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Photos Courtesy of Kristina Ruddick

Finding the Brightside in a Dark Serious Subject – Interview with Elana Dunkelman

We’ve all seen plenty of shows which feel so real, it’s frightening. A new one has come out recently and it’s already pretty intense by the sounds of the title. I’m talking about Alert: Missing Persons Unit which is all about the MPU of the Philadelphia Police Department. It’s a very serious topic because we all know when someone goes missing, there’s a lot of possibilities as to why, and usually when one finds out, it’s for a very disturbing reason the person disappeared and even where they ended up. 

It’s already been going for quite a while now, but I still had some time to talk to one of the newest additions to the cast, Elana Dunkelman. Elana plays the role of Rachel who is a medical examiner with a positive viewpoint on life. She has quite a relationship with her Partner C, and her personality adds some interesting new and quirky feels to the show to lighten up the mood a bit. 

 

HNMAG: Your character is Rachel, who works as a forensic examiner. Have you had previous roles like this before?

Elana Dunkelman: Not exactly, I’ve played nothing like it in Cop Procedural, so it’s definitely something new for me.

 

HNMAG: Was it nerve-wracking to take on a role like this at first?

Elana Dunkelman: I think what was more nerve-wracking was jumping in while the show was already going for a couple of months. So you kind of need to find out how you fit in. Thankfully, it was seamless. Everybody was nice, and the person I did most of my acting with was an actor named Petey Gibson who plays C on the show. He was so welcoming and generous so all my nerves were assuaged.

 

HNMAG: Your character is optimistic and seems to enjoy everything. How do you feel it affects the show?

Elana Dunkelman: I think it brings a levity to the show, it’s like heart pump and a lot of serious things happening. The scenes that I’m in are kind of a plot B to the main plot so it’s interesting to kind of have a different element to it. I’m excited to see how that balances out with the serious subject matter of the show. 

 

HNMAG: Given the subject matter of Alert: Missing Persons Unit, is every episode hard to work on?

Elana Dunkelman: There was one episode where I played a scene that was a LITTLE difficult. The subject matter was quite serious and I feel like the way that they shot. The crew and the cast, they really had this lovely report between the tapes. As a person, I felt that there was some fun between so it gave a balance. 

 

HNMAG: What do you do to prepare to take on the role in any episode?

Elana Dunkelman: I did some research on Youtube, so as an actor you read through the episode and see what’s going on, and especially since I’m not a starring role, it’s usually the something I’m doing is kind of a lesson. I ask what the purpose is of my character to the main character, and bringing that purpose to the table anytime.

HNMAG: A few episodes have already been released, but what can audience expect from further episodes?

Elana Dunkelman: Definitely some cute moments, I don’t want to spoil it too much. I’m excited to see how the relationship develops between C and Ray, and I know that the season finale is going to be quite intense so I think it’s building up. It’s definitely worth checking out.

 

HNMAG: And do you hope there will be more seasons?

Elana Dunkelman: Yeah, of course! (laughs) Fingers crossed

 

HNMAG: What’s one of the most interesting episodes so far?

Elana Dunkelman: I jumped in on the pilot episode and thought it’s really tough to do a pilot episode because you’re introducing the concept and the characters. The second episode really found its groove and the first scene in the show, my husband and I were watching it and something I’ve never seen before happened and we were like “WHOA, that was INTENSE.” They’re definitely trying to tell the stories that maybe we’ve seen before on procedurals in the past, but kind of like a new surprise so that’s exciting.

 

HNMAG: Do you feel every episode is similar or do they have a lot of major differences?

Elana Dunkelman: I think like any Christie Droll there’s a similar structure to it. Every week there’s a missing person but the story that you’re following with the main characters and their own missing person of the week, and then also following this over-arcing story which lasts the whole season. Yes there is definitely a structure to it in that missing person and how they find them, maybe they don’t and also following the progression with the story arc which would change throughout episodes.

 

HNMAG: Do you hope that Rachel becomes more prominent in future episodes? Maybe even explore her a little more?

Elana Dunkelman: Of course! I’d love to come back, and you never know. It would be really cool to explore further. Hopefully when people tune in, and see what I mean. I will say that I was extremely excited by the storyline and when people tune in I think they’ll know why. I’m hoping that she comes back, it’s always lovely when you get to play a character further than what you started with. I had an amazing experience on set with the cast and crew so I would love to come back.

 

In case you’re wanting to find out more about this Missing Persons series, I would recommend checking it out. You can see it on CTV in Canada, or on Fox in the USA. Catch up with the series here or if you’re in the US, go here and find out what you’ve been missing this whole time.

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