Today, I have the pleasure of introducing you to a worthy Siren, one that rightfully claims to be the only black woman in the Quebec film industry being capable of handling acting and stunt work. We share the same city of birth (Montreal) so I thought, why not spotlight local talent from time to time?

Sharlene Royer is the daughter of a Haitian mother and French Canadian father. She began her career by learning to dance, namely ballet, jazz and tap. This led to theater work in a troupe, some modeling, video and commercials appearances, and of course an acting debut in television.

Being fluently bilingual, Sharlene had the privilege in participating in popular French and English television series, like The Hunger, Largo Winch, Lance et compte - La nouvelle génération and Les Bougon : c’est aussi ça la vie. Transforming into a stunt woman gave her the privilege of doubling for the likes of Halle Berry, Vanessa Williams, Rosario Dawson and Pam Grier, being able to handle combat scenes, gun work and various martial arts techniques.

Recently, Sharlene has begun to enjoy bigger roles in higher profile movies from Quebec, like the big hit Bon Cop Bad Cop (the highest grossing Canadian movie in the history of the country’s box office receipts). She also appeared too briefly as a seductive escort in Cheech the same year.

2007 is shaping up to be a busy year, with the sci-fi thriller Recon 2022: The Mezzo Incident, cult director Stuart Gordon’s latest project Stuck, and the black comedy/thriller Cadavres.

There’s a lot of talent and beauty here, and I hope that you’ll keep an interested eye on Sharlene Royer’s future work.