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katie griffin |
| National Post Interview May 2 2003 |
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Her
affair with chaos "I can't remember anything I ever do," she says, when asked to outline her upcoming itinerary. For help, she might consult her publicity bio. There we learn she's appearing in The Safety of Objects, which stars Glenn Close, Dermot Mulroney and Joshua Jackson (pre-rehab). Then she'll be on the big screen again when Swindle, starring Tom Sizemore and former Kid in the Hall Dave Foley hits theatres. And, of course, there's her debut album -- the alternative rock/pop Kiss Me Chaos. "I'm pretty ambitious," the 29-year-old Scarborough woman concludes with some considerable understatement. After working the school play route through elementary and high school, she graduated to the commercial circuit. At the age of 18, about to begin studies at Ryerson University, she was offered a role in Up To Now with Christine Lahti. It would be indicative of great sacrifice and seriousness if we were to say that she turned down fame to pursue her education, but let's be honest, Ryerson never had a chance. And she probably made the right choice, Life's been an endless string of projects, roles and cameos ever since. "I don't see me slowing down. I like doing stuff," she says. "I want to have options. I just think the harder I work now it'll pay off in the long run, so that five years from now I'll be able to choose film roles or choose where I live." Back, then, to the résumé. Alongside fellow double threat Billy Ray Cyrus (he of long-ago Achy, Breaky Heart fame), she has a recurring role on the television series Doc. She played Stephen Baldwin's wife in the straight-to-video Protection. And she voices a character on the animated series Braceface, with Alicia Silverstone. But it all began with a role in her school's production of Oliver Twist in Grade 3. "I was about eight years old. That was the very first time I'd performed in front of a big group of people," Griffin says. "And it was the best thing that ever happened to me. For three years after that show I performed those songs for my family. They got so sick of me." Her mother, a teacher, was her biggest motivator -- but not one of those overeager showbiz moms, assures Griffin. "She's probably my biggest inspiration. She's a teacher, but she would have been a brilliant actress. And she sings. She's really important. I always call her first when there's something happening. When there's a song written I always want to hear her opinion. I'm a very family-oriented person." Recently, her mother has been treated to endless airings of songs from Kiss Me Chaos, Griffin's debut album, with a launch date of May 13. Two years ago, she picked up a guitar in hopes of channeling some songwriting ideas. A friend offered his recording studio and also introduced her to Michael Kulas, formerly of James, one of the British music scene's cult heroes of the '80s and early '90s. After four months in the studio with Kulas, Kiss Me Chaos was complete -- a collection of self-penned singer/songwriter fare, one track from Kulas and a gutsy cover of Echo & The Bunnymen's Killing Moon. "It's just me and the piano. It's a completely different feel to it," Griffin says of the song. "Everything about the music industry is really brand new to me. So at every turn I'm learning something for the first time," she says. "I did everything backward. I did the studio and the CD first, and now I'm going to go out and do the performing." A stop at Open Mike with Mike Bullard is scheduled for Tuesday, and a CD release party is booked for the Rivoli on May 16. Then she hopes to get some stage time on the Toronto concert circuit. Meanwhile, she's rehearsing and trying to find time for her other life as a reluctant enforcer on her women's hockey team. "It's just for fun, but I was in a little hockey fight. No it wasn't really a fight. Don't put that," she says. "We weren't playing against a nice team. And this girl was just such a bully and cross checked my sister from behind in the back of the neck after the whistle went. And we had words." So maybe Tie Domi has nothing to fear. But otherwise, Griffin's up for anything and everything, if she can only find the time. "I want to have a family," she replies to a query about her long-term goals. "I just really want babies. Not right now though. That would be crazy." © Copyright 2003 National Post
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