Miranda Millar is no stranger to the screen, so when I got the chance to meet with her and chat over her new film, Perfect, I knew I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. I sat down with this gorgeous Canadian starlet over coffee this week to hear about her newest dance with cinema.. It is easy to love Miranda, she’s effervescent and charming and remarkably easy to talk to, so it felt completely natural to dive right into her life in the world of stage and screen.
Of you have watched any renown Canadian television, you have certainly seen Millar, she has appeared in the well-loved series Murdoch Mysteries, and feature length Christmas Incorporated. Millar herself has been acting since the age of the three. Performance, as it would seem, is in her blood. For over 20 years, her actor/writer/director parents have managed It’s A Mystery To Me, a theatre company they established themselves. But let’s not get caught up in her past, her present is equally exciting.
Miranda’s newest short, currently making it’s way around the festival circuit is called Perfect, in which she plays twins, Maxine and Margo. Teen sisters who have been vigorously groomed by their strict mother to be a perfectly in sync vaudevillian-style violin duo. While Margot harbors feelings for their tutor, Maxine develops a need for independence. This pulls them ever-farther apart, and the path they were raised to follow.
This highly-stylized, black and white short has a deliciously satisfying air of hyperbolic melodrama, while still creating empathetic characters. Developed through the CFC, this piece makes several nods to classic film tropes of the noir era, the silent film era, and, from this reporters’ eye has a shade of Wes Anderson in it.
For Millar’s part, she adored her role. Having studied violin in her youth, she felt a relatability with her characters. “the trouble you would get in breaking a violin…” she recounts with a shudder, when the talk turns to a similar cinematic moment. She also remarks on how much fun Perfect was to be a part of, although she was juggling that show along with several other cinematic engagements at the time.
What was the hardest part about it the piece? (A question I always have to ask!) “Getting off book with the music” Millar replies, although you cannot tell that from watching her flawless violin performances. “And the technically challenging parts” she adds, as she played twins both violin parts were her, as well as all close ups, (although there was a body double for specific scenes, like the film’s beautiful final image.)
Millar will no doubt soon be a household name, as her work continues to grow. You can catch her on IRL (In Real Life) which has just been picked up by Bell Media. To keep your eye on this bright Canadian talent, find her socials below!
Twitter- @miranda_millar
