We were lucky to catch up with SJ Kozloski recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, SJ thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
When I was around six years old, I was wearing a pink princess dress and walking around my kitchen waving my magic wand. My mom, I vividly remember, told me I was “so dramatic”. Now for a six year old, I thought being dramatic was a good thing and that was my first memory of ever wanting to pursue an acting career. A few years later someone from my elementary school told everyone there was an open casting call in our town and I begged my parents to take me. That was my first real experience with an audition and its been my dream ever since. Except now, I actually am pursuing my creative path and have been on more film and television sets than I can remember.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My first real experience with the film industry is when I was 17 I applied for a kids management agency to do background work. I got hired to work a show called “Rake” and it filmed at Sony Studios. I got to skip school for two days and be on my first real film set. It was an experience to say the least. From there on, it led me on my path to study film in college and then eventually move to LA to pursue acting full time. Since moving to LA I have pursued many creative avenues from acting to modeling to even being a trained stunt performer. In this industry you have to be a jack of all trades to stand out. I would definitely have to say one of the things I am most proud of is completing a three week program at the Stunt Performers Academy where we had to learn anything from wrecks to fights to falls, low and high. It wasn’t for the faint of heart but up until that point it was the coolest thing I had experienced outside of being on an actual set and now I could find a way to incorporate that into my acting career.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
I think people who aren’t in this industry have a hard time understanding that being a “working creative” isn’t just about being part of the 1% of Hollywood who “make it big”. It’s so much more to that. Anyone who is actively creating, i.e. writing, producing, editing their own projects is being a working creative. Also, that even if you aren’t paid to do a project doesn’t mean you aren’t doing the dang thing. I know for acting specifically if you are out there making content, from short scenes and films to funny videos, you are still an actor! A lot of people don’t understand the business side to this business too. We as actors have to be our own director of photography, directors and editors just on self-tape auditions alone and in that, it can take up so much time. Which is what makes us working actors/ creatives. This year alone, I have written, produced and acted in three of my own projects and creative directed three different photoshoots that I was also the model in. The creative industry doesn’t sleep and doesn’t have its own “9 to 5”.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
I think what’s most rewarding about being a creative is being able to share your work at the end of the day to an audience and being able to constantly grow from that. Everyday is different and we get to learn from our experience’s and use that to go onto the next project. It can be tough when you don’t have the support to be in this industry but at the end of the day everyone just wants something they can relate to, or want their story to be told and we have the power to do that.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/sjkozloski
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sjkozloski
- Other: Tik tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sjkoz
Image Credits
Ginger Christie/ the Echelon Edit, Kelli Cooley and Sebastien Chiu (@seb_stills)