Rising Star Jennifer Michele On The Five Things You Need To Shine In The Entertainment Industry

Believe in yourself. There is just no way around this one. There may be some work involved on this one as well, but if you truly want to inspire others to believe in themselves, you have to believe in yourself first.

As a part of my series about pop culture’s rising stars, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Jennifer Michele.

Jennifer Michele is best known for her lead role as Ella in the Lionsgate family film Joey and Ella and her guest starring role on Fox’s hit show 9–1–1 and recurring roles on Just my Luck with Sophia and Maya and Manny’s Garage Sale: A Hitchcock Knott. An award-winning writer, director, and producer, Jennifer has been nominated for 4 Young Artist Awards including Best Actress, Outstanding Producer, Outstanding Director and a win for Outstanding Writer for the short film Riley for which she also won Best Actress at the Los Angeles Cinematography Awards. As a model, she has appeared on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam and had a national print campaign for Claire’s. This multi-hyphenate young Influencer knows the power of giving back to her community, devoting time to Food Forward, feeding the needy of LA. When not working on her craft, Jennifer plays polo with the California Polo Club as well as enjoying painting, sculpting, dancing, and playing the piano.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?

I grew up in Los Angeles and have lived here all my life. I’ve always done a lot of traveling to Europe and other parts of the world. I’ve always liked learning, even school, but especially everything related to the arts. Acting, singing, dancing and I did Ballet as well. Horse riding, polo, sculpting, fencing, martial arts, stunt fighting, so many different things. I’ve also directed and continue to do so. I always enjoyed doing so many different things and have enjoyed them since I was a little girl.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

I started doing modeling, followed by commercials and TV- and film roles. I always loved telling stories, whether in front or behind the camera. I’ve always enjoyed doing so many different things, and I still do. Over time I have discovered what I enjoy doing the most and right now I’m really focused on acting, directing, and singing as well. I feel that anything I get to do that involves the art of storytelling, I will love doing for a long time to come.

Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your entertainment career?

I’ve been lucky enough to have a lot of interesting experiences, it’s hard to pick one that I really like the most. Something that comes to mind is filming Lionsgate’s Joey and Ella, where I played the lead role of Ella. Some of the filming took place in the historic town of Guthrie, Oklahoma. In particular the historic bank that was built in 1889 stood out to me. I really like history so that was really for me. It was a very quaint town, and then we also did some filming in a charming farm in Yukon, Oklahoma. These were real fun experiences, and so different then the city life I’m used to.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I remember when I just started acting, when I was a little girl. I went to my first commercial audition, and they asked to me to slate. I didn’t know what that was, and they had to explain to me that I had to say name, agency, age… It was embarrassing! I never forgot what a slate was after that day! For some surprising reason, I didn’t book the job! ha-ha

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?

I am working on some things I’m not allowed to speak on yet, but it’s definitely exciting! I can give a little hint, that the exciting things happening now are in the areas of acting, directing and singing, all at the same time! I always enjoy inspiring people, and I love encouraging others to go for their dreams. I hope that me doing different things all at the same time shows others that can you do it all!

Most young people your age don’t have to balance work and school. Can you tell us how you manage to balance your schoolwork, auditions, and time on set?

This is always an interesting dance. I always try to stay ahead in school, so I have a buffer when my career gets too busy for school. Sometimes I have to catch up on school, because I’ve been busy non-stop on my career. But in general, it’s definitely a lot of hours every day to do it all. That’s why it’s important to do fun things as well when possible and enjoy life!

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

Definitely my parents. They have helped me so much and are helping me so much in every way possible. With things they do for me, but also the way they support me, and encourage me and show me the ropes. My parents help me with all my auditions, and before I could drive, they drove me everywhere. They always came to set with me and still are. I definitely wouldn’t be able to do anything I’m doing without them.

Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s jump to the main part of our interview. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Enjoy the ride. It’s great to work hard and have goals and dreams, but it should be fun. If it’s not fun, why do it?

2. Don’t be too hard on yourself. I think as an artist you can always find things you can do better. Give yourself some slack, try again and be nice to yourself, and others as well.

3. Be Grateful. I always have been grateful, but I think this is very important. When you can just say thank you for what you have and the opportunities you have, it is hard to get depressed.

4. Learn. Always stay open to learn, never think you already know it, or you’ve heard something already before. Of course, not everything you hear is for you, but always be open and look for bits of information that can help you.

5. Believe in yourself. There is just no way around this one. There may be some work involved on this one as well, but if you truly want to inspire others to believe in themselves, you have to believe in yourself first.

You are a person of enormous influence. How do you think you can use social media as a platform to be a positive influence to your fans, and for society at large?

There are so many things you can do. You can share anything that you think will help people. Encouragement, humor, a different perspective. It’s amazing how the right words at the right time can change someone’s life. Don’t underestimate the influence we have on each other and use it for good.

If you had the ability to choose to work on any TV show or film, or work alongside any co-star, or with any director, what or who would that be, and why? You never know who might see this article, especially if we tag them. :-)

That’s a great question. There are so many amazingly talented people out there. I would love to work with James Cameron, Baz Luhrmann, Steven Spielberg and Patty Jenkins. I love their movies and they have inspired me in so many different ways.

How can our readers follow you on social media?

I am on Instagram @thejennifermichele and on TikTok @thejennifermichele.

This was very meaningful, thank you so much!