Calgary Herald: - "...Beck will be sharing screen time with actors Clive Owen and Juliette Binoche when the indie drama Words and Pictures begins shooting in Vancouver later this month. It’s an opportunity that just a few years ago would have seemed impossible. “I was afraid of rejection, unable to speak out in large groups of people or in classes,” said the teen, as she explains the cognitive dissonance of going from being “bullied” to winning a screen role. Beck says acting helped her break out of social isolation after years of bullying, and her own experience growing up in a disadvantaged home was very different than what she will be portraying on film...She said her hope in sharing her story is that her journey from being a bullied kid who felt like an outcast, to sharing screen time with some of the world’s best known actors, will inspire other kids to believe in their own dreams. “My parents came here from England and were so broke when I was born my baby stroller and mattress came from the dump,” she said in a phone interview. Her parents started out on welfare, but eventually got work. The family settled in Port Coquitlam, but life was anything but smooth. Beck was hit by a car at age seven, and was hospitalized with a head injury. Her father abandoned the family when she was nine, and event that “destroyed my self-confidence and self-esteem and I became withdrawn and quiet.” Beck’s vulnerabilities, including needing special assistance in school as she recovered after her car accident, made her a target for bullies beginning in grades 4 and 5, she said. “People I thought were friends became abusive, they made threats, stabbed me with pencils, made hurtful remarks. I was the only African-American in the school and they would feel my hair and ask questions about it...When Beck returned to live with her Mom in Grade 11, she decided to try acting. She found her calling after years of confidence and self-esteem issues...After a year of acting classes and “persistence,” Beck started getting gigs. “When that started happening my grades went up in school, my friendships were healthier...Beck is hoping to get a message out to other kids that might be struggling with self-esteem issues or bullying in schools. “School doesn’t last forever...Acting wasn’t given to me, I worked hard for it and it grew my self-esteem..." - Denise Ryan, March 11, 2013 (READ MORE)
Bernadette Beck (Born in Islington, London, England, UK on May 23, 1994), now living in Vancouver, British Columbia. Beck is currently managed by Kalee Harris at Play Management Inc. Her facebook page listed outdoor activities and public speaking as her personal interest. She currently filming "Words and Pictures" slated for 2014 release and featured in "Girl in Progress" (2012) and on television series "Level Up" (2011-12).
