Lindsay Tapscott, co-founder of and producer at Babe Nation Films, didn’t grow up thinking she was going to make movies. The Cobourg native says she “fell into producing completely by accident.” A self-proclaimed theatre kid, she pursued theatre studies after high school but quickly realized that she preferred to stay out of the spotlight; she switched her major to English literature and made plans to build a career around writing. “I ended up in fashion marketing as a copywriter and was full steam ahead on that path,” she says.
But in 2010, Tapscott met Katie Bird Nolan, her eventual Babe Nation co-founder. “Katie and I started writing shorts and web series together as a side job and creative outlet,” she explains. “But the more things we made, the more we realized we really liked it and working together, so we decided to start producing other people’s work.” The duo founded Babe Nation Films in 2016, and their first feature film, a drama called The Rest of Us by writer
Alanna Francis, debuted in 2019. “It was during the process of developing The Rest of Us that we were like, ‘Oh, are we an official production company, maybe?’”
Babe Nation comes out of the shared passion and aspirations of Tapscott and Bird Nolan, as well as a desire to see more female stories and storytellers out in the world. “We wanted to build a space where women creators and viewers felt seen and heard,” says
Tapscott. The company’s
tagline says it all: Championing female and emerging voices and stories.
It’s probably safe to say that Tapscott’s career sort of snuck up on her, but what a ride it has been. “My entire career has been one big learning experience. I didn’t really know what producing was until I started doing it — the curve was steep! But I learn a million new and different things on every project,” she says. “I constantly look back at the last seven years and think, ‘How did I do that?’” She’ll no doubt have a few of these moments this summer, as Babe Nation shoots a contemporary English-language feature film adaption of the famous French novel Bonjour Tristesse in France. The theatre kid in Tapscott must think that’s pretty darn cool. “I’m proud of all that we’ve accomplished. It’s giving ‘never in my wildest dreams,’”
says Tapscott.
Who was your biggest
influence growing up?
I guess other than my parents, probably someone like Fiona Apple or Winona Ryder. I was a very angsty teen.
Your favourite hobby?
Reading.
Going for long walks.
What’s your favourite food?
My most-ordered meal on UberEats right now is a really big salad with lots of bits in it (chicken, avocado, goat’s cheese, pita chips, etc.) from Mandy’s Salads in Toronto.
Do you have a favourite movie?
Running on Empty, a movie from the ’80s starring River Phoenix. Or Grease 2 (it’s just Grease but with feminism and Michelle Pfeiffer).
Social platform of choice: Instagram, Facebook or Tiktok?
TikTok (to watch — I don’t create anything on it).
What’s something on your bucket list?
Meeting Beyoncé.
What’s your favourite season?
Fall (the mood, the fashion, the temperature, the light).
How do you destress?
I want to say reading but it’s honestly probably disassociating on my phone and scrolling TikTok.
What’s your favourite outdoor activity?
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