Kelowna talent agency ‘overwhelmed’ by interest from thousands of Okanagan actors

The Okanagan may just be the next up-and-coming hot spot for film production, according to a local talent agent.

Industry veteran and national talent agent Carla Brown has teamed up with local talent manager, Brenda Connell, to form the new BookIT Talent Agency based in Kelowna.

Brown said she likes to refer to the Okanagan as the "Hub of Hollywood North," and that this summer will be full of productions filming in the valley.

After putting out an audition call last week, they were overwhelmed with thousands of requests from local actors.

"We're overwhelmed by the volume of response to our auditions; it’s so exciting to see the wide range of talent," Brown said in a press release.

"We will make sure the Okanagan Valley is ready for the film and television industry to explode."

Due to the large response, the auditions held this past weekend at the Film Factory in downtown Kelowna were extended from two to four days.

More than 2,500 local hopefuls vied for a chance to show their talent, and BookIt plans to hold future auditions to accommodate for all the interest.

"We're already working on a second audition in the next couple of weeks," she said. "There is just too much talent here to not give everyone a chance to show us their stuff."

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