This spring, I had the opportunity to be an extra in a movie that’s being created, and I can say it was life-changing in many ways. The film I worked on was an upcoming psychological thriller, Deluxe Ocean View, starring Callan McAuliffe, Camryn Manheim, Henry Ian Cusick, Ray Campbell, Ryan Powers, Loren Allred, and Mackenzie Barmen. Make sure to check out the link below to read more about the film! I wanted to share my story because, as a soon-to-be graduate, I realized I have more than one passion that I can follow in life.
https://deadline.com/2026/04/deluxe-ocean-view-casts-callan-mcauliffe-camryn-manheim-1236784826
I very randomly had this opportunity presented to me by simply throwing out the idea to a producer while I was on a movie set that if they needed any extras, I’d be more than happy to fill in. They managed to find something for me to do, and I was so excited to do it. It’s not every day that you get to be on a movie set, and it’s definitely not an everyday thing to be able to be part of a movie.
When I was on set, I felt a level of excitement I hadn’t felt in a while, and even my family said that it looked like there was a new fire lit behind my eyes. It was absolutely incredible to see how a movie is made, and it was even more inspiring to see how every single person on the crew worked so well together. I can say with absolute certainty that I’ve never seen anyone work as tirelessly as this cast and crew did, and I consider myself so lucky to have had even a tiny part in this project. I cannot wait to see the finished project, I just know it will be amazing.
It was honestly a little scary how excited I was about this. Growing up, I feel like we are always taught and told to pick one thing and go with it, or keep trying different things until you find what one you really love to do. Something that I think isn’t talked about enough is this idea that we are allowed to have more than one passion in life, and we can do more than one thing that we love.
For me, film-making and acting has been something I’ve always thought about in the back of my mind. If I’m reading a book or watching a new TV show, I’m constantly thinking about how I would do things if I was in the role of a producer or a director or even just working on a set. I always kind of felt that, in another life, I was supposed to be working in TV and film, but it never really seemed like a possibility. I think there’s a stigma around becoming an actor or working in the film industry because you have to work your way up, and it seems nearly impossible to actually be successful. But this experience taught me that it’s not impossible, there are small ways to be part of these incredible projects.
Being a part of this movie showed me that there are more things I want to do in life and more things that I want to learn. This even inspired me to look into taking film classes while I’m getting my master’s degree in the fall because now I know that it’s ok to want more than one thing. Throughout my whole college experience, I’ve been telling myself I’m gonna be a social worker and that it’s gonna be amazing. And it probably will be amazing, but I feel like I limited myself to that because I thought I could only have one passion. This experience showed me how limiting the idea of picking one path and committing to it really is. Being in a completely different environment, doing something I never thought I’d have the opportunity to, made me realize that I don’t have to fit myself into one box. I’m so excited for what the future holds for me because I can’t wait to explore multiple interests and explore different opportunities because, ultimately, I’m still moving forward with my life, but I’ll be filling it with more things that I love to do.
The takeaway from this article is that having more than one passion in life doesn’t mean you have to give up one. I think everyone should explore all the opportunities that they have and throw themselves into new things because, even if it’s scary, amazing things can come out of it. We are all capable of doing anything we set our minds to, even if it seems crazy. I never would have expected this to be something I could put on my resume, but here I am. I will forever be grateful to the producers of this film for giving me a shot to live out a dream of mine. While my role in this movie may be small, this movie sparked a big change in me!