The SFN Talks To Actor Michael Dix Thomas About “Ragged Isle”

Tell us about the character you play on Ragged Isle:
I play Eric Burke, a ‘From Away’ lobster fisherman on Ragged Isle, and the twin brother to Meghan Benton’s Vicki Burke. Eric Has been living on-island for a few years, long enough to work out a lobstering partnership with his friend Paul Soucey and endear himself into the island community.

What is something that people wouldn’t know about your character?
Eric’s was a loner before he made it out to the island. Now he’s got a cat and a few close friends, and he’s ambitious about the prospects of finding some new territory to fish off of the island. Eric’s never been happier with his life than he is on Ragged, and he’s looking forward to reconnecting with his sister Vicki this summer.

Tell us something about yourself that people may not know.
I don’t really wear hats that much.

What do you do when you’re not acting?
When I’m not acting, I’m usually trying to find gigs. I’ve recently co-founded a theater company called Lorem Ipsum in Portland, ME with (among others) real life yuck-it-up-pal Ian Carlsen (Paul from RI). Aside from acting, producing, and directing, I work a day job in public health.

If your character had the island to themselves for a day what would they do?
Either go fishing or dance.

How did you land the role?
I landed the role by having spare time. I was sitting at home one day, thinking about trying to go get a job, when Derek Kimball (RI DP/Cinematographer/Genius) called me up and told me he was working on a web series and that they had just lost an actor. I showed up to shoot the second act of episode 1 that day.

How did you get into acting?
I should have started acting in 1st grade. I was in the class play with a role as a toucan, but I got the chicken pox and had to miss the show. I really started to love it when I did Shakespeare in the park in Portland, Maine when I was 16. That might have had something to do with a girl.

Who are some of your favorite actors?
Honestly, my favorite actors are my friends and collaborators. Maybe I come to respect them because I see the dedication and talent up close and often, or maybe I just know the greatest actors.

What’s been the most fun part of working on Ragged Isle so far?
Making something on our own. This show is a complete labor of love for Barry & Karen Dodd (he is the director, she is the producer/wrangler/PA, and both were writers). Their passion, and willingness to take risks on something like this is inspirational, and telling of where the genre and film/TV production are going.