For so many Workin’ Moms fans, Season 5 of the CBC comedy series was rough. It was hard to see best friends Kate (Catherine Reitman) and Anne (Dani Kind) separated from each other’s lives when Anne moved out to Calgary. Thankfully, the Workin’ Moms are back for Season 6, currently airing on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem, and Anne has returned from Calgary.
Now back in Toronto with the rest of the ladies, Anne is looking to rebuild her career and start a brand new practice. She’s still feeling some effects of her time in Calgary, but now with even her daughter Alice (Sadie Munroe) helping out at work, Anne seems determined to move forward with her life. In this week’s episode, “The Big One,” Anne joins the rest of the ladies, including Sloane (Enuka Okuma), as they celebrate Val’s (Sarah McVie) birthday. Will Anne and Sloane be able to get along well enough for Val to enjoy her day?
The TV Junkies recently spoke with Kind about what Anne is feeling in Season 6. She’s also been staying busy raising money for her upcoming short film, Capsule. Kind will direct the film, which is written by and stars Mike Rinaldi as an astronaut who has been stranded in space and lost contact with ground control for 18 months. Kind shared how the project came to be, as well as her path to directing, and what she’s learned from those she’s worked with on Workin’ Moms and Wynonna Earp.
The TV Junkies: It’s been a really tough last two years on all us parents and what we’ve had to go through because of the pandemic. Has any of that impacted your work or caused you to bring something different to Anne this season?
Dani Kind: The great thing about that character is that she’s so angry. If anything, the pandemic added to that for me and gave me all of that to bring to that character in a different way. I think that was the biggest thing, but outside of that role, it made me really appreciate my job, even more than I already do. I would not want to be an artist that was just trying to build a career right now. That’s a really tricky thing to do during a pandemic. I felt really lucky to get to go back to work and have a job.
TTVJ: So thankfully, Anne is back from Calgary and she’s got a new practice. How is life going for her this season now that she’s back in Toronto?
DK: She’s been here before where she’s tried to start her practice again, but it’s different this time around. She’s incredibly vulnerable and that experience in Calgary really shook her up. Now, she’s back in Toronto without her husband, who is still stuck in Calgary, and they live in a new home. Her plate is full and she’s cracked open a little bit. You’ll see throughout the season how cracked open she actually is and what she comes up against.
TTVJ: Something I am intrigued by is the fact that Alice has started working for her at the practice. We’ve seen these two butt heads in the past, so can you preview how that may go?
DK: One of my favorite things about that relationship is that it’s so apparent how alike those two are. Alice is so smart and they butt heads because they are exact versions of each other. Your kids are always smarter than you and I think she’s already out-smarted Anne. She gets into trouble this season, but in a way you haven’t seen Alice get into trouble before. That poor girl, man.
TTVJ: In this week’s episode it looks like Anne and Sloane (Enuka Okuma) may be together again. While the characters haven’t gotten along in the past, what’s it been like having more of Enuka and Sloane this season?
DK: Enuka plays that role so well and is so good in it. She slid in so smoothly and fits so well with everybody. Sloane up against Anne, with Kate in the middle, is a powerhouse! Anne is abrasive, but she’s a powerhouse, and the way each of those women express love is not in a soft way. [laughs] She’s so fun to play off of and is such a smart actress. I really love Enuka.
TTVJ: What’s it like filming scenes like the birthday party ones where you’re all together? Those are my absolute favorite scenes to watch.
DK: They are 100 percent my favorite thing to shoot. I always feel bad for whoever is directing that day because we don’t get to see each other on set all the time. I hardly ever get to see Sarah [McVie] so I just want to catch up and hang out with her. It’s a level of excitement that must be a lot to wrangle for the director. That’s why those scenes are so great, too, because the energy is so high between all of us. Those are for sure my favorite scenes to shoot.
TTVJ: Let’s switch gears a bit to discuss Capsule, a short film that you’ll be directing. Can you tell us a little bit about the project and how it came about?
DK: I’ve been really interested in directing for the past couple of years. There’s only so much you can read about it. It’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation. You can’t get into most directing programs to learn about directing unless you have a director’s reel. So you have to do it! I’ve shot a music video and a small art project with some friends, but I was hunting for a short film to direct as the next thing to do.
Juno (Rinaldi) came over to my house one day and we were talking about her husband, Mike, who is a really great actor, but he’s also a really brilliant writer. We were discussing him and that led to me asking if he had any short films he’d want to star in. He sent a couple, but Capsule spoke to all of my weird parts. It’s Wes Anderson weird, but also really funny, artistic, and current. It’s about an astronaut stuck in space with no communication and what happens when somebody comes through on the screen in his capsule. When I read it, the loneliness felt like the pandemic and it brought up so many things for me.
The only way we could do it, though, was if we raised a bunch of money. So, thankfully, I met an amazing producer, and everyone is just so hungry for their jobs, to learn, and is bending over backward to make this film happen. The experience has been so incredible and I feel very lucky.
TTVJ: I know you mentored a director on Workin’ Moms before. What was that experience like?
DK: It was a great experience. I shadowed Yael Staav and it was so educational. Everyone was so lovely on set and the crew answered all my nerdy questions. It opened up so many conversations with crew members. My brain was exploding and it was such a great experience.
TTVJ: You’ve worked with some other really great actresses who also direct – Catherine Reitman and Melanie Scrofano, to name a couple. What have you learned by watching them take on that directing role or have they offered any advice?
DK: It’s weird because I’ve worked with them and wanted to do a good job for both of them. But now that I’ve gone through all of prep for Workin’ Moms, sat in on all the meetings, and after shadowing, now I understand even more what they did. It’s a hard position and I have a lot of respect for it, especially for female directors. It is still very male-dominated and to try to get that many people on board with your vision is tough. They were both wonderful though!
TTVJ: How can people help Capsule get made and what are some of the cool perks they get for donating? Is there a deadline?
DK: We’re trying to raise $30,000 to make it. It’s because of the Earpers, I know it is, but they went nuts and have already given so much support. We do have time left, though, through January 31, 2024 to raise the remaining amount. Workin’ Moms also made a huge contribution and I was beside myself. This industry is so hard in so many ways, so whenever anyone is nice to me in it, I just want to melt into a puddle of tears. It’s so hard.
One of our producers came up with this really cool perk, called the Easter Egg perk. You can put something personal of yours in the actual spaceship and it will be featured in the film. You can also have lunch with our producer Ben (Robinson) and myself. You can visit the set and there’s a table read. I’m really impressed with the perks they came up with. The ones they created are really exciting and creative.
Workin’ Moms Season 6 airs on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.
CBC announced that the final season of the original hit comedy series Workin’ Moms will premiere on January 3 next year.
