HEATHER DOERKSEN: FROM BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES TO THE SCREEN
Photo credit: Jason Benson
Born in Manitoba, Canada, Heather Doerksen always thought her calling lied within Biological Sciences up until the middle of college. Fascinated by sciences and trees, it only took the bonafide beaut one alluring conversation to turn that objective into a past reminiscence. She enrolled in an acting class at college where she met Jesai Jayhmes, her influential theatre teacher, when he once said, “picture what makes your heart sing and ask yourself how you can start,” and that’s exactly what she did.
However, Doerksen had her share of acting experiences prior to her college acting class. At the young age of five, the actress was cast as Mary in The Christmas Story and at the age of sixteen played Maria in The Sound of Music. In University she starred in The Cherry Orchard; Big Love; Hedda Gabler; and Antigone. She then graduated with a BFA in Theatre from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia. Upon graduation, she founded a theatre company with five other friends called Genus Theatre where the group of friends wrote, directed, acted, and produced all of the shows together. On top of that, she soon after found herself making appearances in Smallville and Battlestar Galactica.
Photo credit: Jason Benson
Doerksen, years after, landed a role in the critically-acclaimed mega science fiction film in Pacific Rim produced and directed by Academy Award winner Guillermo del Toro. The infamous movie mogul is also the one behind works The Shape of Water, Hellboy, horror movies Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Mama, and 2021’s Pinocchio.
On first meeting Toro, “Guillermo brought the whole cast to set for a tour and walk through/talk through. Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Charlie Day, Rinko Kikuchi, and Robert Maillet. He showed us the mock-ups for the Jaegers and the Kaiju and explained how the whole world would look. He knew the universe of Pacific Rim inside and out.”
Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, a story encompassed with witchcraft and horror, welcomed Doerksen with open arms. She was 30-weeks pregnant when writer Roberto Aquirre-Sacasa knew that the actress would be a perfect depiction of Gryla even though she originally auditioned for the role of Sabrina. She says,
“When I auditioned for Sabrina, my take on Gryla was actually very soft and flowy and compassionate. I was cast and then they told me they wanted her to be the exact opposite, formidable and guarded. Roberto is so enthusiastic about storytelling. He’s super invested in the shows he writes and would often be at cast read-throughs. I love that he wrote my (real-life) pregnancy into the show!”
Photo credit: Jason Benson
Not only does the actress star on screen, Doerksen also lends her voice to advertising campaigns, animated series such as Holly Hobbie and Friends, Marvel Knight’s Wolverine, Death Note, Barbie, and Lego’s Ninjago.
From celestial creatures to spell-casting witches to cartoon voices to dinosaurs the actress states that she takes every role and audition with a gut feeling. If a character doesn’t resonate with her, she doesn’t partake.
Catch Heather Doerksen in Disney’s Gabby Duran and the Unsittables this summer, CW’s Charmed, and Van Helsing.
Meet the Author
Brianna Vacca is a Philadelphia-based writer. She has an unhealthy addiction to true crime documentaries, celebrity gossip, and writes overly dramatic sad songs.