We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kara Rainer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kara, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you wish you had started sooner?

In a word, Yes, I do wish I had started sooner in the acting industry. But, I also believe, that everything that is for you, comes to you at the right time. So it’s hard to look back and say, “boy if I had only started earlier”, or “if I had just been a little braver”. No, I think I had to learn a lot of things along the way and then finally one day I knew I was ready. I knew I loved entertaining by the time I was 3 or 4 years old, and I was probably 20 years old when I finally admitted to myself that I wanted to be an actress, but I was too embarrassed to tell anyone for fear that someone might say I wasn’t good enough to do so… and so, I kept all of that a secret and dabbled a bit in community theatre, and all the while dreaming big dreams of one day being an actress. I was a stay-at-home-mom of 3 boys on the day that everything changed for me. A tragic sudden death in the heart of my family left me realizing that tomorrow is not promised.  This event completely changed the trajectory of the rest of my life and I didn’t want to waste one more minute without at least trying to do what I had always dreamed of doing. And so that journey began. I think what I love to share with people is that it is never too early or too late really for any change you want to make. If the passion is there, it is the right time. You would not even be given the idea for this passion unless there was some reason for it. That reason is because it is your gift. Unwrap it!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I think the biggest lesson that I had to “unlearn”, especially regarding the entertainment industry, is that I don’t need to care so much about what others think. And by others, I mean my peers, casting directors, agents, directors, etc. Honestly, I had to really LEARN that I am enough. The backstory on that is that I grew up always fearful that I wasn’t good enough to become an actress, and that I had no clue what I was doing. The truth is, I didn’t have to know what I was doing to begin – I just had to begin. The passion was there and I finally took the leap. Is it a lot of hard work? You bet it is! Classes, studying, more classes, research, auditions, so many auditions that you don’t book, oh and then more classes! But, I don’t have to worry what anyone thinks about my auditions or choices. I don’t need to feel desparate for someone to like me or worry that I didn’t book the role. That part is not my job, nor my business! My job is to bring life to the character on the page. All I need to do is bring my personality and the skills that I have developed as an actor to this character or audition. If I book the role, awesome! If I don’t, guess what,… I’ve already moved on to the next audition. I’m just here to work hard, have fun telling stories and continue to keep growing as an actor.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

It’s rewarding knowing that I get to wake up everyday and create. I get to tell stories in a way that only I can tell them. I am unique, as is the one reading this, as is every living thing on this planet, and each one of us has talents and the ability to be a creator of our own paths. Isn’t that cool!? I really want everyone to know that! This gets me up in the morning!

And finally, even though it is really amazing to see some of my work up on the big screen and I have to say, that is pretty cool, but I have found that I really feel rewarded when people come to ask me for advice about how to get in this industry, or want some help on a self-tape. I love to share anything that I have learned over the years or that could be helpful to my fellow creatives!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/kararainer
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kararainer/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KaraRainer
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/h3nLYdFtC7k
• Other: https://filmthreat.com/reviews/blackwood/
  Article on Black Wood https://youtu.be/cP737QjTT3c
  Trailer for Black Wood https://soundcloud.com/bigblendradio/blackwood-movie
  Podcasts Mentioning me https://tvshowsace.com/2022/08/14/uptvs-love-game-match-bachelorette-dale-moss/

Image Credits
ABM photography JTL Productions