Meet Chéna Verony | Actress

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

Hi Chéna, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
An artistic or creative career is like a roller coaster. It has it’s ups and downs and doesn’t really bring many promises or any stability, unless we put in the extra effort to stand out and even then, we might face unpredictable challenges. It comes with a number of risks, starting from the financial plan to the uncertainty of what tomorrow might bring. It takes courage and acceptance of the fact that criticism and rejection is part of this career choice. However, it is a gift to be able to do something different and to get out of the comfort zone. In other words embracing this chaotic and yet beautiful journey. Pursuing a dream no matter what others think or say about you. Collaborating with fellow artists, embedding different ideas into creative projects and producing something original that resonates with the entire team, is very exciting for me. That is the beauty of an artistic and creative career. It’s the reason why I chose to be an actress, an artist, a performer at heart. It’s my adventurous personality that loves diversity, especially being on a movie set where I get to work with many incredible producers, directors, talented cast and crew and learn from the best. My passion for the entertainment industry started early on when I was a little girl. I used to sing, play piano and violin on stages around the country. Being surrounded by artists motivated me to become an actress in film and TV, to express myself and share my artistic experience with the world.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Being in the acting industry for many years, I’ve learnt that a good actor is a good storyteller. In order to develop the storytelling skills, an actor should constantly be training. When I say training I mean really understanding the character that we’re portraying, doing the homework and finding the moments within the provided script. Think a bodybuilder that has to always stay in shape. Same here, I always practice in front of the camera and put myself out there without looking back. I’ve trained with great mentors from Chicago, LA, Atlanta, New York and I also had the opportunity to study with acting coaches from Australia and the U.K. All of these dots connected have had a positive educational impact on my daily practice. My family, my acting mentors, my agent and my work ethic have all contributed to where I am today. Here’s a little fun story: since I was younger my brother’s been telling me this phrase and I didn’t really understand it until now: “Passion is when you are doing what you love at any time of day or night. Let’s say if someone’s waking you up at 3 o’clock in the morning will you enthusiastically do that thing that you say you love even if it isn’t compensated?” He said: “That’s how you know that you’ve truly found your passion, your path in life”. I’ve been guiding my way through this beautiful journey with that mentality and I can say that inadvertently I now never go to sleep until I’m done working towards my acting dream, because I found my passion and I’m not afraid to put in the work.
I can confirm that it has never been easy. Many times I’m working without taking breaks to get to where I want to be in this life and I will continue to go the extra mile for as long as I can. The people who’ve worked with me before could probably tell you how I forget to eat or even drink water on days when I’m filming and I’m really invested in a project.
I’m proud to say that with hard work and consistency I was nominated as best actress in a drama and won a number of awards for the short film TRANSGRESSIONS in 2020. During the lockdown I’ve connected with great artists like Randy Bernales and Keith Kelly and together we made a short film that has gotten recognition here in the U.S at the New York Film Festival (NYIFA), as well as in film festivals throughout Europe (London Shorts, Europe Film Awards). I’m currently in production for a number on movies and TV shows in Chicago, Tennessee, New York, Atlanta and Hollywood, including writing my own films.
And last but not least I’d like to thank all my followers on social media for supporting me and for tagging along with me on this beautiful journey. I’m grateful to all 1.1 Million of you for being part of my story and for all the positive feedback you’re sending my way. This brings me to another lesson – without an audience, an artist can’t exist. In other words you the people who are reading this and are engaging with my content, make life more interesting and colorful. THANK YOU.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
A couple places that I love in LA would probably be the most popular Universal Studios Hollywood. Especially if one of my actor friends is visiting, I’d say that taking the tour around the places where movies are made is a remarkable experience. Seeing all the built in cities at the Universal Studios makes you feel like you visited different countries from around the world in just a couple of minute. Of course we’d go to the walk of fame as well as the iconic HOLLYWOOD sign. Thus, if my friends are in town for a week vacation, I’d try to get them to go to the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures/Hollywood Wax Museum. There are many good restaurants and coffee places in town. My suggestion would be to try Veggie Grill or maybe The Little Italy. For something lighter to start the day I’d go to Javista Coffee Hollywood. Also Santa Monica Pier and the amusement park are worth giving a try. So much of Santa Monica’s culture stems from the beach and is reflected throughout the city. It’s a very nice place to just go shopping, have some fun and even workout in the nature.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Thank you for this opportunity, I have to say that I wouldn’t have been who I am today without my parents to whom I thank from the bottom of my heart for the education, the love and the support. I’d also like to dedicate this shoutout to my current agent Vilma Llaguno from Dream Team Talent for all the opportunities that she and her team send my way. Furthermore, I thank and dedicate this to the many acting mentors that lead me to great success and taught me the best principles of acting that I still to this day practice. To list a few: Amy Lyndon, Chris Agos, Sean Bradley, David Murphy, Adrianne Cury, Jessica Houde-Morris, and Scott Oakley.

Website: https://www.chenaverony.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chena_verony/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chéna-verony-75734a229/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/chena_verony

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChenaVerony.Official

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRnXNzhp3rC8N9izEmKXhbg

Other: TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@chena_verony

Image Credits
Lorelei Rubik Irina Logra Carina Conti Tyler Core Nijole Shuberg Vik Photography