Episode 291: Beatrice King mines experience with invisible illness for directorial debut

The YVR Screen Scene Podcast

Beatrice King is an experienced actress who has appeared in an array of critically acclaimed and fan favourite projects (X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Mortal Kombat Legacy, The 100, and Loudermilk) and a well-respected acting coach, working primarily with young people on projects for Universal, Disney, and Netflix. Beatrice recently added a new title to her already impressive filmography: director. Beatrice makes her directorial debut with You Are The Blue, an atmospheric and beautifully composed coming-of-age film she wrote about invisible illnesses and the mental health toll of keeping them secret.

You Are The Blue follows teenage dancer Kay, played with nuance and steely vulnerability by Eden Summer Gilmore (Family Law). Kay, like 313 million people on the planet, lives with an autoimmune disease – and she’s struggling: not just with the diagnosis, but also with grief and losing a sense of control over her life during a time that’s already hard for young people.

You Are The Blue premiered at the Edmonton International Film Festival, screened last month at the Vancouver Asian Film Festival, and screens this weekend at the 2023 Whistler Film Festival (where Eden was named one of the festival’s Stars to Watch). In this fascinating and emotional interview with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Beatrice talks about the real-life inspiration for her directorial debut, and the toll that keeping invisible illnesses a secret can have on a person’s mental health and sense of self.

Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA