Tanna Frederick

Some leave Iowa to pursue their dreams. While Tanna Frederick now has a California street address, she never really "left" Iowa. In fact, she actively cultivates her roots here and supports the state's production and talent base.

Frederick remembers how, as a young girl, she accompanied her father from her hometown of Mason City to Des Moines for a film workshop. It was a life-affecting trip. “I just sat there enthralled, taking notes on everything,” Frederick remembers.

On Saturday, May 19, Frederick will make another trip to Des Moines — this time by way of Hollywood — as a featured workshop presenter and keynote speaker during the 2012 Iowa Motion Picture Association Awards. Reserve your spot for the workshop and awards ceremony.

Frederick is turning heads as a powerfully talented actress. She continues to build on her impressive portfolio with performances in several Hollywood productions, including several projects with Henry Jaglom, including films such as Irene in Time and Queen of the Lot.

Success didn’t just happen. Frederick worked. She created it.

She knows when the journey began.

“I absolutely remember,” Frederick said. “I was sitting in First Act Children’s Theater in Mason City with my Girl Scout troop. I was seven years old at the time. We were there for a performance of Oliver Twist. I remember the experience with the whole theater, seeing the character of Artful Dodger come to life on stage. At that very moment, I knew exactly what I was meant to do.

The next year, Frederick joined the theater and won the lead part in Little Women. She continued practicing, rehearsing, learning and acting—oftentimes performing in several productions each year. “I did every role I possibly could,” Frederick said. “I was hungry to learn from all of the amazing teachers in the area, including people like Joel Everest. I’m fortunate that I was given that rich soil in Mason City to sprout.”

Frederick says the prime growing conditions continue. “I’ve been around and taken acting classes all over. The resources that we have in Iowa in terms of the people who teach the art of acting is beyond comprehension. You just can’t find what we have here in Iowa.”

Now Frederick is helping to continue that tradition with Project Cornlight — the effort she is spearheading to create high-level productions in Iowa — using Iowa talent in front of (and behind) the camera.

“Project Cornlight is a cue of Iowa films… written by Iowans for Iowans to star in,” Frederick said. “For them to be part of every step. It’s not a huge budget film already coming out to Iowa having already been cast and set. I didn’t want it to be like that, where Iowans were locked out of the process. I want Iowans to be the leads, the grips, the DPs and the writers.”

That vision is already coming to pass. “The Farm,” the first of the Project Cornlight films will be shot in the North Iowa town of Garner, and will be directed by Ron Vignone. “The Farm” is special for Frederick in other ways, as well. “I had a strong relationship with my grandfather growing up. This story follows that. It’s a movie about this bond between a woman and her grandfather and the choices that come into play as they contemplate him going to a nursing home. And the story will be shot on my grandfather’s farm, which means a lot to me.”

What else is in the works? You can visit with Frederick during the IMPA Awards yourself. In addition to her keynote address, she and Vignone will participate in an IMPA workshop/panel discussion earlier in the day on Saturday, May 19.

Watch for more details. And check the audience that day, too. You’ll likely spot the next generation of young people taking notes, as they dream of moving from the audience to take their own spot on some future stage.