Behind the Breakout: Kate Lister

Don't let Kate Lister's glossy appearance fool you. The Melbourne-born actor isn't afraid of – or any stranger to – putting in the hard yards when it comes to her craft.

After landing the lead role in the 2019 series SeaChange, Kate hit her stride with back-to-back bookings in The Heights (2020), Clickbait (2021), and the feature film Slant (2022), opposite Aussie icon Sigrid Thornton. At no point, however, has she been handed her wins on a silver platter.

Here we talk to Kate about dance auditions, the perks (and pitfalls) of being a late starter, and life married to a fellow actor.

You entered the entertainment industry from the dance and music side. Do you remember what initially incited the shift to acting?
Kate Lister: The segues have been really clear for me – from dancing to singing to DJing. While I was DJing, I was still doing some dancing work, which sent me into castings for commercials. I'd go into a casting, and the dancing side of it would be fine, but then they'd want you to say a line, and I was really awkward at that. So I thought, "Maybe I should just do a little short [acting] course". I did, and it was really challenging. I was like, "Ah, this is actually quite hard. Maybe I should put some time into this".

So I started investing more time in courses. I started getting better. Then I booked a little bit on Neighbours, and then I was like, "Right, I really need to do some work on this".

I started looking at full-time courses [Kate trained at the Atlantic Theatre Company in New York], and that's when I fell in love.

You're known for your insane work ethic. Can you talk to us about this?
KL: I came to acting later. A lot of females my age had already been doing it for quite some time and had credits under their belt. So I think my dancer's mentality – which was like "If you're not the hardest working person in the room, you're probably not going to get the job" – kind of came through into acting. I just knew I had to work ten times harder. That was the only thing that I had control over.

I started creating my own scenes and characters that my agent could send if specific roles came in. Then she had the content to be like, "Look, we have something similar to this, she can do it". I was lucky enough to book an ABC show – just for a couple of episodes – and from that, we just kept pushing.

It's all about momentum. The biggest fight is to get some sort of momentum. Before that, you just feel helpless. So the work ethic was, again, the only thing I had control over.

We champion Ambitious-Ass Goals at the Dojo. What's your relation to goal setting?
KL: The last six months have been different because I'm dealing with this whole new change in my life [Kate gave birth to her first child a few weeks after speaking to us], so I've given myself the okay to chill out a bit.

But my husband and I do the same kind of thing every single day: we get up, we write our list of goals, we meditate, and we visualise how we see our life – artistically as well as what we see for our child or our home environment.

For quite some time, I was a bit of a sicko and had a wall of quotes, inspiring stuff, directors that I wanted to work with, production companies that I really liked... And it was crazy watching some of those things come true.

My husband and I were both doing a show in Perth a few years ago, and I had Netflix on my side of the wall. He didn't have it on his. But then he booked the lead in a Netflix show, and I was like, "Dude, you're stealing my thing! That's on my wall!" And then I landed a little role in that too. We both just had it in our world – in our space – and kept looking at it. I believe that if you project it out there and picture yourself there, why not? Why can't it be us?

#truthbomb. How would you describe your audition process these days?
KL: For me, I go straight to looking at what's on the page, and then I learn the lines first. My biggest thing is that I want to feel comfortable knowing what I'm saying to then build the character around that. But this is not the same for everyone – my husband usually builds the character and then learns the lines.

I then try to find what type of program or film it is because – especially in the US – they're very specific. Is it a multi-cam? Is it a sitcom? Is it a grounded comedy? Is it a drama? That helps you get an overall idea of what they're looking for.

And then the character comes in. I try to find the difference that I bring to the party that not many other actors do. I've got this weird, quirky, oddball kind of thing that I love and lean into. And that's just my thing. I feel like everyone has their thing.

How did you uncover this brilliant "thing" of yours?
KL: I only seem to get character actors. I never get the leading lady or the pretty girl next door. I always get the quirky one doing something weird on the side.

I booked SeaChange which had a comedy twist to it, and that worked and I loved doing it. My US manager was like, "This is your vibe. I think this is how we pitch you". She kept on that, and then we started getting more auditions for those types of characters.

I do think it helps to know what your strength is. Absolutely try to do everything, but if you know your strong suit, then you can really push for those. Those auditions will suit you better, and you'll look better in them. Then casting directors pay attention. Then they start trying other roles on you. Then they start to trust you more.

The more specific you are in what your strength is, the easier it is to sell.

Rejection and setbacks are obviously part of the actor's path. How have you been able to navigate these and remain sane?
KL: The pain I used to get from knockbacks or close calls used to be pretty horrific. I'd go into – and this sounds really dramatic and it shouldn't be this – but years ago, it felt like I went into some sort of mourning. I struggled for days and it kind of messed me up.

Now, it can hurt for 10 minutes and then I'm like, "I'm pressing on". I feel like the opportunities come in so quickly and go so quickly. So headspace-wise, I try and shift the energy onto the next thing. It doesn't seem to sting as much, although it does sting.

I cry if I need to. I don't try and be strong. I'll give myself that window. I think it's good to get it out and then move on as fast as you can.

If time travel was a thing, would you course-correct your younger self at all, or would you let things play out as they did?
KL: I love this question because I'm kind of half and half.

I would've loved to have started earlier. I think that it would've helped so much if I was younger and had more experience. But I think going into it at the point that I did, I was mature and knew I wanted to put everything into it. I think I was taken more seriously because I was going for it and there was no fluffing around.

So I think I would just let it unfold the way that it has. I've had some awesome jobs. I've also made really good friendships. I met my husband. I'm actually extremely lucky that it's unfolded the way it has.

As you've mentioned, your husband is also an actor. Have you had any conversations about maintaining a happy work life and home life?
KL: We talk a lot about where we want to be, what we want to do, how we want to set our lives up. Our whole picture feels very similar. A lot of it is about art, but we're both very clear that we want to have a whole lifestyle, not focus just on acting.

I'm really lucky that he's also super driven. But we both go through our stages as well. Right now, he's killing it. He's doing so well. And my journey right next to him is that I lay on the bed a lot more. I'm doing a different thing.

It can be hard being two actors together because one can be killing it, and the other can be working their ass off and not getting as far. But with us, we both have so much faith in each other that it doesn't matter about the result. I think he's the most incredible artist. He can direct, he can act, he can edit... He's just so creative. And I know, even though I'm not booking as consistently as him, he watches me work in the room, and he's like, "I don't get why [you didn't book]".

We have this crazy love and respect for what we're both doing and it just seeps into our world.

Big love to Kate for her time. You can follow Kate's journey over on Instagram. Wave hello and let her know you're from the Dojo 👋

Thoughts / feedback / challenges for us? We'd genuinely love to hear.