Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Michelle Papademetriou . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Michelle, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
Well, if you ask my parents this question they will tell you that at a very young age they knew I would end up becoming an actress because I was a drama queen. Despite my more reserved and shy nature, I would frequently respond melodramatically to even the smallest thing. I’m talking the back of my hand to my forehead before dramatically throwing myself to the ground because my parents handed me a blue tissue instead of a pink one. Apparently, I was very partial toward anything pink. I was almost 3 when I began taking ballet classes and then around the age of 8, I decided performing is what I wanted to do. I did my ballet training through the Royal Academy of Dance, which is a world-renowned ballet training and education program. I passed all the examinations and received all my certifications until the level where I could dance professionally or teach. Additionally, I trained and received certifications in jazz, modern, and flamenco dance during those years. Stepping onto a stage and telling a story through movement led me to the next step in my evolution as a performer. I began doing plays with a local theatre company and performing in my school’s plays. I got my first acting agent at 14 and booked lead roles in several national commercials. From that moment I knew that acting on screen was my ultimate path. When I was 16 I took the long trip from where I lived in the Mediterranean to Los Angeles and did a film acting program at the New York Film Academy during my summer break. This program gave me insight into what to expect as an actor and what it would be like living in the US.
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 back background and context?
For starters, thank you for having me! I’m Michelle Papademetriou and I’m an American-Cypriot currently living in Arizona. I was born on the island of Cyprus and lived there until I graduated high school, so I grew up speaking both Greek and English. I always knew I wanted to move to America for college so after high school, I moved to the US and earned my Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre with a minor in neuroscience at the University of Arizona. Throughout college, I gained lots of experience acting in student films and theatrical productions. One of these films was a short that led me to win the award for best actress at the Campus Movie Fest on a national level. It was so surreal for me to sit in this beautiful theatre at Fox Studios in LA with my mom by my side. There were so many film submissions and I was shocked to even be nominated. I truly didn’t think I’d win. Here I am on my 21st birthday hearing my name being called as the winner of this category and I couldn’t believe it. Best 21st birthday present I could ask for. This was a moment where I felt proud of myself because I worked so hard to get to that point. This film holds a special place in my heart because during my junior and senior years of college I was in and out of the hospital with an unknown medical condition. I never allowed my health to stop me from achieving my goals though. So after college, I made the move to LA and I was ready to face the madness of the film industry. I went into it knowing there is a lot of rejection, uncertainty, and darkness. It was anything but glamorous. I started at the bottom working as an extra, a body double, and a stand-in on major television shows and movies. Though it was often grueling, the experience I gained on all those sets was invaluable. My chronic illness did slow me down for a few years and I had to move out of LA but I knew that wouldn’t be the end of my acting journey. Little did I know I would shortly end up booking my first speaking role in a feature film. I have been a member of the screen actors guild since 2014 and am always eager to keep learning, taking classes, and evolving in my craft. Something I would tell aspiring artists is to keep following your dreams, stay inspired and believe in yourself.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
As I mentioned in my previous answer I was dealing with an unknown medical condition starting at 20 years old. Despite being a regular visitor to the emergency room I still continued acting and graduated college a semester early. I was set to move to London for my junior semester abroad shortly after I got sick. As amazing as it was to live and learn in such a historical setting my health made everything more challenging. When I returned to the US I spent countless hours in doctors’ offices, being poked and prodded, wired and scanned. To my frustration, I was still coming out with no answers. Being a young female I often felt ignored and disregarded by many medical professionals who wouldn’t take the time to truly listen. It took 4 years for me to get a diagnosis. All it took was for a cardiologist to listen to me when I said I thought something was wrong with my heart. I have had anxiety my whole life and this felt different. Anytime I had any health complaint that felt out of the ordinary it was chalked up to just being in my head and just anxiety. I had an echocardiogram and right there was one of my answers. A genetic heart condition. This propelled them to do more testing where I got an additional diagnosis of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) which is a chronic invisible illness. There was a lot of trial and error with medications and therapies. I had a central line implanted that remained for 9 months, requiring daily infusions and home nurse visits. I decided that I would use this time to find ways of continuing my journey as an artist in hopes of one-day inspiring others in similar situations. During this time was when I booked and filmed my role in the feature film Wish Man. This was a testament to my resilience. It was awesome seeing my dreams come to fruition and seeing myself on screen in a cinema. Aside from continuing my path in the arts during those difficult times, I used my experience in dance to create a separate new dream for myself. I became a certified Pure Barre Instructor in 2017 teaching in both Arizona and Hollywood, CA. Then, this past year I became a certified personal trainer and started my own business Michelle Papa Fit. My ultimate goal in this venture is to create a workout program and work with clients who have POTS and other chronic illnesses. I am happy that I stuck with it, did the work, and trusted the process because now I can happily say I get to work as both an actor and a fitness professional.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
Over the years I’ve gotten a lot of comments about how acting isn’t a real job or career and it felt very condescending. Being told that being an actor must mean that I’m stupid or can’t get a “real job”. 16+ hour days in a career that can be mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting isn’t easy work. Every job has its challenges but I never understood how people could put down others’ choices when they were doing something that made them happy. I come from 7 generations of dentists, with my sister being the 8th. Both of my parents are orthodontists, both of my grandfathers were dentists and several of my friends are also in that field. Being an artist in a world of doctors is daunting. They always stood by my decision of becoming an actor though. I am so grateful that my close friends and family have been nothing but supportive and I know that unfortunately, this isn’t the case for everyone. Finding a strong support system in any way you can is vital. You are putting yourself in a vulnerable position as an actor and there are unfortunately always people who will want to tear you down. I’ve spent many years almost feeling ashamed for being an artist because so many people didn’t understand it. I noticed they weren’t willing to understand it either. Why can we celebrate so and so’s promotion in a more recognized or accepted job but an artist booking a film, campaign, or a show after many auditions was seen as nothing. I am 30 now and still struggle with people’s comments at times. I believe it’s important to remind yourself of your journey and how far you have come and block out unnecessary outside noise. Growing up I remember forcing my parents to sit through all of my performances at home that my friends and I would do. We would make them “tickets” and then have them all scrunch up on the couch to watch. Today they still watch my performances except this time it’s airing on tv and I get to enjoy the wine with them as we watch! Last month I filmed a movie for a well-known network as one of the female leads. What’s special to me about this is that it’s a network my mom and I have always watched together. I can’t wait to share this moment with her and my loved ones on the other side of the screen. It’s a good reminder to myself and others who are feeling put down that we can do it. I am inspired by friends, family, and fellow creatives, and it’s definitely motivating. I hope the world can become more accepting of artists because we indulge in many forms of art daily and looking throughout history up until today, art is valuable to our society.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.michellepapademetriou.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/michellepapa_
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/MichellePapademetriouActress/, http://www.facebook.com/MichellePapademetriouActress/
- Other: Tik Tok: www.tiktok.com/@michellepapademetriou IMDB: www.imdb.com/name/nm5893508/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk Fitness IG: www.instagram.com/michellepapafit
Image Credits
Myself Shane Rad Lee Melvin Brad Wong Andrew Franz