Daily Inspiration: Meet Frieda De Lackner

Today we’d like to introduce you to Frieda De Lackner.

Hi Frieda, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I grew up in Berkeley and started performing in plays in elementary school, and then was a theater kid all through high school. I first went to San Francisco State and then UC Berkeley. When I was at SF State, I switched my major momentarily to pre-med, you know, which one does when you’re theater major. However, my interest in science and medicine turned out to be really useful, because after I graduated college, I worked for Kaiser Permanente’s Educational Theater for over 10 years, first as an actor and then as a director, and it was some of the most fulfilling work I’ve ever done. We toured schools, performing in plays about health education. Basically each play was about kids going through something challenging health-wise and learning how to deal with it in a positive way. The performers were trained as health educators, so they could give accurate information to students in a way that was easy to understand. At Kaiser‘s Educational Theatre, I felt like we were really making a difference in the lives of kids going through difficult challenges.

I had always been interested in film and spent a couple years at the College of Marin studying film in the evenings. My first film, The Curious Sofa, was an adaptation of the story by Edward Gorey. The next film I made, Bloody Bitches, a spoof about hit women and make-up, started a new genre for the school’s film festival.

I moved to Los Angeles at the end of 2012 and worked my way up in film from being a PA to producing and directing. I’ve now directed several short films, which have screened across the country and have won a few awards. I co-produced the feature, Hold On, which came out in theatres in 2019.

I’m in a theatre company in LA called Playground LA, which creates short plays. My last film, 172 Push-Ups, was an adaptation of a play by Scott Mullen, that I first directed at Playground LA.. The story is about a female soldier and a Vietnam vet, who bond over shared experiences, but clash over idealogical views on women in the military and same-sex marriage. It won the Jan Johnson & Pat Wright Film Inspires Change Award at the Indigo Moon Film Festival.

I am currently working on producing a feature that my cousin wrote about wild horses, which is an action/drama that we like to describe as Erin Brockovich meets Hell or High Water.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
In 2023, right after we had finished the first edit for 172 Push-Ups, I was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to put everything on hold to deal with that. Fortunately it was caught early, and one mastectomy later, I’ve been cancer free now for three years. I think it’s important to talk about, because one out of eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and when it’s caught early, it’s so much easier to cure.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As an artist, my mission is to create theatre and film that has a positive effect on the people who help create it and for those who experience it. I like to tell stories that have societal or personal message, that ultimately brings something positive into this world. I think this comes from working in educational theatre for so long. When I was acting at Kaiser’s Educational Theatre, every week I would have a student come up to me and say something like, “I’ve never told anyone this before, but…” and then they would talk about something really difficult or scary they were dealing with and I would be able to help them talk through it or help bridge them to an adult they trusted who could help.

At every screening of 172 Push-Ups, people in the audience have cried for joy. Theatre and film can have a profound effect and with so many people struggling, I want to bring some joy into people’s lives.

Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
When I was a kid, my aunt & uncle ran a summer camp, called Sherwood Forest, on the Long Beach peninsula in Washington. Each campsession was four weeks long and my aunt would write a Robin Hood play during the third week, which we would rehearse in the last week, and then perform for the parents when they came on the last day to pick up their kids. I spent 11 summers there, and with almost 2 sessions each year, I performed in about 20 Robin Hood plays by the time I was 17. Those were memories and friends that have lasted a lifetime.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.friedadelackner.com/
• Instagram: @frieda.3 and @172pushups
• Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frieda-de-lackner?utm_source=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=member_ios