Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T L Y M O N T A N A F A L L | 2 0 1 4 1 6 Gal When talking about Montana's connection to Hollywood, Misty Upham seems like a good place to start. She cultivated a formidable following in 2013, with roles in Jimmy P. and August: Osage County. Her success is a function of something intrinsic to her personality, some combination of curiosity, self-confidence, sociability, and energy. "I always knew when I left the reservation at age 12 that something was going to happen, if I followed my instincts," said Upham. "I knew that if I didn't look toward things that didn't feel right, I could do something. When I think back to that girl with no purpose or no direction, no support, I still had that special knowing in myself, and a sense of what I was meant to be. You can question youth, and ask, 'How can you believe in some- thing when so young?' But I'm grateful in the faith." Misty said that her story begins with her father, Charles Upham, an itinerant hitchhiker who had an undiscovered talent for drawing and painting. "He saw a guitar in the window of a one-horse town, sold a picture he had drawn, and bought the guitar. He could be found walking along the highways, playing the guitar, walking the streets in the cold. His only friend was the guitar." A Blackfeet Native and direct descendant of Chief Heavy- Runner, Upham was born on the Blackfeet reservation. At age four, she moved to Billings, where her father went to East- ern Montana University while working at Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and K-Mart; later they moved to Fort Belknap and then back to Browning. "I come from one of the poor- est families on the Blackfeet reservation," said Upham. "There was lots of violence, and I felt doomed there." Upham said the she befriended a girl named Alicia, who was an aspiring actor. Alicia auditioned for movie parts and excitedly talked of casting calls and acting coaches. "She had red, curly hair, and she reminded me of life off the reservation. She was in Cut Bank, 30 miles away. It felt good to have some normalcy. Her dad was a bodyguard for the New Kids on the Block. I was starry-eyed." Once Upham decided that she wanted to live the dream, she convinced her father to take her to Seattle, where she started attending acting workshops. "I needed to lose the reservation. I needed to leave. My idea was to go to the near- est city and go to the first theatre I could find. I would watch movies, take breaks, and eat." At first, she was terrified by the prospect of performing in front of others in a class setting, and she even feared talking to others. "The teacher misT y upham, Bl ackfeeT acTress Going Aer Her Dreams Photos courtesy Kerner Managment Associates See Misty on Hollywood's Red Carpet. go to: www.distinctlymontana.com/misty144 DISTINCTLY MONTANA | DIGITAL By Brian d'amBrosio

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