Meet Oliver Boon of Boon Box Productions in Hollywood

“I did not ask to be born. But once born, I fight to live”.

I had a few callbacks and ended up on the waiting list of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. While I didn’t make it onto the BA course, I was offered the 1-year foundation course instead. In that year, I got to develop my craft.  Completing that course really cemented in my mind the fact that performing is the absolute driving force in my life.

What I have learned the most from going to The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA) is developing an unwavering support for myself and my fellow actors. We are in this together, bringing stories to the world. It isn’t a competition, it’s a community. When my friends have success and I have no doubt they will, I won’t be jealous, I will be proud to know them.

I believe my desire to be an actor stemmed from when I was a kid.  Whilst  watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I wanted to be Willy Wonka. When I realized Willy Wonka wasn’t real, I wanted to be Gene Wilder. And now here I am, with what I feel is the ability to become whomever I want, for the duration of a performance!

Since graduating from AADA I have been taking Improv classes at the Upright Citizens Brigade and have just performed in Harold Pinter’s ‘A Night Out’ at the Complex Theater for the Hollywood Fringe Festival.

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?
I can’t think of a better way to get started in this unforgiving business than being continuously rejected. It toughens you up. For three whole years, I got rejected from drama schools up and down the UK, from England and Scotland to Wales.

Everything happens for a reason. My life could have gone a million different ways. It took about 30 auditions resulting in ‘no’, for the right one to say ‘yes’. Every audition I’ve had has helped to shape me in some way.  Regardless of the outcome, you can always grow from your experiences.

I found out three years ago that I had ADHD. It didn’t really come as a surprise but it was a relief to finally know. I’ve always struggled focusing on one thing at a time. That seems to be the best definition of what ADHD is to me. In many ways though, it makes me who I am. I enjoy being spontaneous and jumping from one thing to the next, so it works in my favour.

To this day, I still struggle with caring too much about what other people think of me. In High School, I stopped myself doing a lot of things out of fear of being judged.   Drama classes helped me a lot. My teacher Hazel Ball made all the difference for me and I can’t thank her enough for giving me a space where I could feel completely free of judgment, not just by others, but most importantly, by myself.

What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was a very confident, social kid. I enjoyed making people laugh and I liked being the center of attention. As I got into my teens, my insecurities emerged and I became very closed off from people. Instead of going out I would watch 3, sometimes four movies in a night. Movies were my escape.  Since High School, I feel like I’ve come back to the happy go-lucky kid I used to be.

I was a keen reader. Treasure Island was my favorite book growing up. There was something about Long John Silver I found so strangely charismatic. I would love to one day play him.

As most British kids in British Primary schools, I took part in the annual Nativity play. At the age of 5 I played one of the three wise men, wearing the same costume my brother had worn at that age whilst attending the same school. I was so shaky. I wanted to entertain but I had terrible stage fright. Yet, I just kept signing up every year and performing anyway.