horror thing. It kind of makes the job feel easy because it's not too difficult to be scared because I get spooked. I'm like, scared.

Ayvianna Snow (04:08.166)
It's not a stretch.

Shay (04:09.486)
It's not a stretch. It's not a stretch at all. So I saw you were at the equity meeting the other day. How'd that go? What were you doing over there?

Ayvianna Snow (04:17.958)
So I was a, we have an annual conference. That's what I was at. And it was held in Birmingham this year. So I've been, I'm back from Birmingham. It's a really great opportunity. Representatives come from all over the UK. So we have people from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, different parts of England. So every branch can kind of send a few reps and every branch can send a motion. So something for the conference to discuss.

Shay (04:23.63)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (04:48.006)
And it's just a great opportunity to have those important conversations. I was there representing North London, which I'm chair of, 6 ,000 members, everybody living north of the Thames. And our motion was about increasing arts funding. So we hope to persuade the next government to invest a bit more into the arts in the UK. The...

UK, so the budget for art spending in the UK is actually less than that for the city of Berlin, which is a statistic that always kind of shocks people when they hear that. And we spend 0 .4 % of our GDP in the UK goes toward the arts, which is not even half of the European average. So the average European country spends 1 % of their GDP on the arts.

Shay (05:27.534)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (05:43.174)
So our main demand is for the government to at least kind of meet the European average. And it's not actually true that I think the perception is that money spent on the arts is kind of wasted money. And that's not actually true for every one pound invested into the arts, four pounds is generated for the local economy in terms of.

Shay (05:48.398)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (06:07.462)
people buying tickets, which also then leads to meals and restaurants, people may be in hotel rooms, taxis, you know, so actually it generates money. and the arts in London is the third biggest income generator after banking and retail. So, yeah, it's, it's just, and then, you know, that was one of many motions. There were like 20 different motions on different topics from all over the UK. it's, it's very, very educational. I recommend it to.

Shay (06:28.974)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (06:35.206)
anyone who's interested in the arts to go to the conference for three days and you learn so much.

Shay (06:40.128)
Yeah, I would love to know more. I'm a member of Equity. But yeah, I don't know the ins and outs, the depths of it, but Equity recently just saved my behind. I was in a show like off West End and we had some problems with the higher ups and the production and all these things and Equity just came in and were like, we're gonna help you. And they just did such a

amazing job of helping all of us and taking care of us and I was just like equity I love you

Ayvianna Snow (07:16.006)
Yeah, I mean, I think we do really, really good work. You know, there's kind of, I think there used to be in this country, a bit of a cynicism about equity and the sort of, when I was in rehearsal rooms or on sets, you know, people talk about it and they, a lot of people used to say, you know, it's irrelevant or it's a bit useless. It's a bit of a crap union. And I don't.

Shay (07:37.294)
Yeah, people were like, don't sign up. And I was like, but I feel like I should.

Ayvianna Snow (07:41.222)
Yeah, no, I don't agree with that. I actually think that we do a lot of really, really good work and certainly the last few years we've really developed. You know, I think the union has teeth nowadays and I'm very excited about the new direction we're taking. We're, we've recently got a new policy regarding spotlight. So in all other industries, the onus is not on the person seeking work to pay for the platform.

Shay (08:00.078)
Okay.

Ayvianna Snow (08:10.982)
So, and for some reason there's an exemption clause so that the creative industries are exempt. So all of the actors pay for spotlight. But we say that that is wrong. And actually the onus should not be on actors to have to pay to keep spotlight going. You shouldn't have to pay to access work. We're calling it a tax on hope. You know, the taxing people, you're paying out just to have the opportunity of potentially maybe getting a job. And that actually that's wrong. And the onus should be, it should be the producers.

Shay (08:11.118)
Yes.

Shay (08:36.142)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (08:40.614)
paying for that platform. So that's equity's new policy and we're looking into how we're going to take that forward and challenging that. So the union is working for you.

Shay (08:48.526)
I would -

Shay (08:53.358)
I would love if America were to do something like that because yeah, I've spent like thousands now on Spotlight, you know, year after year. And it's like, God, and sometimes I'm like, for what? Because we don't even get half of, don't see half the jobs. I was working at a talent agency, so I did see all the full jobs. And then I would go home and log on to my Spotlight and see .01.

Ayvianna Snow (09:01.126)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (09:07.11)
And you don't even see half the jobs, as you say.

Ayvianna Snow (09:17.382)
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Shay (09:20.142)
And it's like, what am I paying for? And then if you're self -represented, it's a whole other issue because you're still not receiving anything. It's just, it's a glorified CV page is what I like to call it.

Ayvianna Snow (09:30.534)
Yeah. And I mean, so the, the exemption that exists under the law actually says that the amount that they can charge you cannot be more than the running costs of them actually running that platform. And we looked into it and we worked out. So Spotlight has.

Shay (09:52.59)
Gotta get the notes.

Ayvianna Snow (09:54.79)
They've got something like, they've got more members than actually equity has.

Shay (09:59.502)
Geez. I bet they do.

Ayvianna Snow (10:01.99)
Yeah. So there are 90 ,000 members of Spotlight, 90 ,000 people across the UK paying for Spotlight. And if they're all paying the whatever it is, £180 a year, roughly. Yeah. So Spotlight makes 1 .25 million per month from all those subscriptions. So, you know, is that genuinely a reasonable running cost?

Shay (10:14.602)
I think it's even more. Yeah. I think it's 200 now or something.

Ayvianna Snow (10:29.318)
Are they spending, does it cost 1 .25 million per month to run a website? I would have thought no. So, you know, it used to be the case that Spotlight would produce a book annually with all the printed book of people's, here's my face and my headshot and whatever. But nowadays they don't do the book anymore. It is literally just a website. So how can they justify 1 .25 million pounds a month in running costs? So it's things like that. The union is.

Shay (10:35.694)
Yeah, no.

Shay (10:44.526)
Yes.

Ayvianna Snow (10:58.214)
planning on challenging.

Shay (11:00.494)
Good, good. I think that's a proper thing to do and I wish the United States would get on board with that because we have a lot of those websites here as well. They can't collectively decide to just use one, which angers me. I wish they would just all collectively decide like you guys use Spotlight. I wish that was the case here, but there's just multiple and multiple you have to pay for and...

Ayvianna Snow (11:16.838)
Hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (11:23.078)
So you end up paying three subscription fees instead of one.

Shay (11:26.19)
yeah, I've got like four going right now, plus my spotlight. You know, it's just like, I am paying, it adds up like crazy. So I hope that something comes out of that. And I'm glad that you were there to speak on it.

Ayvianna Snow (11:31.174)
Yeah, and it all adds up.

Ayvianna Snow (11:42.47)
Thank you. Yeah, I mean, I take it very seriously and I think most people in the room do. And it was really, yeah, it was important and it's worth doing. I had, you know, I really, I was pleased that I was there for three days and got to learn from all those people and hear all those voices. And you don't always agree with everything that you hear, you know, because people put forward all kinds of ideas, but generally speaking, most of the ideas are sensible.

Shay (11:48.078)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (11:59.054)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (12:08.91)
Mm -hmm. Did they mention anything about self tapes? Because I think when I left that was becoming a thing like the the casting people were like stop with the self tapes But as an actor, I like the self tapes. I don't know

Ayvianna Snow (12:14.374)
Mm.

Ayvianna Snow (12:21.83)
So, I mean, Equity has a self -tape code of conduct which outlines best practice for self -tapes. So it's things like, I think with scripted drama, you should have a minimum of a four -day turnaround to give you a chance to do the Bloomin' thing. I think one of the big problems is unreasonable expectations with these tapes. So, you know, you should only be sent, yeah, well, exactly.

Shay (12:26.574)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (12:45.998)
the 24 -hour turnaround.

Ayvianna Snow (12:48.998)
You should, I think it's a maximum of six sides and four days. So it shouldn't, you shouldn't be getting stuff and then they expect it tomorrow morning. I think for commercials, it's actually slightly less. It's 48 hours that we have for commercial tapes, but, and also, you know, the expectations like, you know, I mean, I've had tape requests. Could you film yourself cycling down the street? And that's difficult. I had to find, luckily my neighbor had a bicycle that she,

Shay (13:12.814)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (13:18.534)
let me use. Also, you've got to find, you know, sometimes people, there was a tape request which went out, could you demonstrate football skills? Could you film yourself roller skating? Like none of these things should be required in a tape. A tape should be very simple. It should be literally this, like from sort of head and shoulders and some lines that you say to a camera. So,

Shay (13:28.974)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (13:36.27)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (13:44.87)
Yet casting directors are meant to follow the code of conduct whether they always do is

Shay (13:50.926)
They don't.

Ayvianna Snow (13:52.902)
I mean, the issue is that it isn't a law, it's a kind of, it's a best practice guideline and it isn't at the moment enforceable. Although we would, well, I mean, we would encourage members to report instances where it's not being followed. So there's a, if you're casting director as a member of the CDG, there is an anonymous reporting facility on the website. So you can report them without your own, without putting your name on it. Cause sometimes people are afraid, if I,

Shay (14:01.294)
Yeah, and I get it. I get it, but...

Ayvianna Snow (14:22.95)
If I put my name down, they'll never bring me in again for another casting. So you don't have to be afraid of that.

What else was I about to say?

Yeah, and also you can sometimes you can, so what we recommend is you reply if you get one of these mad requests, you reply and simply say, say that they're asking you to do it by tomorrow, you write back and you say, thank you. Yes, I'm happy to do the tape. I can do it by Thursday in line with equities code of conduct best practice guide. And, you know, we have to sort of fight back.

Shay (14:56.718)
Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (15:03.75)
bit. I think these people take advantage of actors' desperation, unfortunately, because there are so many actors and not enough jobs and actors fall over themselves backwards to get the thing made by tomorrow morning and they beg, borrow and steal to do it. But we shouldn't have to.

Shay (15:04.75)
Yeah.

Shay (15:24.078)
It's so true. And I thought I saw something a little while back. They were like, they should pay actors for their self -tapes. Like, I'd love that because it's like, I'm doing self -tape after self -tape after self -tape. And it's like, they take a lot of work and time. And it's like, when I come home after work, the last thing I want to do is put up my lighting equipment, the things and the things. And it's like, it takes time and work.

Ayvianna Snow (15:32.838)
Mm.

Ayvianna Snow (15:49.062)
Yeah, the thing, so it used to be the case that you would be called into an audition in Soho or whatever, and then the onus would be on them to provide the space and the camera and the lights. But a lot of that work has now been put onto the actor. So we have to provide, like all the actors I know now have lighting equipment in their house and like, this is a very expensive microphone and you know, and you just, you know, I paid to have a

Shay (16:02.318)
Right.

Shay (16:07.022)
Right.

Shay (16:12.206)
Mm -hmm.

Yep.

Ayvianna Snow (16:18.918)
background thing installed because I don't have a blank wall in this house that I live in. So I have a sort of screen thing that I can wind down and it covers the bookcase behind me. So we've all paid all this money out to get all this equipment. In terms of being paid for auditions, this idea came up at a branch meeting I was at a few months ago. And I think the issue with that is if they have to pay us to audition, they'll simply audition for fewer people.

Shay (16:49.166)
yeah, for sure.

Ayvianna Snow (16:49.254)
and it'll become even harder to get seen than it already is. So, you know, rather than asking for 30 tapes, they'll just bring in their top six and that'll be that. So I'm not sure about this idea of being paid to audition. I think it might simply draw the net tighter and tighter and tighter. But yeah, I mean, it's tough. It's tough.

Shay (17:14.158)
It's tough. So speaking of this all being so tough, where did you begin as your career as an actor? You were born in Ireland, yes? So where's your Irish accent?

Ayvianna Snow (17:26.086)
Yeah, yeah, I know.

It's, first of all, I think the way that Irish people are portrayed is often a bit of a stereotype. So, and I have noticed this when I do, it's interesting because I think I've seen it from both sides. I've seen it as an Irish person. And then nowadays, most people think I'm English. If they don't know any better, they just assume I'm English.

So I've also seen the kind of English people's perception of Irish people, which is interesting and, and filled with stereotypes. And, yeah, it's always.

Shay (18:00.174)
Mm.

Shay (18:07.758)
part of Northern Ireland for you from? Derry. Cool, cool.

Ayvianna Snow (18:10.662)
Dairy. Yeah. So, yeah. Yeah, when I see kind of English people, plays or things they've written about the Irish, it always, to me, it always sounds very, very much a kind of stereotyped portrayal. We always seem to be drunk. And I don't drink and I find it, but as soon as you get a...

Shay (18:33.518)
Alright.

Ayvianna Snow (18:39.174)
a play about Ireland, it's always, you know, the first scene is in a pub when everyone's, you know, top of the mornin' to you to be sure, be sure. And, you know, nobody, nobody talks like that. So I often find that a bit. But, yeah, but so, yeah.

Shay (18:49.23)
Yeah.

Shay (18:55.79)
I've only been to Ireland once and I absolutely loved it and was like, I'm just gonna retire and live here. So I absolutely fell in love with it. But I can see why there might be stereotypes, but I imagine it's worse in America. I bet the stereotypes are 10 times worse. It's like, top of the morning. It's so bad.

Ayvianna Snow (19:18.598)
Yeah, yeah. I mean, it's, but I think that's true of every nationality. I mean, I have a friend who's German, who is a works here in London as an actor. And every time he goes to an audition as well, he always says they're expecting a sort of, you know, a very over the top German performance because they sort of, they've probably only ever seen documentaries about Nazis and things. And that's their perception of the average German. And of course, it's, you know,

Shay (19:37.646)
Mm.

Ayvianna Snow (19:47.782)
My friend Adam is nothing like that at all and actually he speaks very well and has a beautiful voice. So I think everyone who's kind of not originally from England encounters this sort of the expectation of a stereotyped performance. But yeah, no, I've been living in England since I was sort of 18 years old. So I've been here for quite a long time now.

Shay (20:05.974)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (20:15.246)
Yeah. Do you go back and forth or is your family still in Ireland?

Ayvianna Snow (20:18.246)
Yeah, they are. My sister's a GP at, I think, Aberfoyle is the name of the practice. I'm not completely sure. I think it's called Aberfoyle, so she still works there. I tend to only really, I'm only there at Christmas really, because I'm always scared to leave London lest an audition should arise. But I guess that's...

Shay (20:23.438)
cool.

Shay (20:27.118)
Ha ha ha.

Ayvianna Snow (20:44.806)
That's this industry, isn't it? You're always terrified of, I better not go anywhere in case a job comes up.

Shay (20:47.79)
Yeah.

And then of course you leave and it's like the one audition you've had that year and you're like, well, there it is. That's why I don't leave.

Ayvianna Snow (20:53.798)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (20:57.638)
Yeah, but I should get better. I suppose it kind of just, yeah, I have some friends that are very good at that. They're just kind of, this is my holiday. This is my week off. I'm not going to look at my emails. Whereas I can't manage to do that. Even when I'm not here, I'm on my phone constantly looking to see what I missed. But I think that it sort of, it trains you to be like that. I mean, I remember just last week I was out having a coffee with a friend.

Shay (21:10.606)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (21:27.206)
in Sheppard's Bush, which is only sort of like maybe 45 minutes from my front door. And a job came up on, I saw it on Facebook because I was Facebook friends with the director. And there were three jobs and I looked at it as I was sort of ordering my coffee and I thought, well, I'll apply for it when I get home, which will be in maybe an hour or two. And by the time an hour had gone by and I looked at my phone and two of the jobs were gone in that hour. And then I thought, well, I can't wait.

Shay (21:53.614)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (21:56.742)
So I had, I started then I had to type out my application on my phone while I'm supposedly having coffee with my poor friend who's being ignored while I type. but, but that's the way it is. It's all, it's just so quick.

Shay (22:06.478)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (22:12.654)
It is, and it's kind of heartbreaking because you're like, even if I get myself taped in within the deadline, if I'm still not fast enough, sometimes that's just not, like they'll look at like the first five and they're like, sometimes that's just all they want. And they're like grabbed.

Ayvianna Snow (22:28.326)
Yeah, you know, I really wonder how many of these tapes are watched at all. And it used to be the case that you would send them via WeTransfer and then you could at least see that they had downloaded it. But nowadays they've started asking them to be sent to a Dropbox and then you can't even see whether it's been watched or not. So, yeah, I think you just...

Shay (22:39.118)
Who opened it, yeah.

Shay (22:48.014)
Yeah.

Shay (22:51.502)
When I worked at an agency called Narrow Road, and the process basically is we'd get the self -tape from the client, and then we'd give it to the casting director. And I could always see if it was opened or if it's not. And they most always, everybody's was always opened. So that always felt nice that at least every self -tape we sent in was always opened. Does that mean?

Ayvianna Snow (22:56.006)
Hmm.

Shay (23:21.294)
They watched it closely? Don't know.

Ayvianna Snow (23:22.022)
I mean, I'll be honest. So I once had an audition, this is a couple of years ago, and there was, I sent off the tape and I think the deadline was like a Wednesday, say for instance. And I sent the tape off on the Monday or the Tuesday and then there was some sort of issue. I can't remember quite what it was, but I ended up, I wasn't sure if the tape had gone through or not. And I thought, so I called the casting office on the Tuesday and said, so sorry to bother you, just wanted to check if you got that tape.

Shay (23:31.63)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (23:50.918)
Like, did it work? And the lady I spoke to said, the job's already gone. And this was Tuesday. And I said, fair enough, whatever. Put the phone down. I didn't think about it. That Friday, my tape was downloaded from WeTransfer. So they had, the job was gone on Tuesday, but on the Friday, they'd obviously, some who are probably the kids doing his internships, they send the 19 year old to do these shitty jobs.

Shay (24:16.046)
Hahaha

Ayvianna Snow (24:18.982)
was sent on the Friday to download all the actors tapes so that, well, I presume to make us all think that our tape had been looked at. And then if you want to complain, you've got no recourse because they can say, well, my tape, your tape was downloaded. But, you know, they may well have pressed the download button, but the job was gone. So I think you just have to.

Shay (24:41.998)
could be.

Ayvianna Snow (24:44.998)
You just have to kind of treat it like a numbers game and not take it too seriously and not be too kind of invested in, you know, I no longer kind of sit thinking, I hope they watched my tape. I'm really excited. Like I don't do that anymore. I send it off and you know, it's out of my hands. Will they watch it? Will they not? Who knows?

Shay (24:47.758)
Yes.

Shay (24:52.302)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (24:59.214)
yeah.

Yeah.

We had a client, my God, we had a client bless their soul. They would call every time they send a tape. Did they look at it? What's happening? It's been like 24 hours and I was like, dude, you're gonna have to chill. Like, just forget about it. And some people are incapable of just letting it go, just putting it out there.

Ayvianna Snow (25:14.758)
It's nothing.

Ayvianna Snow (25:26.886)
I think I've seen it. I had a gentleman come to my branch a few years ago, he was in his sixties and he had a successful career as a firefighter and he now wanted to get into acting. People think all the new entrants to acting are young, but not necessarily. People go into acting having already had a career doing something else. And I remember, it's funny because you imagine the older people will be...

I don't know, more experienced, but again, not necessarily because to him acting was all new. And I remember him being so excited when he got an agent for the first time and I'm so excited and you know, I didn't say anything. I just, that's great. And then sort of a month later coming in and going, I haven't had any auditions. What's my agent doing? And I was like, nothing.

Shay (26:06.702)
Yeah.

Shay (26:14.094)
God bless.

Ayvianna Snow (26:15.654)
Raymond, but obviously this expectation that, I'll be working all the time now I've got an agent. And I think people think that that means something and it takes, I feel very old and weary and kind of, you know, it means nothing. Yeah, just like.

Shay (26:22.638)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (26:31.406)
Wisdom, yeah. You're very Yoda.

Shay (26:39.694)
Have you ever wanted to give up this industry? Have you ever found it too stressful to take? Or you're just like, that's enough? Or have you always just been like, that's okay, continue.

Ayvianna Snow (26:52.07)
I've never wanted to give up. I never will give up. I feel that I am an actor and this is what I am and this is my calling in life. So this gives me purpose and gives me hope. And if I didn't have this, I wouldn't have any purpose at all, really. So I've never wanted to give up. I've definitely had sort of dark nights of the soul where you think...

How am I going to do this? How am I going to make this work? And it is difficult. I mean, I've had some very, I've had people say appalling things to me in auditions, you know, really, really hurtful. I remember going to an audition for, I probably shouldn't say this, but I don't care anymore. It was CAM, they're quite a big agency in London.

And I was told to prepare a monologue and I turned up in my best dress, all excited and all, you know, and I did, I walked into the room and there were four of them sitting on a panel in front of me. And, I was before I, again, I literally only walked in and I hadn't even started yet. And the lady said to me, can I just say before you start that you're wearing far too much lipstick?

And you just think, I haven't even, you know, already the whole thing now is, and I haven't, there was kind of after that comment, there was almost no point in my doing the monologue because you've already decided, you know, and then she asked me what, I think, what have you been watching on the TV? Or like, what shows are you into? And I've mentioned, I said some show and she said, have you been watching?

falling and I said, no, I've not heard of that and she said well you should have and you just think and there's this kind of I think people people seem to think that an audition is not subject to the same rules of social interaction that every other encounter is subject to they seem to think they can be really rude and that it's fine and

Shay (29:11.342)
nitpicky.

Ayvianna Snow (29:12.358)
because you're in an audition. And like, I thought if you met me in any other situation at a dinner party or something, you would never say, can I just say that you're wearing far too much lipstick? You know, you would never say this to anyone. So I don't know what it is about this situation where you feel that you can be so insulting. So, and yeah, you know, I've had experiences like that and you go home and you just think.

Shay (29:31.182)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (29:39.942)
But I think you just have to pick yourself up and you know, you just, yeah.

Shay (29:45.934)
And just keep going. I once had someone tell me, I was working at Universal, not to name drop, I was working at Universal Hollywood. And they do a scare thing every year on Halloween. It's like scare acting and stuff like that. And they do all the big movies or whatever. So they were doing Halloween and stuff like that. And I was just bouncing around to different houses, doing all the different acting jobs, different scare jobs.

but I was just tired of never being a female role. And I was like, why are they never putting me in a female role? So I went to the director at one point and he was just like, you are not built like a female and you will never play a female role here. And I was like, what? And that was true. The whole year I was employed, I never once played a female, which is fine. I liked being Freddy Krueger or, you know, the f -

Ayvianna Snow (30:26.758)
my god.

Ayvianna Snow (30:42.63)
No, but that's terrible. Built like a female? What does that even mean?

Shay (30:43.694)
but...

I was literally standing there as a cis female. Like, what?

Ayvianna Snow (30:51.558)
And well, yeah, and it's so, I don't think people realize how impactful that is. Like that's going to stay with you for years.

Shay (30:59.918)
I mean, that happened 10 years ago and I'm still on it.

Ayvianna Snow (31:03.942)
And like it's, and first of all, there's so many different types of female bodies. Like the idea that there's only one type of woman and everyone else is not a real, like that's insane. I know, I know so many women and you know, tall, short, skinny, not so skinny, curvy, you know, curly hair, straight hair, but they're all women.

Shay (31:08.462)
Yeah.

Shay (31:14.286)
Yeah.

Shay (31:20.878)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (31:25.902)
Yeah, yeah, it was just like the way he looked at me was just like, that will never be a possibility. And I was just like, wow, that really shook me for a moment.

Ayvianna Snow (31:33.382)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (31:38.63)
Yeah, I'm so sorry. It's hideous.

Shay (31:39.79)
It's just wild the things that people think they... It is hideous and it's like, again, would you have said that to me outside of this industry? Would that have ever been a topic of conversation? Probably not.

Ayvianna Snow (31:54.022)
yeah, I went, I won't go on about this too much, but I went to BAFTA once and I had a meeting with someone. And again, I thought, I'm meeting someone at BAFTA. I've stopped doing this. I no longer get excited about meeting anyone. But, and again, I always, you hope to be met with respect or you hope to be met with, at least that the person you're talking to is going to talk to you. Naively, I thought he would talk to me as if I were an equal.

Shay (32:04.174)
Mm -hmm. Yeah. Yep.

Shay (32:21.71)
Mm, wrong.

Ayvianna Snow (32:23.238)
And then, yeah, exactly. And, and you sit down and you say, go hello. And you get met with, and he said, you got a show reel and already, you know, and I said, yes. And he said, you got an agent. And at the time I was in between agents, I had left my previous one and I hadn't signed on with a new one. And I said, well, no, not at the moment. He said, well, what that tells me about you, Ayvianna is that you're probably quite difficult to work.

Shay (32:34.413)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (32:51.558)
with, that's why none of the agents will work with you. And you're probably, you probably also lack commitment. You know, that's why you can't get an agent because you're not committed. And I thought I had literally sat down and I had said about, I'd said about three words. I'd said, hello, nice to meet you. And, and you've decided all this stuff. You've decided I lack commitment. I lack, difficult to work with. And I thought, I don't know, but yeah, you're just, you're, you're met with these.

Shay (33:03.214)
my god.

Ayvianna Snow (33:20.102)
these insane assumptions. Going back to accents, actually, I had another experience. I was in the waiting room before going into the actual room where the auditions were happening, and it was an RP accent. And the lady came out and said to me, it says here that you're Irish. Are you sure you can do RP? And I said, yes. And she said, it's a long show.

Shay (33:22.766)
Mm -hmm. Right off the bat.

Shay (33:33.678)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (33:49.862)
you know, it's over two hours, you know, you're not going to be able to keep it up for, you know, for two full hours. And I thought you've decided my level of ability. I'm not even in the room yet for the audition. I'm still in the waiting room, but you've already decided what I'm capable of. So I think, yeah, the difficulties with acting are those, like I've had those kinds of experiences where you come up against just a sort of, like a brick wall of people.

Shay (34:18.19)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (34:19.238)
They've already decided that you can't do an accent before they've even listened, or they've already decided you're difficult to work with based on, based on what? That I'm not with an agent at this moment in time. So, but you know, I, it's interesting, isn't it? I think it probably changes your...

Shay (34:30.702)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (34:41.03)
It's probably informed my character that you've been through so many sort of... I think I'm a different person now than I would have been if I'd had a different life. Well, that's obvious. Everyone would be different if they'd had a different life. Stupid thing to say, but...

Shay (34:48.27)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (34:53.518)
Yeah, but it's true. I mean, it's kind of develops this kind of shell that you're just like, now I'm like, whatever, I don't really care what you have to say. Either we're gonna work or not.

Ayvianna Snow (35:06.342)
Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's exactly it. I think I've. That, you know, you've said it, you when I meet a new director now, it's either they like me and we get along or we don't. And if we don't, I just cut my losses and I move on and I don't. I kind of I've stopped sort of trying to impress people, I think. I think they either they like me or they won't. And on the occasions when people have liked me, it's.

Shay (35:30.286)
Yeah. Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (35:36.134)
not really anything I did. Like I did a film a couple of months ago and I was drafted in quite last minute to replace somebody else who had dropped out. So it wasn't even meant to be me doing it. It was meant to be someone else. I was playing, it was a flashback scene and they wanted like the lead actor was, I don't know, maybe like in her fifties and they wanted a scene with her as a younger woman.

I'm always far too tall in these instances because the lead actress is always like five foot two and then she's inexplicably six foot in the flashback and then you think, I'm nearly six foot tall. So I know it's like she's sort of huge in the flashback and then she goes back to being like five foot two again. But yeah, and then the director very kindly wrote to me afterwards and offered me.

Shay (36:08.814)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (36:12.846)
How tall are you?

okay, yeah.

Ha ha ha ha.

Shay (36:23.374)
Hehehehe.

Ayvianna Snow (36:31.366)
another part in his next movie. And when I think back, I wasn't doing anything on that set to try to please him. I wasn't particularly trying to be, I wasn't in that, I hope he likes me. I was actually just, if anything, I was kind of just wanted to get on with it and get it done so I could go home. This is the way I am now. I'm like, right, where do you want me? Where do I stand? Right, okay. But that's...

Shay (36:51.022)
Yeah.

Shay (36:55.406)
-huh.

Ayvianna Snow (36:59.046)
Yeah, on the occasions when it works, you actually don't have to try to impress people.

Shay (37:05.102)
Yeah. What I've realized, especially after working at the agency, is when someone hires you, they have looked at your stuff. They know who, they see you, they want you. You have the job. Go just do it. Be done. You know, it's not, it does not need to be this big. I mean, you could be excited, obviously, but the whole thing that you were just speaking on, it doesn't need to be that. It's my job. I'm going to come in and do a damn good job.

Ayvianna Snow (37:20.966)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (37:31.238)
You know, I think I used to try too hard. I've realised looking back, I think, like when I went to that audition with that lady that told me I had too much lipstick on, like, you know, I had really, I'd made such a big effort. I'd done my hair and makeup and my best dress and I was really trying to please. And nowadays I roll in the door and I haven't done my hair and I haven't.

Shay (38:00.47)
You

Ayvianna Snow (38:00.71)
But actually I think I'm better than I was because I think actually people almost respond better when you're not trying so hard.

Shay (38:06.606)
Yeah.

Shay (38:17.806)
I think it's cause you know you, you are you, this is what you're bringing to the table and you know you're confident and exactly, exactly, exactly. you do a lot of like nude modeling. Is that something that brings out like that freedom or is it a different just outlet that you love to do? What is some, what is it about that? That.

Ayvianna Snow (38:20.87)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (38:25.67)
Yeah, and they'll either want me or they won't, and there's very little I can do about it.

Ayvianna Snow (38:36.614)
Yeah.

Shay (38:47.278)
is so lovely for you. For me, that's like the most terrifying thing I could ever, that or stand up, I would be scared. But some people love it.

Ayvianna Snow (39:03.75)
I mean, I think, so first of all, I would say that I think people, I don't feel exposed when I do it. And I think maybe people get that wrong about it. They think that I'm going to have to be really brave because I'm going to be totally exposed. I don't feel I've exposed anything. What have you learned about me from looking at that image? You've learned absolutely nothing about me from that image. I think what I think is exposing is writing. I think if...

I have a lot of admiration for people that write because I think that actually is exposing if you're the one who wrote it, the play or the script or whatever. I don't find acting exposing at all. I'm just, because I always have that, I can always say, well, I didn't write it, you know, these aren't my lines. And so, so I can always sort of pass the responsibility over to the person. Yeah.

Shay (39:41.486)
Yeah.

Shay (39:51.598)
I do the same thing. I'm like, what?

Shay (39:58.222)
Yeah. Do you think of that as the modeling then? Do you take that on as like a different character then?

Ayvianna Snow (40:06.086)
Shay (40:08.046)
Are you just like, this is freely who I am?

Ayvianna Snow (40:11.43)
I don't feel that much. I don't feel anything really when I do it. It's partly just a job. It's partly just I'm making money. I think...

Shay (40:20.462)
Okay.

Ayvianna Snow (40:29.67)
I went to Catholic girls school in Ireland, I went to convent school and I think...

And I was, how can I explain this? I think I was taught that you had to be a very good girl and I was a very good girl for a long time. And I think maybe it's a way of, I think I was taught that if you were kind of too sexy, then it sort of negated.

that you couldn't be both clever and also a sexual being, that you couldn't be responsible and respectable and also a sexual being, that the two things were kind of mutually exclusive. And as I've gotten older, I kind of rail against that idea. I think we, I don't know, we put women in these little boxes and you're only allowed to be...

Yeah, like, you know, like I've had people say to me, you can't be, you know, you can't have these responsible positions at equity and get up on a stage and talk about funding and be sort of a serious person. And then also at the same time, be a model because the two things negate each other. And I used to believe that when I was younger, but as I, as I've gotten older, I actually, I no longer, I don't think that's fair.

I think we don't do this to men. I think men have always been allowed to be, a man can have as many girlfriends as he wants and sleep around as much as he wants. And nobody ever suggests that it negates his work. How many women did Oliver Reed plow through and was very open about it? So I think it's...

Ayvianna Snow (42:15.462)
I think it's my way of kind of saying a bit of a bit of an F you to those people. You know, I'd like to think I should be allowed to be both that I can, you know, be an intelligent person at equity and be responsible and also be a sexual being or a, you know, a woman.

Shay (42:40.174)
100%. 100%. I think I've been... Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (42:43.174)
I still struggle with it, I don't, you know, I'm not as, maybe as confident as I make out, but I try.

Shay (42:52.238)
But you're doing it. You're doing it. You're doing it. That's the thing is you just, you can be afraid and fearful, but you're doing it. And it's wonderful. You do your best. That's all you can do. Everyone's just doing their best. You don't wake up and go, I think I'm going to do my worst today. You know? What are some of like the biggest hurdles you've had to overcome since?

Ayvianna Snow (43:01.446)
to you my best. Thank you.

Ayvianna Snow (43:10.79)
Yeah.

Shay (43:20.622)
being within this industry? Was it getting agents? Was it fighting against people like saying you're too tall? Was it, you know, what are some of the things that have had reoccurring?

Ayvianna Snow (43:35.558)
I think one, I mean, it feels like it's been nothing but hurdles really in many ways. As soon as you clear one, there's another one in front of you and you go, I mean, you spend your whole life being told you're, you know, that you're not suitable for various reasons. So, I mean, when I first arrived and I was straight off the boat, you were always too Irish for everything. and it's funny, it's now come full circle. So like last year I was.

Shay (43:41.678)
Mm -hmm. Yeah. Yeah.

Yes.

Ayvianna Snow (44:05.99)
I auditioned for something and they said, are you sure you can do an Irish accent? So, you know, you can't win no matter what voice you do, it's wrong, you know. And then, yeah, as you say, too tall is another one. I think I've just learned not to, I no longer take any of it very seriously because no matter what you do, it will be, someone will say it's wrong. Like,

Shay (44:14.958)
Yeah. Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (44:33.35)
When I was at school, one of the teachers told me at great length that I needed to change my hair colour because a blonde wouldn't be taken seriously. And you think, it's just endless. So I think...

Shay (44:41.486)
Goodness.

Ayvianna Snow (44:48.838)
You just have to not listen to any of it. I don't take any of it seriously. I've learned that you have to listen to your own voice and drown out the voices of everybody else and just keep doing it. I think probably money is the biggest impediment. There's very little money in the arts, certainly at my level. And that's probably the biggest...

Shay (44:52.654)
Yeah.

Shay (45:07.086)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (45:16.294)
reason that people sort of drop out is they can't afford to keep doing it. So I guess trying to find a source of income that enables you to continue doing this.

Shay (45:22.03)
Yeah, like.

Shay (45:31.086)
That's one of, I mean, if not the biggest hurdle, I would say. If you can tune out all those horrible negative voices, then you're like, okay, well, how is this a full -time thing we can sustain? What do you do during your lulls between acting jobs? Like, do you have another nine to five, or do you do, what do you do?

Ayvianna Snow (45:35.366)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (45:55.91)
Bits of everything, bits and pieces. As I said, I model, so I do a lot of modeling for photographers, also for like art groups, people like draw you. Yeah, bits of teaching here and there. I used to do this thing at Met Film School where they would bring in actors to work with the student directors. So you're kind of teaching them how to direct you. So that kind of thing.

Shay (45:57.71)
Yeah.

Shay (46:07.342)
yes, that's cool.

Shay (46:21.326)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (46:25.895)
I do some work with the University of Bedfordshire teaching their students. So just kind of, yeah, it's like, yeah, precisely clawing bits and pieces here and there to keep the show on the road. I understand it. I think why people give it up because it's a difficult existence, especially if you want to sort of have a family or you want, you know, it's...

Shay (46:32.11)
anything and everything. Yeah.

Shay (46:54.094)
stable income. Yeah, that's the dream for me now at this moment is just doing what I love and having a stable income with it. I think that's every actor's goal, but we'll get there. We'll get there. All right, let me plug in my computer and then I'm going to ask you some rapid fire questions.

Ayvianna Snow (46:55.462)
Mmm.

Ayvianna Snow (47:06.598)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (47:17.67)
I hope I can think quickly.

Shay (47:19.565)
for the love of God, I can't plug this in. One moment. Hold, please. All right.

Ayvianna Snow (47:28.55)
Has it not been plugged in this whole time?

Shay (47:30.638)
No, well, it's plugged in, but like my charger. I was like, my battery is going down.

Ayvianna Snow (47:38.342)
If you're like, this hasn't been recorded, I'll be like, my God.

Shay (47:41.486)
No, I would, if that were the case, I would just, I'd be like, I have to leave. We can't do this again. We can't. I'm leaving. Bye. All right. Rapid fire questions. You can go into as many details or explanations as you want. It's not that crazy, but who's the most famous person in your phone contact? Do you have any famous people?

Ayvianna Snow (47:45.478)
Just lie, just, yeah, just.

Ayvianna Snow (47:57.926)
Okay.

Ayvianna Snow (48:04.838)
I mean, I think the only celebrity I vaguely know is Terry Johnson. I don't know whether you know him. He's a playwright and a director. He was probably more famous sort of 20 years ago. He won a Tony and Olivier's and you know, he was, he certainly like, he was, well still is, you know, a big name. But he's older now and very cantankerous and curmudgeonly. Probably I shouldn't say that, but yeah.

Shay (48:19.95)
Mm -hmm. Yep.

Shay (48:33.774)
Sounds about right. Sounds about right. Wait, where am I? Have you ever stolen anything from a set you've been on?

Ayvianna Snow (48:42.726)
Yes, I've got, I have some cool costumes. So I've got, I did a video game with Devecky Studios a few years ago and I, well, they gave it to me. So I guess I didn't steal it, but I've got Millicent's, she wore a green ball gown in some of the scenes and they let me keep, yeah, I thought free ball gown. And I've got a red sort of leather cat suit from Dream Hackers, which was quite nice.

Shay (48:46.99)
Mmm.

Shay (48:59.982)
Ooh.

Yeah!

Shay (49:08.43)
oooo

Ayvianna Snow (49:10.886)
In terms of things I've actually stolen, I stole an award from Romford Film Festival.

Ayvianna Snow (49:20.486)
my goodness. The guy who directed, I think, Out and About. So it won Best Feature Film, I think, a year ago. And I was at the awards ceremony, the closing ceremony, and if you're not present, so he was American, and I think he won Best Director. If you're not present to collect your award because he was in America, they just, they have someone else come up and take it for you just for the sake of...

Shay (49:49.006)
Mm -hmm.

Ayvianna Snow (49:50.086)
So I took it as a kind of, I'll take it on his behalf and I've just, I never gave it back and I've still got it. So I've got the award for best director from, I know for the film I didn't direct. Yeah, but if genuinely, if he is watching, I will send you your award if you want it. I don't.

Shay (49:58.35)
Congratulations. Wow.

What a legend.

Shay (50:09.55)
Good to know. Good to know. But congrats. What's something people get wrong about you?

Ayvianna Snow (50:18.438)
Ayvianna Snow (50:22.118)
I think for a long time I was perceived as sort of very quiet and very sort of proper, which is not wrong. Like I am kind of, I can see why people have that idea. But I remember I was on set of, I think it was the seven, a couple of years ago, and they wanted one of the actresses to do a bit of nudity in one of the scenes. And there were four actresses and they asked the other three girls,

and they didn't even ask me because they had decided that, she would, there's no point even asking her. She wouldn't, don't even ask. And that kind of annoyed me because I thought the perception is that she's just, she's just brainy and she's not anything else. Like she's not a woman. She's just a clever person. And that kind of, it annoyed me that I wasn't also seen as one of the women.

Ayvianna Snow (51:19.11)
But I guess that's probably maybe changed now because I've done so much modeling.

Shay (51:24.59)
putting you in a box probably is just the thing that annoys you. I get it. What is your guilty pleasure TV show?

Ayvianna Snow (51:35.206)
I like the undatables on channel four. I think, I think people thought it was going to be exploitative when it first came out, but I've watched it and I actually don't, well, I don't find it exploitative. I thought it was actually quite beautiful and quite nice. It was about, people with disabilities looking for love. And I think, you know, why do they not have the same right to look for love as anybody else? and everybody deserves the opportunity to have a.

Shay (51:56.558)
R U T

Ayvianna Snow (52:04.966)
fulfilling relationship in their lives. So, yeah, so I like, I like watching that.

Shay (52:11.086)
Yeah, they have a, I think there's an American version now of it, but I can't remember what it's called. Love on the Spectrum, maybe, or something.

Ayvianna Snow (52:16.006)
Yeah. So again, I went down, yeah, yeah. And so I went down this rabbit hole after, cause I'd finished all the series of the Undateables and I went on Netflix and I found, as you say, there's like versions of it in every country. So I've also watched Down for Love, which is the kind of New Zealand version. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I've kind of, I've watched this show, but like in every country around the world with like just different people or with different accents, but kind of the same show. So,

Shay (52:21.726)
I'm going to go to bed.

Shay (52:25.422)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (52:30.638)
Yeah.

Shay (52:34.414)
I was gonna say Australian, so yeah.

Shay (52:43.758)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (52:45.158)
Yeah, no, I think it's actually, I find it really charming and, you know, I hope that it's not exploiting anyone.

Shay (52:52.91)
Yeah, that's a good one. I actually don't watch any of those. I've never, yeah, I've never been called to watch them. I might now, I might now. You've kind of convinced me.

Ayvianna Snow (53:02.438)
you find yourself getting kind of invested in it because some of the people, it's like the same people from the first series and maybe they had a relationship but it didn't work out and then they come back in the second series and they go on another date and you find yourself really kind of rooting for them and really wanting them to meet someone because they, come on, I hope this one works. And you get sort of, and then every now and then one of the couples gets engaged and you go, Yeah, so I don't know, I think it's.

Shay (53:06.126)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (53:17.55)
rooting for him.

come on! Yeah.

Shay (53:26.894)
Ha ha ha.

Ayvianna Snow (53:30.214)
It warms my cold, dead heart to see people finding me.

Shay (53:32.654)
Mood. What's your favorite thing about acting?

Ayvianna Snow (53:41.798)
I think when it's, when it's done well, which is not that often, I mean, I've sat through a lot of, a lot of shite, you know, and you do especially, you know, you sit through some awful things, but when on the, on the rare occasions when I've seen it and it's worked and it's been done well, it can be almost transcendental and magical. And, you know, I've sat, I've seen some productions of like,

Tom Stoppard works, which genuinely bordered on the divine. And it's worth it for those few moments. And sometimes you wander into it in the most random places. I wandered into a Fringe show happening in a church in King's Cross on a Sunday afternoon, just a random thing. I didn't even really know what it was. I just kind of sort of, what's this I'm watching? All right.

Shay (54:30.126)
Really?

Shay (54:35.502)
Kept going.

Ayvianna Snow (54:37.542)
And it was, it turned out to be a 20 minute one man show, but it was absolutely astoundingly good. And.

Shay (54:43.054)
Where in King's Cross was that? Like in the middle of that, that like big open?

Ayvianna Snow (54:46.95)
I don't think, again, I don't think it exists anymore, but for a few years there was a chapel and a guy I vaguely knew had started producing plays in the chapel. It was just these, you know, these random locations and it happened for like, I think it was around for like three years and then it stopped. It's very kind of ephemeral in its nature, but when you see like Hang Men by Martin McDonough, like that was excellent or the...

Shay (55:01.134)
Mm -hmm.

Shay (55:15.31)
Mm -hmm. Yes.

Ayvianna Snow (55:16.71)
Arcadia by Tom Starr. Like I've seen a few things that were astonishing. yeah. And it's, and I keep sort of just, I'm aware that I myself have done a lot of kind of mediocre films, but you know, but you kind of, you can't expect, you're not going to have a transcendental experience every week. but I keep going in the hopes that you'll one day.

Shay (55:24.718)
change your life.

Shay (55:33.934)
Hehehehe.

Ayvianna Snow (55:46.406)
have something that was genuinely good for a few moments. It doesn't last. But...

keeps me going.

Shay (55:58.702)
Yeah. Any regrets?

Ayvianna Snow (56:02.086)
No. There's no point.

Shay (56:03.31)
Yeah, no point. What's your star sign?

Ayvianna Snow (56:07.558)
Aries. What does that mean? I don't know what that means.

Shay (56:08.814)
Okay, okay.

I don't know. I mean, it's like, okay, it's like when people mention their Hogwarts houses. You're like, you're a Hufflepuff. I'm like,

Ayvianna Snow (56:24.006)
But like, what does, I don't know what Aries means in terms of like, does that say something about your personality?

Shay (56:29.614)
Yeah, well, for me, every like sign is like, unique and beautiful. And so like Aries is very, how do I explain it? You're the ram, right? So this you're very like a spring. I would I picture you like as a florally like fresh kind of person. That's like Aerie light. That's just what I think of.

Ayvianna Snow (56:58.662)
That sounds nice.

Shay (56:59.854)
It sounds nice, right? But then, yeah, because I'm a Scorpio, so I'm a bit harsh and people are like, so you're just sassy 24 -7. And it's like, well, yeah, but there's also other parts of me. Exactly. It's all encompassing, but it's just about when you were birthed, when you came into this planet. Favorite celebrity you've ever encountered?

Ayvianna Snow (57:11.494)
But you're very, you're nice and you're warm. So, you know, yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (57:29.382)
I don't think I've ever encountered a celebrity.

Shay (57:31.982)
That's a lie, I'm sure you have.

Ayvianna Snow (57:36.582)
You would think that I would have done, wouldn't you, given my life?

Shay (57:38.478)
Yeah. Yeah. Not even after the BAFTAs?

Ayvianna Snow (57:45.67)
No, but again, I think this is the perception people think it's going to be like, I'm also a member of the Groucho Club. And you know, you think you're going to walk in the door and it's going to be sort of wall to wall celebrities. And it's like 90, 96 % of the people in there as someone you've never heard of.

Shay (57:56.11)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (58:05.414)
I mean, I've probably worked with people that had some kind of standing. I'm working with Anne Mitchell. She's quite well known and she was lovely. I'll say, yeah, I'll say Anne Mitchell. She's a very nice woman.

Shay (58:16.206)
yeah!

Shay (58:20.462)
That's a good one. That's a good one. I'll take that. What's your favorite hobby?

Ayvianna Snow (58:31.078)
Hmm.

Shay (58:31.086)
Do you crochet? Do you read? Do you?

Ayvianna Snow (58:34.214)
I do read when I go to the theatre, although I never know whether that counts as a hobby because it's kind of also my sort of my work, but I guess it could be a hobby.

Shay (58:42.638)
Mm -hmm. It can be a hobby. I mean, absolutely. That's a full -time job going to shows. It's a lot. There's a lot. And especially being in London, there's just so much work to be seen. So it's hard. You can't see all of it. Finally, what songs do you have on replay lately? Or what's on your most recent, like, played songs?

Ayvianna Snow (58:48.902)
Yeah.

Ayvianna Snow (58:56.582)
Yeah, and you can't see all of it, but...

Ayvianna Snow (59:10.854)
I mean, I've listened to some of Taylor Swift's new album and I admire her. She's a great example of a feminist leader. I think she's fantastic. And yeah, I enjoyed the new album. Sounded good.

Shay (59:14.478)
how you like it.

Shay (59:26.51)
Mm -hmm. Yeah, I've never been like a Taylor Swift fan, but like when the songs come on, I'm jamming and I appreciate her talents, her, you know, the feminist work she's done for everybody else.

Ayvianna Snow (59:43.494)
Yeah. And I think she gets so much abuse in terms of like people talking about her boyfriends and stuff again, that we just, we simply don't do it to men. You know, when did men ever get abuse for having girlfriends? Never. so, yeah, I like to support her.

Shay (59:52.59)
Yes. Never.

Shay (01:00:00.366)
Yeah, absolutely. That's very, very true. Like, have you seen the recent, like, things about P. Diddy that are, you know, coming out and all those horrible things? And I'm like, I'm sure he's still going to be employed after this.

Ayvianna Snow (01:00:13.126)
Yeah, I mean, the double standard in terms of what men are allowed to do and still be employable. And Taylor can't even go on a date without being... Yeah, so...

Shay (01:00:24.878)
scrutinized. Yeah. Well, thank you so much for coming and chatting with me. I really appreciate it. I've loved listening to your knowledge. Like, you are kind of like a Yoda, it seems like. You're just a well of knowledge.

Ayvianna Snow (01:00:30.502)
Thank you.

Ayvianna Snow (01:00:37.95)
I'm sorry.

Thank you so much for speaking to me, it's very kind of you and I appreciate your time.

Shay (01:00:45.262)
Of course. I'm going to stop it real quick.


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