Once told she’d never move again, Keara Tyler found strength in her son and a new form of film. Photo / Woman's Day
Keara Tyler was watching American Idol at age 10 when popstar Adam Lambert changed her life.
“I was blown away by his stage presence and charisma,” the 26-year-old actress recalls as her 2-year-old son Wolfe babbles away in the background. “And I went, ‘I want to do that!’ He said he’d done drama as a kid, so I begged my parents for drama classes.”
Her mum Phyllisann and dad Ant obliged, having moved with Keara’s older sister Cassie from South Africa to Auckland, where Keara was born. Before that, Phyllisann had also acted.
However, she turned down gigs like modelling lingerie and one role she rejected – which required partial nudity – went to Charlize Theron.
Keara laughs, “Mum says, ‘If I’d done it, I might still be acting!’ But she’s happy she stopped working and raised us. The acting bug jumped to me.”
Keara’s first role was as a sheep in a school play and from there, she performed in theatre productions, TV commercials and dance.
Just two years later, after her parents split up, her acting dream was almost scotched when Keara was in a horrific quad bike accident.
Riding with stepsister Ellana, her scarf got caught in the wheel, strangling Keara and leaving her unconscious for eight minutes. Luckily, stepdad Chris saved her.
Keara shares, “When the ambulance crew arrived, they said, ‘She’s dead,’ but from working on oil rigs, my stepdad knew some weird CPR he did after standing me up, so I didn’t choke on blood – and it worked!”
Placed in a coma after she suffered seizures, doctors dubbed Keara a miracle, given many people wouldn’t survive two minutes without oxygen, let alone eight. However, they insisted she would be a “vegetable” when she awoke.
Astonishingly, two weeks later, Keara woke up. With severe friction burns, weak neck muscles and paralysed arms, she was told her paralysis would be permanent. But once again, she defied expectations.
While Keara faced more than a year of physical rehabilitation, needed frequent naps and wore a neck collar for years as her burns healed, eventually she made a full recovery.
“They studied me in hospital because no one knows how I survived,” she tells. “The accident gave me a whole new appreciation for everything. I got over caring what people think.”
Although her scars and injuries didn’t restrict her acting opportunities, a scholarship led Keara to study law, psychology, politics and international relations, then at 23, she became pregnant. While her relationship with her partner didn’t work out, her family rallied around.
However, like many new mums, she experienced postpartum depression.
“You mourn your old life,” she says. “I’m a dancer but couldn’t go dancing. I was breastfeeding and felt like a milk bag. It was lonely not talking to anybody. My friends didn’t have babies, so I had to find a new circle.”
Fortunately, Keara found her balance by returning to acting.
One of her first roles, in Sydney, was in the booming “verticals” industry – short, episodic dramas filmed in portrait orientation, rather than the usual landscape, to be viewed on cellphones. They attract millions of viewers, pay well and have exploded in China because of the country’s limited streaming services.
That one role has led to several more.
“Verticals have created so much work for actors who would normally need cafe jobs too,” enthuses Keara. “They’ve enabled me to work fulltime.”
Shooting a movie-length production in a week, with lengthy hours and little time to prep, Keara doesn’t learn lines until she’s in makeup.
With projects featuring similar storylines, usually with heroes, love interests and villains, she aims to bring something unique to each role.
“It’s like boot camp and has been the best professional development,” she reflects. “I’ve done my 10,000 hours and could confidently jump into any filming now.”
Phyllisann has joined Keara on trips to Australia and China to help care for Wolfe, who has learnt to enjoy spicy food via their travels.
“It’s awesome seeing that childlike wonder of discovering something new,” she explains. “He’ll notice every statue and go, ‘Whoa!’ which makes me go, ‘Yeah, that’s pretty cool!’ I don’t get homesick because I have Wolfe and my mum there.”
Keara’s now on a break from verticals to avoid burnout, while exploring acting opportunities in New Zealand.
“You never think you’ll get to live your dream life,” she muses. “But after my first four verticals, I went, ‘I’m a professional actor. I don’t have other jobs. This is awesome!’”
Having previously found dating difficult, she’s also keen to get back out there.
“Before, I could take time to get to know someone and mesh our lives together, but with a kid, you have less time and priorities shift,” she says. “It takes a special person to want to share time and affection with Wolfe, who comes first.”
Follow Keara on Instagram at @kearatyler.
Photographs by: Aidan Burridge and Megan Goldsman