When I spoke to Kiah Clingman last year, she was less focused on acting and more focused on her production company, KiahCan Productions. Since then, she’s worked as a producer on projects like the short film “Thomasville,” and David Fortune’s movie “Color Book,” which screened at this year’s Atlanta Film Festival.
Now, a year later, Clingman is trying her hand at acting again. She stars as Kristin, the mysterious sister of Ozzie (Kyle Bary), a former child star accused of killing his girlfriend, Wendy (Rumer Willis). The season finale of “Reasonable Doubt” airs Nov. 13 on Hulu.
Ahead of the season finale, I caught up with Clingman again about her work on the show and how her producing work has evolved since we last spoke. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Before hopping into the show, were you a fan of “Reasonable Doubt?” What was your relationship with the show beforehand?
Kiah Clingman: Yes, I was definitely a fan before I found out I was cast. Never, in my wildest dreams, did I think that I could be on one of my favorite shows. Even more so, my family are die hard fans of the show, especially my mom and my cousin. We have a group chat where they’re texting me all the time – texting me their theories, asking me if I’m the one who killed Wendy – but then also, wait, don’t tell us, we want to watch! [They’re] putting together these elaborate theories about what happened.
It feels really good, because I’ve been on other shows where my family, they didn’t necessarily watch the show, so they weren’t as engaged. This has been just really different, getting their comments and their enthusiasm every week about the show.
That must be really fun. I’m sure it’s hard to keep spoilers to yourself.
Clingman: I thought it would be harder. It’s not as hard as I thought. I didn’t even know what was going to happen when I first got cast. I had no idea how my character was going to evolve, because we don’t get the scripts up front. We get the scripts week to week – like, days before we actually shoot. So I didn’t know how Episode 10 ended when I was shooting Episode Eight or Episode Nine.
And then the edit is so different. Since I’m a filmmaker, I know how that works, too. The editing process is kind of where the magic really happens, and they take away scenes, or they reorder scenes. So I’m experiencing it in real time too, seeing how everything unfolds. I’m noticing certain things got cut or moved around, and it changes how you perceive each character. That’s been really cool for me.
So you’ve still got some surprises coming your way.
Clingman: A lot of them, yeah. And then I’m only on set for my scenes, for the most part. So I’m getting to watch my co-workers’ scenes, and how they work, and seeing their beautiful performances. It’s been really fun.
You’re also a filmmaker, and the last time we spoke it was mostly about your production company, and how you’d been more focused on producing and filmmaking than acting. You’ve had some success this year with “Thomasville,” and I remember you talking about “Color Book” last time. I read that this acting opportunity came through an overlap with the casting directors?
Clingman: I always tell people, without “Color Book” – which I’m still on that journey, because we’re still seeking distribution right now – but without “Color Book,” I can say probably with 100 percent certainty that I would not have landed “Reasonable Doubt.” The casting director that I hired to cast “Color Book,” she is the casting director for “Reasonable Doubt.” So I was top of mind for her. But also, in order to audition for the show, you have to have representation in the Southeast, which I did not have. So there’s no way that she would have even seen my materials to consider me for the role. But, because I had built this personal relationship with her and her team for two and a half years, they thought of me. They knew me as a person. They knew I wore glasses, and they knew that’s what Kristin did. They had more access. They knew the whole script – they had all 10 scripts, I believe – so they were able to look at that character and be like, oh – I think Kiah will be great for this.
Along those same lines, we talked last time about how you had taken a little bit of a break from acting. What drew you back? Was it the character, or the show? What was it like making that transition back to acting?
Clingman: Which is wild – I talked to you a year ago, and I was like, I’m taking a break from acting!
You were like, I’m done!
Clingman: I know! That’s what I believed! I was like, it’s not coming back to me easily. I think I should just call it quits. I was finding a lot more traction with filmmaking and producing. I remembered how I hated the rejection of putting yourself on tape for 120 auditions a year and maybe booking one, and never getting feedback. I was just really tired of that cycle.
But I think that my experience as a filmmaker, as a producer, helped shed light on the behind the scenes a little more and gave me perspective on, when I do an audition, I shouldn’t take it personal if I don’t get the role. Because there are a thousand factors that influence why another person got the role, and it has nothing to do with your talent or your hard work, or anything. There is a lot of politics in Hollywood. A producer could have this other person in mind that they already have an offer out to, but I sent in a tape, but then the other person said yes before the casting director even watched my tape. It’s just a thousand things that happen, and it happened with me on “Color Book” as the producer.
After I got to see that, I’m like, okay – I can go into acting now with a fresh perspective and not take things as personal and have fun doing the audition and not have these crazy expectations, or feel this desperation that I used to feel. Like, I have to book this, and if I don’t book it, I’m not going to be able to pay my rent this month. Instead of just having fun doing it, and if it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t, I think not relying on acting to be my main source of income is what really changed things for me.
It probably takes a lot of the pressure off.
Clingman: It definitely takes the pressure off. I think that’s what happened when I auditioned too. I was in Cleveland for “Thomasville” and “Color Book.” I was at the Cleveland International Film Festival when I got the audition request … I initially was going to say no, because I hadn’t taped in so long. I felt very, very rusty, and I didn’t know where to tape – I was in a hotel room. I was like, I don’t have a place to tape, I don’t have a ring light or anything. I almost said no, but I ended up meeting up with this filmmaker at the festival. She was an actress and a director, her name is Madison Hatfield. She said, hey – I have a ring light, and I bring all my taping stuff everywhere I go, so you can just come to my hotel and tape. I was like, okay – I have no excuse! In my tape, you can see the side of the bed, because we didn’t have a lot of room.
I was like, okay, this was just some practice. I’m probably not going to book this. But a week later, everything was finalized, and I became the showrunner’s and the producers’ only choice that they sent up to Hulu to get approval. It was crazy.
You’re coming into the third season of a show, where there’s already existing relationships built up. What’s it been like integrating yourself into the cast and finding your place?
Clingman: I was really nervous about that, because you’re right – third season of any show, it’s already a machine. I was nervous that I would be walking into something and people would just have their own way of doing things, or expect me to just conform and jump in and just know what I’m doing. And again, I haven’t been on a SAG set in four years, at this point. I’m just like, okay, I’m here! I’m very nervous. I’ve not done this in a long time.
But when I tell you, from the first step – it sounds cliche, but really – from the first step onto the trailer lot, everyone was so nice, so welcoming. It was almost overwhelming. I remember a PA was taking me from my trailer to rehearsal, to do my first scene in Episode Two, where I have one line. Tim Jo, who plays Daniel, came out and was like, oh my gosh! I’ve been waiting to meet you! I was like, how does he even know who I am? I’m sure they showed him my headshot or something – this is going to be your love interest. He was like, I can’t wait to work with you! Are you going to be on the Zoom table read later? I can’t wait to start getting into our season.
I was just speechless, and hugged him. Everyone, the directors, the producer, the showrunner – I’ve never been on a set where the showrunner and the producers are there all the time, not just behind the monitor. They come on set and they’re talking to you, and they’re open and engaging, and they feel like regular people who are incredibly passionate about the show and the work they do. It was just a beautiful feeling. By episode three or four, I felt like I had been there the last two seasons. I was a part of their family.
Terri J. Vaugn directed an episode of this season. She was in “Color Book.” What was it like seeing her work in that capacity?
Clingman: Oh, it was amazing. It was so cool. I got to hire her in a movie I produced, and then she got to direct me in a show that we both are super fans of. That relationship is very different, because I got to watch her work as an actress on set – I was literally right there behind the monitor, watching her in “Color Book.” Then, [I got] to see her behind the monitor, directing me.
I think that was my most challenging scene of the entire season, so I was so thankful that I got to work with someone that I already felt comfortable with. She texted me beforehand, I remember she asked me – hey, do you want to start the coverage on you, or do you want me to start the coverage on Victor [Rasuk, another actor in the show], the prosecutor? I was like, let’s start on him so I can work my way up into that emotion. You don’t always get the luxury of being able to decide that, because it’s a whole camera crew who has to orchestrate that. I felt immediately comfortable with her, and her direction was awesome. It was very succinct. A couple of words could get me to whatever she wanted in the moment. She’s a filmmaker and creative that I have looked up to for years, first as an actress, but then when I saw that she had her own production company and she directs too, I was like this is exactly what I want to do. I don’t want to be boxed in. I want to be a multihyphenate.
Well, it’s a little similar to what you’ve been doing, maybe on a larger scale, but producing and having to balance all that with the acting work. What was that kind of schedule like for you?
Clingman: So my biggest episode was Episode Five. Each episode is about eight days. I think I was there for seven out of eight. I was also producing a digital series at the same time. My boyfriend was like, Kiah, you need to quit. You’ve got to quit the series, there’s no way you can do both. I was like, no, I can do it. I’m going to figure it out. I’m going to bring in my producing partner to fill in on the days that I’m not there.
But when I tell you that was a struggle – I would get off set for the series after working 16 hour days, and then have to be on set for “Reasonable Doubt” the next day at like, 5 a.m., and then work another 12 hours, get back and go to the other set. This was during May. It was very challenging and busy. Thank God for my acting coach, Raquel Gardner … during downtime, while I was producing, I would be on FaceTime with her prepping my lines for my challenging scenes, like that courtroom scene. She really helped me with some of those.
Do you have any updates on your feature “Her Pretty Vagina” which I believe you were prepping last time we spoke?
Clingman: I forgot I told you about that! Yes, I was prepping for our crowdfunding campaign, and then we went right into shooting the last time I talked to you. I actually wrapped post production in August of this year, and right in time for the Sundance and South by Southwest [Film Festivals] deadline. I submitted to both of those festivals and a few others, and now we’re just waiting to see where our world premiere is going to be. We should start getting notifications in December, which is crazy, and start planning and promoting that, and doing press for that, depending on where our world premiere will be. But I’m really, really excited to start the festival run for that. I think people are going to love it and, and it’s going to show my style as a director in a really cool way.
Is there anything you can sort of tease for the finale that’s coming up?
Kiingman: I think we’re just gonna keep getting more layers of Kristin. She’s a really nuanced, complicated character, and we’ve been getting bits and pieces of that throughout the last nine episodes. But I think in Episode 10, it’s all going to come to a head, and she’s going to have to really confront secrets that maybe she’s been hiding, and also just confront her own abandonment issues and mental health issues that I think she’s been wrestling with the last nine episodes. I think a lot of choices are gonna have to be made, and all the questions that everyone has – because there are so many of them – I think all of them will be answered in the last episode.