Southern man on quest to make it as actor

Like the lead character he plays in the upcoming season of the New Zealand sitcom Go Girls, former Southland Boys' High School student George Mason is on a quest.

Mason, 22, has played bad boy Regan Ames on Shortland Street, Ben Gallagher on The Blue Rose and has appeared in Jane Campion's television series Top of the Lake.

Now, as Ted Keegan, a cruisy landscape gardener who also plays Go Girls' new narrator, Mason has scored his first lead role and it's one that allows him to show his softer side.

"I get to be a nice guy," he said on Friday, in between filming in Auckland. "For me, this character is closer to who I am. He's outdoorsy, a down-to-earth bloke... it's a really fun job with [a cast] that are a group of mates on and off the set and the crew are really supportive.

"We're like one big family; we have a great dynamic."

The comedy about a group of five friends in their 20s each deciding to commit to their own unique quest has been popular with its Kiwi audience, but producers took a risk in changing the core cast this season.

Series creators Rachel Lang and Gavin Strawhan said that since the original series was written, life had changed for young people, especially with a global recession.

"We realised there was a whole new generation who were experiencing their 20s differently . . . now that we've nearly finished shooting, we're feeling really great about our decision; we've been lucky enough to discover a whole new generation of stars and we're excited to be telling stories about a new generation of characters."

Mason said things were still just beginning to happen for him as an actor. He was still pinching himself after winning the Go Girls part.

"It's awesome and I love it, but it's daunting. Playing a lead role - I'm still trying to get my head around that and I still feel like I'm finding my feet.

"I always thought of myself as a feeder into a scene; it took me a while to get used to being the centre of attention in a scene."

His character's quest is to win a woman, but Mason said he felt well on his way to achieving his own goal, which had more to do with his career than with romance.

"I think my big quest has been to be employed fulltime as an actor. I feel more settled [in the job] now, but I'm still on a mission. There are still a lot of unknowns that are out there."

Filming wraps up late this month and the fifth season of Go Girls will air on TV2 on April 30.

Source: Stuff.co.nz