Celebrity Central

The Vampire Diaries' Sara Canning

Date: 16 Mar 2010

The Vampire Diaries’ Sara Canning

Written by Ellen Marie Hawkins, Relate Contributing Writer

(picture courtesy of lindsay@lanternpr.com)

If you are one of the 4.8 million people who watched the premiere of The Vampire Diaries or have grown to love the show over the last few months, then you already are familiar with Sara Canning’s character, Jenna. And if you haven’t been watching, read on anyway to find out about this actress who plays a college student who forced to face responsibility since becoming legal guardian of her niece and nephew Elena and Jeremy. This great actress is one of the reasons the show is such a success and she very well may be the reason you, too, become a fan of this great show!

Relate: What is it about your role as Jenna that you relate to the most? What is the one thing about her that you find most difficult to understand?

 Sara: I relate to Jenna because she is very young and shouldering some very heavy responsibility for the first time in her life. A few years ago, I moved out, attended school in a different Canadian province than my family’s home, and ventured into the film industry. It was tough at first, pursuing what I really wanted to do while still working at a restaurant and essentially growing up very quickly. I understand the thoughts and feelings Jenna is having, and the weight of the responsibility she now has. Jenna is becoming very efficient with micro-managing her life, which I learned to do while I was living in Vancouver.

Jenna’s had a lot of bad luck with guys in her life, which I actually can’t relate to. I’ve been lucky enough to avoid some of the types Jenna’s encountered and had relationships with in her past.

Relate: The Vampire Diaries was the biggest premiere the CW has had yet-how has that changed your life the most?

Sara: The really life-changing thing is actually having the privilege to be a series regular on a show that’s been so well received by its audience. It’s my first experience being a regular, and it’s been awesome having so much time to develop and get to know the role of Jenna, and really enjoy her story arcs.

R: What is it like working on the set of Vampire Diaries?

S: I love going to work! We shoot in such beautiful and bizarre locations in Georgia. The cast and crew have really become a family, so being on the set of The Vampire Diaries doesn’t feel like the type of job a person would want to take a vacation from.

R: What do you think has prepared you for your role as Jenna the most-your training as a skater, your experiences in Vancouver’s Film School, or your other acting roles so far? How so?

S: I learned a lot about the responsibility and discipline involved in working on a television series while attending Vancouver Film School. The program really focuses on preparing acting students for the realities of our industry. But I think people learn the most by actually doing; I’m so grateful for the different roles I’ve played over the past couple of years. They’ve all been so different, but I’ve had the privilege of playing numerous strong women. That’s really prepared me for what’s going on in Jenna’s life and the choices she has to make.

R: What acting role that you’ve had so far has taught you the most?

S: While the role of Jenna is so fun to play and a definite challenge, I’ve learned the most from my role as a nineteenth century Scottish homesteader in the film Black Field. The character, Maggie, was so complex, and had as many interesting flaws as strengths. Reading the script, her motivations were sometimes hard to understand, making for a very dynamic story. While developing her character and determining her arc in the film, I became very aware of the specificities needed in each scene. I learned a lot from that process!

Sara, like Jenna, is facing all those changes in her life head on and with a great attitude. Be sure to tune in to The Vampire Diaries on the CW!

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