Today we’d like to introduce you to Shirin Haririnia.
Hi Shirin, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Hey there! Oh man, my story is a weird one, but I guess who’s isn’t these days?! Long story short, I had always wanted to be a model. My entire life I lived as a larger girl, and never saw the representation I needed to help me on my journey of confidence and self love. As soon as I turned 18 I began digging deep into how I could get into the business – it was harder than I thought. I wasn’t conventionally curvy for plus modeling, so I began creating content/images for Instagram, myself. I felt that was the only way I could feel like I was moving forward towards my dream. I went to a few open castings throughout my years of going to school and working my college job at Disneyland, when finally, I went to the Torrid Model Search open call in 2016 and actually got asked to intern as a social media coordinator. I immediately said yes and put the modeling dream on the back burner while I fulfilled my parent’s dream of me being a ‘corporate boss bi$$$’ – ya know what I mean? LOL. To be honest, I fell in love with it and now have been working as a marketing professional for almost 10 years.
(long story, I know!!) Throughout my time at Torrid, I met an amazing woman, Elizabeth Simmons, who became a great friend and mentor on my journey in this industry. As a Model and Producer herself, she always encouraged me to never give up and to say my dreams out loud! It never hurts to ask…for the most part, haha! A few years later, she messaged me to come in and model for a boot campaign she was producing and boom, landed my first commercial agent from there. That was in 2020 and that is when I can officially say I dove into this industry and began to learn a ton about what it really entailed.
Randomly in Jan 2021, I had an extremely vivid dream where I woke up saying I need to try acting – I felt this deep need to ask my agent to send me scripted work. Something within this dream had me in a chokehold where I couldn’t back down from giving acting a try. At the time, I was also extremely shy – like, shaking in my boots shy – so pursuing acting for real was not something I thought I could do. All this to say, I then asked my agent for scripted auditions, got one, booked it on my first try. Cried. Screamed. Threw up (all joyful feelings, of course).
My first day on a set like that was absolutely insane and it hit me with a BIG reality check. I wasn’t ready, nerves wise. I had never been on a soundstage with a 100 person crew and a camera on a track. I was shaking the entire time and I knew I wasn’t able to take the notes the director was giving me because I was so scared.
I came out of that realizing if I truly want to do this, I couldn’t be scared anymore – that’s when I started improv. I’ve been doing it ever since and now perform on the Main Stage cast every weekend at Improvcity in Tustin, CA. It’s an absolute dream and I love making people laugh. I also started acting classes back in 2023 and have been consistent with acting classes and improv ever since.
If you were to tell me 10 years ago that I’d be here today, performing every weekend and represented commercially and theatrically, I know that 22 year old me would be so so proud and excited. My only question to myself would be why didn’t I start all of this sooner. Why was I so scared?! Why did I think I couldn’t do it?! Free will is wild!! One day I just decided I’m going to try. If you need encouragement, my biggest advise is to just try. Do it scared. It’s crazy, but it actually works.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. I dealt with a ton of self-doubt and I can guarantee that every week when I’m driving to acting class or prepping for an audition that’s a little out of my comfort zone I say out loud “what am I even doing?!” to the ether. I think my most difficult struggle is the comparison game – the not feeling good enough. It comes in waves, as I’m sure many of your readers have felt before. One day I feel great about an audition, everything goes right and you send it off, try to forget about it and move on with your life. And then the next day you perform for a crowd, and you can feel your performance not hitting, or you watch another girl book the role that you were actually excited about. Then you scour the internet looking at their experience and trying to figure what you could have done differently or how you can change your face. LOL. To me it’s the equivalent of searching your health symptoms on WebMD. It can be a terrifying rabbit hole.
I also had been looking for theatrical rep diligently for the past 2.5 years and would do showcases and cold emails and still not have any luck. It was only until recently where the stars aligned. The years of trying and waiting took a toll and made me question if I was meant for this.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I believe I’m most known for making people laugh – I’ve been told I have a strong stage presence (I actually won an award at my theater for this LOL). My improv is a huge part of my creative career, as I’m practicing it more often than not. I been asked to host interviews, presentations, award ceremonies, and general team building exercises at my corporate job…I think I might be a personality hire?! But I digress. I specialize in comedy and I’m proud of that. I am very aware that I have a unique way of being, from my facial expressions to choices in scenes, to my improvised musicals, I stand tall in my distinctiveness in a performance setting. This is what I do! If you want to come see it live, check out ImprovCity!
Recently I’ve dabbled into creating my own work with a group of wonderful creatives on a web series called Clean Slate. We just finished filming episodes 2 and 3 and will submit to some festivals very soon! Making your own stuff is SO much fun – if you’re having trouble booking, make your own projects! Remember, free will is wild!
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Oh wow! So many. As I mentioned earlier, my first mentor and friend in this business, Elizabeth Simmons. I truly would not be doing this if it weren’t for her and she knows! I already have my Oscar speech written and she is the first person I thank. The AFA Studio is next on my list where I have been studying the past almost 3 years. The teachers in this studio are absolute shining beacons in this industry. I have never left a class where I felt like I wasn’t capable. They helped me fix up my profiles on casting sites and put me into showcases where I landed my current manager. I will never stop recommending this studio. My improv theater, Improvcity shaped me into the performer that I am. The Creative Directors, Gina and Devin Dugan, taught me everything I know. Plus the awesome improvisers I work with on the daily inspire me always. My fellow actors who I’ve confided in over how difficult this business can be – we support eachother through and through and I would not have been pursuing this career this long with them having my back. My friends and family have truly been my biggest cheerleaders. I’ve met some wonderful people throughout my life and I always feel supported by them.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sharirini/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shirinharirinia/
Image Credits
Alanna Gilbert (blue denim)
Anita Lashey (white button down)
Grant Terzakis – Clean Slate
