Talking with Kym Jackson from ‘We Bury The Dead’

In this of Talking With focuses on Australian actress Kym Jackson, who appears alongside Daisy Ridley, Mark Coles Smith and Brenton Thwaites in the newly released survival horror thriller ‘We Bury The Dead.’

The post-apocalyptic story kicks-off after a catastrophic military disaster when Ava (Ridley) joins a body retrieval team in a quarantine zone led by Lieutenant Wilkie (Jackson). While searching for her missing husband, Ava uncovers the horrifying truth: the undead are growing more violent, more relentless, and more dangerous with every passing hour.

Kym has been a busy actress for some time now, working on over the world in numerous film and television projects. Her credits include shows such as ‘This Is Us,’ ‘S.W.A.T.,’ and ‘N.C.I.S.’; and feature films like ‘Snitch’ with Dwayne Johnson and Susan Sarandon, and ‘Cardboard Boxer’ with Thomas Haden Church and Terrence Howard.

Coming soon, Kym will appear in ‘Born To Lose’ opposite Dylan Arnold, ‘Pellet’ with Lindsay Wagner, ‘All My Friends Are Back in Brisbane,’ and alongside Luke Ford in ‘Other You.’

To learn more, we are Talking With Kym Jackson:

Who is Lieutenant Wilkie in ‘We Bury The Dead’?

Kym Jackson: Wilkie runs one of the Aussie platoons overseeing the body removal mission in Tasmania. She is strong, no-nonsense, and very angry with the USA for causing the disaster. She takes those feelings out on the American volunteer, Ava (Daisy’s character).

As an actor, what helped you the most in bringing her to life?

Kym Jackson: I think the most helpful element was the backstory Zak and I gave Wilkie as a woman sitting firmly in her masculine; silently and deeply grieving the loss of her own partner in the catastrophe.

What was it like working with Daily Ridley and Brenton Thwaites?

Kym Jackson: Working with Daisy was a treat. She’s an incredibly generous and talented performer and I was floored to see her crying in other scenes while she was off camera - that’s not common for a film lead working opposite a supporting character. She’s a lovely person with a lot of energy and a great deal of depth.

I didn’t have any scenes interacting with Brenton (just one speech where he’s in the audience), but the first time I saw him, he looked so freaking cool… he was just leaning back on a chair at base camp with one foot on another chair, playing his guitar. He’s super chill and really open and friendly. At one point his four adorable kids and stunning wife visited the set, which was an absolute highlight.

Was the film as intense in-between takes as it appears on-screen?

Kym Jackson: My scenes involved large groups of people and most folks on set were just excited and having fun between takes. The main serious point for my days was ensuring the military movements and speech were accurate. We discussed those elements with the stunt team and even got tips from some military folks who were working as background actors.

It’s a tight film community in Western Australia. Many of the supporting cast and crew knew each other so there were a lot of hugs and catch ups. There were also lovely non-industry locals in Albany who came in to do background work..

Off set, there were plenty of dinners and catch ups with the cast and crew. I also went on an epic day trip with three of the other cast members to visit all the beaches. Some of the most beautiful, pristine, untouched coastline in the world - so remote we were the only tourists!

Do you have a favorite moment from the movie?

Kym Jackson: There are tons of impactful and profound scenes… and so many scary ones!

I think my favorite is the Dad with his family at the RV. There’s something so human and heartbreaking about that scene. It gets me every time.

What do you hope moviegoers will take away from the film?

Kym Jackson: I think there’s something beautiful in life about giving up the need to be in control. The need to have closure. Life just happens and there’s nothing we can do about so much of it. The film shows examples of that theme in many moments and there’s something unexpectedly freeing about the idea.

Where do you start when preparing for a role; and does that change depending on the genre?

Kym Jackson: I read the script and learn the lines and as I’m learning the lines, the character kind of comes to life for me. I work through their backstory and who they are, what they want, and what their values and morals are, then research or create technical things like how they move, etc.

Once I have the words and the character, that’s kind of it. I’m not super intellectual about ‘choices’ for each moment because that often feels restrictive. I do show up with ideas, but the loose plans are always flexible and always shift based on the actors I’m working with.

That way I get to show up on set and just play. That’s the fun part.

The only time the genre impacts the prep is when it’s comedy. For comedy, I do heaps of script analysis and coaching for the timing and to get the best out of each moment.

You seem to work all over the world; what’s that like?

Kym Jackson: I do and it’s so cool. I’m literally in Tijuana for the film “Wildcard” as I’m writing this and about to head back to Melbourne, Australia for another one, ‘Olivia’. The travel element is one of my favorite parts of the job - I love being on location, finding a new film family and getting to see new places around the world.

As a caveat to that, however, now that I have a four-year-old, I don’t want to be away from him for more than a week or two at a time. He just spent three weeks with me and his Dad on a film called ‘The Cryptid’ in West Virginia which was amazing. Having him on location is the best cuz I can hang with him on my days off. He’s so much fun and I don’t want to miss a thing!

You’ve got a few other films coming up; what can you share about those?

Kym Jackson: Ooh yes, and they’re all so cool: the first is ‘Born To Lose’ - a beautiful story about the son of the head of a biker gang (played by the ever phenomenal Dylan Arnold) trying to come to terms with who he is in the world while surrounded by what appear to be wholly toxic adults.

I’m one of the toxic adults - I get to play a cougar, which was unexpectedly fun. It’s premiering at Cinequest and Raindance this March and June respectively.

Also out this year is ‘Pellett’ - a fascinating period piece about a man trying to find his grandfather's killer decades after the crime. I got to be a quirky, over-talkative waitress in the diner where he was in the last scene - it’s wonderfully snappy dialogue and it was a really fun role.

There are also two Aussie films I played support lead roles in: One is the sci-fi ‘Other You’ - about a man who swaps bodies with a version of himself from another universe. The other is ‘All My Friends are Back in Brisbane’, which is a wonderfully written character piece about a woman returning home to finally find herself.

Anything else you want to leave us with?

Kym Jackson: I hope you enjoy 'We Bury The Dead'!

One small plug for my business: I also run a company called Secret Actor Society and would love to invite anyone interested in becoming a working actor in films & TV series to join our community. We introduce our members to casting directors each month on Zoom and have career strategy group coaching sessions several times a month.

We are at: https://secretactor.com

Thank you so much for inviting me to come and chat :)

Keep up with Kym Jackson on Instagram @thekymjackson