When the movie "God's Here" began filming in Granbury last year, it spawned the potential beginning of a new acting career for one Aledo resident.
Lola Gianna plays the role of Krissy in the Billy McAdams, Jr. film that revolves around a personal tragedy endured by a family during the Christmas season.
Gianna, 21, has not taken a single acting class and has no formal training, but shined in her role as the rebellious teen whose poor and fateful decision altered the course of her life forever.
“Most aspiring actors and actresses find their way with some kind of formal training and benefit significantly from the structured learning environment of an acting school,” McAdams said. “Lola, however, relied on natural talent, real-world experience, and sheer determination to carve out an incredible performance in God's Here."
For Gianna, it was divine intervention.
“I landed the role for Krissy in the film 'God’s Here' by God's hand alone,” Gianna said.
Gianna had been volunteering at the Branch to Hope Community Center for about six months when the film began production and developed a strong friendship with one of the organization's founders, Mary Jean Bentley.
“She had reached out to me in September of 2023 to read the part of Krissy for the table read of 'God’s Here,' originally titled 'A Christmas Heart,'” Gianna said. “She thought I’d be great to read the part for Krissy for the rough read. Bill was a little unsure about it, given I had no acting experience, but after all, it was just for the table read.”
Following the read, Executive Producer Sharon K. Campbell, who also plays a court judge in the film, approached Gianna and said she would like to train her for the role if McAdams decided to cast her.
McAdams did not offer Gianna the role immediately but did allow for the training.
For the next two months, Campbell met with Gianna weekly and worked with her on things like set etiquette, how to read a script, how to embody a character using emotional recall, and most of all how to slow down when she was delivering her lines.
“It was a wonderful experience working with her,” Gianna said. “She taught me so well. Before officially landing the role, I met with Bill to go over the script one more time. I honestly had no idea he was gonna hand it to me, I thought he just wanted my perspective on the script and character.
"After running some lines with him, he said, 'Okay we’ll start filming in November.' I was like, 'What? You don't need me to audition?'. Bill says to me, 'That was your audition. You killed it.' And that was the beginning of my journey through 'God’s Here.'”
Gianna was born in Illinois, has lived in Alaska, California, Arkansas and Virginia and landed in Aledo eight years ago.
Her interest in acting was piqued by the popular Netflix show "Stranger Things."
“My 13-year-old self became so obsessed with the series,” Gianna said. “I was surfing the internet for casting calls. I even found the part for Max, but quickly gave up after reading the main requirement for the character was being able to ride a skateboard. Other than that, I never had much of an interest in acting. The most experience I had was from a required drama class I took in middle school, which did not require any acting, but I thought it was cool.”
She was excited about the role of Krissy, because there were a number of areas where she felt she could relate to her.
“Her attitude, sense of humor and rebellion really made me feel like I was playing a 16-year-old Lola at times,” Gianna said. “I was a tough kid for my parents. We moved states six times while I was growing up, so in a way I was able to relate to Krissy’s deep sense of loss.”
Gianna said that being chosen to play Krissy reaffirmed her faith in God, especially given the underlying message behind the film.
“Getting a lead role in a film meant a lot to me in the way that God was here with me and walked me right to the doorstep of all the events that have unfolded in my life during and since this experience,” Gianna said. “That He chose me to be a vessel to be a part of this story and help spread the message of forgiveness.”
Gianna has worked in the restaurant industry for the past few years and said when it comes to pursuing an acting career full-time, she has not yet decided.
“At first, I definitely approached the experience as a one-off sort of thing,” Gianna said. “But after going through it and seeing the results, I would love to do another movie, maybe even a TV series. It would be super cool to get a phone call from Dallas Jenkins (creator of 'The Chosen') one day. For now, I’m focusing on getting started in school, and possibly ministry.
“I recently started co-leading a girl's high school ministry group with Mary Jean. As far as acting, my producer Don Wontz took me to get my headshots taken, and we’ve currently got some things in the works.”
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