Casting Cameron
Tuesday, September 20, 2022
Media Contact: Bailey Stacy | Communications Coordinator, Marketing & Communications | 405-744-2700 | bailey.stacy@okstate.edu
Face2Face with Rachel Cameron
Rachel Cameron, a young actress, model and Oklahoma State University senior, made her way to Stillwater after filming a movie in Yukon, Oklahoma. The Dallas native spent a month and a half in Oklahoma on the set of “Treasure Lies,” a faith-based movie about a hardworking teenage boy who wins the lottery and faces a crisis of character where Cameron plays the love interest. It was her time spent shooting when she fell in love with the state of Oklahoma and decided to attend OSU.
In order to film the movie, the then 16-year-old, Cameron made the difficult decision to drop out of high school and finish online, which allowed her to complete her high school career at the young age of just 17. She started at OSU the following semester majoring in business entrepreneurship with a minor in management information systems.
“Oklahoma State was super ready to help me get enrolled in the spring semester and helped me with everything,” Cameron said.
When it came to deciding on a major to study, Cameron sought advice from her colleagues and mentors from her acting career who all had the same resounding sentiment….do not major in acting.
“I really wanted to have the opportunity to learn more about business and how to market myself in the industry,” Cameron said. “That's what every director, every coach has ever told me in stage, ‘If you're going to go to college or continue your education, you want to learn about business and how to get into the business world.’
“My favorite professor at Oklahoma State is Jim Berkman. He taught my MIS class last semester and students who wanted to be in his class and wanted to learn, he wanted to teach them. He was ready to pour into them, listen and give advice.”
Cameron took an interest in acting from an early age and performed on stage for the first time at the age of five. She utilized her talents throughout plays in elementary school and high school where she was a member of the theater.
“There are videos of me from when I was a little girl getting on any elevated surface, trying to entertain people,” Cameron said. “I loved it, but I couldn't sing at all. You don't want to hear me sing. I started in film because there's no singing in films and I kind of fell in love with it.”
She had a passion for the artform and was very eager to jump right into the deep end and sign with an agent. Cameron’s mom, Shera, suggested dipping her toes in the water first and that’s when they discovered Cathryn Sullivan’s Acting for Film school. She enrolled in classes at 14 and two years later she had an agent.
“She [Sullivan] is one of the greatest coaches in America for acting,” Cameron said. “She helped me get in front of a panel of agencies, trained me and got me my first jobs and gigs.”
Sullivan’s has taught many students who went on to attain notoriety including Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Madison Pettis, Jaren Lewison, Thomas Mann and others.
Since signing with an agent, Cameron has appeared in the television series, “The Price of Fame” and independent films “Treasure Lies,” “Flip Turn,” “Home Free” and “Surfer Girl.” “Surfer Girl” and “Home Free” are still in production and are her latest movies. In addition to her television and film work, she has modeled and been featured in commercials for companies like Golden Chick, Varsity, Balfour and was the cover girl for cheerleading.com.
Throughout her career, she has had the opportunity to meet and work alongside famous talent such as Sheree J. Wilson, Cameron Arnett and Donny Boaz.
“The film I'm most proud of is definitely “Treasure Lies,”’ Cameron said. “I worked really, really hard on that project. It's also a Christian film and I'm very strong in my faith and I love that I got to put something out there with my work that showed how much I care for my God.”
“Treasure Lies” has received several awards including the Gold Remi Award in the Christian Feature Film category at the 53rd Annual WorldFest – Houston International Film Festival, the Audience Choice Award runner-up, the Best Feature Film runner-up and the first runner-up for Best Picture at the Christian Worldview Film Festival in Nashville.
The film was also nominated for most of the awards at the 2020 Great Lakes Christian Film Festival in Buffalo, New York and won the awards for Best Writer, Best Sound/Musical Score and Best Editing. This included a personal nomination for Cameron in the Best Actress category.
While many think of film acting as a glitzy occupation, Cameron explains that it is a common misconception.
“I think a lot of people think it's this big, glamorous thing,” Cameron said. “It's really, really not. You're sitting for hours and hours while people are setting up and you're waiting for lighting to be right and sound to be right and the art department to do their thing, and the production assistants do their thing. So, I think people would find it interesting that it's really not like this glamorous lifestyle. It's sitting and waiting and making sure you're ready for when it's your turn to contribute to the part of the project that you're doing.”
During the summer of 2022, Cameron participated in an internship with II Films, a production company that is currently filming a movie called “My 7 Grandmas,” where she worked as a casting assistant. The internship focused on pre-production movie planning, which provided her valuable experience behind the camera. She spent the summer casting, working with the insurance company and speaking to business owners in Lake George, Minnesota about using their location as a set.
“I do love being in front of the camera more than anything,” said Cameron. “But being a part of a production, you’re really a part of a team and you're creating something amazing. So, either side of the camera I'm on, I really just love being in this industry.
“I think the main thing others should know is that when you want something, you have to just keep going because things aren't going to get gifted to you or handed to you. You're really going to have to go out and work; it takes time and energy and effort. You will be told no 100 times before you get told yes, before someone likes your look or thinks you're good enough for a certain thing. It's just waiting for the opportunities and grabbing them when they come.”
For more information on Cameron’s work visit her IMDb page, and watch “Treasure Lies” now on Amazon.