We recently had the chance to connect with Ethan Kidd-Oyakhilome and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Ethan, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? Are you walking a path—or wandering?
Wandering for sure!…. but headed towards a specific direction. Navigating two worlds both in front and behind the camera is definitely a balancing act for me. Yes I’m finding success in both but I know I could be MUCH further along in either if I were to simply commit to one
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi! My name is Ethan Kidd-Oyakhilome.
I’m an actor, model, photographer, videographer, adventurer, etc… I do a lot!
I’ve spent my entire life on both ends of the camera and I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to turn that into not one, but two fun careers!
I’ve been a model and an actor for hundreds of ads and commercials for brands including Adidas, Carnival Cruiselines, ADT, Puma, Publix, and so on! Behind the camera I’ve lived a quieter life where I’ve shot photos and videos for professional athletes such as Tim Tebow, Vita Vea, and Ronde Barber.
Being on both ends of the camera has cemented me in a unique position where I’m often finding myself as a liaison between cast and crew on productions. When I’m in front of the camera I’m able to identify the equipment being used and translate that in my head to picture what the director is seeing in his mind, leading me to nail my takes in a much more efficient manner. When I’m behind the camera I’m able to work with talent of all skill levels, whether it’s helping run lines and actions with experienced actors, or coaching dialogue and script delivery with people experiencing their first ever camera session.
It’s taken a little while to be taken seriously as a resource on both sides of the media world but this past year I’ve found myself in a cool spot where agencies, brands, production crews, and talent of all skill levels are actively helping me network as they’re realizing that there’s a place for me on just about every project.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
For my life in front of the camera it was my friend Darius as well as my ex-girlfriend Demi
I worked at Hollister for years, and while I wasn’t the most “conventionally attractive” teenager, I’ve always been able to talk to anyone. I was always told “you have so much potential, you’re going to grow into such a handsome young-man, etc” but never really believed it. I was known as the friendly and funny guy. Well one of my work friends Darius asked me if I had considered getting back into the modeling industry (I was in it as a child) but the thought hadn’t really crossed my mind as I didn’t think I would be a good fit. My girlfriend at the time really pushed me to pursue it. Darius and I had the opportunity to travel to New York for a few days for a project for Hollister and we used that as a chance to find and meet with some local agents. The trip was very successful as many of the agents took interest in me and caused me to actually start believing in myself!
For my life behind the camera it was my acting coach Carole Gordon
I had been a student of hers for a couple of years and she knew how much I loved playing around with my camera. I often volunteered to shoot beginner headshots for fellow students so they had something to pursue agents with. Carole saw the quality photos I was providing and really pressed me to pursue it. I started upgrading my lenses and eventually my camera too as well as practicing and developing my skills, to the point where I became her go-to photographer. One day there was a commercial being filmed and all of the actors were Caroles students. The pay-rate was lower than my usual amount to be in a commercial so I decided against being part of the production but Carole asked if I could show up anyway just to capture some behind the scenes photos of the actors since this was the first ever project for many of them. I showed up and was shooting photos when I was approached by the creative director Heidi and the director of Photography Colin. I thought they were going to ask me to leave but instead they asked me for my card. A couple of conversations later and I was officially offered a spot on the team for Mad Bear Productions!
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
I had experienced a genuinely heartbreaking moment in October 2023 that had really killed all of my momentum and made me take a step back as well as take some time off from the industry.
Things had been going very well for me in front of the camera! I was connected with some new agents, I was working with some bigger brands, I had created the perfect audition studio in my living room, and suddenly I found myself selected for one of the main spots on a big project being filmed for a resort in London, England. My agent was really happy for me, my friends were ecstatic, I had even had a chance to talk about it on a radio show here in Tampa!
The project had me in the UK for about a week. Because of that I had to turn down a few other solid projects that I had been selected for. As we came closer and closer to the shooting dates, I was receiving schedules, flight details, itineraries, and I had even been making plans with friends and family in London (it’s where my family is from) that I hadn’t seen in over ten years!
Well about four days before I was supposed to fly out, I received an email stating that the client had decided that they wanted to change the lead spot last minute… so I was being replaced.
I suddenly went from having this massive project ahead of me with tons of friends and family all excited for me, to suddenly nothing. I felt sadness, embarrassment, frustration, and even physical sickness as it all set in. I didn’t even get out of bed that day.
It took a few weeks for me to even start checking emails or responding to texts again as I had never felt such a sudden change in momentum like that.
Rejection is a huge part of the industry. In fact there’s a common saying that goes: “Auditioning is the true work, actually being on set is the fun part”. I regularly face rejection dozens of times a week in this industry but this specific one had hit harder and deeper than any before it.
It took some time but I eventually picked myself back up and got back into the swing of things!
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
I would say that the public version of me is half of the real me!
Publicly I’m known for being high energy, always telling jokes, and being the most social person in the room.
At home I’m quiet, focused, and very private.
I wouldn’t be able to be my high energy, fun self if I didn’t have my “hideout” as my friends and family call it, to come back home to and disappear. Also at the same time, I wouldn’t be able to fully enjoy my quiet, peaceful life home if I didn’t know that I had a fun project or adventure coming up to look forward to.
Both parts of my life are just as important as the other and without a balance of both I regularly find myself absolutely exhausted.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
If I knew I only had ten years left I would stop delaying the “rewards of my efforts”.
Yes I absolutely love what I do and yes I look forward to every project I have coming up, but at the end of the day work is work.
Back when I was 20 years old, I went through one of the toughest periods of my life. There were huge changes in my life in every aspect from my job, my relationship, my family, my friends, my school, and even my home. I was under extreme stress and was barely able to focus. Instead of breaking under the pressure, I decided to envision everything I wanted and roadmap how I could spend my next ten years working towards achieving everything that I want.
While there’s been some deviations from the planned route (whomever would’ve thought that my wants at age 28 are different than my wants from age 20?), there’s been consistent progress. I had decided that my 20s were going to be spent building up the foundation to make the rest of my life much easier.
Because of this goal, I’ve avoided a lot of recreational fun. I’ve missed group trips with friends, visits with family, buying recreational purchases, etc. I’ve put just about every dollar I make back into equipment and experiences that continue to further my goals. While I’m VERY close to reaching my financial goals, if I was suddenly told that I only had ten years left then I’d hit the brakes on my equipment goals and divert a solid chunk of my money towards just enjoying what I’ve built so far.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.ethankiddoyak.com
- Instagram: @ethan.kiddoyak @kidd_con_la_camara
Image Credits
CJC Photography
David Zhou Photography
Noemi Olah Photography
