ELEVEN SIX WOMEN | ANNA WOOD

Photography by Sara Fox | @sarafoxphoto

 

Anna wears the Camila Sweater + Lea Skirt in Claret

 

Can you share your background and what led you to pursue a career in acting? 

 
I’m one of those gals- I've been acting as far back as I can remember. I grew up in a small town in western NC. I loved to perform and capitalized on every chance to do so. My schedule was FILLED to the brim with community theatre, piano, singing, every single kind of dance ever invented... all of it. I just always loved it. I don't have a profound or more thoughtful answer, it's just been in my heart since i was a child. I used to tell my parents play practice started an hour earlier than it did so that I could sneak into the theatre, sit on the stage, and just BE.

 

What are some of the highlights of your career so far and why? 

 
Every single job has been meaningful. Ive gained something from each one.

The first job I ever got - five lines in a scene that got cut. But someone believed in me for the first time! (Royal Pains). The first time I had a sex scene and I had to just.. go for it. Maybe it's weird, but I gained so much bravery from that experience. (Thanks Don Cheadle! - House of Lies). The first time someone let me carry the weight of their show on my back. I worked my ass off and loved every second. (Dana Stevens, Reckless). The first time I did a movie (thank you Ed Burns!). The first time I worked after becoming mother, where I worked with the staggering elegant Dana Delany and met some of my dearest friends. (The Code). The show that gave me permission to feel sexy and weird and brave (Falling Water). The first time I played a mother, and felt the most seen I'd ever felt. (Love you, Shaun Cassidy - Unbroken).

Every job is a highlight. I grow from them all. And I try and bring one friend along for the ride from each project. And if you've worked with me, you know that ideally every single person on every single set would be best friends forever if it were up to me. :)

 

Anna wears the Charly Cardi, Isa Tank, and Tilly Boy Short  

 

 

 

The SAG -AFTRA actors strike must have been a very challenging time for you and fellow actors in the industry. Do you think that impactful progress was made and can you speak to the other areas that need to continue to be fought for? 

 
The television and film industry is still reeling from the months and years worth of work we lost to the pandemic and then the writers and actors union strikes. It ended approximately a year ago, and the industry is still only operating at 30% capacity of what it traditionally produces. It's actually a very heartbreaking time. People who have built a life from a career in this industry - mortgages, marriages, children - taking on side hustles to make it through this unprecedented dry spell. I’m talking not only about actors (of which, no exaggeration, I think I know two or three that currently have a job), but CREW. Wardrobe, makeup, hair, grips, lighting, transpo, catering, etc. The list goes on. On any given television production there are hundreds of people working each day. Now most of those folks are scrambling to get back to a more steady workload. It's been a wild several years. I am unreasonably optimistic, so I am really looking forward to a more steady, competitive, exciting 2025 for all of us. 

 

The life of an actor is often seen as glamorous but there is always another side to the story – what are some real-deal realities to being in the industry?

 
Gig work is always a bit of a square peg in a round hole when it comes to work/ life balance. When you become parents, it's a lot harder to pack a suitcase and move to Vancouver on a whim. So navigating those logistics is always a challenge. But exciting!  The glamour that we associate with acting isn't really the job at all. It's usually the celebration of the job. The job is 3am call times, 2 hours of hair and make up, getting roughed up doing stunts, working for 16, 18 hours five days in a row. But every actor I know prefers those long, hard days to the more glamorous moments. That's the good stuff. We like to roll up our sleeves and get down to the knitty gritty.

 

Anna wears the Mae Sweater styled with her own pant

 

With you and your husbands acting careers and two small children how do you manage to juggle and balance it all?

 
It's a case by case basis. We have a pretty good day to day system when it comes to meetings, auditions, phone calls. The hustle side of the job. When it comes to travel, conflicting schedules, parenting solo for long stretches, or attempting to still be a present parent from the other side of the world, that's just something we navigate as it comes. You can’t really anticipate the very specific challenges you may face as two actor parents with little ones, so I've found I don’t try. Your girl has anxiety, so I manage it by trying to stay present here and now. And when we have the gift of work that makes our lovely life more complicated, we chart those waters as a team. Also, we prioritize our kids. Always. Having a mutual priority helps clarify the best path forward.

 

With Actor parents do you see signs of budding actors coming down the pipeline with your children and what is their perception of your jobs?

Our kids are proud of us and they think it's very cool that we are actors. But their perspective on actors, fame, celebrity... is actually lovely and so sweet. They have some very famous people in their lives, and it's kind of a gift (for everyone involved) that they are introduced as simply people first. The magnitude of their celebrity isn't on these kids radars just yet. I think that's very healthy.

One child has a magnificent and expansive imagination. The other has a relentless need to make people laugh. Both can be signs of a budding interest in acting. But who knows! We aren't rushing to conclusions and would no sooner direct them toward acting than we would accounting. We can’t wait for them to discover what they're into and let us know on their own terms!

 

Do you have any exciting projects coming up that you can share? 

Nope! LOL. I’m an open book, and I'm very willing to share that I feel these pandemic lulls and strikes very hard in my own career. I also feel the still present negative perception of aging that the entertainment industry continues to lag behind on. Maybe it's the therapy, maybe it's the way i was raised (thanks mom and dad!), maybe it's the incessant optimism, but the dry spell hasn't shaken my self-worth. I’ve got my head down, working toward my goals and dreams as I have since I was a child, and I'm so excited for the next gig. I've never had an acting job I didn't love.

 

Anna wears the Lydia Dress

 

 

What brought you and your family to the Hudson Valley and what do you love about life here?

I grew up in the mountains of NC. I have always felt at home where I can see the stars and hear the frogs. When we were newly married, I encouraged my husband to consider thinking of an upstate home that we could enjoy forever. But I didn't want to just be here "for the kids". I still was a kid in my heart and wanted to be here for myself, before kids were even part of the picture. Luckily, my husband was on board and we've been here for going on 12 years. 

I love the stars, the peace, the flora and fauna. The long stretches of just trees. And in recent years, the community of young families and artists I’ve made. Our budding culinary and shopping scenes! I love a small town feel and the sense of serenity. It's pretty magical here - and how about those northern lights the other night?!  

 

What was your favorite red-carpet moment and what dress were you wearing?

Impossible to pick. A lot of my red-carpet moments are me plus one-ing to celebrate on of my husband’s projects. I love it. I'm obsessed with him and have been for approximately 21 years. But some that come to mind - my first international MASSIVE red carpet to celebrate The Amazing Spider-Man 2. It was in London. It was absolute madness. In the best way. I think it may have been the first time I ever thought I looked like a grown up. I don’t know who made it, but I was wearing a black pantsuit thingy. Tres chic. Styled by Erin Walsh.

 

 

Another that comes to mind was in Berlin at the Berlinale Film Festival. I did my own hair and makeup and wore a black Prada gown. 

 

 

A third that comes to mind was entirely self-styled, dress by Prada. I was in Berlin for the premiere of one of Dane's films, and I was pregnant with my first kiddo. We are just so cute in these pics, so of the last of us as just a family of two.

 

 

What book/movie/series have you recently read/watched that moved you?

 
I really liked BEEF. It was sexy, stylized, beautifully written, acted, and directed. But something I ALWAYS notice in a show or film is the music supervision. I'm a music junkie and the way music can edit the perception of a film is fascinating to me. If I can find a way to contact the music dept of a film, I've been know to ask them questions about their process and choices. They are the unsung heroes of a project, y’all. I have my favorite music supervisors. Shout out Tiffany Anders and DeVoe Yates.

Also BEEF absolutely killed it with wardrobe (Helen Huang) and lighting (Larkin Seiple - DP, Grace Yun - Production Design). Insane.

The book Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin had me in absolute mourning when I finished it.

 

Anna wears the Tia Sweater & Pia Tube Skirt Knit-Set in Pale Grey Melange. 

 

Do you have a daily mantra?

I’ve never really articulated it, but I try and practice wonderment and gratitude like AT ALL TIMES. I woke up! GREAT! My knees work! GREAT! The leaves are changing! HOLY SHIT! My kids are healthy! How lucky am I?! One of my favorite tattoos (I have ten) says very simply "lucky you". (Shout out to my go to tattoo artist, Rosa Perr aka Bluestone Babe). It's on my dominant hand so I see it often throughout the day. I will never ever ever let myself not be grateful for the absolutely outrageous amount of luck I have in this life. Adversely, it's my biggest pet peeve when people aren't able to have the same perspective for themselves. It's so so critical to marvel at the wild and wonderful way the stars aligned for us!

 

 Anna wears the Ava Sweater in Taffy Pink styled with her own pant.

 

 

 

 

What does the ELEVEN SIX brand mean to you and which are your favorite pieces from the Fall collection?

I loved ELEVEN SIX before I realized it was local! The fact that I also run into the designer at my local coffee shop?! Incredible. I try to be conscious with how I spend my money. I'm going to get cozy clothes regardless. If I can find a way to do so locally, ethically, and in an elevated way?! Yes please. 

I am a seasonal depression queen and lux knits, baked goods, playing piano, and Pilates are the only ways I know how to combat it. I had the roughest nights sleep the other evening, but I woke up and slapped on some mascara and the beautiful Taffy Pink Ava Sweater from this year's fall collection and it made an instant difference. It's the comfiness of an ancient beloved sweatshirt, the put togetherness of a tailored blazer, and the color of my dreams. I guess at this point it's pretty obvious what my favorite piece this year is...