Natalie Boll’s 18-plus-year career in film was inspired by a discovery she made in high school.
“I wasn’t the best actor,” she said with a laugh. But Boll, whose first production job was in lighting and set decoration while in secondary school, had a knack for curating talent and cultivating performances.
“What I used to do is just get all the actors that I knew together and do my scripts that I would write, or group together people and kind of make these small projects, and one of my instructors said to me: ‘Hey, you know, you’re really natural at producing.’”
Boll would go on to study film at Capilano University and theatre arts at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York.
She shed small projects for big ones, earning production management and producing credits on projects with Corus Entertainment, HGTV and Food Network Canada, to name a few, and has also worked as a director.
“It’s a nice experience to be on the more creative side,” said Boll, who produced and co-directed the documentary Meet Beau Dick: Maker of Monsters, which premiered in 2017. “I like entertainment, but I also like information,” she said “And I especially like it when you can do both.”
Boll combines both in her role as propriétaire of Vancouver’s award-winning Bauhaus Restaurant, which she opened in 2015 with her husband, German filmmaker and “extreme foodie” Uwe Boll.
“Owning a restaurant was completely new to us, but the chefs are very creative; they are artists,” said Boll. “You are co-ordinating so many artistic talents and so many people, although a film has an end, and the restaurant keeps going.”
If Boll has a third passion outside of film and food, it’s giving back.
“The restaurant is like opening your table up to the community, and so it’s really important to be involved in things,” said Boll, adding that Bauhaus has contributed more than $30,000 to charity in 2017. Among the organizations she supports: the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre, Canuck Place and Mealshare.
Kelowna
Where you live now:
Vancouver
Highest level of education:
Associate’s degree in film and television
Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari
Currently listening to:
Jango 2017 summer mix
When you were a kid, what you wanted to be when you grew up: I wanted to work in film. I just didn’t know all the positions at that time
Profession you would most like to try:
Politics
Toughest business or professional decision:
To continue to work after having kids
Advice you would give the younger you:
Be more careful on what you invested your money in. I started a lot of projects and wasted a lot of money on things that did not have the right elements to succeed
I have always been passionate about our environment and social justice. There is so much happening that I feel I must be more active in these areas outside of personal life and businesses. I am not sure exactly how I will become active but working on my role in it all now
Join us to celebrate the 2017 Forty Under 40 Awards January 23, 2018, at the Vancouver Convention Centre. For tickets and event info, visit: http://www.biv.com/events/40under40.
