Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Soares.
Alyssa, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Being 20 years old, moving to LA, graduating from college, and being at the forefront of environmental filmmaking, I am incredibly proud of my evolution towards an ascending career path.
I grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii, where I was always either in the ocean, singing in my room, or listening to vinyls with my dad. If it weren’t for where I grew up, I would not have the same foundation or morals that I have developed today. Hawaii is one of the most beautiful places on the planet and I am thankful I began my life there. When I was young, I was always intrigued by wearing different costumes, outfits, and personas. Constantly putting on an extravagant show and forcing my family to watch. I was always fascinated with discovering different or more emotional parts of myself from a young age. Fearless to finding new personalities and pathways in my consciousness.
Throughout school, I was always challenged with quiz’s, tests and the “standard route” of learning. Luckily, I went to school at a performing arts-based institute and was heavily involved with the arts in all aspects. Dancing, singing and performance training for hours every single day. I couldn’t have been happier. During this time in school, I started to get really involved with sports. Always in the water. Canoe paddling, kayaking, swimming, water polo, anything that would let me be outside. Those were some of my favorite memories. It is always great when you know you are making memories with friends you are going to have for the rest of your life.
My parents both met at a small high school in Hawaii and have been together ever since. My older brother Jake, met his fiancé in high school, became a Honolulu firefighter, and have been together ever since. It became apparent to my family that I was gonna be the one to ruin the “marrying your high school sweetheart avenue”. I had bigger ambitions in mind. Far too big to be stuck on a small island and get married young. I loved being in the ocean and I loved being constantly surrounded by friends, but I needed something more fulfilling. I wanted to open peoples eyes to a modification of lifestyle.
I moved to Los Angeles to get my Bachelor of Fine Arts, right out of high school. I was 17, full of (the usual) hopes and dreams, and was ready to get them all crushed. Luckily my cynical personality saved me from expecting all of my hopes and dreams to be achieved so quickly. It was surprisingly hard for me to fully adapt to California. The pollution, jump scares, angry people, and car honking really baffled me. College was just as terrifying to start, but I was just happy I chose to follow my acting ambition. Throughout my college years, I learned how to enter parts of my psyche that I didn’t know could be found.
My acting ability was growing every day, and the fire was constantly being fueled by teachers, lessons, friends, and outside experiences. I grew up in such a beautiful and healthy place, then was surrounded by gloom and filth. Then came my passion for burning dedication towards environmentalism. I decided I didn’t want to be apart of the crowd anymore. I wanted to pave the way as an example for the younger generation. To give them some hope towards their bleak future. I stopped buying anything in plastic, eating any meat or dairy products, and haven’t looked back ever since.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has been a CRAZY ride. An insane, beautiful, and depressing ride so far. In Hawaii, I was constantly battling body dysmorphia and issues with body image. I never had the build to have a skinny “bikini model” type of body and was constantly gaining muscle because of sports. My classmates would make me feel masculine and inferior. Moving to California only faced more challenges. Directors telling me I would never make it unless I got a nose job, depressive episodes, health issues that became too apparent to ignore, and crippling anxiety. I was losing my sense of self. I went through many ups and downs with losing friends, emancipating my drive to acting, and suffering from no self-confidence.
There were a lot of days where I didn’t think I would be able to see the light again. Luckily I overcame them. When I became plastic-free, I had a lot of friends and colleagues, not believing in my determination. People not giving a shit about the future of our planet. The constant internal struggle of knowing I might possibly not have a future for myself or a family is something I deal with every day. It haunts me. The road is bumpy but well worth the ride if you’re willing to change paths when you think is right. Waking up every morning, seeing horrid headline’s, hearing the idiotic announcements of politicians, and more is just the beginning of what I face mentally on a daily basis. I tell myself I am doing all I can in order to create a better world, and that is all I can control. Even though I am only in control of myself, I can still speak loud enough for others to hear.
When I started to take control of what food was going into my body, I noticed a huge change in my mental outlook. For anyone who struggles with anxiety, depression, ph imbalances and more, I understand how hard it is to find a solution that works for you. I highly, highly recommend looking at a change in diet and just simply making sure you are spending the majority of your time in sunlight. I could not even tell you how many hours I have spent at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanical Garden. I am very thankful I found a place in California that reminded me of home/hope. Another thing that really helped me was caring about something that was so much more than myself. When I finally realized the severity of climate change and acting upon it, my determination became my entire life. To be completely honest, it gave me a reason to live.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
I love writing, performing, singing, acting and am just as driven by being a passionate environmentalist. My goal has always been to combine the two and I decided to do exactly that. I just finished creating my final thesis film and it called Rhododendron. A beautiful depiction of mankind negligence towards the earth. This film has always been a dream for me to make. To be able to create such an empowering message, at such a vital time, has been extremely rewarding.
For the past two years, I have been writing an environmental poetry book. To each poem, matches a symbolic flower. According to the Elizabethan and Victorian times, every flower has its own meaning and language. So it only felt fitting that I would relate my short film to a flower that it embodied. The Rhododendron flower symbolize’s “Beware of Excess” and “Caution and Danger. The Rhododendron is a perfect illustration of an effortlessly beautiful flower, yet deadly when used irresponsibly. As is convenience. A beautiful and instantaneous evolution of humankind, yet a poisonous disguise for all.
Rhododendron was created without making any trash. I was lucky in the sense that my small crew was more than happy to go zero waste for this set. Film sets are some of the most wasteful places and I wanted to ensure that the message I was spreading, would also be abided by in the film. Any non-biodegradable trash from packages (from pre-production) was made into an art piece that hangs in my boyfriend and I’s home.
The film illustrates the negative effect that man has had on the Earth and delivers a powerfully ominous warning towards careless humanity. The film will be going throughout the festival circuit later this year, and to social media platforms some time, soon after. I have never had the intention of making money for the project, I have always just wanted to be able to make it big enough for people to care to watch.
I think it is really important, if anyone is dedicating their life to making art, make something that is authentically 100 percent you. When I took on Rhododendron, I knew it was going to be a big pain in the ass. Having to produce, write, act, and edit a film is a large undertaking, but so satisfying to have the creative control you crave.
At the end of the day, I love acting. I love writing. I love performing. I love speaking out for the Environment. If I am going to have a career path in something, It has to adhere by my morals and I won’t accept anything less.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
So many people! I have been so lucky to have such amazing people in my life. My boyfriend Vinny is truly the most compassionate and most beautiful person I know. He changed his entire life for me when we moved in together, and now we have made a plastic-free home. My closest friend, Rhea, has been such an important spiritual partner for me. Most importantly, my family. For giving me the opportunity to find my true self and to further my education.
The inevitability of climate change is a horrid future we have to accept now. Unless we all decide to make change. Personal change. Start your education on these problems and we can all face them together! Feel free to reach out to me on any questions about my lifestyle, or Rhododendron the film.
Contact Info:
- Website: cosmic-rainbow.squarespace.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aly.soares/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alyssa.m.soares
Image Credit:
Dan Watt, Vincent Cugno, Forrest Leo, Lotta Lemetti
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