Author: Aubrey Arnason

Citius, Altius, Fortius. This is Latin for faster, higher, stronger. The Olympics showcase human beings daring to do the impossible while inspiring us all in the process – have you watch aerial skiing lately – wow. Watching the Olympics is an incredibly inspiring thing for people working towards their dreams whether in sports or in the arts. Perhaps I have such strong feeling for the Olympics because I truly understand the struggles of elite athletes. My father and brother both played in the NHL and I used to be a competitive figure skater. I know I have written on the subject…

I am sitting here staring at the page. I want to write something inspiring and insightful about being in the entertainment industry yet all that comes to mind is a voice yelling “tell anyone starting not to do it, you will have a life of constant chasing and longing and thinking the next thing just may be the thing!” I hate to be a ‘ Neg Bomb”, a term recently brought to my attention. It means a person who is so negative they are affecting everything and everyone around them However the cold hard facts are 99 percent of people’s…

Every year in December I dig out my favorite holiday blessing. It is a Jewish blessing that I first heard many years ago in a Barbara Deutsch workshop. Barbara Deutsch is an entertainment industry master and I suggest to everyone working with her and reading her book.  She will transform your entertainment industry career – I promise. The blessing she read stuck with me, and each December I read it to my family. My favorite line: “Stay grateful for the connections we value, for loved ones who witness our lives and give depth, breadth and perspective to the journey”…

Do you have a team? Do you let them do their job? I didn’t for a long time. I had a team; I just wouldn’t let anyone do their job. I had to have my hands in every aspect of a project – I have since learned. Some days it is very clear the direction we are heading in our entertainment careers.  We know the steps to take, the people to call and everything falls into place. Other days it is hard to tell which way is up – everything can feel like it is falling apart. I am learning…

As the co-host and producer of The Wedding Belles and The Proposal my life is a fantastic combination of matrimony and TV. I have attended numerous weddings, worked with and interviewed countless brides before and after the big day and I know of many audition stories. After taking one too many ladies through the Bridal Blues – and hearing about and experiencing one too many crappy auditions, I have discovered a correlation.  I will start with the brides.  Here is what they are forgetting: Brides, your wedding is not about you. That is right, it seems ironic however that feeling…

In the film industry career change happens– that is a fact. I for one must talk myself off the ledge, move away from hitting the panic button etc when things change. People always say “change is good” but let’s face it, it doesn’t always feel that way in the middle of it. There are two things I use when faced with sudden change be it a show’s cancelation, a play’s run ending or even personal life changes. The first is a quote from the movie The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Please read this with Dame Judi Dench’s perfect English accent.…

I’m a prairie girl. Growing up in Winnipeg, Canada I was raised listening to the country singing legends. Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and Mr. Kenny Rogers. One of my favorite inspirational acting lines is from the  Kenny Rogers classic “The Gambler”. I don’t think I’m alone when I admit there are times along the way of my performing career I would do what Barbara Deutsch has said never to do! I would compete and compare. Meaning I would look at someone else’s career and compare it to mine. What can then happen is a tendency towards pitying ones…

Being a factual/lifestyle television producer it is imperative I connect with companies and consistently work to understand branded entertainment. “Advertainment” is another great term for the concept. What is it? Watching television in the conventional manner is no longer popular; therefore advertisers are looking to integrate products into a TV series concept opposed to having commercial breaks.  Example – the Coca Cola cups sitting in front of each American Idol judge. Companies are also integrating their advertising into the format of numerous TV series. Recipes to Riches is a new competitive reality series where home cooks battle to have their…

Tonight I attended a fundraising event for http://www.projectlimelightsociety.org/ founded by Maureen Webb and Donalda Weaver. This event was held at http://eastofmaincafe.com/  and ALL of the proceeds of the evening went to Project Limelight a free theater program for the youth of Vancouver. Each Monday the restaurant hosts a panel of film industry professionals and the community comes out in full force. They event is so popular there are people gathered outside the door and lined up down the street to listen. It’s a wonderful example of the tight knit and supportive Vancouver Film community. The panelist this particular Monday were:…

The best and also most challenging thing about a career in film and television is that there is no map to follow. It’s hard to be sure one is moving in the right direction. For example  – becoming a lawyer: Degree- law school – write the Bar Exam – intern, work- become partner. Recently an acting friend of mine was faced with making a new list of  career goals . She called me and asked “ Where do I start?” It may seem obvious to some but I knew exactly what she meant. When she and I entered the industry…

“How would you like a job where, every time you make a mistake, a big red light goes on and 18,000 people boo?” —Jacques Plante (Legendary hockey player) At one point in my life I thought the above job sounded pretty good – then I had an epiphany. I was sitting in an entertainment industry workshop listening to the participants express their fears, worries and challenges. Everyone was panicked to succeed immediately or else they feared it would never happen for them– these discussions led me to an incredible realization. I discovered the reason that all of us within the…

So last week was my first ever trip to Las Vegas. That’s right folks, I’d never been! There for two nights to attend my cousin’s wedding the first night we went to see David Copperfield. Ironically, the illusionist reminded me of the power of truth. It doesn’t get more Vegas than David Copperfield’s show at the MGM Grand. His swagger, wind blown hair and piercingly spooky eyes let us know from the start that we were in for an experience not to be forgotten. With every single illusion he performed my mind would race, trying to figure out where the…

Being a Wedding Belle and not married myself, I have a unique perspective on the whole 70 billion—yep that’s right, a 70 billion dollar— wedding industry in North America. I have had so many opportunities to log the things I will and won’t do when the big day does come, and the one thing I thought I would never say is I will for sure have a theme wedding!! I used to believe that themes at weddings were tacky. I mean this is a wedding the most romantic and sophisticated day of your life, right? A time when you will…