Meet Thomas K. Akins, Jr. of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Thomas K. Akins, Jr..

Hi Thomas, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in Oakland, CA playing a lot of basketball, going to church, being in school plays, and finding adventures around the neighborhood with family and friends as kids sometimes like to do. There may or may not have been some trouble lol. Acting really was just a natural extension of what I had already done as a kid. I did plays as a child, I was in the church choir, I did drama class in high school and theatre in college. I really just kept it going by getting into film & TV. I guess I like feeling like a kid doing this stuff. I remember when I was doing a scene for the Bel-Air TV show, one of the main stars Jabari Banks and I were waiting to start the scene and he started beatboxing, so I started freestyling rap, we had a little fun before action was called. That was a good time. And apparently Marlon Wayans thinks I have big hands lol.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Definitely has not been a smooth road. The biggest thing about being an actor in the entertainment industry/show business is the level of rejection. You get no feedback whatsoever on audition tapes so you sort of have to just trust and also train outside of auditioning to make sure your technique is on point. But the fact is you get way more no’s than yes’s so you have to have tough skin and persevere.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Technically, I’ve been acting since I was a little kid way back in elementary school, in plays from grade school to church. Professionally I’ve been acting for almost a decade in a combination of film/television and theater. I like to continue to learn and discover new things about technique in the craft of acting in general so I continue to study as often as possible. What sets me apart from others is the unique story of my humble beginnings. My family and I dealt with a lot of household and neighborhood issues growing up that maybe many others didn’t have to deal with, but I connect my personal experiences over that time to the characters and stories that I work on which I believe makes them more relatable to the audience. At the end of the day, we’re all human beings who deal with difficulties in life that we must find a way to overcome, and I think that’s what these stories are all about.

I play one of the lead roles in a powerful woman in scorn movie titled ‘Bruised by Love’, a film by the talented Dara Frazier and 1642 Productions. The rest of the cast is extremely talented. Be on the lookout for the motion picture release December 8th on major streaming platforms!

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Just find someone who is more experienced than you, and who has achieved the things that you are setting out to achieve. You’d be surprised by how open people are to offer their wisdom and advice to someone purely seeking to learn. Don’t be afraid to reach out to people and just talk to them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://pro.imdb.com/mobile/name/nm10465284/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamthomasakins?exln=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr