“Let’s start a give $1 movement” With Actress Rochelle Nichole
Give $1. What can $1 do? On its own it won’t go very far to helping anyone. But I’d like people to realize that we can sometimes give the most by giving a little if we all work together. If every person in a community donated just $1 to a cause or a person (say a family lost everything in a fire, someone needs help with medical bills, etc.) that would be a whole lot of good for incredibly little. Take LA for example, a population of about 4 million, if even only half could donate $1 to cause, that would be 2 million dollars to making the world a better place and it wouldn’t have cost much of anything to any one person!! Most people have a dollar they can spare, most people probably have that in their couch cushions or cars. If everyone jumped on board, you could give $1 a week ($4-$5 a month) and make HUGE differences in so many people’s lives ($8 million a month in LA!!)!
I had the pleasure of interviewing Rochelle Nichole. Rochelle is an up and coming actor and aspiring screenwriter with an intense passion for visual storytelling. She loves bringing to life the characters and imaginary worlds that others can escape to.
Thank you so much for joining us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
Thank you for having me!
I’ve had a love for acting since I was little. I was/am quite shy and introverted so it was a long road to actually exploring and eventually diving into the passion. I took some classes in high school but had terrible stage fright so never made it to audition for school plays. In the end, I got enough nerve to finally audition for a film, got the part, and I haven’t looked back. I’ve come a long way since then, but know that I’ll always have much more to learn and room to grow. There is always more to learn.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started this career?
Maybe not the most interesting thing that happened to me, but most surprising to me. I had an opportunity to do voice acting for an episodic podcast. I was never particularly interested in voice acting, or maybe I just didn’t recognize that there were opportunities like that out there. I saw the casting call and felt connected to it immediately. I got the audition and it is one of the only auditions that I had almost zero nerves for. It was the same thing when we recorded. Maybe it goes back to the shy/introverted/stage fright thing, but there was something so freeing and almost calming about doing the voice work. It was very surprising and I definitely look forward to doing more. The story was phenomenal and I am really proud of my performance.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
My first role was a small one in an independent film. I went in for the audition with a very different idea of the character than the director did. I was new to all of it so I figured they must’ve liked what I did when I got a callback.
I did the second audition just about the same way. But then the director asked me to do the character in a way that just did not make sense to me (everything was very, very weird and exaggerated on every level). Being naïve, I thought maybe they were just trying to see what I could do and if I could change things up on the spot.
I got the part and after reading the full script, felt confident I could pull it off. When we got to filming, I started that first scene in the way I had auditioned. The director let us run through that one take, but from then on out, instructed me to make everything about that character essentially unnatural, exaggerated, and just overall incredibly strange.
I learned right there to make sure before accepting any future roles that I ask questions if I have them, voice any serious concerns/hesitations, and have a clear understanding of how they see the character. I am totally behind the directors’ vision and receiving direction and it can be fun to do off the wall characters, but want to be sure it’s a good fit for me too.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
I just wrapped a few fun projects. One that was really exciting is a sci-fi/thriller pilot. It is such an interesting story line. When I read the script, it just had me hooked, and by the end (a cliffhanger!) I needed to know what happened next. Then there was a comedy pilot I had a small role in. It is a unique story that was well-written, witty, and left so many open places and stories to explore. Those are the really special projects that you hope get to go the distance.
And we just had a table read for a feature film I’m really excited about. It’s a fun, comedic, holiday sequel to a heartwarming story about incredibly diverse characters coming together through adversity and becoming family. I’m really looking forward to getting on set.
Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?
Honestly, just about everyone in this industry is interesting! That is the thing with creative people (and people in general, really), everyone is so unique and brings so many different talents to each project. It’s been great to grow and strengthen connections and learn new things on every set.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Take a break to just be you every once in a while. We spend so much time being ‘other people’ and creating their stories, it is nice to just be me. And only do it when it’s fun, because when it stops being fun and you aren’t enjoying the craft anymore, it’s time to move on.
You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I have 2 thoughts — one is: do at least one simple good for a stranger every day. It can be as simple as holding a door open, picking up something they’ve dropped and returning it, smiling at someone, being nice in traffic, etc You never know how that one nice thing can impact their day. It could make a difference.
The other is: Give $1. What can $1 do? On its own it won’t go very far to helping anyone. But I’d like people to realize that we can sometimes give the most by giving a little if we all work together. If every person in a community donated just $1 to a cause or a person (say a family lost everything in a fire, someone needs help with medical bills, etc.) that would be a whole lot of good for incredibly little. Take LA for example, a population of about 4 million, if even only half could donate $1 to cause, that would be 2 million dollars to making the world a better place and it wouldn’t have cost much of anything to any one person!!
Most people have a dollar they can spare, most people probably have that in their couch cushions or cars. If everyone jumped on board, you could give $1 a week ($4-$5 a month) and make HUGE differences in so many people’s lives ($8 million a month in LA!!)!
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
1. Auditions are just another chance to perform: I’ve always had severe audition anxiety and put so much pressure on auditions. Someone told me to think of auditions as just another chance to perform, and it was like this giant weight was lifted. I still get nervous, but not to facial spasm degree, haha. It’s much more fun now!
2. Push boundaries: Don’t be afraid to try something 20 different ways and in ways that might seem like an odd choice. Sometimes one of those ‘strange’ ways clicks, makes the character you’ve created something really special, and is what gets you the part.
3. Don’t be afraid to fail: Coming off #2, sometimes it fails and it’s OK. You can’t grow if you aren’t willing to try new things, learn new things, and fail sometimes.
4. Focus forward on the next audition the minute you step out the door: I spent too much time waiting to hear back, obsessing over if I got the part and if I would have just done this one thing differently instead of how I did it….it is such a waste of time. It is really hard to do sometimes, especially with those roles that I am really connected with, but you just have to look forward.
5. Quality, not quantity: Early on I would submit/audition for every single role that my physical features fit. Thinking the more experience I get, the better my resume and reel, the more roles I’ll get. Wrong. That led to some really horrible auditions for roles that I had zero connection with or were just out of my range. I started to realize pretty quickly that there were auditions that felt so good, and characters just clicked for me, and then there were ones I had no connection with and struggled to feel good about, rehearsing for way too long and still nothing coming out right. I decided from then on if I had no connection and wasn’t feeling like I had something to give with this character, I was going to stop wasting everyone’s time, mine included. It is so much better to have a few quality performances to showcase than a laundry list of bad film and acting.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“If you can’t say somethin’ nice, don’t say nothin’ at all” — Thumper (Bambi)
There is way too much hate and anger in our world right now. I really think if people could learn/practice self-control and stick to this, the world would be a happier place with happier people. So many things just don’t need to be said, in person or online. It’s not funny and it’s not ok. We are all human beings who can break, and too many times its mean, hurtful, hateful words that break us.
I do try really hard to be conscious of everything that comes out of my mouth and how it could make someone else feel. I never intentionally say hurtful things, there is just no reason for it.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
My husband has been really great. I took a few years away from acting because life called for it. Trying to get back into it was/is a bit challenging due to our schedules. He has been very supportive, even when it means more on his plate. I am incredibly appreciative and thankful for that. I get to pursue my passion and couldn’t do it without him.
Some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this. 🙂
Hmm good question…I would love to meet Ellen DeGeneres — she seems so genuine…she’s amazing, kind, thoughtful, and so very funny.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
Brand new social media accounts that I am just launching right now:
Twitter: @rochelleniko
Instagram: rochelle_niko
Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational!
Thank you again for having me, this was a lot of fun!