Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Hoffpauir.
Rachel, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was a theatre kid in high school. At that point, my only goal was to be on Broadway. I didn’t get into any of the collegiate musical theatre programs that I auditioned for, so I ended up getting my BA in Acting from Baldwin Wallace University in 2015. I also studied dance, took voice lessons, and completed a Business minor, which ended up being one of the most valuable components of my education following graduation. During the summers, I worked in outdoor theatre and at amusement parks, which allowed me to support myself early. Along the way, I fell in love with the art of stage combat or simulating violence for the stage, and a few weekends a year would run off to workshops run by the Society of American Fight Directors to learn how to swordfight or sell a punch. It became my thing, my niche, a skill I was good at that not many around me were. As someone who wasn’t cast much in school productions, it gave me a sense of value within my department.
Upon graduation, I decided to plant my roots in Atlanta. Atlanta had been name-dropped a few times in school as an up and coming creative city, especially in the world of film, which I was interested in pursuing. I had a few friends living down here already, so I packed up my life and set to the task of figuring out where my place was in this community. My stage combat experience eventually lead me to train in martial arts, and then ultimately stunts. I also found the circus community, which allowed me to pick up even more physical skills, such as aerial, stilt walking, and flow arts. I soon discovered that I got so much more joy out of performing stunts and physical movement than I ever did acting. I didn’t have to be emotionally vulnerable, I just had to use my body to tell a story. I got very lucky early on and booked my first big stunt job in 2017 on a SyFy show called Superstition. I joined SAG-AFTRA after that, and since then, I’ve been solely focused on continuing to improve myself physically and mentally, so that I can have a career with longevity in the stunt industry.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
My biggest obstacle has always been myself. I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression my whole life, a lot of self-doubt and impostor syndrome. I am continually working on developing better coping mechanisms and practicing self-care and compassion. What also took me a long time to overcome were the physical requirements for this type of work. I wasn’t very athletic growing up, so when I made the decision to pursue stunts, I had to spend a lot of time getting into shape so I could have the strength and abilities to be a stunt person. It’s a continuous process, but one I have really learned to love.
Another large obstacle I’ve recently dealt with is an injury, an unavoidable element of this kind of work. What I learned during my recovery process was that it’s very important to not attach your self-worth to your ability to work. We still have to be people with lives outside of our careers, which I think is extremely difficult for artists. I utilized my recent downtime to work on myself in other ways so that I could come back just as strong on the inside as I am on the outside.
What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
I am a trained stunt professional that performs stunts for film and television, and occasionally live performances. My areas of specialty are fights, weapons, wirework, and creature movement. Additionally, I have worked as a circus performer for corporate events, primarily as a stilt walker and flow artist. I believe as a performer, I am highly adaptable, take direction well, and bring an extremely positive and uplifting attitude to any project I am a part of.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I do believe there is a certain element of luck to succeed in the stunt industry. You can train hard and be the most talented stunt person in the world, but until the stars align and the right stunt coordinator sees your resume or reel and decides to hire you, you won’t get your opportunity to shine. Even then, it takes the right role to come along with the right physical requirements, be it as a stunt double or ND (non-descript) stunt performer. However, I think you can only blame that lack of luck for so long. If you’re not getting work, hustle harder, train three times as hard, get your name and face out there, and then they won’t be able to ignore you.
Contact Info:
- Email: rachel.hoffpauir@yahoo.com
- Instagram: @huff_power
Image Credit:
Joshua Stringer, Shawn Jovingo
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