Daily Inspiration: Meet Colin Seifert

Today we’d like to introduce you to Colin Seifert.

Hi Colin, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I’ve always had a pretty unconventional path, and I think that’s a big part of what eventually led me to Los Angeles.

I grew up with two moms and was homeschooled until high school, when I transitioned into regular schooling and eventually became captain of my lacrosse team. Even growing up, I never really pictured myself living a traditional, predictable life. I’ve always wanted to experience as much as possible, meet different kinds of people, and say yes to things that make life interesting.

When I moved to Los Angeles, I knew I wanted to act. I also knew I didn’t want my life to revolve around a 9-to-5 schedule. What attracted me to acting was that it felt like a career where I could constantly step into completely different worlds. For a role, I might have to learn about another profession, understand someone whose life is completely different from mine, or travel somewhere I never expected to go. Acting has given me a reason to develop empathy and a deeper understanding of people, while also allowing me to experience things I might never have experienced otherwise.

Getting to that point hasn’t exactly been straightforward. I’ve had to figure out how to support myself in LA while keeping enough flexibility to pursue acting. That has meant taking on jobs I never imagined I would do. But somehow, acting itself has also taught me skills that have helped me in unexpected ways.

For example, I once booked an energy drink commercial and print shoot, but my alarm never went off. It was the first time I had ever been late to a job in my life. When I finally arrived, I knew I wanted to make it up to the owner of the brand. During our break, I grabbed the product and shot a few quick reels with my phone. After spending so much time auditioning and filming self-tapes, I had learned how to quickly find the best angles, lighting, and framing. The owner liked what I created so much that he decided not only to continue working with me as an actor, but to bring me on as a content creator as well.

That experience really opened my eyes to how many different doors one opportunity can lead to. Along the way, acting has opened many other doors into modeling, photography, and entertainment that I never expected.

I’ve worked on projects for brands including Maybelline, L’Oréal, and Garnier—pretty much everything you could find in my moms’ bathroom—to sporting events such as the X Games and the Angel City women’s soccer team. I’ve also gotten to model for Gucci, appear on Beast Games Season 1 and the game show Funny You Should Ask, I also spent about a month and a half in China for a project which was an experience I never could have imagined when I first moved to LA.

One of my favorite parts of all of this is that sometimes the things I used to pretend about as a kid become real. I grew up going to the beach and pretending I was a lifeguard, running around in slow motion under the sun. Years later, I actually got paid to do it on a Baywatch project. Moments like that remind me why I chose this path in the first place.

I’m still very much in the middle of the journey. I’m continuing to pursue acting while building my work in modeling, photography, and content creation. I’m always looking for the next experience that will challenge me, introduce me to new people, or take me somewhere I’ve never been.

I don’t necessarily know exactly what the next chapter will look like, but that’s kind of the point. I moved to LA because I wanted a life where I could experience as much of it as possible, and so far, it’s been exactly that

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Definitely not. Whenever I start talking about my favorite moments and the things I’ve gotten to be a part of, I start smiling. But all of what I’ve accomplished has happened over the course of five years. It takes time to find yourself in an industry that constantly tries to make you change.

There have been months when acting hasn’t paid the bills. I’ve had to rely on photography, UGC, or background work to keep myself going. I knew that if I really committed to it, I could shift careers and lean into photography instead, making those paychecks a little more predictable. I was really struggling with that decision until my acting teacher asked me to imagine I was the best photographer in the world. Then he asked me to imagine I was the best actor in the world, and which of the two would make me happier.

My answer, without any hesitation, was acting.

That conversation reminded me why I moved to LA in the first place. No matter how long it takes, I’m going to keep following my dream. That means continuing to support myself through different side quests along the way, but I’ve started to realize that those side quests aren’t necessarily distractions from the journey. They’re all part of it, and someday they may help me in ways I can’t see yet.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I would say what I’m most proud of is my adaptability and ability to improvise. On a set, things rarely go exactly as planned, and I’ve learned that being able to stay calm, think creatively, and figure things out as they happen is one of my biggest strengths.

When I was on set for The Rival I’m Falling For in China, I was asked to drive a Mustang with the cameraman lying flat on the hood, secured with bungee cords. Never in my life did I imagine I would be doing something like that. But that’s one of the things I love about this industry—you can walk onto a set thinking you know what your day is going to look like, and suddenly you’re doing something completely unexpected, and then have a funny story to tell after.

Another time, I was hired for a music video to perform stunts as a sword fighter. I didn’t find out until I arrived on set that I was also going to be the stunt coordinator and would have to teach the main talent how to fight with a sword. It was definitely not something I had planned for, but I had to adapt and figure it out.

That same mindset has carried over into my photography and brand BTS work. A lot of the time, you’re given limited information, limited time, and whatever is happening in front of you, and you have to creatively figure out how to get the shots. I’m comfortable working with what I’m given and finding a way to make it work.

I think that’s what sets me apart. I’m not necessarily the person who needs everything to go exactly according to plan. I actually enjoy the curveballs. Whether I’m acting, modeling, photographing, or creating content, I like being the person who can step into an unexpected situation and say, “Alright, how do we make this work?”

I’m proud of the credits and brands I’ve gotten to work with, but I’m even more proud of becoming someone who can adapt to whatever opportunity is put in front of me. Some of my favorite experiences have come from the moments I never could have planned for.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I like most about Los Angeles is how many creative people are drawn here. There’s something about this city that pulls people in when they have a dream they want to pursue. You can meet an actor from New York, a photographer from Florida, a filmmaker from Korea, a musician from Nashville, and a model from somewhere you’ve never heard of—all in the same week.

I love that everyone seems to be creating something. And when those people actually collaborate, the result is usually better than what any one person could have created on their own. I’ve experienced that firsthand through acting, photography, modeling, and content creation. One person brings an idea, someone else brings a skill you didn’t have, and suddenly you’re creating something none of you could have made alone.

One of the best examples of that happened because of a video I posted on TikTok. Someone saw it and reached out because they wanted to hire me for stunt work. That person also had a friend who needed someone to film his street interviews, so I was introduced to him and started working on street interviews. Those interviews eventually helped lead to a brand deal for him, and he brought me onto that project as well. The production company involved saw my work and continued hiring me for photography.

What started as a TikTok video turned into stunt work, street interviews, a brand deal, and ongoing photography opportunities—all because people in LA were willing to connect, collaborate, and bring each other into new projects.

I think that’s what makes LA feel so exciting to me. There are always people to meet, things to learn, and opportunities to collaborate. You can walk into a room not knowing anyone and leave with a new friend, a new creative partner, or an idea for something you want to make.

What I like least is probably the flip side of that same energy. Because so many people are drawn here, it can be competitive, expensive, and sometimes difficult to slow down. There are so many talented people chasing big dreams that it’s easy to compare yourself to everyone around you or feel like you should be further along. I’ve definitely caught myself falling into analysis paralysis, trying to figure out how to keep up with everything happening around me.

But I’ve learned to appreciate that as part of the experience. Being surrounded by people who are constantly creating pushes me to keep growing, and I think that’s one of the reasons I’ve stayed in LA. There’s always someone new to meet, something new to try, and another story waiting to happen.

Pricing:

• Brand Photography $500
• Real Estate Photography $350
• BTS Photography $450

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caliboycolin
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@caliboycolin
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@caliboycolin