[Watch the video interview on Youtube here]
Film Courage: Do you believe everyone has a calling Sheila?
Sheila Houlahan, Actor, Singer, Producer and Writer: Wow! What a question to start with. I love it. Why ease into this thing? I actually do. I don’t think I always did but I do believe that people have a calling. What I believe is that every single person has something that they are a genius at. I really believe that genius-ness is not something that’s reserved for an elite few. I think that having some skill or some knowledge base or what have you, that you are a genius at is just a byproduct of the diversity in all peoples.
A calling is an intersection between your zone of genius as it were and ultimately what kind of legacy or what kind of good you want to leave with the world. That’s how I would define a calling. I think it took me many years to get to the point where I believed it as strongly as I do now. I know I have a calling and I strongly believe everybody does truly.
Film Courage: Your parents wanted you to go into math and science?
Sheila: No, actually I lucked out with my folks, they’ve always been supportive. I think to the point where there were times I debated quitting the arts and they were like No, you’re not going to quit. Don’t because that’s something that you’re going to regret.
I got my start actually in music and started basically working quasi-professionally from age six on. There were times in school…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
BIO:
Sheila Houlahan is a Webby Award Winning Indian-American actor, singer, producer, writer and advocate.
Sheila played the supporting role “Paige Callahan” opposite Denzel Washington in the Warner Bros. feature “The Little Things”, which was written and directed by John Lee Hancock. She also has a role in the Michael Bay thriller “Ambulance”.
In 2021, Sheila was the executive producer for a feature film adaptation of Marsha Norman’s Pulitzer-winning play “Night, Mother” in partnership with Twitch.tv; this film was a “hybrid” film, mixing pre-recorded segments with live performance that was recorded and edited in front of a live audience. Over 8000 people watched “Night, Mother” live, and since then, the film has received critical acclaim and has been screened at 68 festivals in over 24 countries. “Night, Mother” has over 64K views on it’s flagship Twitch.tv channel and has been praised for its’ fresh, innovative approach to filmmaking winning over 60 awards including the Webby Award for Virtual and Remote Entertainment & Media.
Sheila is a Celebrity Champion for Project HEAL, a nonprofit organization that helps people suffering from eating disorders source affordable treatment options and pay for treatment. She is also an ambassador for Ability Magazine’s platform AbilityE, a casting portal that seeks to increase inclusion and representation of differently-abled talent and creatives on both sides of the table in Hollywood.
WATCH ‘NIGHT, MOTHER’
CONNECT WITH SHEILA HOULAHAN
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