Southlander gets real in contest for New Blood

Creating a plot for a television series with her friends, while waiting on acting jobs, may earn a former Southlander a chance to win $100,000 to create it.

Auckland-based actor Tessa Livingston, 25, is part of a four person team vying for the top spot in the New Blood competition, which will see film teams compete for the money to create a series that would air on TVNZ OnDemand.

Livingston and her team were selected out of 750 applicants, along with four other teams, and were given $5000 to make a pilot.

Their pilot for their show, named Constance, is available to view on TVNZ OnDemand, where public voting will also take place to find the winner.

The show is based on two South Island farming families, one of which had just lost their daughter, and filming took place in Wanaka.

Livingston said her character in the show was friends with Constance and ‘‘may or may not’’ know something.

Livingston, who attended Blue Mountain College in Tapanui, went on to study acting at The Actors Program.

After finishing at the school, Livingston and her friends decided they should write something to keep busy while looking for work.

The show’s pilot wasn’t initially written for the competition, but when it came up they decided they had to enter.

The four creators, Fiona Armstrong, Travis Graham, Henry Rolleston and Livingston, all have strong connections to the South Island.

Livingston thought her team worked well together throughout the process.

‘‘We aren’t scared to suggest ideas to each other. No idea is a crap idea, it’s just a stepping stone.’’

The show had a sense of ‘‘gritty realism’’.

‘‘We want to see real people having real moments.’’