1. Creative Life
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Rene expresses her creative side through many different mediums. “I love to sing, make music, paint, and cook, which I feel require just as much of my creativity as story building and acting,” she says. “But what they all have in common is usually some kind of darkness. I love to tackle projects that expose the dark crevices and corners of humanity that societies say can be too inappropriate to discuss or share, too uncomfortable to be said out loud, but feel truly honest and can be resonated with.”
2. The Little Things
Rene focuses on small things that bring joy. “Like sitting in peace is great, but I wouldn't mind finding little things that bring me some, like finding the little joys, right?” she says. “Garden a little bit more, take a nice walk. I went for a run in the rain the other day. I don't even run. Okay.”
3. Advice For Actors
Rene has good advice for young actors trying to break into the industry. “You will fail, but it’s up to you to believe that failure is always a trip on the steps up and not a tumble on the steps down,” she says. “Whatever you believe, it’s true. if you believe that what you want SEEMS impossible, but you know you can do it, that’s true. If you believe anything is possible with focus and passion, that’s true. If you believe you are amazing and SO worthy, that’s true, and if you believe you suck and you’ll never make it, that’s true too.”
4. Balancing Masculine and Feminine
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Rene is proud of both her feminine and masculine sides, and what that brings to her work. “I can be messy and powerful and masculine. I think that's the key too,” she says. “As someone who identifies as both female and they/them, I really am in touch with my own masculinity and that doesn't take away from my femininity. I think that's the key here. And I think there are a lot of women out there that feel as if, when they become and they feel more masculine, that somehow that takes away from their femininity. And I just hope that I can show that's just certainly not the case.”
5. Full Potential
Rene is driven to reach her full potential, even if it means the present passes her by. “Hands down my biggest fear is not experiencing my own potential,” she says. “I feel like I think about this all the time, but honestly, it’s funny, I was talking to one of my best friends about this last night and he reminded me my potential is somehow in the future and to be more present in the now. It helped ease the fear, at least for a minute.”