Meet Stacy Alistair | Actress & Film Director

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

Hi Stacy, what are you inspired by?
Momentum, art, Christopher Nolan, Jared Leto’s drive, Sam Levinson currently, freedom, openness to new ideas while focusing on my own vision without others’ disapproval, modern architecture, experiencing details instead of rushing through them, discovering music soundtracks to my favorite shows/movies – currently listening to the soundtrack to the show THE GREAT, forcing myself out of comfort to experience something I imagined but even better

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
A huge part of what sets my directing apart from others is that I am an actress as well. I work on people’s positive strengths when manipulating a scene and encourage them to bring it out. It could be a hint or a spark of an emotion that might not have fit the original storyline but it’s too engaging to not let it shine. I am most proud of some of the accomplishments where I didn’t even realize I was shooting for… to explain – there are times when you receive a trophy, an award, a gift and you weren’t even trying. I feel most proud about my short Sci-Fi film I directed that later got asked to be picked up to stream on a digital platform, when I got called back for an acting role that jumpstarts my career and I had completely forgotten about the original audition, when other actors talk about how at ease they were when I have directed them and they felt it was their best work on camera.

I’m not sure I can answer how I got to where I am professionally. Other than taking ‘hail mary’ chances that others thought I was crazy for. But also knowing in my heart and intuition that I’m good at what I do. It’s a dangerous and delicious combination.

I used to tell myself that I had a challenge when faced with other peers who are directors who happen to be male. As I was developing my strength and insight or rather pinpointing my voice and point of view, I felt ‘hushed’ by others who happened to be male and later I found out to be my competition. But looking back, I can’t blame my lack of boldness by letting others silence me. Maybe they happened to be male because the ‘director industry’ is heavily favored in that area or maybe I was letting doubt of any kind seep into my abilities and dilute what is incredibly rich.

Lessons: learn to take criticism from people you trust – sometimes people you are close to have their own intentions and will use you, learn to listen to your gut instinct, learn to properly vet who you let into your inner circle, learn how valuable you are, learn that by changing yourself – you are changing the world.

People gravitate toward me because I seem nice and approachable but my friends describe me as a tornado – I often come into people’s lives and completely change their world

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Without giving away too many of my secrets, here’s a list of places that have inspired me or created interesting memories.

Monday:
Santa Monica Beach and Pier
Chinois Restaurant in downtown Santa Monica

Tuesday:
Silverlake farmer’s market
Griffith Park Observatory
Catch a movie at The Chinese Theater
Grab a cocktail at the Black Rabbit Rose in Hollywood for a magic show

Wednesday:
Disneyland

Thursday:
The Getty Museum
Karaoke in Koreatown – Cafe Brass Monkey

Friday:
Laguna beach
Dinner at Yamashiro

Saturday:
Shopping on Melrose then Rodeo Drive
Happy Hour at Thaia
Dinner at Catch LA
Delilah or the Classic Cat to end the night

Sunday:
Universal Studios

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Excluding the haters? Because in all honesty, the challenges and people who have given me the side eye is how I’ve crushed in the past and acquired what I feel is success.

However, I would like to dedicate this shoutout to my mom. I only realized as an adult how incredibly creative, insightful, strong and graceful she is. My father passed away when I was graduating high school. My mother was always the breadwinner of the family and she has three kids that she cared for – we never went hungry and she made my childhood delightful. This is on top of moving from Guyana to the states with my father and hardly any financial stability when she was in her early 20s. I have come to recognize her strength, humor and knowledge every day and it’s fascinating. Plus, she somehow has accepted what I want out of life and fully supports me. She single handedly gave me the freedom to enjoy life and let myself enjoy it.

Website: https://stacyalistair.weebly.com/

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