Rachael Carpani had no idea what to expect when she showed up to work on a film with Doris Roberts. The only thing the Australian native knew about her co-star was watching Roberts on “Everybody Loves Raymond.”
“I had no idea she was so prolific,” Carpani says in a telephone interview from her home in Sydney. “When I realized I was going to be working with her, I had a look at what she had done.
“I was blown away.”
The film that brought the two together, “Touched by Romance” will air at 8 p.m. May 17 on UPtv. Carpani plays a young nurse who must get past the barriers put up by a cantankerous famous novelist to help her new employer reconnect with her estranged son and also rediscover her passion for the arts.
Carpani went into the project with little knowledge of Roberts but she had plenty of time to learn more as the pair often had days where they were the only two actors working.
What impressed Carpani the most was how hard Roberts – who was 89 at the time – worked. Roberts died two years after the filming of “Touched by Romance” but she had been battling pulmonary hypertension for years.
“This was very dialogue heavy especially for me and Doris. I was having trouble memorizing 25 pages a day,” Carpani says. “Doris was quite elderly at the point and not in the best of health but you never would have known it.
“I remember there were times when I was feeling like I could use a nap. But she didn’t want a nap. So if she’s not going to nap, I am not going to nap.”
The name of the film suggests that “Touched by Romance” could have been just another cable film where a young man and woman meet, don’t initially care for each other but eventually find love. That is one theme but the film also looks at the relationship between a mother and son, the fear of pushing past a comfort zone and the place the creative process plays in a person’s life.
Carpani describes Roberts as a “gentle, kind powerhouse.” That was important because the film starts with their two characters being at odds but eventually finding a mutual respect while dealing with all of the other elements.
The way the romance element is handled was very pleasing to Carpani.
“This film is not the standard romantic comedy where there is the meet cute boy meets girl. It is essentially the story of an unlikely bond that forms between two women,” Carpani says. “It was so refreshing that this movie was just not an extended Tinder date.
“It’s not trying to say that these two will fly off into the sunset and they will end up living happily ever after. It is about these characters finding courage and I believe there is romance in courage.”
It would take decades for Carpani to have the kind of career that Roberts put together over more than 60 years but Carpani has made a very good start. Best known for her role as Jodi Fountain on the Australian TV drama “McLeod’s Daughters,” Carpani also had roles in the films “Hating Alison Ashley” and “The Way Back.”
Her television credits – on programs in the United States and Australia – include “Cane,” “NCIS: Los Angeles,” “If There Be Thorns,” “Against the Wall,” “800 Words” and “The Glades.”
All of this work helped Carpani understand the point of “Touched by Romance” that deals with the power derived from being creative. That has become clear in Carpani’s real life as she – like so many who work in the TV and film worlds – can only sit and wait for productions to resume.
Carpani doesn’t seek the limelight and is much more of a homebody but she learned after making “McLeod’s Daughters” – the story of five women running a cattle ranch – how her work can have a positive impact. She’s often told by young girls how much they want to grow and be a strong woman like her character.
“That show let me know there was a way for me to get a message across to young girls especially in this world of plumped up lips and unrealistic body shapes that being smart and strong and articulate will make you into a wonderful woman.”
The latest strong character for Carpani can be seen in “Touched by Love.” UPtv, a basic cable channel that was formerly GMC TV, includes family-friendly original movies, series and specials.
