Today we’d like to introduce you to Rae DeRosa.
Hi Rae, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I actually started acting on a whim at 19. I decided to take some acting classes while feeling a bit unfulfilled in college. Unfortunately, I was pretty shy and missed way too many classes due to my anxiety. When my professor reached out to me about auditioning for the play that semester, I thought “there’s no way I could do that”. He then casually mentioned the amount of absences I had in his class, so trying not to fail, I auditioned thinking nothing would come of it. To my shock, I got the lead in the play. That play got nominated for a theatre festival, and I changed my major to theatre shortly after. I was completely and totally hooked, it was a type of bravery and freedom I had never let myself experience until I was thrown into it. Since then I have been fighting for every little role, connection, agent, etc.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I have gotten very lucky with my first few roles but it definitely wasn’t smooth. I didn’t get an agent right away, in fact, I was denied by my current agency and every other one I submitted to for about three years. For a while, I honestly thought I would never get an agent, still to this day that was the biggest struggle in my career. I finally got my representation and booked a guest star two months later on “The Summer I Turned Pretty”. I am very proud of that because I know how much work I put into getting there. That was the first time I really felt like it was all coming together.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am an actress, I played on shows such as “The Summer I Turned Pretty” on Amazon Prime and “Tell Me Lies” on HULU. I soon will be leading a movie on Lifetime called “A Guide To Murder”. I would say I’m most proud of my work ethic. This is certainly not an easy industry to get started with from the ground up, and I’m very proud of the foundation I have built for myself! I think what sets me apart from others is my passion for mental health and why people do what they do. I just love to dig deep into characters and really feel what they are feeling. Struggling with my own mental health challenges is what has helped me relate to many of the characters I play.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
I think flexibility. I really am down to do whatever role as long as it speaks to me. Any genre, any part big or small. I truly just feel so lucky to even be able to do this professionally. I want to be the kind of person you can depend on to put their all into whatever they do and can roll with the punches along the way.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: instagram.com/raederosaa
- Other: tiktok.com/@raederosa
Image Credits
Scarlett Fulbright, Corryn Goldschmidt, Amazon Prime, Drew Elhamalawy.
