Being attacked by dinosaurs or getting strangled by serpents is nothing new for Caleb Michaelson and Shauna Rappold.
Up-and-coming actors Rappold, University alumna, and Michaelson, Baton Rouge resident, will appear next month in the Sci-Fi Channel’s original movie “Warbirds,” filmed in St. Francisville.
“It is a good sci-fi film,” Rappold said. “It is about the banding together of forces. Everybody must work together to survive.”
Rappold said she is very anxious for the premiere of “Warbirds” because it is the first sci-fi movie she has acted in.
Michaelson, however, is no stranger to the sci-fi genre. Michaelson’s résumé includes several sci-fi flicks where his character is usually brutally killed.
“I love getting killed,” Michaelson said. “It’s fun, and you get to be creative.”
“Warbirds” is about the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots who are on a top-secret mission when their plane crash-lands on a tropical island. Pre-historic creatures, the pterydons, ransack the group. The stranded soldiers are then forced to side with the Japanese to fend off the native dinosaurs, Michaelson said.
“The island is filled with eggs that hatch and attack whenever they hear a noise,” Rappold said.
Michaelson plays World War II Sergeant John Lee, the war hero, love-interest character.
Rappold portrays Betsy Quigley, one of the WASPS who is unaware of the mission’s intent.
Transforming St. Francisville into a tropical island in the South Pacific did not take much work, Rappold said.
“St. Francisville is filled with trees, mud, water and all kinds of bugs,” she said. “Being able to film in a place like this made it real for the actors.”
Rappold and Michaelson work alongside “Charmed’s” Brian Krause, who plays Colonel Jack Toller in the film.
Rappold said it was amazing working with Krause.
“He was always there giving suggestions,” she said. “He is very down-to-earth.”
Unlike Rappold, who graduated this past May with a theatre degree, Michaelson did not originally intend to be an actor.
He signed with Troy University’s football team after graduating high school. But he was injured and soon thereafter transferred to Mississippi College and became interested in acting.
“I realized the dream of playing football just wasn’t going to happen, so I thought, ‘Why not give acting a shot?'” Michaelson said.
Michaelson signed with Open Range Management, a Baton Rouge based acting agency, in 2004.
“He was totally green,” said Brenda Netzberger, Michaelson’s agent from Open Range Management. “He had no experience whatsoever.”
Netzberger said Michaelson has come a long way since the day he walked into her office.
“He does all the things he needs to do as a professional,” she said. “He is always training and keeping his pictures updated, which are two of the most important things you can do in this business.”
An official premiere date has not yet been set, but the movie is expected to debut in March. For more information on “Warbirds,” visit scifi.com.
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Contact Drew Belle Zerby at [email protected]