You might remember her as ‘Skade’ from the hit Netflix show Last Kingdom, but now, Thea Sofie Loch Næss will once again hit the big screens, this time starring alongside Dylan Sprouse as ‘Emerald’ in Kerry Mondragon’s Tyger Tyger. The movie is set in Slab City, just outside Los Angeles —far away from her Norwegian roots. “It has been quite the experience shooting Tyger Tyger, its been strange and beautiful all at the same time. We shot the film in the desert outside LA, far from the big city lights and rush of Los Angeles. The whole experience was like a big culture shock – especially coming from Norway,” said Loch Næss.

Having done a major Netflix show set in the Viking ages and going straight to shooting in a 90s inspired film required Loch Næss to do thorough research in order to get into character. “To prepare for the role I had to find the answer to ‘why people move to Slab City?’ What makes a person leave everything behind to take part in this commune? I discovered that there are many different reasons to why someone would end up in Slab City, some just want to be in charge of their own destiny, others wanted to escape the horrors of reality, some people simply don’t fit into society’s norms and to some it was simply the sense of freedom.”

Learning by doing has been essential to Loch Næss’ fast-paced road to success and on her road, Loch Næss is carefully soaking up advice from the industry professionals around her. “I seek advice from the directors as much as I can, I don’t have any drama school education so I kind of have to make my own curriculum by talking to the industry professionals and soak up as much as I can along the way,” finishes Loch Næss.

Tyger Tyger will be premiering in 2020.