Today we’d like to introduce you to Gracie Be.
Gracie, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’m an actress and a model… and it all started with a closet. My mother took great care in keeping all her old dresses that she no longer wore and wanted to give her two daughters an imaginative place to play. Hence, the “dress-up closet” and my spark for the dramatic was born in the basement of my childhood house. My sister and I would spend hours pouring over her old dresses and shoes, picking out the perfect outfit for our characters in our latest game of pretend. As we grew older, we amassed “dress-up clothes” of our own from old Halloween and dance recital costumes along with the occasional old hat or plastic necklace from a relative or family friend. As my mother saw how much we loved acting out our pretend roles in the basement, she started encouraging us to give theatre a shot.
So, my sister and I grew up doing theatre in our school and community, but we were never those “theatre kids,” just kids who enjoyed theatre. Sometime in high school, though, I decided that this was my path. So, I worked my butt off applying to schools, auditioning for schools, keeping up my grades for schools, and doing a bit of soul searching… and, after two years of doing that, I got into an acting program at Ball State University!
So, that’s the Cliffnotes version of how I got into acting. I continued to work my butt off in college and learn a lot more about myself as a person and as a performer. I found my love of film through a few student film productions. And, even though I was dead set on my major, I still kept my eyes open to the rest of the world to see what it had to offer… and that’s how I found the world of modeling!
The summer before I went to Ball State University, I got into my first agency, the Helen Wells Agency. Now, things work a little differently where I was (aka Smalltown, America) and, when I say I got into an agency, I mean that I was now fully represented for modeling, commercials, promotional work, as well as theatrically. That might seem like a lot but, remember, we’re in Smalltown, America. I honestly just thought that “eh, maybe I’d get a commercial … maybe” but Helen Wells put me right out there and got me my first commercial and music video before I was even on their website. Now, that’s an agency working for YOU! They believed in me and kept growing me as both a model and an actress, even though I just kept telling them I’m “just an actress.”
Halfway through school, I noticed I wasn’t getting many opportunities to act outside of class, and I craved more. Around this time, one of my commercials had been shown to someone was in charge of a regional fashion week, and they were interested in seeing me walk down the runway for them. I thought there was no way I’d ever be able to do that until… my agent got me a runway gig on the same day as the model callout for the fashion week. Now, of course, I took the runway gig, even though I knew I had no idea what I was doing, and I got some pointers on the whole “runway walk.” The people running this runway gig even encouraged me to keep doing more runway gigs. They had no idea that, when they released me, I flew over to that model callout as confident as could be… only to get laughed off the runway. I was devastated but trying not to show it as the model coordinator looked at me and said: “I think I have something for you.”
Those few words shook my world and began my journey as a model. As I grew through the next few years, I walked in multiple fashion weeks, worked with countless local designers, and got some proper runway and modeling training. My agency was thrilled that I had decided to embrace who I am: both an actress and a model!
Although most of my story takes place outside of LA, this city is a key player in this next big chapter in my acting and modeling career. I moved here two years ago and have been loving it ever since! I’ve continued to model for various companies and designers, walk-in fashion shows around the city, and act in a couple of independent films and commercials. I’m so happy to say that I’ve been able to make a budding career out of what I love to do, and I look forward to seeing it bloom even more in the City of Angels!
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?
Of course not! It never is! I spent two years trying to convince people that I could do what I knew I could do just so I could get into a program to learn what I wanted to do… and then I spent four more years convincing the people in the program that I was learning fast enough and that I could do this thing well enough so I could, again, convince the greater “them” that I could do what I know I can do. How crazy is that?!
It’s never a smooth road to be an actor or a model, and half the battle is having the confidence to endure any and all bumps and challenges that will inevitably come on the road ahead.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I have an independent film coming out this fall called “One Time Gift” where I play a nosy big sister who is trying to protect her brother from heartbreak. Otherwise, just as my Insta bio says, I’m taking life one step at a time.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.graciebe.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/begracie
Image Credit:
Ron Geren (@gerenphotog)
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