Windsor Park’s Tusa wins acting award

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/04/2017 (3294 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A budding starlet is on the rise, recently adding a Hollywood award to her dazzling list of achievements.

Cassandra Tusa was sitting in Alex Theater on March 17 in Glendale, Calif., for the 38th Annual Young Artist Awards, Hollywood’s longest-running awards show. She was amazed when she heard her name announced as the award winner for Best New Media Performance – Teen Actress for her role in a three-part mini-series called Jenny & Jeff.

“I couldn’t believe it. I never actually expected to win,” said 17-year-old Tusa in an email. “It is a really nice solid trophy that I am really proud of. I was among some really great talent in Hollywood.”

Filmed locally in Winnipeg in 2015 and released last April, Jenny & Jeff has already won 15 awards, with Tusa bringing home four of them. More award nominations are racking up for the romantic comedy — and for Tusa, who was also at Universal Studios Hollywood on March 19 for another nomination, this time for a Young Entertainer Award. Although she didn’t win that one, the second award show added to the excitement of her Los Angeles experience.

“I am just really overwhelmed with the response to my acting and the entire project of Jenny & Jeff,” said Tusa, a Grade 12 student at Churchill High School.

“I never imagined people would love it so much. It’s exciting to see Winnipeg getting recognized everywhere like this. We had a great time filming this project.”

The Winnipeg cast and crew filmed at local sites that include Chocolatier Constance Popp and Amici’s restaurant.

For Tusa, a Windsor Park resident, acting has always been an activity she’s enjoyed. As she grew up, she would put on shows for her family and was involved in theatre at school. She eventually found out about Winnipeg’s film industry during a trip to Hollywood with her mom, Karen, who produced Jenny & Jeff.

Now as Tusa prepares to graduate from high school, she aspires to continue acting if opportunities come her way.

“I like creating a character and becoming the character, and it’s fun yet hard work,” she said.

 
“The biggest challenge is not enough roles to audition for in my age category, but I do self-tape auditions out of province frequently.”

She has her fingers crossed as she waits to find out if she gets any calls back from her recent auditions.

Meanwhile, Tusa has plenty to look forward to since Jenny & Jeff has earned nominations at the MICs International Awards Gala for Youth in Calgary and the L.A. Webfest in California, where it will be screened later this month as an official selection.

Facebook.com/TheLanceWPG
Twitter: @LanceWPG