Meet John Pene | Actor

We had the good fortune of connecting with John Pene and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi John, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
When it came to acting my thought process came from being in a place in my life where I was tired of settling for what is safe and comfortable, and embracing my desire to be bold and bet on myself and pursue an art form that makes me feel complete, alive and free. I want to go after the dreams I had since I was child. dreams that exist in my heart but that I overlooked for so long because I was afraid I wasn’t good enough to make them come true. But after years of living the “Right Way” or “Normal way” it was evident to me that acting is what I was born to do and I love myself enough now to give myself permission to go after it. go after my happiness.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I would say what sets me apart from others in my industry is my perspective of life. I was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and got the chance to live in Johannesburg, South Africa before moving to the United States. I was exposed to different cultures, traditions ,and lifestyles. so growing up I learned to not get too attached to a specific way of life. Today, this allows me to take a step back and look at the bigger picture of things and where I fit into them. I also had the chance to meet a lot of interesting people whose life stories I carry with me until today. It gives more to draw from as actor. Despite my age, I am able to portray characters in a genuine way because of all the people and experiences that I have been exposed to. what excites me about acting is I am able to embody a character. the complexity of emotions and thoughts that I find when I prepare and play a character is fascinating to me. It expends my understand of the world and the people around me. It connects me to others and that excites me. I attribute my success in my career so far to divine timing, being at the right place at the right time to meet the right person for the right project type of thing. I don’t know what you call it specifically, God , luck, or the universe. But it’s got a lot to do with why I am where I am in my career. I also believe my willingness to fail forward as allowed me to remain persistent with my craft which eventually started to payoff. What I found to be a challenge was networking. Phoenix is a small market when it comes to acting, its really hard to get into a room with the right people producing or directing projects I want to audition for. My way of overcoming this challenge is to market myself to the best of my abilities using social media platforms and casting services. I love going to networking events in the industry as well, but what I found to be most effective is to just do any role for any project even if it’s not paid. That has allowed me to meet people much faster and expend my network of friends, collaborators, directors and producers. Finally, I am always making sure that I have all my boxes checked to get on the radar of major agencies and casting companies. This year, getting an agent also help me get more work and exposure. one the most important lesson I learned is to be genuinely nice to people you meet, and give 150 percent to people you work with, because as Samuel L. Jackson says “The toes you step on today, may be attached to the ass you’ll kiss tomorrow”. What I want people to know about my brand and my story is that “I want to inspire more people to take a chance on themselves and trust that they worthy enough to make their dreams come true no matter who they are and where they come from.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Day1 : We’d have to checkout the top golf and indoor skydiving spots right over by the Talking stick Resort, that would be a lot of fun. Day 2: We’d drive down to Sedona,AZ checkout the energy vortexes and do some guided meditations, see a shaman and finish off the rest of the day horseback riding in the red wild.
Day 3: We would head up to visit the grand canyon in the morning and then a couple hours up to see Antelope Canyon.
Day 4: Finish off our trip in Flagstaff. Where we would spend the day visiting the observatory, watch a play or 2 at NAU, and barn fire evening star gaze to call it a day.
Day 5: We would go watch a Suns or Cardinals game and then check out some of the speakeasies in downtown phoenix, and a few clubs in old town scottsdale too.
Day 6: We would grill some meat and just kick it at the pool and have a good time with the family.
Day 7: We would go the race track in north scottsdale, AZ and test drive some super cars. then check out the restaurants at scottsdale quarters.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I have had so many people who made it possible for me to become an Actor. From the  film students of Huntington University in Peoria, AZ who took a chance on me, and Allowed me to act on screen for the first time in their student films which gave me the footage that I needed for my first acting reel. to David Hemphill with the Black Theater Troupe in Phoenix, AZ who trusted me with the role of Melvin Peterson in the “A Soldier’s Play” Despite not having former theater training in the U.S. As well as sponsoring a workshop with Southwest Shakespeare Company where I had the privilege to work and learn from Ms. Trazana Beverley. Next, T’ana Phelice who gave me a lead role in the romantic drama “This is Love” that allowed me to show more range as an actor as I ever done in my career so far. This list of the people who contribute to my growth in this industry is far too long for me to list but I am truly grateful to every single one them and humbly recognize that I wouldn’t be here without every single one of you.

Website: https://www.backstage.com/u/john-pene/

Instagram: stagram.com/john_pene13/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-pene-b1011a116

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/john.pene.5

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmxi0GsaQpcgUVMiqjpSLwA

Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@john_pene?lang=en Short Documentary (Phoenix Film Festival 2022) https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qSCdtG82eJLNvefGXAWwDM90mjq8UZL9/view?usp=sharing

Image Credits
Josepepe Sifuentes Christian Bryant Cameron Hall Scott Hays