We recently connected with Amanda Barlow and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

It’s incredibly hard to pick just one project and call it the most meaningful, because so many of the things that I’ve worked on have been a labor of love made with friends, or they’ve been a huge studio project where I felt lucky to be included. Because you can train at the best schools and you can do everything right, but at the end of the day, it’s usually just about being in the right place at the right time. I think my most memorable project was the first movie I ever worked on, my second month living in LA.

I moved to LA from New York with mainly a theater background, I had just signed with an agent, but was still self submitting, and wound up booking myself a role on a big film as a nonspeaking featured character. I was only meant to be on set for two days, but in those two days I listened, I learned as much as I could, I and I tried to take everything in. I was acting alongside a well known comedian who has a very popular network show, multiple podcasts, comedy tour dates, he’s starring in films with Zac Efron, all of it. But he never made me feel intimidated. If anything, he made me feel like I belonged with everyone else.

I told him about where I’d come from, where I’d trained, how excited I was to be on set, and by the end of the second day, he had spoken to the director on my behalf and they decided to let me improv some dialogue for the film. I was beyond floored and so thankful, and for the first time I was on a major studio project making everyone laugh. I thanked the director afterwards, who likely had no idea he was one of my favorites, and about a month later, production called me and asked if I’d return for another scene and do it all over again. Of course I accepted and I got to spend almost a whole week improvising and laughing and learning with some of the best in the business. I am so grateful to that comedian and to the whole production for taking a chance on me and letting me be silly on camera. It’s a time in my life and career that I will never forget, and it makes me so excited for what’s to come.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’ve wanted to be an actor since I was about four years old. My very first production was A Midsummer Night’s Dream and I played Titania and Oberon’s fairy child. A role that was actually meant for a boy, but I was so adorable it broke gender barriers. As much as I begged and pleaded with my parents to let me move to California, they were adamant about me having a ‘normal childhood’. I did still periodically send tapes to Nickelodeon, I guess another Amanda just got to them first. But growing up in Boston, there were tons of acting classes and community theater for me to get involved in, I’m assuming I was enrolled early because my parents were tired of hearing my stand up routine.

I was a classic drama club nerd all through high school, I did also play sports, just not well. Later on I went to college at a conservatory in New York where received my bachelors degree, then I lived in London, training at the Drama Studio London conservatory, and when I returned to New York, I received a scholarship to train at the Atlantic acting school. Then, after the pandemic, I traded my east coast allergies for a west coast sunburn and made the move to Los Angeles.

Comedy has always been my strong suit, my passion and my preference. Since moving to LA, I’ve had some of the best experiences and made amazing friends and connections while performing improv at the Groundlings. I’ve become an even stronger performer, a more open collaborator, a better writer, and I get to work with some of the funniest people I’ve ever met. But they also get to work with me too, and I’m hilarious.

I love the work that actors get to do and I’m always going to find a way to do it, no matter what. I’m definitely someone to look out for. I’m an amazing edition to any ensemble, the perfect comic relief, and, there wasn’t anywhere to put it on my resume so I’ll just say it here; I can cry on cue. So, keep that in mind when you think of me for your next project. Honestly, if you gather a bunch of comedy writers and say the right incantations around a fire, I’ll just appear. So keep that in mind too.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Honestly, the best way to support the artists and creatives in your life if you’re unable to donate actual money, is to just literally be supportive. Acknowledge their accomplishments, encourage them to develop their ideas, encourage them to collaborate, show interest in their work, offer feedback, hire them if you’re able – just be there. For a lot of of us, it’s less of a ‘want’ to create and more of a ‘need’ to. I always tell people that I wouldn’t wish the desire to be an actor on anybody, because it’s a strange yearning deep in your gut, where you know if you were just given the chance you’d be able to do something great, but the journey to get to a simple ‘yes’ is so long and so expensive and so full of rejection and can be such a letdown. And so many creatives are simply lacking the support to pursue the thing that they’re so passionate about. For us, we know the risks, we know we seem crazy, but it’s who we are. Every once in a while, all someone needs is a little encouragement.

And if you’re someone who’s involved in the entertainment industry, who has any kind of say, or power of decision, first of all, hi, how are ya? Hope you’ve enjoyed my article so far. Second, take a risk on the unknown. Hire that writer who hasn’t made a name for themselves yet, cast that actor with only a couple of credits. Take a chance on someone new. There’s so many amazing people out there who are just waiting for someone like you to say yes, and you never know, they might be just what you’ve been looking for.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

There are amazing resources out there for actors, but I personally think the best one if you’re financially able, is just signing up for a class, getting to know the other people in the room, and not being afraid to ask questions. There’s never any harm in asking someone how they found their manager, how they booked that job, how they got to where they are, whatever it is. I don’t know a single actor who isn’t happy to talk about themselves. You just have to ask. And you’ll definitely come across some people who feel competitive, and who feel they need to gate-keep their information, but for the most part you’ll come across someone like me, who’s willing to share research, and recommend classes, or tell you how I signed with my agent, or give you great scripts I think you should read. You do that, and before you know it, you’ll be on stage somewhere in Hollywood making up a whole show on the spot, with a group of people you didn’t even know a month ago, and you’ll feel so at home. You just have to find fellow creatives who are willing to share, who are willing to let you hold each other accountable, and who want to work hard and have fun. That’s the best resource there is.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://amandabarlow.com
• Instagram: @amandabadanda

Image Credits

Headshots – Charlie Jake Sanchez