Editor's Note: As the father of three young children and the Editor of America's only monthly foster care magazine, my 2013 was filled with Maia Mitchell. From Teen Beach Movie birthday parties for my daughters to mandatory viewing of The Fosters, the young lady has been apart of my household the entire year. It's always nice when the person matches the public persona. Such is the case with Maia Mitchell. I had the opportunity to interview the star via telephone, during which she was kind enough to say a quick hello to my kids, a hello that has been replayed over a million times. My thanks to Maia Mitchell and the good folks at ABC Family for the chance to chat. Hope you enjoy the result.
2013 will go down as the year America got to know Maia Mitchell. It will also be the year she will never forget. She was still riding a wave of success when she sat down with Foster Focus to discuss the Winter Premiere of ABC Family's The Fosters, January 13, 2014 9 pm est.
The Australian transplant was all over your television in 2013. It started in February with a guest spot on the hit Disney Channel show Jessie. For most young actresses that would have made the year. It was just the tip of the iceberg for young Mitchell.
Next was the moment that every young starlet dreams; a starring role in a new highly anticipating, groundbreaking show, co-starring an acclaimed cast, with the backing of a big name producer.
The Fosters burst onto the scene in the summer of 2013 amid critical praise and a buzz seldom seen in relation to a new show. It did not fail to deliver. The Fosters ranked as the #1 new cable TV series of the summer in Viewers 12-34 and Females 12-34, gaining momentum each week heading into the season finale, which set series highs in Total Viewers and across target 18-34, 18-49 and 12-34 demos. Of all current ABC Family original series, The Fosters is the network’s #2 series in target demos, behind only Pretty Little Liars.
The Fosters, for those of you who may of missed it, is a show about Stef and Lena, a same sex couple raising Stef's biological son Brandon, along with adopted twins Jesus and Mariana. Enter Maia Mitchell's character Callie, a teen in foster care who needs a place to stay while waiting for a new placement. Reluctantly, Lena agrees to temporarily care for Callie while a new home is found.
In Season One, Callie runs away with the help of Brandon, to a former foster home where her younger brother Jude is still in care. A confrontation with a gun follows, ultimately leading to Brandon's parents Stef and Mike Foster, both police officers.
It is decided that Jude and Callie will live with the family while things are sorted out.
The show dealt with a myriad of foster care issues such as, sibling reunification, parental abandonment, trauma from care, violence among many others.
When asked by Foster Focus how she prepared for the role as a foster youth, Mitchell was candid in revealing that she had a family member who had spent time in care in New Zealand. With that background combined with the show's research, she found the foundation from which to build Callie as a believable teen struggling with the rigors of being in foster care. Yet, she says, "I found the first year of playing a foster youth to be really eye opening".
Members of foster care have welcomed Maia and the cast to the care community as they made their way through child welfare events. According to Mitchell, "It's been really great. We've had foster kids come to the set, which made it real for all of us on the cast."
She's eager for the show's new season. "People have been wanting to see more of the foster care side of things on the show. Not all foster families are that loving, not all foster kids are as open and well tempered as the kids on the show." She goes on to say "this year we will get to see more of the damage, more of the trauma that comes with care."
This year will see the addition of Rosie O'Donnell to the cast, a move that Mitchell is very excited about. "She's going to play the Director of a group home that Callie spends time in."
"This year we get to explore Callie and the other foster youth she meets in a real honest way", she said when questioned about the direction her character will take. "We really get to know Callie this year."
Along with the triumph of The Fosters, Mitchell also found huge success with the Disney Channel's hit of the summer, "Teen Beach Movie" solidifying her place in Hollywood.
Many more roles will come her way following the powerhouse year Maia Mitchell had in 2013. She will undoubtedly have a stellar career with a diverse catalogue of work. Though none may have a bigger impact than the work she is doing right now with The Fosters. Callie has a place in the world of foster care now. She is a part of the community that is care. It's a responsibility the young actress seems more than capable of handling.
Join The Fosters when they return to ABC Family January 13, 2013 9pm est.
Owner/Editor - Chris Chmielewski