Conversations with Vincent Elric

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vincent Elric.

Vincent, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
From a young age I always had this thing innately in me to really feel for the people around me. I was a careful watcher of everything around me and paid attention to my surroundings and what people did and why they did them. This helped me get through a lot of difficult times as a child even as me and my siblings bounced around foster homes for a time. I felt like I could see the world and wade through it even in the toughest times which made me even more protective over my siblings. Even when things were out of my control I was blessed to have my grandmother who saved us from the foster homes and then later the Gibbs who took me in and adopted me as their own. Without them I don’t know if I would be here doing this interview right now.

But back in 2012, I was still trying to play football, something I had done my whole life. I was living in Atlanta, GA at the time after a college football stint in Milwaukee, WI. I was hopping around some semi-pro teams and getting tryout requests from Canadian teams and teams overseas when I had torn my ACL, again. Multiple torn ligaments in my knees, a torn up shoulder amongst a myriad of other injuries that never got surgically fixed as they probably should have. At 22 my body was a wreck, I was still in undergrad and working as a server at a Dave & Buster’s. At this time I had just grown my hair out, gained 25lbs of muscle, and got my braces off, a bit of a late bloomer. I had a guest recommend that I start modeling. I was still writing my music but I thought “Hey, what could it hurt”. That lead me into acting which I loved much more than just posing for pictures. It was fun and invigorating. Football was the dream for so long that all my energy went there but now it seemed I found something new. But then I thought about being a young boy and telling someone what I wanted to be when I grew up. I would say 3 things: an NFL player, a rockstar, or a super hero. As an actor, I can be all of those things. As an actor I can really use my empathy to create things that can potentially help other people who can’t voice certain things.

After being in Atlanta for the better part of a decade, with multiple agents, multiple huge auditions but very little to show for it, I needed to clear my mind. The entertainment world is grueling mentally. There are a lot of people who will take take and take. It can be something that can really break a person. So I went back to Florida with my grandmother for a year where we helped each other through a multitude of things when she finally said “I’m good here now. You need to get back to chasing that dream.” I always was told you don’t go to LA until LA calls you and that had to be some of the worst advice I have ever gotten. After I had that talk with my grandmother within a month I was off in my little Camaro and everything I could fit in it to LA.

I have been here for a year and a half now and I have gained more momentum than I did in 10 years in Atlanta. I have met some incredible people. Caring and kind that want to create and do it the right way. Now we are all writing together and working towards making our own stuff while I have two shorts I did last year that are in multiple festivals as well as working on finishing my first album that will have 12 songs and a music video for each song. Everything I had wanted and hoped and worked for is finally coming to fruition. There is still so much work to do but the trajectory is up. As long as we keep working and keep our kindness and don’t let this world jade us, I’d like to think it eventually works out.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As I mentioned in the last one, this road was very far from smooth. Enough rocks to build a mountain and make anyone understanding of someone who stepped away and chose another path. But what fun would this be if it was just an easy road? 99% of this industry is a “no” but that one “yes” can change everything overnight. From different cities and different people who you thought had your best interests in mind to simply just trying to get by on a bartender’s salary, every challenge was unique and difficult in it’s own way. Even now I am not completely out of the woods but I am starting to see the sunlight shine through. Like I said before, the best thing we can do is remember to keep our kindness because bare minimum THAT is what people will remember you by more than anything, especially in the worst times.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
So I classify myself as an actor, writer, and musician/artist. I have quite a few scripts in the chamber as I kind of took after the Sylvester Stallone model of “write your own part” instead of waiting for it to come to me. I take a lot of joy in writing a creating new stories. I watch A LOT of TV shows and movies. I am also working on my debut album under the moniker The Vigilante. I have been writing music since I was in high school and now it is finally coming into fruition. I have always been obsessed with music videos so I said I would only do this project if I could make a music video for each song. Which is a tall task with a low budget but it’s how the story needs to be told. Artists like Beyonce and Shinedown (my favorite band) have done it in the past and I just loved the creativity, artistry, and visual representation of the music it possessed.

One the acting side I have a few shorts that I acted in last year debuting at some film festivals coming up. Like Rear Desert created by Mark Bonner, which will be debuting at the Micheaux Film Fest. Then there is Unlucky Lucky created by my dear friend James Vera that has been recognized by a few film festivals coming up later this year. So all of that is very exciting as well and very proud of both of those teams.

Then I think what sets me apart is just my genuineness. At the end of the day my goal in all this is not for fame and money. Yes, sure it comes with it in this industry but that’s never been my motivation. My motivation has always been to be my true genuine self and whatever happens happens. I think we can tell when things are real or have ulterior motives. I just want to create from my heart. If it sticks it sticks, if it doesn’t, I can still sleep well at night knowing that I tried.

Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
The only thing I think I would say and harp on. Is to not quit. You never know what tomorrow holds. My curiosity is one of my biggest motivators. I have a lot to give and I want to get to that place where I can give more of it. But whatever you do, like I said before, do not let it take your kindness. There can be super dark times but lead with kindness and I think we will all find a way.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vincentelric/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thevincentelric/
• Twitter: https://x.com/vincent_elric