Story and Craft with Marc Preston

On this episode of Story & Craft, we sit down to chat with actor Katee Sackhoff from "Battlestar Galactica" and Prime Video's "Carrie" to discuss her career and personal stories.
Katee talks about growing up in Portland as a competitive swimmer, how she landed her first acting job, and what it was like to move to LA at 18. We get into her time on "Battlestar Galactica", why she's only now watching it, and how she went from voicing Bo-Katan in animation to "The Mandalorian".
She also discusses her new series "Carrie", her podcasts, and raising two kids back in Portland.
SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
03:33 | Building a dream home in Los Angeles, then deciding it was time to leave for Portland
12:20 | The newspaper ad for a body double that changed everything
15:36 | Teaching herself to cry on camera in front of a mirror
20:42 | Reading the Starbuck script and knowing it could change how people saw her
23:08 | Cutting her hair and walking away from bigger offers to fight for one role
26:31 | Watching "Battlestar Galactica" for the first time, 25 years later, with her husband
29:33 | Walking out of an acting class and never going back
35:36 | How a "Robot Chicken" recommendation led to Bo-Katan
38:46 | Bringing the dad who showed her sci-fi as a kid onto a "Star Wars" set
46:31 | The Seven Questions

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On this episode of Story & Craft, we sit down to chat with actor Tyler Mane and comic book editor and writer Renae Geerlings from "X-Men" and their new podcast, "Mane AF," to discuss their career and personal stories.
Tyler spent over a decade as a professional wrestler, training with the Hart family in Calgary and wrestling all over the world, before a stunt casting call meant for someone else turned into the role of Sabretooth and a full pivot into acting — a path that later led to playing Michael Myers in the "Halloween" reboot. Renae came up on the other side of the business, landing a temp job answering phones for a comics company in Los Angeles and working her way up to a ten-year run as an editor. Eventually the two combined those worlds under their own production banner, building out the graphic novel "The Last Spartan" together, a project Tyler had actually been carrying around for fifteen years before Renae came on to help shape it.
The conversation turns candid when they get into the year they've just had. In March, Tyler's brother died suddenly of a heart attack. Weeks later, Tyler found a lump during a workout and was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma — male breast cancer. Not long after that, Renae's father died in a car accident. Tyler talks openly about finishing chemo, heading into radiation, and a second scare from a blood clot along the way, and he's direct about why he's chosen to talk about all of it publicly: he wants other men to get checked rather than dismiss what they're feeling, the way he almost did.
That's also the thinking behind "Mane AF," the podcast they just launched about midlife, marriage, and — as Tyler puts it — the mayhem he brings to it. Along the way, we get into how two people who are both used to being in charge divide the creative work in one house, why Renae calls herself the steering wheel and brakes to Tyler's engine, and the usual mix of rescue dogs, comfort food, and childhood celebrity crushes that round out the hour.
SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
[00:03:37] | Renae compares keeping up with Tyler to being a water skier who lost her skis five miles back
[00:07:03] | Tyler lays out the year in one breath: his brother's sudden death, his own cancer diagnosis, and Renae's father's fatal accident
[00:14:01] | Tyler was one of the last people to wrestle Andre the Giant, months before Andre passed away
[00:15:04] | The stunt casting call that was meant for someone else, and how it became Tyler's ticket to the role of Sabretooth
[00:25:53] | Renae's rule for not being interrupted while she works, and the loophole Tyler found almost immediately
[00:31:00] | The chest lump Tyler almost brushed off, and the conversation that changed his mind
[00:35:58] | What Tyler's tumor oncotype score meant for his treatment, and losing (then slowly regrowing) his beard
[00:47:39] | Tyler's core advice for other men, shaped by not knowing his own brother was struggling
[00:48:47] | The Seven Questions

STAY IN THE KNOW
Website: https://www.storyandcraftpod.com
FOLLOW THE SHOW
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storyandcraftpod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/storyandcraftpod
CONNECT WITH MARC
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/airpreston
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcpreston

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On this episode of Story & Craft, we sit down to chat with Actor and Director Adam Arkin from "Sons of Anarchy" and MGM+'s "American Hostage" to discuss his career and personal stories.
Adam opens up about his seamless transition from acting to becoming one of television’s most sought-after directors. He shares behind-the-scenes stories of shifting gears between massive modern projects like "The Night Agent," "The Offer," and his newest true-crime thriller, "American Hostage." We explore the awkward challenge of directing himself in scenes, the immediate relief of admitting to a crew when a shot just isn't working, and the secret to building absolute trust on set by letting actors do their work.
We also dive into his personal side, discussing the influence of his legendary father Alan Arkin and how he taught Adam to master multiple performance styles. From an early celebrity crush on Ursula Andress, to his deep appreciation for a perfectly simple summer tomato sandwich, it's a great look at the man behind the camera.

SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
[00:02:43] | Why releasing a new project brings out a mix of anxiety and excitement
[00:05:08] | Capturing the true 1970s reality without talking down to a modern audience
[00:07:49] | How his father Alan Arkin taught him to be conversant in many performance styles
[00:10:09] | Helping an actor embrace the intimidating legend of playing Marlon Brando
[00:13:30] | The awkward challenge of acting in a project you are also actively directing
[00:15:34] | Why immersing yourself in the story is more important than having a recognizable visual style
[00:18:21] | Finding immediate relief in admitting to the cast when a scene just isn't working
[00:20:02] | Recognizing the exact moment on set when you capture pure on-screen magic
[00:22:51] | Earning absolute trust by letting the actors do their work without interference
[00:23:46] | The Seven Questions

STAY IN THE KNOW
Website: https://www.storyandcraftpod.com
FOLLOW THE SHOW
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storyandcraftpod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/storyandcraftpod
CONNECT WITH MARC
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/airpreston
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcpreston

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On this episode of Story & Craft, we sit down to chat with Journalist and Author Sara Kehaulani Goo from the Washington Post to discuss her career, personal stories, and her new memoir, "Kuleana."
Sara shares how her early days in a print newsroom sparked a lifelong passion for storytelling, eventually leading her to cover major national events like the aftermath of 9/11. We chat about her approach to learning the ropes, intentionally moving to unfamiliar cities to broaden her perspective, and the thick skin required to maintain integrity in a fast-paced media landscape. Sara also opens up about the massive digital shift facing the news industry and the ways legacy media is now partnering with independent online creators to reach modern audiences.
Beyond the news desk, Sara talks about the inspiration behind her memoir, "Kuleana," which looks at her Hawaiian heritage and her family's fight to hold on to their ancestral land. We discuss the complex realities of life in Hawaii today, the impact of outside real estate investments on the local culture, and, naturally, our shared appreciation for a perfectly made plate of Spam musubi. It is a grounded, eye-opening conversation about history, responsibility, and the importance of knowing where you come from.
SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
[00:14:00] | The thrill of stepping into a newsroom and the daily pressure to deliver
[00:16:37] | Why immersing yourself in unfamiliar cities is the ultimate training ground for storytellers
[00:20:19] | How covering the aftermath of 9/11 shaped her understanding of a changing nation
[00:22:42] | Recognizing the impending digital disruption of the news industry
[00:25:25] | The challenge of funding trusted journalism in a digitally fractured world
[00:30:00] | Why traditional legacy media must partner with independent online creators
[00:35:32] | The rising trend of journalists cutting out the middleman to build direct audiences
[00:40:45] | The thick skin and unwavering principles required to be a reporter today
[00:46:45] | The cultural and economic toll of treating Hawaiian real estate strictly as an investment
[00:53:00] | The Seven Questions

STAY IN THE KNOW
Website: https://www.storyandcraftpod.com
FOLLOW THE SHOW
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storyandcraftpod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/storyandcraftpod
CONNECT WITH MARC
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/airpreston
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcpreston

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On this episode of Story & Craft, we sit down to chat with actor Rosslyn Luke from "Paper Tiger" to discuss her career and personal stories.
Before sharing scenes with Adam Driver and Miles Teller, Rosslyn took a decidedly non-traditional path into the industry. We talk about her upbringing in Eastern Washington—near the Hanford nuclear site—and why she initially earned a degree in civil and environmental engineering before committing to acting.
Her background in competitive cheerleading eventually opened an unexpected door into stunt performance, leading to early gigs that included handling a shotgun on a moving semi-truck. Rosslyn breaks down how that physical discipline prepared her for director James Gray’s period mob film, "Paper Tiger", where she had to navigate high-stakes, unscripted 1980s dialogue opposite seasoned performers.
Wrapping up, we get into why she gravitates toward intense, dark dramas over comedy, what goes into her ideal day, and the advice she would offer her younger self about trusting her own voice earlier.
SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
[00:02:37] | Watching Seattle shift from grunge culture to a tech-dominated city
[00:05:18] | What it's like growing up with a father who cleaned up nuclear waste sites
[00:08:18] | Walking away from a stable career in engineering to pursue the arts
[00:11:11] | The hidden physical danger and severe injuries behind competitive cheerleading
[00:15:29] | Wielding a shotgun on the back of a moving flatbed truck for a zombie show
[00:17:38] | Why she decided to train as a stunt performer instead of using a double
[00:21:55] | Growing up in an Eastern Washington town where locals joke they "glow in the dark"
[00:24:31] | Why she's drawn to gritty, dark dramas while living with a comedy writer
[00:36:18] | The high-wire act of improvising 1980s mob dialogue with Adam Driver and Miles Teller
[00:37:45] | The Seven Questions

STAY IN THE KNOW
Website: https://www.storyandcraftpod.com
Follow The Show
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storyandcraftpod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/storyandcraftpod
Connect With Marc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/airpreston
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcpreston