Institute: Tell us about your journey into the acting.
Cameron: My journey into acting started as a child. I had a certain need for getting attention, partly due to being the youngest out of four children and an overactive imagination. I was in school plays and was a class clown in school. For some reason making people laugh made me happy at a very young age. I was fortunate enough to spend the later years of my childhood in New Jersey because it was so close to New York City. I knew i wanted to be an actor but i didn’t know how I was going to do it. No one in my family or anyone that i knew in general were in the business. When I moved to NYC, after a year of waiting tables, I was begrudgingly signed to a modeling agency. No one wanted to sign me due to my height, or maybe it was because i was from Jersey. Either way I made it go right. I wasn’t the prettiest or the tallest but people hired me because I was fun. How I started acting was a fluke or some would call it fate. I was in LA doing a modeling job and I got my first acting audition for a Show called Cover Me. I booked it and off i went learning how to act on the job. Sounds annoying right? But its been about 14yrs now since that fateful day and man i sure have learned alot about myself, this business, and acting. I have Been very humbled and have had amazing and terrible life experiences. All of which makes an actor good. After 14 yrs, i can finally say I know what I am doing.
Institute: Who influenced you in your early years? How about now?
Cameron: In my early years, I think I was always obsessed with Jim Carey. I love comedy and when i watched “In Living Color” my mind was blown with all of the different characters and facial expressions Jim could do. Funny huh? Plus I really wanted to be a Fly Girl.
Institute: What firsts attracts you to a character?
Cameron: What first attracts me to a character, is how can I find this persons truth. I love it when I get to play characters very different from me and get to step out of the “blonde box”
Institute: Do you become emotionally involved in your characters?
Cameron: I do become emotionally involved with my characters. For some reason if my character is hurt in a film or tv show and is crying, I will cry when I watch it. I always sympathize with their problems because I have to know them well and essentially become them
Institute: Does your costume complete you character transformation?
Cameron: My costume absolutely completes my character transformation. I love doing period films such as “Hotel Noir” where I had to dress very 50s..it was liking tying a bow on an amazing package.
Institute: If you could star in a re-make of a classic film, who would you want to play?
Cameron: If I could star in a re-make of a classic film, it would be Sophie’s Choice. Not that I could ever come close to Meryl, it would be more of a character exploration for me. I feel like the depth of that woman’s pain and what she did to survive is compelling to me. What lengths human beings will go through to survive has always fascinated me.
Institute: How hard do you push yourself?
Cameron: I push myself very hard mostly physically, everything else career wise will happen whether I want it or don’t want it. Being a mother of a 3 year old i’ve learned to multitask and when all else fails, let go a little. I used to try to control everything and want the impossible. Now I am grateful for what the universe will hand me next
Institute: When are you completely satisfied with your work?
Cameron: I am never completely satisfied with my work. Or I should say yet. I know when I do a good job, but I am never 100% satisfied. I am more satisfied with the experience of making the film or TV show and if I impacted the cast and crew in a positive way.
Institute: What are some of the greatest fears you think actors face?
Cameron: The biggest fear actors face is never working again, at least thats my fear. I will go a stretch of 6 months without work and think whats wrong with me, I must really suck, blah blah blah…then I get a job and everything is fine again. So dumb, i do it to myself everytime. My biggest advice is to just dont get off the boat, stick around long enough and something will happen. Never give up and never quit.
Institute: Do you have any great inspirations?
Cameron: I am inspired by people that over come situations in their lives. Self-made people, that come from nothing and become who they want to be in this life. People who become successful and in return end up helping others. Its amazing what you can accomplish if you work hard and have drive to get what you want.
Institute: Do you have a preference when it comes to TV, film and theatre?
Cameron: I love making films, but I love doing TV shows a bit more. Just for the stability and becoming close with the cast and crew. On films you are with people for about 2-3 months and a show can go for years. You become a little family. That is what makes me most happy. Its not all about the product its about the experience for me.
Institute: How do you keep yourself occupied in-between projects?
Cameron: Being a mother keeps me very occupied in-between projects. In a way I get to experience life again through another persons eyes. We go to museums, make art, and go on adventures. I also work out alot. It makes me feel good, not just on a phyiscal level but a mental level as well. I surf and hike alot. Its important to have other things going on than just this business because an actor is not always working. I’ve learned to cherish my down time and make the most of it because when I am filming it consumes all of my life.
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