Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Meredith Jackson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Meredith thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

The path to becoming a working actor has had a few risks, but they’ve been worth taking. I remember it feeling like a huge risk when I decided to quit my full-time job, so that I had time to take acting classes, work on film & television sets, audition for independent films and student films, and find an agent. It felt like another huge risk when I started taking ownership over my goals and posting about projects that I was booking, since anytime you’re publicly sharing your hopes and dreams, there’s a chance that someone might try and discourage you (although, I was pleasantly surprised at how supportive my family and friends were). After booking a handful of co-star roles on television shows and a few supporting roles in feature films in the southeast market, it felt like another huge risk when I moved to Los Angeles, since I was uprooting my life and integrating myself into a new, highly competitive, market. In retrospect, I can’t imagine my life any differently. I’m so happy in Los Angeles, where I have found amazing friends, a wonderful acting coach, a hard-working manager and agent, all of whom I am incredibly grateful for. In the last few years, it’s been such a joy to work alongside extremely talented people on great projects, such as Ozark, Lessons in Chemistry, Insecure, Seal Team, Fantasy Island, and many more. Every risk along the way was well worth it. Pursuing an acting career felt like a bit of a gamble at times, but I’m so glad that I bet on myself.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you tell us how you got started as an actor and what you’re most proud of?

I’ve enjoyed every step along the way in my acting career. I remember taking a writing / directing / acting workshop in middle school; I think that’s when I first fell in love with storytelling and acting. After that, it wasn’t until college when I was a background actor on a television show; I remember thinking how impressive it was seeing a crew of 200 people work together to tell a cohesive story, and wanted to be a part of it! While still in college, I started taking acting classes as every elective class. Then, after college, and after I quit my full-time job, I really switched gears, and put my everything into turning acting into a career. I started taking acting classes again, took any job on set that I could (costume intern, stunts, background casting, stand-in, etc.), and found an agent. I also wrote my first short film (Pushing Buttons) that I produced and acted in. While getting my acting career started in the southeast with a few co-star roles and supporting roles, I also created a scripted series (The Struggle is Real) with two friends (Jessica Heath and Katelyn Farrugia). We ran a successful Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds for the project, and thoroughly enjoyed writing, producing, casting, acting in, and consulting on the edit on that series. On each project that I write, I stretch myself further, to keep learning; for instance, on my most recent scripted series (Park Acrobats) that I wrote/produced/acted in, I learned how to edit on Premiere Pro, and edited the entire series. I’m extremely determined and like to push myself to learn more about the art of storytelling every day, whether that’s learning new editing software or stretching myself as an actor. I’m very proud of how far I’ve come, having acted in some fantastic shows and movies, alongside tremendously talented directors and actors. I continue to feel so grateful anytime that I book a new role in a new project. I’m a hard-worker, continue to set new goals for myself, and still have the same drive as when I first started, and I’m excited to see what’s around the next corner.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

In the beginning, my goal was simply to be a part of the filmmaking world. I’ve always appreciated the effort it takes from all departments to come together and all work towards the common goal of telling a good story; I just wanted to be a part of that. Now, as I continue to stretch myself as an actor; my goal is also to do my best job reflecting humanity, authentically representing what it is to be human, while hopefully telling a story that motivates, inspires, challenges people to be a better version of themselves. I also enjoy a good comedy, and telling or being a part of a story that just makes people laugh, because sometimes life can be hard, and we just need something fun to watch as an escape.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I find being an actor very rewarding. I enjoy the process of working on an emotionally challenging role. I love analyzing scripts and figuring out who the character really is. I love working with the director and my fellow actors to successfully bring the character to life. For me, the most rewarding part of being an actor is when I feel that all of the character work, emotional work, and script analysis has come together to create a performance that the director, writers, my castmates, and myself are delighted with. It’s extremely rewarding to see hard work pay off, especially when, as an actor, a lot of it is in your hands to bring someone else’s story to life.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.meredithjackson.net
• Instagram: @itsMeredithJackson
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ActressMeredithJackson
• Twitter: @itsMeredithJ
• Other: http://www.imdb.me/meredithjackson

Image Credits
Jordan Matter