PRINCETON Attending the premiere for “The Liberator” over the summer with her family was a dream come true for budding actress Kaitlyn Archambeault, one of the stars of the movie that was filmed locally and beyond.
The 16-year-old lifelong town resident said she was cast as Elizabeth in “The Liberator” when a friend of her mom’s heard of a casting call for someone who could play the violin, one of Elizabeth’s many talents. She decided to give it a shot and landed the role.
She did not end up playing the instrument in the movie, which tells the story of Irish champion Daniel O’Connell leading a peaceful rebellion against English tyranny that ends 300 years of exile from Parliament. But Kaitlyn said overall the movie was an “amazing experience” to be part of.
“Everyone was so fun to work with, and this was a bigger role that I played,” she said. “There were so many shots in different places, with different costumes. It was just incredible and made me want to extend my acting career.”
One fun fact about her experience with the film is that she had braces on when they were filming, and since the time period was the 1800s and they didn’t have braces then, she couldn’t show her teeth.
Kaitlyn, who is in her junior year of high school as an honors student, formerly attended school in Sterling and is now homeschooled. She said she caught the acting bug three years ago when she was an extra for the television show “Defending Jacob.”
“I’ve loved it ever since, even though I’ve really only had small roles, no speaking parts,” she said.
Her acting resume lists her experience along with qualities including “enthusiastic, energetic and driven,” and notes that she has appeared in several local independent films. In addition, she has experience with costume and makeup, improvisation and filming on location, has participated in local theater plays, and has taken acting, dance and improv classes.
Her favorite role to date was in the locally produced and filmed thriller series “KINDer,” which was shot on location in Sterling, Princeton, and other places in the region.
“I play a sort of demon ghost creature from around the 18th century,” Kaitlyn said of her role in “KINDer,” which used a lot of local youth as extras. “The movie was an incredible experience, and I met so many wonderful people. My fellow actors and everyone behind the scenes were so incredible to work with and so, so nice, and I had so much fun playing my role.”
One of the things she enjoyed the most from that experience was getting her makeup done, which took about an hour. “KINDer” is currently in post-production, and creator and town native Adam Morey said chapter 1 of the series will debut on Amazon Prime on March 1.
As for Kaitlyn, she said she hopes to be in more movies and snag some larger roles with speaking parts. Although has not done anything acting-wise since last summer because her family has been traveling a lot and she has been more focused on competitive swimming — a sport at which she excels — she hopes to add to her resume.
“I lean on my family, friends, and teammates for support,” Kaitlyn said of her village. “They have been there for me and always will, and I am forever grateful for that.”
