Brief Encounter

   

Over the holidays I spent a couple weeks in Italy with my family. My ENTIRE family, all 10 of us rode in tiny boats through the canals in Venice, climbed the Duomo in Florence, frolicked through wine country, and traipsed through the ruins in Rome! It was a lovely and enlightening trip, which I can easily say about all of my experiences overseas.

I even got to connect with an industry professional while I was in Rome thanks to director/writer Stephen Mitchell. He connected me with a good friend and colleague of his, John Lawrence Ré (CEO of Northern Arts Entertainment) who then connected me with a friend and colleague of his, Carl Haber, a director/writer and film professor at the American University of Rome. Carl was amazing to talk with and gave me a lot of ideas of how I can pursue my dreams while still traveling and living the life I want to live. He also gave me some solid advice on screenplay writing and offered insight on the feature I'm currently writing. We agreed to keep in touch via Skype!

Traveling is so much more than just "getting away" from it all. It's a way to find yourself on multiple levels. You come back knowing secrets about yourself you never thought to unlock. You see yourself everywhere..in the history that's so alive it still holds feeling and presence. In the locals relaxing with their espresso in the middle of the day because their shops are closed for "siesta". In Michelangelo's "David". In your sister as she stares in awe at the buried ancient city. You start to separate all that doesn't make you feel this good, this free. You put it into a box and you never open it again. You discover a secret; We are all the same in some unexplainable way and it is time and circumstance that makes us feel separate.

Acting is putting yourself in a circumstance and acting truthfully within that circumstance. One of the most admirable things you can do as an actor is to lose yourself in a role so much so that the audience doesn't even recognize you. I find that using this secret, I don't have to "lose myself". I recognize that I could easily be any of you just as easily as I wake up as myself every morning. So the "self" I am is the thing that recognizes that, not the tiny outside things I attach myself to. I am a ball of emotion, logic, love, air and water. And I can relate to anyone or anything if I fully understand the circumstance.

Traveling allows room for discovery and presence, both which are crucial to being a well-rounded actor and a well-rounded human being. I can't wait to fill in the gaps with my next adventure!