Celina Martin laughs when she’s asked if she could have imagined being where she is right now: waiting for the new series she stars in to premiere on television.
“No way,” she says emphatically. “If you told me a year ago I’d be on the show right now, I’d just laugh at you.”
Martin is a 22-year-old Burnaby resident and Douglas College grad who’s one of the stars of the new Family Channel show The Other Kingdom. The show is a teen-based fantasy comedy that follows Astral (played by Esther Zynn), a fairy princess from the enchanted land of Athenia, into the world of the mortals as a high school student.
Martin appears as Morgan, a quirky high school outcast and “fairy nerd” who befriends the newcomer.
It’s all been rather unexpected for Martin – who, as it happens, never auditioned live for her part. She first sent in a tape to Toronto, then got a call for a callback. At the time, she was in Asia, so she did her callback via Skype. Then the show wanted a “chemistry test” – to see how Morgan would jell with the other stars – and Martin couldn’t get to Toronto, so again, she tested via Skype.
She was in Thailand when she found out, at four o’clock in the morning, that she’d landed the part.
“I just started dancing right there in the airport,” she says with a laugh.
Before she knew it, she was off to Toronto for four months of filming. She admits it wasn’t easy – it was her first time away from home, and living on her own in the big city was a big leap from life with her family in Burnaby.
“It was really scary because I never lived on my own,” she says. “It was the love from the cast and crew that made me feel at home.”
She’s excited to be back home, she says, but even more thrilled that she gets a chance to share the results of all her hard work with her family and friends – and with people right across the country.
“For the world to see something you’ve been working on for four months, it’s amazing,” she says. “I’m so excited for the viewers to see the magic, the love. … Viewers are just going to fall in love with the series.”
Martin admits it’s been a surprise to a lot of people to find out she’s in the show. Though people knew she loved acting – she’s been interested in it since her years at Byrne Creek Secondary School, when she took drama classes and took part in high school productions – they had no idea she was intending to make a career of it.
“It was actually just a shock for everyone,” she says. “No one knew I was pursuing an acting career professionally.”
Martin is the first to admit acting is a tough business, but she’s happy to keep doing what she’s doing: taking acting classes and workshops, learning all she can about her craft, and continuing to get out there and audition to see what work comes her way.
She’s thrilled with the support she’s received from her family and friends and with how excited everyone has been for her.
“That really makes my heart melt. It makes me so happy,” she says.
And, with a chance to sit down and watch the premiere with her family on Friday night, Martin couldn’t ask for more.
“I just pinch myself,” she says. “It’s really a dream come true.”
The Other Kingdom debuts with two back-to-back episodes on Family Channel on Friday, April 22 starting at 6 p.m. Check out www.family.ca for more about the show.
