Brisbane born actress Julia Billington has just landed a major role in the new independent Aussie feature The Trouble with E. The film is in pre-production and starts shooting on November 18th.
In 2006 Julia left Brisbane to study at NIDA the prestigious drama school based in Sydney. Since then she has lived in almost 10 different places but remembers her childhood in the suburb of Indooroopilly. “My childhood was largely spent running around in bare feet, playing street cricket, riding bikes down to the local park, and climbing trees.”
Julia has always had a natural disposition for performing. At the age of 6 she would sit her bemused Maths Teacher parents down to watch poetry enactments, with Roald Dahl’s “Dirty Beasts” being a personal favourite. As she got older her passion grew. She took every opportunity to be involved in acting.
At age 14 she distinctly remembers a conversation with Stephen Matthias, her high school drama teacher, who she believes played a large role in shaping her adult life. “He drew me aside after the closing night production of “Dags” in which I played the lead girl and in response to my disappointment that yet another production was over, he gently said, “Well, why don’t you do this as a career?””
The promising young actress already has some impressive credits to her name. She received rave reviews for her portrayal of Rachel Corrie in the show “My Name is Rachel Corrie”. Billington is the sole performer in the 90-minute one-woman show documenting the tragically short life of the young the peace activist. The project resonated strongly with Julia and “was made even more magical by it being performed at La Boite, back in my home town, Brisvegas.”
In Sydney earlier this year she played the lead in the revival of, “Top Girls”, Carol Churchill’s classic play about Thatcher’s Britain. She has just finished a successful stint at the Brisbane Festival with the phenomenally successful “CUT SNAKE”, which is now in its fifth season and has a sixth already booked. She devised the theatre project with director Paige Rattray.
Julia will now be playing the role of country girl, Trish, in independent Australian feature film The Trouble with E. Trish is the love interest of the leading character, E, and Julia says of the character, “she is strong, full of conviction, humour, and also vulnerable. It’s a beautiful cocktail to play.”
This role could be Julia’s big break. One thing is for sure. Her drama teacher, Mr Matthias, will be cheering her the whole way.