Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Marie Johnson.
Nicole Marie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in Northfield, MA a rural town just outside the Berkshires and most of my childhood, though not in the traditional sense, was spent acting; we didn’t have cable until my early teens, so any free time I had was spent using my imagination, running around outdoors, and playing pretend. In addition to the practice I was getting through life experience, I’ve always had a secret love for acting and actors, in general. One night when I was five years old and everyone thought I was asleep, they popped Dirty Dancing into the VCR. I snuck out of my room and watched the entire movie from behind the couch. From that point on I wanted to be Baby. I would run around reciting every line I could, even to strangers. I definitely embarrassed my mother more than a few times. That same year she entered me into the town’s pageant competition, which I ended up winning back-to-back years. I guess you could say I had a knack for performing, both on stage and at home, but our school district did not emphasize the performing arts so my exposure thereafter was limited.
It wasn’t until I went to college in Boston where I got my feet wet in the Industry. I started with theater classes and commercials then, when filming picked up in Massachusetts due to the tax incentives, I got very close to booking a movie, starring Mathew McConaughey, and absolutely fell in love with the process. That’s when I decided to make the move to Los Angeles and pursue my dream.
I spent eight years in LA, training, working, building a resume, and life long relationships. I not only loved acting but found fulfillment creatively in writing and producing. One of the projects that became a vehicle for my close industry friends and I was Quarries, a feature film in which I co-wrote, produced and starred in. I am very proud of not only accomplishing a piece of work that has won many awards and gained national distribution but also of the people behind the project.
Upon completion of Quarries, I made a very tough decision to leave everything and move to Atlanta where I could be closer to my family, who now lives in Florida. Needless to say it has been one of the best decisions of my life as the industry is booming more than I ever anticipated. Since the move, I’ve had the opportunity to work with some amazing cast and crew, like Issa Rae & Marsai Martin on the film Little (Universal Studios), Emilie D Ravin & Roland Joffe on A Lover Scorned, and many other projects. Additionally, I found a home teaching at Mornell Studio’s with some of the most strong and talented women I know.
Has it been a smooth road?
A smooth road?! Is there such a thing? Working in the entertainment industry is by no means smooth sailing and that goes for all sides of the business. It’s certainly not a traditional route and coming to terms with that was a challenge. At times, I’ve had to sacrifice relationships and being financially stable for my aspirations and that can be difficult for anyone to understand, especially loved ones.
Another hurdle has been overcoming that self-deprecating, “am I enough?” voice inside. You know, the voice that causes crippling anxiety and makes it hard to leave the house at times. This business is 90% rejection and no one likes to hear the word NO, especially when its something you’re passionate about. So when I was first starting out that voice was very loud and my heart was broken time and time again because I was focused on the result. It took me years to rewire this frame of mind and learn it’s about finding comfort in the process. Being an actor is not only about talent and training but it takes grit, tenacity, sacrifice, gratitude, and falling in love with the work over and over again. As soon as I was able to wrap my head around that mentality the voice became a lot softer. Believe me, the heartbreaks still sting but I’ve learned to not take the NO’s personally because at the end of day if I’ve done all my work and I’m still having fun than the rest is out of my control. Plus those heartbreaks remind me that I’m still in love with what I do.
One more important aspect in this career is finding your team. By team I mean your people, the people who support and believe in you and vice versa. I would absolutely not be where I am today without them. They do say “overnight success” comes in ten years but from what I’ve gathered its more like 20 so why not love what you do, work hard, and surround yourself with like minded people 🙂
What else should our readers know?
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the people who have been a crucial part of my growth along the way. To be a working actor it not only takes faith and trust in yourself but those around you. So thank you to my mentor, Sara Mornell for teaching me to train like an athlete and to go out and create your own work because no one will do it for you. Thank you to these amazing people, Mario Sisinni, Ray Fonseca, Nils Taylor, Martha Hamilton, Anna Borchert, Marissa Hampton, Carrie Finklea, Diamond Cutter films, and everyone else who has been through the trenches with me. And last but certainly not least, thank you to local casting for opening the doors here in Atlanta and to my wonderful agents, Jacob Lawson & Corey Lawson over at Privilege Talent. I’ve always asked for a team that works as hard as I do and they go above and beyond.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
My goodness, yes! Atlanta is booming and I would most certainly say it’s a great place for aspiring Actors. It used to be moving to LA or NY was the thing to do but with all the growth and infrastructure here, I would strongly recommend the Southeast. It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to break into the Atlanta market because of the people who have moved here with full resumes, however it is still significantly less saturated than the LA or NY so if you’re thinking of pulling the trigger jump on it now. Also, the local community of actors and filmmakers here in Atlanta are wonderful. Everyone goes above and beyond to support each other and the sense of competitiveness found in other markets does not exist. The general mentality is that there is no need for competition because there is enough work for everyone to go around…And one more thing… the cost of living is way easier to handle! So ya, I’m a huge advocate for Atlanta!
Contact Info:
- Website: imdb.me/nicolemariejohnson
- Email: johnsonmarienicole@gmail.com
- Instagram: @thenicolemariejohnson
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Nikkimarie16
- Twitter: @NicoleJ16
Image Credit:
Beauty Unveiled Photography
Tara Gulledge Photography
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