Miranda Tapsell on BLM: ‘The struggle hasn’t stopped’

Actor Miranda Tapsell opens up about finding the courage to voice her opinions and calls on non-Indigenous Australians to start taking action.

It’s the type of career that any actor would dream of. At just 24 years old, and after just three years in the competitive and cutthroat entertainment industry, Miranda Tapsell landed a role in the critically acclaimed 2012 film The Sapphires.

Suddenly, the proud Larrakia Tiwi woman, who describes herself as a “shy, short, brown girl from Darwin” was being asked to audition for a string of roles.

“Everything sort of came thick and fast, which is unusual for actors because most careers take time,” she recounts to Stellar of that period.

But she now adds that her fast trajectory, which saw her soon star in television series Love Child, Newton’s Law and Secret City, came at a cost.

“I did experience a sort of burnout,” she reveals.

“It’s not enough for you to just squirm in your chair. Say something.” (Picture: Steven Chee)

“My whole career is built on the fact that I said ‘yes’.” (Picture: Steven Chee)

“I obviously didn’t want to complain because there were lots of actors auditioning and not getting work. But, it also wasn’t like the ’90s anymore where you could do one show and suddenly buy a house. I was living in Sydney, so still had to do multiple jobs on the side.”

However, the now-33-year-old writer and star of Top End Wedding says the lessons she learnt in her 20s have changed the way she’s approached her career – and her life – now that she’s well into a fruitful new decade.

“My whole career is built on the fact that I said ‘yes’. I didn’t leave a stone unturned; I always took my shot. And you have to do that when you’re starting out. Being a young actor and wanting to prove myself, I had a tendency to sort of shut everything out, but I’ve learnt I need to draw some boundaries for myself,” she tells Stellar.

“The fight hasn’t stopped. The struggle hasn’t stopped. It continues.” (Picture: Steven Chee)

“When I was starting out, I felt that I didn’t have any power. I just sort of had to go along with what was happening. But now that I’m more established, now that I’ve been in the industry for a lot longer, I’m a lot more confident in being able to say, ‘OK, I can’t do that.’ I’m just being realistic with my time and my energy.”

She adds the pandemic has also helped affirm her priorities.

“I was so career driven, I spent my whole 20s building my identity around my work. I think it was important for me to remind myself that yes, I’m a good actor [and] I love being an actor, but I’m also an aunty. I’m also a daughter, a friend. Those roles are important, too.”

Tapsell is sharing her self-care journey as part of Medibank’s Live Better program, which aims to help people find the best ways to boost their wellbeing.

The campaign ambassador says that for her, snuggles with her cavoodle puppy or listening to the music of her parents’ era, from artists such as Bruce Springsteen and Tina Turner, is what helps lift her spirits. “It breaks me out of my spell a little bit. It helps stop the spiral,” she says.

Miranda Tapsell with her mother Barbara in May, just a few weeks before announcing that she herself is to become a mum this year. (Picture: Supplied)

Still, Tapsell is quick to stress that she’s certainly no Oprah. “I find self-care ongoing. I struggle to do it. I don’t want to be seen as selfish or conceited. It’s not a habit, to say the least,” she says.

Today marks the beginning of national NAIDOC (National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee) Week, and if there’s one thing that Tapsell always makes the time and energy to show up for, it’s advocating on behalf of Aboriginal rights. Her community of fellow actors, she says, provide ample inspiration to do so.

“The arts [circle] is so community minded. Everyone looks after one another. I think that really bolsters me. When I see other people advocate for themselves, I’m really inspired by that and go, ‘Well, I could really take a leaf out of their book,’” she says.

“I’m not saying I’ve completely achieved it – it’s still an ongoing process for me – but I’ve noticed that I’ve found the courage to be able to voice my opinions and my beliefs.”

Miranda Tapsell with her husband James Colley on their wedding day in 2018. (Picture: Supplied)

Despite the reckoning that came with last year’s global Black Lives Matter movement, Tapsell says she’s yet to see much change.

“I don’t feel like there’s any progress. The fight hasn’t stopped. The struggle hasn’t stopped. It continues,” she says.

“I’m looking forward to seeing all the conversation turned into action. I’m looking forward to more of my non-Indigenous allies turning up to protests or donating to Aboriginal causes. It’s about not waiting for people like myself to remind you to pull someone up when they’ve said something derogatory or violent to someone who is Aboriginal or anyone from a marginalised racial background.

“It’s not enough for you to just squirm in your chair. Say something.”

It’s these life learnings that the Logie winner will take into her next role: as a mum. In May, the actor revealed that she and her husband, comedy writer James Colley, will be welcoming their first child later in the year.

Miranda Tapsell stars on the cover of this Sunday’s Stellar.

She tells Stellar that it’s important their child is taught about their Aboriginal heritage and, whether they like it or not, they will have to love the Penrith Panthers!

As to what’s next for her professionally, Tapsell is very excited to play Zoe the thorny devil lizard in Back To The Outback, out this year on Netflix. As for the rest of her life, she’s embracing its unpredictability.

“I’ve dealt with so much uncertainty. You think you’re going to get the role, but you don’t. Or you don’t think you’re going to get the role, and you do,” she says.

“I guess that’s taught me how to embrace uncertainty. I’m good with uncertainty.”

This feature was produced in partnership with Medibank.

Originally published as Miranda Tapsell on BLM: ‘The struggle hasn’t stopped’