For someone who loves novels and reading as much as I do, I’ve only recently gotten into audiobooks and audio dramas. Perhaps I was a stickler for needing a physical book in my hands, but there’s a convenience to being able to listen to a story while driving or doing your chores. Audible has been one of the leaders in the industry for audiobooks, with a one-stop shop for any title you can imagine. They’ve also branched out into original programming, such as Impact Winter from Travis Beacham (Pacific Rim) and executive producers of The Walking Dead. I recently sat down with actress Christina Chong (La’an Noonien-Singh in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds) about her role of Kexian in Impact Winter season 3!
In this interview, listen to Chong discuss what drew her to Impact Winter and how her mysterious new character factors into the larger mythos of this Audible original. Chong discusses how recording an audio drama differs from acting on screen, how she gets into character, and the challenges and rewards she experienced with recording her first audio drama. Also, find out just how she would fare if she lived in the world of Impact Winter! Check out the interview below!
The Interview with Impact Winter’s Christina Chong
[Editor’s note: The transcript of this interview appearing below have been lightly edited for clarity. Listen to the full audio of the interview below or find Cosmic Cafe, our interview podcast, most places podcasts are available.]
Brian Kitson: I got to check out this project [Impact Winter] a little bit over the past couple of days, just the first two seasons, obviously, as the new season comes out very soon. I was wondering if you could tell me a little bit about the project and what drew you to it.
Christina Chong: So I was contacted directly and offered the role. I had no… to be honest with you, I didn’t know original audio dramas were a thing. I had no idea, and I loved audiobooks as a kid, like I would go to sleep to them, the one that sticks in my brain is The Enchanted Wood, that over and over again that would get me to sleep. So when I was contacted by Impact Winter, I jumped at the chance because it’s something I loved as a kid listening to… I mean, I know this isn’t necessarily a children’s audio drama, but I thought, oh my gosh, what an exciting medium to try!
I’ve never done anything like this before, and the fact that it was about vampires, and I haven’t…well, I have done a little something with vampires, but I love doing fantasy and sci-fi, as you can probably tell by my CV, and I just jumped at it. Especially when I knew my friend was a part of the project as well, Andrew Gower. I’ve known him since 2010. We were in a show together. We did our first regular roles in a British TV show. So when I knew he was a part of it, that made it even more exciting. I also knew Sacha [Dhawan] and met Caroline [Ford] before. So it just felt like a hard “Yes, of course, when can I come and record?” Um, yeah, so there was really, it was just a no-brainer for me.
BK: That’s awesome. And you’re actually one of the newer characters this season. So, can you tell us a little bit about her and how she factors into the series for season three?
Christina Chong: So Kexian, she is part of the council. She’s one of the siblings, but she’s an outsider. She’s an explorer. She’s traveled the world a lot, and what she’s seen and experienced on her travels, which I can’t reveal right now, has made her step away from the family. But when she does ultimately return, and when we do meet her, it’s very evident there’s a huge secret, and whether we find that out in this series or not, we don’t know. But she’s extremely mysterious.
You, kind of, don’t know what side to put her on. Is she a goodie? Is she a baddie? And yeah, she ultimately ends up being a huge part of the story. Towards the end of the season.
BK: It’s really exciting. I’m excited to see you in this role. You have done so many incredible shows. You know, at our outlet, we’re fans of Strange New Worlds, Black Mirror. I’m a big, huge Doctor Who fan. In fact, I’m rewatching, and just watched your episode not that long ago. So you said this is your first audio drama. How does this really differ for you as an actor, compared to being on-screen?
Christina Chong: Well, number one, it’s so much easier and more fun in a way because you could rock up in your pajamas if you wanted to. I mean, I didn’t, but you could, and there’s no makeup. There’s processing time, obviously there’s rehearsal needed and prep, similar to screen, but it’s just less pressure, which is great. And I had never done anything like this before, as I mentioned, so I was kind of going on instinct. I didn’t really know what I was doing. I just got into the booth, and it was, it was very, very helpful, having all the actors in the same room, apart from Holliday [Grainger] who was on a zoom. But we had her face up on the screen.
To be honest, part of me was winging it, I mean, and because you just get so immersed in it. And I was just very trusting of Travis [Beacham], our director, creator, of just knowing when to kind of guide me and how to direct me. And he absolutely did. And so I just kind of just went for it. Didn’t know what I was doing. And, apparently, yeah, kind of just was guided. And I pulled it off to some degree. I hope. I’m sure you guys will let me know.
BK: I’m sure you did a fantastic job.
Christina Chong: But yeah, so it was, it was very different, less pressure and also just things like, what they call it, waller; and it’s things that you obviously wouldn’t need to think about when on screen, sitting down, the energy of sitting down or standing up, or running or walking, or walking, walk and talk. I’m just doing it on screen, but with an audio drama, you have to bring the energy of the movement into your voice. So that’s something I hadn’t done before and found very interesting.
And yeah, I just had an amazing time in that room. But you still do get the feelings and the energy that you would acting with an actor on set in the recording studios. You still feel. And that surprised me because I thought, Oh, I’m just kind of reading, and I’m not looking directly because I didn’t learn the lines of book. I had a good knowledge of the dialog, but I had learned it like I would for Strange New Worlds, for example. So I wasn’t always looking at the actors. So I didn’t think necessarily that I would have the same level of emotional connection, but I definitely did.
BK: That’s awesome! What did you do to get into character then?
Christina Chong: As you said, this is kind of a different experience. You’re not quite as immersed in like costume and makeup and stuff. So, for me, I prep my scripts the same way as I would. I do all the inner work, and I personalize who Kexian is to me, things she’s been through, what have I been through that’s similar. I prep it all the same way. Just don’t learn the lines of the book and so in the moment, very similar to set, I allow the energy to flow through me, and I allow Kexian to come through me and see what happens in that moment. And scene by scene, I was finding her. So it happened slowly. I think we’d had a conversation with Travis. Travis and I before had a deep conversation about it, and from what he’d given me and from what I listened to from the previous seasons, I kind of just organically felt where to pitch Kexian in relation to all the other characters. So yeah, it was more of an instinctual thing.
BK: I love that. I guess it’s the same as, you’re an actor. You’re always becoming your character. And it’s still true. So for our final question, then I was wondering, with this being this dystopian world, with vampires and stuff like that, how would you as a person fare in this world?
Christina Chong: I’d hope pretty well. I think I probably need some more survival skills, like core survival skills, like learning how to make a fire, for example. I’m not sure how to do that, like without or a lighter, but I used to do parkour, so that could come in handy when getting away or trying to get over obstacles, physical or otherwise. And I’m quite good at fighting, protection, of me and others, so I reckon I’d be pretty good. I might need to do a course first on how to forage for food, find food, how to make a shelter.
BK: But hey, you’d be, you’d be the strength.
Christina Chong: Yeah, exactly. I definitely have something to give to the team.
Catch this horror audio drama on Audible
That’s it for my exclusive interview with Christina Chong! Impact Winter season 3 begins streaming today, exclusively on Audible, along with the first 2 seasons! Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus if you intend to check out this newest season!
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