Ryan is a whirlwind of charisma and nowhere is it more prevalent than his unforgettable turn as Suki on the hit Netflix Series “BET”. One of my pet peeves in Film & TV these days is that I’ll get through an entire movie or series and not even know the main character’s names. Not so for Suki. From the second he’s on screen to the final frames Ryan saturates frame with character and bold choices. He’s lived his life online, making sketch comedy on YouTube—where he has already gained major success—and chatting with him was like taking a trip into wonderland. Wild, wonderful, and insightful. So dive on in, I’m excited for you to meet Ryan.

Find Ryan:

Instagram: @theryansutherland

TikTok: @ryancomedyofficial

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

Associate Producer: @akisharei

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

#RyanSutherland #BET #TheDNAPodcast #dnybackact #Netflix #podcast #ActingPodcast #acting

Lindura is a force. As one of the stars of the hit series, Sullivan’s Crossing, she has a presence to her that’s hard to quantify. She’s a rare cocktail of a scientific mind, ethereal beauty, and deep emotional intelligence all wrapped into one. What I find the most fascinating about her is how she recognizes these different facets of herself and is so driven to do the internal work that allows them all to work in tandem with each other as opposed to in contrast. She’s borderline addicted to growth, she’s in love with new experiences and challenges. Her passion is contagious and I found myself, in this conversation, called to expansion myself through her openness, strength, honesty, and vulnerability. I loved every minute of this chat and I’m sure you will too.

Find Lindura:

Instagram: @lifeoflindura

TikTok: @lifeoflindura

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

Associate Producer: @akisharei

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

#Lindura #SullivansCrossing #TheDNAPodcast #dnybackact #CW #CTV #podcast #ActingPodcast #acting #growth

Sara Waisglass blew me away with her presence, compassion, and thoughtful approach to both her work and her life. This is—believe it or not—the first episode we’ve done where I haven’t known the guest in advance. So, to not only meet Sara, but to have such an honest conversation with her was a blessing that’s hard to measure. From Degrassi through a lifetime in the industry that has led her to the hit Netflix series, Ginny & Georgia, she has gone through a LOT. The thing that stuck with me the most is how courageously she navigates her life in a fully felt way. She works with her full self, and she lives with her full self…more than that she has the courage to sit with herself in the downtime, to quietly get to know herself better amidst all the existential complication that brings. I know you’ll have as magical a time as I did meeting her, so dive on in.

Find Sara:

Instagram: @sarawais

TikTok: @Sara.wais

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

Associate Producer: @akisharei

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

#SaraWaisglass #GinnyAndGeorgia #TheDNAPodcast #dnybackact #Netflix #Degrassi #podcast #ActingPodcast #acting #tudum!

Carson MacCormac is no stranger to success in the world of feature film. Since his early days in the wildly popular DC “SHAZAAM!” franchise, he’s been working at an extremely high level. He’s now entering the horror genre in a big way with the release of the highly successful “Clown in a Cornfield”. Carson has always been a fascinating guy to me. He’s as likely to quote Friedrich Nietzsche to you as recommend a killer show he just found on Netflix, or an awesome fantasy novel he’s sinking his time into. He’s poetic, thoughtful, and does everything he can to better himself daily. Oh, and he also happens to be a profoundly talented actor. Talking with Carson is an exercise in growth because HE is always growing.

Find Carson:

Instagram: @carson_maccormac

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

Associate Producer: @akisharei

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

#TheDNAPodcast #ClownInACornfield #MyLifeWithTheWalterBoys #Netflix #NetflixSeries #ActingPodcast #Acting #Actor #Podcast #dnybackact

In this episode of The DNA Podcast I have the pleasure of chatting with Laura Afelskie. Laura is a journeyman actor with a long list of credits to her name despite her young age. She’s had her fair share of hardships and in spite of that has already accomplished a LOT. Now she’s on the cusp of the release of her first major Netflix Series: BET—A live-action adaptation of the Japanese manga Kakegurui by Homura Kawamoto and Toru Naomura—and I couldn’t be more excited for her. Laura auditioned for MULTIPLE roles on this series before finally finding the perfect fit. It’s an awesome, inspiring, and informative convo for all you actors and BTS buffs out there.

Find Laura:

Instagram: @laura_afelskie

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

A warm welcome to our new DNA Intern: @akisharei

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

Eliana Jones is a force. You may have seen her on any of her high profile shows—Hemlock Grove, Trick VR Treat, Northern Rescue—and if you haven’t you’ll be seeing her soon, bet on it. A frequent collaborator with Eli Roth, Eliana is as at home in the horror genre as she is in Jered Keeso’s hit comedy “Shoresy”. She’s whip smart, cutting, abrasive, and unapologetically “Eliana”. This episode is a deep dive on the life of an actor in LA who is on the verge of tremendous success, with offers starting to come in, and a roadmap of struggles behind. Eliana is a BLAST to work with, talk to, and watch on screen. Dive on in. This one’s fun.

Find Eliana:

Instagram: @elianajones

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

Special Thanks to: @ambitiontalent @amaliawilliamson

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

Shaun Benson is a very special guy to a lot of people. To me, he’s someone who—even if he didn’t know it at the time—was a lighthouse for me during a very challenging time in my life. He’s an incredible actor who has been working in the industry for decades—on projects like The Boys, Billy The Kid, Mayans M.C., Gangland Undercover—a brilliant Meisner teacher, a talented photographer, and all around creative soul. Shaun and I get into it about addiction, recovery, rising, falling, and rising again in this industry. This was a profound, vulnerable, uplifting, and challenging conversation for me. I was looking forward to it immensely and it did not disappoint. So dive on it. Shaun has wisdom to share, and you’re going to want to receive it.

Find Shaun:

Instagram: @shaunmbenson

TikTok: @shaunybenso

In episode 12 of the DNA Podcast we have the profoundly talented actress, Camille Stopps, in the studio. You’ll see it immediately, but Camille is a bastion for human connection in a disconnected world. She is thoughtful, emotional, passionate, and dedicated in equal measure. This conversation was such a delight for me because to pull the thread of what lights Camille up as an actor is to dive headlong into a profound devotion to training, insights into emotional and intellectual connection, audition technique, the trials and tribulations of success and failure, and her unrelenting fire for this art form and her role within it. Camille is a light on this planet, and being a part of this conversation will make you a better actor, as well as challenge you to grow as a human (in the best of ways).

Camille’s Info:

Instagram: @camillestopps

Produced by: @daliayegavian @breewas

Special thanks to: @arisathan @johnboylancentreforthearts @soulsroadmovie

Additional Gear Provided By: @mountainmanfilms

#DNAPodcast #actingtips #auditiontips #camillestopps #acting #podcast #dnybackact #douglasnyback #soulsroadmovie