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

Alright, Sam thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always strived to make the best choices for myself based on my own intuition. However, in modern society, many of my life decisions could be seen as “risky”.

At 17 years old, weeks before I was set to be a theatre major at SFSU, I pulled my enrollment, stayed in LA, and continued working as a server while pursuing my acting career. On my 19th birthday, I moved out of my parents’ house here in Los Angeles to live alone in a 225 sq. ft. bachelor in Koreatown. At 24, I quit my serving job to work for myself full time. During a global pandemic at 25, with a negative bank account balance and a credit card, I created and incorporated a production company. I then produced a short film, and used the money we crowdfunded to pay all of our team members except myself.

I didn’t know what the outcome of these decisions would be, I just knew deep down that I had to make them. I believe that in life, everything that we experience is a learning experience (sans tragedy). So while my life decisions could be seen as senseless or reckless to many, I don’t carry regret for any of the decisions I have made because there is no right or wrong, there just is. Whatever happens is meant to be. This, mixed with abundance mindset, makes it much easier to act on decisions that are deemed risky: “full of the possibility of danger, failure, or loss” (Oxford Languages). So f@$% it. YOLO.*

*I’d like to remind readers that I’m a 28-year-old, white, thin, able-bodied person, and my life has come with many privileges that has provided less resistance in initially enacting this way of thinking.

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?

I’m very grateful to have been interviewed before by CanvasRebel’s sibling publications, with my previous articles about where it all began linked at the bottom of this one. The highlights: I work in the entertainment industry, and I’ve always been a show biz person. I’ve operated in lots of mediums and in front of and behind the camera, onstage, and backstage, but I’ve been an actor and performer the longest.

My career priorities have drastically changed since March 2020. Coaches and classes will tell you that your primary “job” as an actor is auditioning, and that booking roles is the icing on the cake. I’ve been performing since I was 5 years old, but in the 10+ years of my adult acting career, I’ve gone on 488 auditions, received 138 callbacks, and booked 59 jobs. Which has left me wondering: where’s the option where I can just eat the icing straight out of the can? :)

After starting the “Artist’s Way” in March 2020, I realized that while I love performing in theatre, splitting my time between stage and screen in LA didn’t feel right anymore. So I continued auditioning and booking (nonunion) on-camera jobs. Then, eventually, working on those projects didn’t feel right for me either.

Creating things and employing people is hard. As I reflected throughout the pandemic, I discovered that the majority of jobs that I’ve had (entertainment industry, service industry, and otherwise), consistently left me feeling frustrated by the disrespect, exploitation, and injustice that was rampant within these workplaces. I would speak out, which usually led to these jobs deeming me as sensitive, dramatic, rebellious, and difficult to work with, and I would receive reduced working hours or be removed from projects altogether.

I’m self aware enough to know that I do possess some of these traits, but the kicker is that the reasons I’ve spoken out on these jobs are the same reasons that we, members of entertainment unions SAG-AFTRA and the WGA, went on strike last year: workers and artists are constantly being wrung out, undervalued, and taken advantage of; we don’t feel protected, taken care of, or respected; and both greed and the lack of effective management, communication, and leadership skills by decision makers cause detrimental damage to us mentally, emotionally, and physically, and we are not paid what we are worth. And so much more.

I’ve finally reached a point where I consciously understand that my emotional, mental, and physical health takes priority for me over potentially harmful work opportunities, validation or industry status, or financial gain. For now, this is how I’ve found freedom within my career and within the industry – and most importantly, in my life.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

As an actor and member of SAG-AFTRA, I’ll speak on actors specifically. It has been historically very hard for many of us to speak up about mistreatment while on projects, because we’ve been made to feel so expendable. I think because the majority of society grew up doing school plays and playing make-believe, it can be connected to being easy, childish, or silly (unless you’re literally Meryl Streep or Viola Davis).

The majority of actors are told that first and foremost, they should feel lucky to book a job. They should feel so grateful to even be on set. Opportunities are so few and far between and competition is so steep that actors should celebrate and be satisfied by the mere chance of getting to audition for a job. But you know what – auditions don’t pay the bills. For many, being on set doesn’t even pay the bills. The current state of our industry has been tainted by greed from CEOs who call the shots, and though it’s improving, the majority of our population not truly understanding the value of art and how it impacts all of our lives, every single day.

Creating art should not be a privilege. Playing a character should not be a gold medal. Writing a story should not be an anomaly. Utilizing your creativity and artistic expression for your job should not mean that it has less value. Creatives use their minds and bodies to work every day, just like everyone else does.

And look – can watching a comedy series cure someone’s brain cancer? No. But can it help someone going through a depressive episode while experiencing a quarter life crisis during a global pandemic? Yes. (It’s me, I am someone).

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

As humans, we all have an innate desire to be seen, heard, and understood. After years of therapy, I realize this was something I lacked in my upbringing. So naturally as a child, I turned to theatre and performing comedy for others, which provided a built-in audience tailor-made to see and hear me.

Pre-panny (before the pandemic), I was determined to make performing my career, so I auditioned for anything and everything that would pay me. The goal was to build my resume with enough credits so I could join Equity or SAG-AFTRA, then audition for bigger and better union jobs that I’d eventually book, which would pay me enough money to cover my rent in LA and feed my dog.

I’d say my goals now are the same, but different. Before, my entire life and worth was tied to my work and job bookings. Now, my worth is tied to my values, who I am as a person, and how I move through life. Before, I begged decision makers to give me a shot to show them what I could do. Now, I’m giving myself my own shots, and proving what I can do to myself.

Since my last interview, I became CEO of my production company SamSkape Productions Inc., which produced the short film “Trying”. I wrote the script and played the lead character of the film, which screened at the TCL Chinese Theatres in Hollywood with HollyShorts and was presented at the Annual International Conference on ADHD. I’m currently writing the pilot for the TV series version of “Trying” since being diagnosed with ADHD myself, and I was cast as my dream role Lauren in the musical “Kinky Boots” last summer.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.samskapeproductions.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/sluhbrek
• Other: Voyage LA Interview (2020): https://voyagela.com/interview/meet-samantha-labrecque-actor-photographer-north-hollywood/ Shoutout LA Interview (2021): https://shoutoutla.com/meet-samantha-labrecque-actor/