Meet Maeve Thompson Osgood

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maeve Thompson Osgood.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in Durham, North Carolina, and my first memories are of performing. Not “Toddlers in Tiara’s” performing – my parents had a lot to do with that – but singing in the car, playing dress-up, pretending I was queen of the castle. I lived in my imagination, creating stories from everything I could. Even stuck at my mom’s dance class, I would bring a story to life using a piece of lint and an oxidized penny.

I got to do my first play in fifth grade and loved it. My first musical was the following year, and I found a way into performing every year since. I don’t know when I “decided” to become an actor because there was simply never another path for me. I was lucky. I found the thing I loved when I was young, and I was able and encouraged to pursue it. When I was looking at colleges, my mom lightly suggested I look at other programs for writing or psychology and I responded matter-of-factly with, “Mom, the only thing I am interested in is musical theatre. That’s it.” So that was that. We both reflect on that moment throughout my adulthood with.

Of course, I found other paths to performing over time and while I still love and pursue musical theatre, my performing ambitions have expanded. I have gone down a Meisner-based acting path after moving to Los Angeles and finding Don Bloomfield, I model, write, produce, even do costuming and voiceover when I can. I love learning all parts of this business and when I find an opportunity to flip sides of the camera (or stage), I take it. When I was in school at the University of Tampa, I produced and directed Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead by Bert V. Royal. After that, I moved to New York for film school and learned how to work both behind and in front of a camera. After settling in Los Angeles, I started writing, producing and directing my own scripts, as well as independently putting up plays. I recently produced, costumed, marketed and starred in Gregory Moss’s Indian Summer, which taught me a plethora of new skills. I am dedicating my life to learning about what I love, and I can’t think of a better city in which to do so.

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?
I would venture to say a “smooth road” is not something most actors are familiar with. Between the rejection (which we prepare for but hurts all the same) and the uncertainty of whether you will even be allowed to pursue your passion on a professional level, there are always going to be peaks and valleys. My own breakthroughs have come from tragedy and success in equal measure. I am incredibly lucky to have a family that has supported my dreams unconditionally, which is an exceedingly rare commodity. It is the only thing that has kept me going through self-doubt, depression and enormous personal losses.

As I have developed my acting, I have had to come to terms with myself and face personal demons most people can avoid on a daily basis. To be a great actor is to give yourself over completely to your craft, and that is no easy task no matter where you come from. Yet that has also been one of my greatest joys because I have accepted and loved so many parts of myself I would not have explored otherwise. I still have a long way to go. Creating my own work has been challenging and frustrating but also an exhilarating and self-affirming experience.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Acting is my main focus, both film and stage, but I also sing, model, write and independently produce small-budget projects. This year I performed in Theresa Rebeck’s Seminar and Gregory Moss’s Indian Summer and held leading roles in both. I am self-driven and always looking for ways to act and perform. Every audition or reading is a chance to act, and I take full advantage of each opportunity. Creating my own work has also been a staple in my career: there are a lot of actors, and not everyone can be working around the clock. While I am auditioning, I never stop working on my own projects. Photo shoots have been a great source of expression because I can collaborate with the photographer to tell a visual story. Writing projects have also kept me active and engaged, and they have led to a number of self-produced short films and readings. For me, the lack of a spotlight will never mean the absence of work.

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
There are a lot of changes starting to happen in the film industry that have been a long time coming. Efforts to diversify advertised content are slowly paying off, and I can’t wait to see them go further. We’ve seen revolutionary films for women come out over the last several years, and the most exciting one for me has been The Woman King. It brought a repressed group to the forefront and touched every audience member in one way or another, regardless of race or gender. As a woman, it was breathtaking and powerful and has certainly paved the way for more stories of empowered women. I encourage people to seek out stories that you may feel have nothing to do with you – anyone can learn something valuable from a well-told story, and we should be seeking out new experiences for that very reason. I think the industry still has a long way to go before we can call it truly inclusive, but I am excited to see it move forward.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://maevethompsonosgood.weebly.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maevethompsonosgood/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maeve.osgood/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBAmOp6NU7vS3lrfYYlEVOQ
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/maeve-thompson-osgood

Image Credits
Dana Patrick Forrest Leo Elias Taylor Jude K.D. Grant Terzakis