Kayla Neves is graduating from NC with a sense of pride over the personal growth she gained during her time at the College. She always knew she wanted to pursue a career in acting but before coming to NC, her fears and shyness held her back. Studying in NC’s Acting for Film and Digital Media program helped Kayla discover a newfound confidence in herself and her acting abilities, ready to take on any audition that comes her way.
Kayla claims that if she was asked to share her story at the start of her program, she would have fearfully passed up the opportunity, but she now proudly jumps at the chance to share her NC experience in hopes of inspiring others to follow their dreams.
We catch up with Kayla to reflect on the experience of attending Niagara College, and where she’s headed.
How do you feel about your upcoming convocation day/ what does it personally mean to you?
I am extremely excited for my upcoming convocation day, as this day represents the end of my days at Niagara College, but the beginning of the rest of my life. During my time at the college, I was extremely focused on my studies, so being able to graduate and attend my upcoming convocation day feels rewarding. Personally, this day helps represent all the growth I achieved and the dedication that I put into my passion for acting.
What were you doing before attending NC
Before attending Niagara College, I attended Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School in Brampton. I went straight from high school into college, as I was eager to begin pursuing and learning more about acting.
What led you to study at NC and to your program of study?
I always knew that I wanted to pursue a career in the acting industry and when doing research on post-secondary options that offered acting programs, I discovered Niagara College. I had only heard positive things about what the program had to offer and knew I wanted to apply, and luckily, I was accepted.
What interests you in / why are you passionate about your field of study?
I am passionate about acting for so many reasons. Being able to represent and help bring to life different stories is so important and rewarding. The acting industry is also a source of entertainment for most people, and being an actor allows me to bring joy and entertainment to the lives of others. I have always been a creative person and acting is just an outlet to be as free and creative as you want with no judgment. As a shorter individual, with my height being 4 ‘8″, I tend to feel ignored and easily disregarded, but acting has allowed me to feel bigger than I really am. There are so many reasons that I love acting, but these are just a few.
Do you have a specific career goal in mind when you enrolled in your program… did it change since you started?
When I first started in the program, my main goal was to just become an actor, but I learned so much during my time in the program and can confidently say my goals have progressed. Now, success for me as an actor does not rely on me reaching the conventional concept of fame, but rather lies in my ability to inspire others. I want most to make people smile and I want to be able to portray characters that someone can identify with. I want to share my love for acting and be able to represent other short individuals on the screen, that are not typically represented.
I also want to explore other roles in the industry such as being a director. There was a course in the program called Actor as Entrepreneurs, where we learned every element involved in creating a short film. We wrote or adapted our script, did paperwork, directed, edited, and starred in these short films that we spent an entire semester creating. This experience made me fall in love with being a director and creating more work as an actor entrepreneur in the future.
How did you find your program experience – any highlights?
My biggest highlight is definitely the faculty and students within the program. We were like a little family. Everyone was super close and the support we received from our instructors made my college experience such a positive one. Our professors genuinely care about the success of all the students and only want what is best for us. I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to work with the wise, loving, and dedicated group of instructors that we had in our acting program; Lori Ravensborg, Barbara Mantini, Stephanie Jones, Kevin Gibson, Shaun Ferguson, Jonathan Davies, and Edward Queffelec. They have all changed my life for the better and they deserve so much recognition for the dedication that they put into the program and our year-end showcase.
What did you find rewarding about your program / area of study? Did you face and overcome any challenges to graduate?
One thing that I found rewarding about my time in the program is the personal growth I gained. When I first started at Niagara College, I was a nervous wreck, was extremely shy and had awful social skills. I thought I would struggle to find friends and would do poorly with my acting projects due to my lack of self-confidence. Throughout my time in the program, I continued to push past these anxieties and fears. I became a social butterfly, found my acting family, was openly myself, and gained some confidence in my abilities as an actor.
During the last week of the program, my instructor, Lori Ravensborg even told me she was proud of my growth, claiming I completely transformed from the beginning to the end of the program.
Do you feel your NC experience has helped prepare you for the future? (if so, please tell us how)?
My NC experience has definitely helped prepare me for my future. The program taught loads of relevant information aligned with today’s acting industry and made sure to prepare us for different opportunities that we will face during our careers. We had industry professionals come in and speak to us during the program who provided insight to their experiences in the industry. During their visits they also praised our program and the things that we were learning. Hearing this praise from other industry professionals always made me feel so grateful that I chose to study at Niagara College.
What have you been doing since you completed your studies at NC?
Since completing my studies at NC, I have moved back home to Brampton and have been back to working part-time. Besides my part-time work, I have been continuing to work as an actor. I have been actively auditioning for student films and other industry projects. Auditioning is an actor’s main source of work, so I consider every audition as a small success. I have just only begun my career, but I see success in my future as long as I continue to work hard and dedicate myself to my passion. I certainly believe I would not be where I am today without my journey at Niagara College.
