Today we’d like to introduce you to Stefanie Butler.
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 a family of storytellers. My dad played professional baseball and because it was important for my parents that were all together as often as possible, we ended up traveling around with him a lot. My mom would pack the four of us kids up and whisk us off to the next city, another new hotel with more people to meet and new adventures to be had. We were like our own little band of gypsies and we had to find ways to keep ourselves entertained. So, my siblings and I started writing stories, putting on plays, and we became each others favorite acting partners.
From an early age, I was also an avid reader. I would devour books so often and so quickly that my mom used to take them from me and tell me that I needed to go outside and play. I would. Then at night, after everyone else had gone to sleep, I would sit under my covers still reading by the light of a flashlight late into the night. As I got a little older, I found that I didn’t want to just read these stories, but I wanted to be in them. That and I had developed a keen interest in observing and understanding people, which naturally led me to become an actor. So I joined theater, started doing plays, and eventually found myself attending Pepperdine University where I got my Bachelors degree in Theater. After school, I had been cast in many commercials, television shows, and small independent films when I got the itch again. I didn’t just want to be in these stories, I wanted to create them. So I started writing the films I wanted to see get made. And then I realized I didn’t just want to write them, but I wanted to cast the vision and tone for them, directing them any chance I got. So the past few years, that’s what I’ve been doing. Acting, writing, and directing whenever I’ve get the chance.
In 2018 I also started a blog called COURAGE, BRAVEHEART, where I share my own life’s journey with the desire to encourage others to step into their own vulnerability and into the broken places in their lives so that they can experience deep healing and complete restoration.
So as you can see, I’ve been a storyteller my whole life long and I’m not slowing down anytime soon.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I don’t think any road traveled is entirely smooth. There are always going to bumps and roots that trip us up along the path, and my journey hasn’t been any different. But it’s not about what happens to you, it’s about what you choose to do with the challenges that have presented themselves along the way. And sometimes those hard lessons can be painful.
I think that whenever you put your heart and soul into something, you are risking greatly. Risking rejection or critique. Risking misunderstanding or your own vulnerability. There are so many things that you will come up against. Your own self-doubt, lack of support, others opinions, the exhaustion of auditioning again and again and again, only for it to be another no. Or perhaps another forty pages of a script written at three in the morning, only to be abandoned a week later because you have no idea where it’s going. You try to shrug those off and go onto the next, but we all need a win sometimes. Even small wins matter, so I try to remember to celebrate when those happen and move on from the losses pretty quickly, knowing that if I didn’t get something, it wasn’t meant to be mine.
I think it’s also incredibly important to know who you are in order to stay grounded. If you don’t, it’s so easy to get caught up. To get lost or forget. And when you do that, you end up putting your self-worth into what others think about you and into how frequently you are booking. You can’t do that. You MUST know who you are and where your value lies. It helps when you have support from your family, friends, and partner. That support is vital to succeed in this business and I am so grateful that I have all three of those helping me on my own journey.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a film and television actor, a stage actor, a proud member of SAG-AFTRA & AEA eligible, a screenwriter, a children’s book author, a blogger and a director. I love collaborating with like-minded, passionate artists, and I care about telling stories that deeply matter with people that matter deeply because success isn’t just about what we accomplish in our lives, it’s about what we inspire others to do.
In 2015, I was thrilled to join the cast of the much anticipated Netflix series Stranger Things. I have also guest-starred on shows like CSI:NY, Shark, Rizzoli & Isles, and Frank Darabont’s Mob City. My commercial work is extensive and includes over thirty national campaigns, while my most recent film work includes the independent films Car Dogs, starring George Lopez, Patrick Adams & Octavia Spencer, Same, which I wrote, starred in, and took home 2nd place for best short film at the Christian Worldview Film Festival, Guest of Honor which was shot entirely in German, and Zula the Infinite, which was an official selection of the LA Shorts Fest and received the Award of Excellence at Indiefest Film Awards.
Last year I had the privilege of being cast in USS Christmas as a fighter pilot in the Navy, starring alongside Jen Lilley, Trevor Donovan, & Barbara Niven. USS Christmas can currently be seen on the Hallmark channel! My all time favorite movies are any period piece with an accent and a strong female protagonist, which will be reflected in my upcoming Irish film, Deirfiúracha, which I wrote, will direct and star in with my real-life sister, Abbi Butler. Again, always looking for ways I can play strong female character while working with one of my favorite acting partners – my sister.
I hope I am known for encouraging and inspiring others, being a consummate professional while on the job, being light-hearted and loving others well, both on and off the set, and being a grounded and realistic actor and an authentic and kind individual.
I think the thing I’m most proud of is that I’m still here pursuing my dream. Year after year, I’ve watched as others have decided to move on – to make a career change – or they’ve gotten burned out and lost their passion so they quit. And that’s not to say I haven’t gotten burned out at times – I certainly have. But it’s learning to stick with it, to remember why I’m doing this (because I love it and it’s actually fun!), and to choose that I am a storyteller. Period. Not because someone tells me I am or because someone else gives me a job, but because I decided I am. Because I’ve chosen to tell stories in whatever ways I can, and regardless of where I go in life, I will continue to pursue my art and my creativity as a storyteller.
The thing that sets me apart from others, hopefully is my hard work ethic, my belief in myself, and my dedication to not only my art but to loving people well in the process. I can also do many different dialects. I absolutely love the challenge of learning something new.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, personality-wise, I could be a bit shy and quiet, and I always had my nose in a book. I really loved being outdoors and doing adventurous things, so I guess you could say I was kind of a tomboy. I had two sisters and a brother, so we were always playing make believe and finding ways to get into mischief. As the second child, I was usually the one clowning around trying to make others laugh or feel better if they were down. I always felt a deep connection to God, ever since I was a child, and that is still the most important thing in my life. I was always told that I carried myself more maturely than others my age, so people often thought I was older. I think this came from being around lots of adults and being put in adult settings with my dad’s line of work, so we were expected to behave like adults from a very young age. I became fiercely competitive, thanks to my dad, and my first trophy I ever won was for doing gymnastics on a moving horse.
Speaking of which, I loved (and still love) horses. I love nature. I love listening to my sister play the piano and sing. I love going to live performances of any kind. Whether the theater or the symphony, a concert or the ballet. Watching others strive and succeed in their craft has always moved me deeply. I love the magic of lightening bugs and the hum of the South in the summer. I went to over 1,400 baseball games in my life. I have always been an adventure loving, thrill-seeker who’s been skydiving, cliff jumping, 4-wheeling, dirtbiking, spearfishing, snowboarding, surfing, and I am PADI scuba certified. I love hot yoga. I had a Japanese tea sensei for five years, where I learned CHADO, the art of formally serving Japanese tea while wearing kimono and my Japanese name is Hachidori, which means hummingbird. I lived in Ireland for three months so I could work on organic farms and one day, I hope to have my own farm, complete with horses, a garden, an orchard and honey bees. Oh, and I’m a crack shot with a shotgun and was given a handgun as a gift (true story!), which means I’d love to play Annie Oakley one day.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.stefaniebutler.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stefbutler52/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/realStefButler
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=stefanie+butler
- Other: https://vimeo.com/stefaniebutler
Image Credits:
Aña Monique Dexter Brown John Carrington Josh Stringer Chase Smith Brandon Winters
