Lindura is a force. As one of the stars of the hit series, Sullivan’s Crossing, she has a presence to her that’s hard to quantify. She’s a rare cocktail of a scientific mind, ethereal beauty, and deep emotional intelligence all wrapped into one. What I find the most fascinating about her is how she recognizes these different facets of herself and is so driven to do the internal work that allows them all to work in tandem with each other as opposed to in contrast. She’s borderline addicted to growth, she’s in love with new experiences and challenges. Her passion is contagious and I found myself, in this conversation, called to expansion myself through her openness, strength, honesty, and vulnerability. I loved every minute of this chat and I’m sure you will too. Find Lindura: Instagram: @lifeoflindura TikTok: @lifeoflindura Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Associate Producer: @ akisharei Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms #Lindura #SullivansCrossing #TheDNAPodcast #dnybackact #CW #CTV #podcast #ActingPodcast #acting #growth…

Sara Waisglass blew me away with her presence, compassion, and thoughtful approach to both her work and her life. This is—believe it or not—the first episode we’ve done where I haven’t known the guest in advance. So, to not only meet Sara, but to have such an honest conversation with her was a blessing that’s hard to measure. From Degrassi through a lifetime in the industry that has led her to the hit Netflix series, Ginny & Georgia, she has gone through a LOT. The thing that stuck with me the most is how courageously she navigates her life in a fully felt way. She works with her full self, and she lives with her full self…more than that she has the courage to sit with herself in the downtime, to quietly get to know herself better amidst all the existential complication that brings. I know you’ll have as magical a time as I did meeting her, so dive on in. Find Sara: Instagram: @sarawais TikTok: @Sara.wais Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Associate Producer: @ akisharei Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms #SaraWaisglass #GinnyAndGeorgia #TheDNAPodcast #dnybackact #Netflix #Degrassi #podcast #ActingPodcast #acting #tudum!…

Carson MacCormac is no stranger to success in the world of feature film. Since his early days in the wildly popular DC “SHAZAAM!” franchise, he’s been working at an extremely high level. He’s now entering the horror genre in a big way with the release of the highly successful “Clown in a Cornfield”. Carson has always been a fascinating guy to me. He’s as likely to quote Friedrich Nietzsche to you as recommend a killer show he just found on Netflix, or an awesome fantasy novel he’s sinking his time into. He’s poetic, thoughtful, and does everything he can to better himself daily. Oh, and he also happens to be a profoundly talented actor. Talking with Carson is an exercise in growth because HE is always growing. Find Carson: Instagram: @carson_maccormac Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Associate Producer: @ akisharei Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms #TheDNAPodcast #ClownInACornfield #MyLifeWithTheWalterBoys #Netflix #NetflixSeries #ActingPodcast #Acting #Actor #Podcast #dnybackact…

In this episode of The DNA Podcast I have the pleasure of chatting with Laura Afelskie. Laura is a journeyman actor with a long list of credits to her name despite her young age. She’s had her fair share of hardships and in spite of that has already accomplished a LOT. Now she’s on the cusp of the release of her first major Netflix Series: BET—A live-action adaptation of the Japanese manga Kakegurui by Homura Kawamoto and Toru Naomura—and I couldn’t be more excited for her. Laura auditioned for MULTIPLE roles on this series before finally finding the perfect fit. It’s an awesome, inspiring, and informative convo for all you actors and BTS buffs out there. Find Laura: Instagram: @laura_afelskie Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas A warm welcome to our new DNA Intern: @ akisharei Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms…

Eliana Jones is a force. You may have seen her on any of her high profile shows—Hemlock Grove, Trick VR Treat, Northern Rescue—and if you haven’t you’ll be seeing her soon, bet on it. A frequent collaborator with Eli Roth, Eliana is as at home in the horror genre as she is in Jered Keeso’s hit comedy “Shoresy”. She’s whip smart, cutting, abrasive, and unapologetically “Eliana”. This episode is a deep dive on the life of an actor in LA who is on the verge of tremendous success, with offers starting to come in, and a roadmap of struggles behind. Eliana is a BLAST to work with, talk to, and watch on screen. Dive on in. This one’s fun. Find Eliana: Instagram: @elianajones Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Special Thanks to: @ambitiontalent @amaliawilliamson Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms…

Shaun Benson is a very special guy to a lot of people. To me, he’s someone who—even if he didn’t know it at the time—was a lighthouse for me during a very challenging time in my life. He’s an incredible actor who has been working in the industry for decades—on projects like The Boys, Billy The Kid, Mayans M.C., Gangland Undercover—a brilliant Meisner teacher, a talented photographer, and all around creative soul. Shaun and I get into it about addiction, recovery, rising, falling, and rising again in this industry. This was a profound, vulnerable, uplifting, and challenging conversation for me. I was looking forward to it immensely and it did not disappoint. So dive on it. Shaun has wisdom to share, and you’re going to want to receive it. Find Shaun: Instagram: @shaunmbenson TikTok: @shaunybenso…

In episode 12 of the DNA Podcast we have the profoundly talented actress, Camille Stopps, in the studio. You’ll see it immediately, but Camille is a bastion for human connection in a disconnected world. She is thoughtful, emotional, passionate, and dedicated in equal measure. This conversation was such a delight for me because to pull the thread of what lights Camille up as an actor is to dive headlong into a profound devotion to training, insights into emotional and intellectual connection, audition technique, the trials and tribulations of success and failure, and her unrelenting fire for this art form and her role within it. Camille is a light on this planet, and being a part of this conversation will make you a better actor, as well as challenge you to grow as a human (in the best of ways). Camille’s Info: Instagram: @camillestopps Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Special thanks to: @arisathan @ johnboylancentreforthearts @soulsroadmovie Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms #DNAPodcast #actingtips #auditiontips #camillestopps #acting #podcast #dnybackact #douglasnyback #soulsroadmovie…

In this Episode of the DNA Podcast I’m—for the first time ever on the pod—chatting with an agent! Ambition Talent’s own Julia Schneider has been at this for nearly two decades. She’s fiercely intelligent, kind, concise, and ruthless when needed. She also cares very deeply about every creative on her roster and as such has a deep understanding of the acting and casting processes and uses that expertise to absolutely flood this episode with insider information. You’ll find useful tips for actors, practical answers for anyone out there looking to get an agent, and helpful advice for the industry veterans out there. Give this one a listen, you won’t regret it. To me, there’s nothing more interesting than learning about the behind the scenes workings of the casting/agenting process, so dive on in! Ambition Talent: Instagram: @ambitiontalent www.ambitiontalent.com Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms #DNAPodcast #actingtips #auditiontips #agent #actingagent #ambitiontalent #acting #podcast #dnybackact #douglasnyback…

In our 10th episode of The DNA Podcast I sit down with Leading Lady, Carolina Bartczak. Carolina has been a client, collaborator, and friend for over a decade and through that time I’ve watched her become one of the world’s leading talents. Now, she likely wouldn’t say that, she’s too humble. But if you take a look at her resume you will see her working alongside a laundry list of A-Listers from Michael Fassbender, to Lena Headey, to Taylor Kitsch and more. And now, finally, she’s the lead of her own series with the upcoming season of Plan B. Carolina’s success is built on a mountain of hard earned victories, challenges, wisdom, talent, hard work, and a surgical understanding of her audition process. Oh! And she’s also the creator and host of the industry podcast “10-1” which I highly recommend you check out. This episode is full of useful insights, practical advice, and touching stories of resilience and triumph. I’m grateful to call Carolina a friend and it means the world to me that she’s here for this milestone episode. Carolina’s Info: Instagram: @carolinabartczak 10-1 Podcast: @10_1thepodcast 10-1 Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Qzkak3 10-1 ApplePods: https://apple.co/4gTDrHT Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms…

In this episode of The DNA Podcast I step into the orbit of the truly charismatic, intelligent, talented, and kind Trevor Tordjman. When I first met Trevor I thought “this has to be a bit, nobody can be this genuinely engaging and charismatic”…well, turns out he is. Trevor is one of the most passionate gents I know, he loves performance, he’s already had tremendous success and is booking up a storm as he transitions his career to new heights, and he’s creating his own work on top of it all. In this episode we talk about his journey from "The Next Step", to working on multiple projects for Disney, becoming Sylvester Stallone in a short he made about Sly’s life, the current and future states of the industry, and why you cannot let fear guide your choices as an actor or a person. This one hits fast and furious, folks. Dive on in. Find Trevor: Instagram: @trevorflanny TikTok: @trevorflannyt YouTube: @trevorftordjman…

In this episode of The DNA Podcast I sit down with Aris Athanasopoulos, who is an acting teacher and performer I greatly admire. I seldom find a coach I feel 100% comfortable sending my clients and peers to and Aris is one of them. In this episode we dive deep into the Character Creation technique he teaches, rooted in the Laban-Malmgren System of Movement Psychology. It sounds complicated but it’s an incredibly intuitive way for actors to develop their whole instrument (mind, body, heart) and I cannot wait for you to learn from this wonderful man. Instagram: @arisathan Website: www.arisactingstudio.com…

In this episode of The DNA Podcast I have the pleasure of talking with my dear friend and client, Anna Hopkins. Anna has been a prolific actor for years, working non-stop in projects like Shadowhunters, The Expanse, Letterkenny, Barney’s Version, Arrow, and Bad Blood (to just name a few). We talk about her journey as an actor, getting rejected from theatre school, growing up studying Meisner, the loss of her first acting coach, and the beautiful life lessons she’s cultivated as she’s grown through the industry. Anna will always hold a special place in my heart as a friend, client, and colleague. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did.…

In this episode of The DNA Podcast I chat with the profoundly talented Jon McLaren. Jon is a leading man best known for his work as Star-Lord in the hugely successful Guardians of the Galaxy video game. I met him working on a feature I co-wrote, produced, and co-starred in and it was immediately apparent from his auditions that he was on a whole other level. In this ep we talk about the trials and tribulations of acting, emotional connection, male vulnerability, and just how dang cool video games are to work on as actors and what they mean for the future of on-camera performance.…

In this episode of The DNA Podcast, I sit down with the remarkable Kelly Shaw, a lifelong dancer who is making her mark in the world of acting for the first time. We dive into her journey as an artist, exploring how her background in dance has influenced her approach to acting, the challenges she’s faced, and the exciting discoveries she’s made along the way. Whether you're an aspiring actor, dancer, or just someone interested in the creative process, this conversation offers valuable insights into how art forms intersect and how to embrace growth in your creative career. FOLLOW KELLY: @k22shaw…

In this episode of the DNA Podcast, I chat with the multi-talented Julie Nolke — actor, writer, comedian, and YouTuber extraordinaire. Julie is pulling network sitcom numbers with her hilarious and relatable YouTube content and we explore everything from her rise to success to the challenges of navigating the digital landscape vs the traditional film industry, and how she’s carving her own path. FOLLOW JULIE: @julienolke…