The cast of Heartland is busy with more than just the show

While the cast of Heartland is very busy during the production season, making the show and there is always a ton to do during this time, many of them also work on other projects they are passionate about and somehow find the time to put in the extra work even while the show is being filmed.

As you may know, Amber Marshall gets involved with the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto each year. If you don't know about the fair, also called "The Royal", it's an agricultural fair that takes place in Toronto every November and, in addition to agriculture, also has quite a food scene and covers equestrian competitions from all over Canada. It's been around since 1922! And while Amber's participation is different this year due to the global pandemic, she still has a lot of involvement.  We got this message from Amber about how she's taking part in it this year:

"As many of you have seen on social media, I am taking part in the virtual Royal this year. I have been attending the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, Canada since I was a child, and have done live appearances there for well over a decade. Unfortunately, the doors had to stay closed this year for the event, but that didn't stop the Royal team from creatively finding ways to continue the show. They will hold the Royal virtually (for FREE) on their site and it will be available to anyone in the world with an Internet connection. All of the content will be on demand in the #VirtualRAWF's platform, it's pretty amazing! 

I'm excited to be doing a number of different segments including a Fireside Chat where I talk to The Royal Rodeo's Ross Millar about all things Rodeo, a virtual tour of my ranch and some behind the scenes on set, a cooking session of one of my favourite recipes in my kitchen and a fan Q/A! There really is something for everyone at this #VirtualRAWF, so I officially invite you to check it out."

Wow, Amber is BUSY. That said, she also talks about all of her projects on her social media accounts, particularly on Instagram, so be sure to follow her there if you aren't already.

Alisha Newton looks like she's having the time of her life based on her social media posts and she too has a lot going on outside of making Heartland. One of her current projects, called "Stargazed" is being funded through crowdfunding website Indiegogo.

Here's a short description from the site: "Tackling the current uncertainty of the world, our story follows high schoolers weighed down by the fear of the future losing themselves in a whirlpool of a graduation party to ignore their anxieties… also the world is ending."

Alisha is hitting close to home with this theme that fits right in with 2020 so far. You can find all of the details about her project here. 

In addition to Alisha Newton, you may also notice another name from Heartland on the cast list of this film project – Dempsey Bryk. You've definitely seen him as Wyatt on the series and he has been around since Season 10, episode 15, when he came on the scene as "Clay's cousin" in the official description for the episode on CBC Gem.  

Michelle Morgan also has some things going on and, in addition to being in front of the camera, I'm happy to report that she will also be doing work behind the camera this season.  Michelle is currently preparing to direct an episode of Heartland, and I'll share more about that in a future blog.  You may also remember, Michelle was a director on another Heartland-related side project, Hudson.  Have you seen it yet?

On top of this, Michelle makes room for her personal passions and is also working with "Gems for Gems", which is a Calgary based non-profit for victims of Domestic Violence. She did a talk at a recent virtual event called "Ignite" about how we can all "be the change" we want to see in the world. Take a peek at her Instagram account to follow this story and to see more about the projects she is passionate about.

Moving on to Graham Wardle, I want to mention one of his projects, called "The Time Has Come Podcast."  This is the show where Graham first announced his involvement with Heartland Season 14. And, as some of you know, on the show, he talks about ideas and issues that are important to him, his life and well-being and related stories.  You may also find an occasional Heartland cast member show up to talk with him, like oh, maybe Cindy Busby. Ok I guess she's not a current cast member, but I still love the occasional throwback to 'HOT ASH'. If you want to find out more about Graham and friends outside of the world of Heartland, Check out his podcast. 

I also want to give a shout-out to Shaun Johnston, who also has a number of things going on in addition to directly working on Heartland, one of which involves music.  Many of you know that Shaun is a talented musician and has often delighted us with his songs in the past. His newest project, called "The Book of Shaun - Story behind his Heartland music" is a deep dive into the ideas and stories behind the music he has created for the Heartland. For more details, check out his website.

That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed this look at some of the things the cast are working on outside of Heartland production and If you think I missed anything or anyone, let me know in the comments. Until next time...