“I’ve always been a big advocate for having lots of strings to your bow because I believe it makes you a stronger artist,” explains Amelia, although she adds that being a self-employed creative made it a difficult decision when or even if to start a family.
“I had some anxiety about being a mum and what it might do to my career because I’d be sad if I wasn’t creative. I also worried if I could even have a child, so the road to parenthood was a slow-burn for me.”
Luckily, in 2021, Amelia met Chilean industrial designer Emiliano, 35, on Tinder and quickly saw he’d be a “wonderful dad as he’s such a beautiful, loving, committed, sweet, hilarious guy”.
Amelia with Emiliano and Alma. Photo / Robert Trathen
She continues, “After three years together, we started talking about trying for a baby, but we assumed we’d be trying for at least a year, so we made all these other plans.”
However, the fortunate couple conceived relatively easily, so a much-anticipated family holiday through the US, Mexico and the Caribbean had to be worked around Amelia’s pregnancy.
“I’m nervous to share that part of our story as not only was conception and pregnancy uncomplicated, but the birth was also relatively easeful,” says Amelia. “I know it’s not like this for everyone, but we did a hypno-birthing course, which really worked for me.
“I wonder if it had something to do with the intensity of acting that I was able to surrender myself to a moment and almost enjoy it. Perhaps it’s good for people to hear positive stories about fertility and labour. For me, birth was beautiful. Yes, there was pain, but with this really cool prize at the end!”
Alma is now five months old. Photo / Robert Trathen
Her daughter Alma is now five months old and “wonderful, very alert, social and chatty”, says a smitten Amelia. As to whether her little girl will follow in her mum’s famous footsteps, that remains to be seen.
“Now I have my own baby, I know exactly what my mum meant when she’d tell me she was proud of me for just being me,” she smiles. “She didn’t mind what I did, so long as I was happy.”
Incredibly, Amelia initially declined to audition for her role in East of Eden as her Masters thesis was due in the first few weeks of filming. But when the casting team asked her to reconsider, the actor gave in because Ethel was such “a rich character – a full, complicated human, rather than just a prostitute”.
Learning lines while also finishing her thesis was a challenge, but Amelia says, “I’m at my best when I have many things on the go. I didn’t have the time to feel nervous. I was having two of the best creative experiences of my life happening at the same time and I feel really proud of both of them.”
East of Eden is now streaming on Netflix.