Limitless acting με τη Μάρια Μποτσαράκου

[Music] Good evening, everyone. Welcome to another episode of Limitless Podcast. I'm Ángelos Pentaris and with me today, I have Timaera Bocharáku. He is an author, a writer, a singer and a singer. Maira, thank you very much for being here with me today. Thank you. Maira, for those of you who don't know her yet, is at the beginning of her career. And I want to tell you a story, so young, to explain why I chose Maira to come and talk to you on the podcast. When I was in school, one day, I was in a class and the teacher said, "Children, let's all say what you want to do when you leave school." And all the children said, "I want to be a doctor because my grandpa told me so." "I want to be a lawyer because lawyers take good care of me." And I noticed that I was the only child I wanted to deal with music because I liked it. So, I realized that people don't do anything based on what their path is. So, when I find a person who has the courage to follow their path, whether it's through art or something else, I appreciate it and I love it very much. And I think that this as a message, you have to go through a lot to the young children, to do something we love and something that fills us even if it's a bit scary at first. And when I met Maira, it was very clear that she has a lot of passion for everything she does. Also, I think it's very easy to tell someone who has earned all the credits and all the Oscars to believe in yourself and succeed. Yes, it's nice, but for me, it's even better for someone who hasn't achieved much of his dream yet to say, "I believe that I can and I will succeed." I believe that this message has a different power than its own. So, that's why I chose to speak with Maira at the beginning of her career. And I'm sure that one day we will see her and we will hear her much more. So, let's start with the first and most important question. Can you tell me a little bit about how you discovered your passion for hypocrisy? First of all, thank you very much for the good words and for welcoming me here. Second of all, I started when I was very young. And I said that I wanted to become an athlete because I like it both from the gym, from the gym and from the training. And I started in a very difficult way. I have a story to tell. I had gone to the first performance when I was very young with my mother. And I used to be a child and I used to teach kids how to be the main characters when they were young. And I didn't have the guts to do what she told me. And I was so excited that I didn't have the guts to do this role. From that moment on, I realized that I wanted to do this role. I mean, so much. I left it to my mom. She said, "Mom wants to become an athlete. She has to become an athlete." And I didn't have the guts to go to the theater and to do the theater. And from that moment on, I just continued. But when there is this childishness, and we are in a very young age that probably doesn't take so much of his logic. How will I deal with myself? Is it difficult? It is very clear that I want this, I like this and I will do this. And there is no such thing. I think that as long as we grow up, unfortunately, for various reasons, we put a lot of blocks in ourselves. So tell us a little bit, how did it start with your relationship? Or some first experiences? And how did this love for hypocrisy go? Since I started going to the theater, I went to all the theaters, I didn't go alone. I was also in my school group. I went later to the National Theater. I was there for many years. And I did studies. And what you say, you don't realize many times when you are young that you have to overcome something so difficult, as no one sees it. No, it didn't bother me. I just thought that I could do it and continue it as ever. And I didn't really feel like what they were going to say to me. Because, as I said, artists, they tell me very often that, ok, you are still young, you will change what you want to do. You will not do it in the end. I am still the one who wants to be, let's say. You will overcome it, it is a phase. Yes, that's it, it is a phase. I really don't listen to them, I just choose not to listen to them. And I try to find out as much as I can to make sure that I can do it. You know what I do, what I like and what I see. It is that you decide what you want to do here. And there are many people who say, "I want to do this." They just wait, they say that someone will come to hit us on the edge and they will invite us to start it. Or we say, "I always want to do it and not just go and do it, I live the experience." And I think it is a very strong and good thing that you have the strength to say that, ok, I want this and I do it. Because there is also action, not just the will, because many people are left alone in this first stage. Yes, I think that I can't do it without this, that I want to continue to be there. Through the lesson, on the stage, in a studio, whatever it is, whatever it is, I want to do it. And when I was younger, I said that I want to become a musician. And again, the same thing that you say, they don't take me seriously, it is easy, it will pass. And I, from the time I was 14, I felt that I had to do this with my life. And that it is a bit extreme, what I will say, but I felt it with so much passion that for me it is this or that, there is no such thing. I mean, when I hear something crazy, like, ah, in the end, you learned something else, you have a plan B. For me, this is the biggest crazy thing that exists. Because if you have a plan B, it means that you don't believe in the plan A at all. And surely, in every life, but especially in the arts, you can't be 50% crazy, you have to be 100% there. I agree very much with that, that is, you have to give everything you have, that you have decided and you want it. Basically, I think that they come, the one with the other, when you decide that you want it 100% you give everything you have. Yes, of course. And after your time, it's time for you to go to school. And can you tell us a little about this experience, how were the competitions and where you ended up? Yes, it was a difficult process, basically a lot of years ago. When I had decided that I wanted to go to school abroad again very early, from the university I wanted to go to in London, I wanted to go to England. In some university, so when the time came and I took the decision, I was very lucky because in school I was in the OIB, where they give you such, they have resources so that you can easily see where you want to go. And I did a lot of dramatic schools in England, my coach told me then to do as many courses as possible. And I did about 8-9 schools, so much. And it was quite a difficult process, because they told me all over again, not just once, but that now the phrase has changed, and it was that you will not pass and that they do not choose very often foreigners, it is very difficult, you have to do it for 2-3 years to enter, they want you to be bigger, because I was 17 years old. Yes, and I too, we have a lot in this part, basically in many parts. But remember, one phrase that stayed with me, is that I had told someone that I would go to a school in Los Angeles, and he looks at me and tells me the phrase "be realistic", I do not have to go there with the fears you have and with what you can do. And I think that "be realistic" is again an expression that, you know, I believe that I am very realistic, that I want to go there and I want to do that, whatever else is not realistic and I dream of myself. But many times this is the case, the people, that is, something that scares them, and they do not have the courage to do it, then they do not want to do it, neither around them. But I think that somehow, when I hear people telling you that you cannot do it, it becomes somehow a powerful path that you have to make in order to achieve the goal. Sure, that is, it was I who thought that I would simply show it to you. And then I realized that I did not need to show it to those people, I needed to know it, to show it to myself, because I believed in it, and with that thought, I went there and I continued my journey. And that is what you tell me, I have another small story to tell you. When I went and I was 17 years old in LA and I started my studies, within the first weeks it has been more than a month. I was in a school and I knew that I was not playing well, I was trying very hard, but it was not good. And the teacher stops me in front of the whole world and he looks at my feet and tells me, "What will happen if you do not change this, it is better for you to go to school or something else." And at that moment, I feel like I am right, I will not be able to do it, I will not be able to make it, I will not be able to make it, I will not be able to make it. And I stopped playing drums for two or three days and then in four, I did not make it. That is what I have to do with my life, but what I want to tell you is that after my studies, every time I had to go to study, or go to Saturday and Sunday, when I had to go to study, I thought about their voice in my mind, that maybe I should do something else and I went and I was forced by their words. And then, at some point, I woke up and I was like, "I will prove it to you that I am wrong." And I say, "How shameless am I to live this way and to be ashamed and think that I have to prove to people that I am wrong." And maybe I just prefer to prove to myself that I am right. It is the same, but different, it has a very different energy. Of course, yes. And I am sorry, I have an unusual story, but basically in the first choice of school that I wanted to go to, I went and I was 17. And it was at the Royal Academy of Drama Arts, it was my dream, my dream until then. And I went there, I did my job very well, I said, "Good, I think I will do well." Then we sat down and talked for a while, which is good for me, not to show off, I ask for your permission. And then they all do it to me, "How shameless are you?" And I say to them, "I am 17." And they all laughed. In front of me, in my room, in my favorite school that I wanted to go to. And it was bad that you were 17, I can't understand. And I tell them, "No, I will pass the exam, I am not 17." I said, "It won't happen, I don't want to wait for another year, nothing." That's what will happen, basically. So I told them, that's what happens to me. And finally you went to another school, and you didn't go to the program that you did, they took you to a different program, which eventually came to you. I understand, can you tell us a little about that? Yes, I went to the second or third selection, it doesn't matter. Basically, it matters a little, because it's not always the first selection that we think is the best for us, the best for us, I believe. And I went to that school that I just went and I had a decision, it was also from the last ones, a decision that I have done as I wanted to do, let's go a little bit calmer, a little bit calmer. And I was calmer, and they all went much better, in the end. And they took me to a school that is called Hypocritical and World Theater, which I haven't heard that exists. And really, as I was at school, I realized that this was what I had to do, as anything, that is, it was a faith lesson. So you were also a teacher? Yes, it was really, I had a head of course, which was an incredible person. He told us that this lesson, which is so much on the side as it was, is not a priority to put you in a box and enter the industry of hypocritics. It is not a priority to make you enter these boxes and be a little different. So, what a great thing. I think that in general, there is a big wave that tries to shake the boxes of society. Either it is in many things, either it is in the professions, or in sexuality. For example, the older one, if someone saw a theater, there was a theater, a cinema, and at some point a TV. And it was these three. There was nothing else, maybe you become a teacher or something like that. While now there really is, you can make your own channel on YouTube, you can do TikToks, you can do other things on Instagram, and you are more in the world of the internet, but the internet is a platform where you can do something, and the best thing is that you can do it perfectly with your own rules. There is no one who says you have to do it like that and you have to do it differently. And it is terrible that through the internet and social media, someone can open the door from there and enter the whole acting industry. I think it is a bit scary and chaotic. Yes, really. But on the other hand, it is a whole new door that never existed before, and everyone can open it. It is today, it is the way of today, I believe, of the generation of those who are now. And it is something that can make you, let's say, say that in order to succeed, let's say quickly, not from one place to another, you have to be lucky, you have to know each other, while now it is much easier to open a platform, to show yourself, to show your work, and from there, if you become, let's say, an adult, your family and all that, it can be very easy for you. Yes. With what we have in common, it is that you can do what you want, as you want with your own rules, and it will not be a habit from above. No, I don't want you to sing to me like that, or you don't want to sing to me like that. That is strange. There is more creative control for everyone to use, let's say, the social media platforms, and I think that again, it creates space for someone to be authentic. Unfortunately, the downside is that many times you have difficulty, it is not very high, but that is also in the hands of everyone. I can say that I don't feel like doing anything else, but I have these high standards, and even if I do it on my own channel, it will be there. Yes. And it is a little bit, I don't believe, maybe you are 100% authentic, which is very beautiful, and it appears in most cases, and we see yourself and what you want, and you are 100% fake, and not to be forgotten. But that is a big question. I have lived with something similar, at a music school, and the program was very effective. I played drums for about 9 hours a day alone, and then I had about 6 hours of lessons, and I had projects for banders, live, and so on. And it is something that, when you go to school, in the arts, you don't live in what we say, what most of the students are waiting for, fake life. And because of that, incredible courage and incredible will, if you want to do it well, in these educational programs, you can talk to us a little bit about how your everyday life was, and what you needed to do, what time you had all these. Yes, it was a bit like that for me, the fake life was not exactly like how my friends, who still write it, but it doesn't matter. I also had a very effective program, I started every day at 9am, I ended up typically at 6am, and I was sure at 9pm, because I wanted to go up the stairs, all the activities that they say are practical. So, from morning till night, to the studio, and it was very stressful, but I believe that I needed everything, that you see if you really want it, if not, you have a hands-on experience, in whatever it is about, how many times a performance takes place, and not just a performance, in general, your own projects. I believe that... I lost my mind because of what I said, but I didn't care. I wanted you to know that. I always believe that it is essential to spend every good moment in life, this stage, where you are 100% devoted to your art, and you are dedicated only to this, that is, 12-15 hours a day, for every day, because before school, it doesn't happen, because you have school and you are a student, but after school, where the work gradually begins, you know, basically everyone who is an artist, is dedicated to their own business, and that includes things that have nothing to do with art, such as emails, phone calls, meetings, and all of that takes you time, and it takes you far from art, and I believe that within art, it is the only time that someone in his life is 100% devoted to art, and only to art, and I think that is why it is essential, not so much to take the map, and because in our own businesses, no one in the audience will ask you, what depth did you take in this lesson? You will neither look at where you are going to study, you will be given a few minutes, and if you are lucky, they will take you, otherwise they say, "What's next?" So I believe that it is very necessary, and it is also very beautiful, I feel that I have experienced a lot, as a character, I see you very safely and all of that, and that all of that must, each of us, work through art, it seems a lot, and I want to ask you, that the path you have chosen, with the subject matter, has affected your spirituality, or how you are as a character, and how you have improved? Certainly. As I said before, because I know that this is the course that I have to follow, I believe that this is generally the case, that everything has to happen for some reason, and that we are there, where we are at a particular time, either to learn something from us, or for something that we have to see, as anything, to continue. So I believe that through the... through these perfect hours that we talked about, I believe that I have done many times to learn things, to not see things that are in front of me, to emphasize myself, some of them, because in the world theater, we have already had many different places, that I have never experienced, that I have never experienced, that you don't know if you can do it. So when you continue, and when you are there, 100%, I believe that you change this, and that you realize that it happens for some reason, something that is in front of you right now. So I have a different story, I am all the time with stories from this episode, but it doesn't matter. One day, I go to school to do a test, I have won, but I still do tests there, and I have just received a diploma, and where I drive, I go to a parking lot, and I hit a car, and I see that the car has the signs that it is a student at my school, and I say, "No!" From all the cars that I can hit, I hit that. And then someone takes my phone and leaves me a voicemail, and he says, "Hi, Angela, this is Russ Miller, who is one of the world's most well-known drummers, and they all want to do private lessons with him, and they don't do private lessons with anyone, and they just want to understand what level we are talking about, they have made music for the Marvel series, they have played with people like Jennifer Lopez, Selena Gomez, the list is over, they have seen their own studio with Apple's golden discs, and now they are on the top level of the music industry. And he says, "I think you left a lot of money to hit my car, so why don't you go home and play some drums and go have a meal with me?" What are you saying? I think it's good to have a good lesson with me, so that we can have a good time and eat, and I say, "I won't hit my car!" And then I go to his studio, and I see him playing the drums, it's a home studio, but it has consoles, golden discs, cameras everywhere, and he says, "Catch it, play it!" I play for 10 seconds, and he stops. Well, when you play, I hear a question, and I can't understand who you are. If I want you to go well in this industry, I want you to understand who you are. Because you want people to not say, "Ah, I want a drummer to play my song," but they say, "I want an angel, and you have an identity, but you can't have an identity if you yourself don't know who you are and what you do." And that left me a lot to worry about, because it was something deeper than music. I think that during our relationship, each person has to look a little deeper and I think that someone who has a goal and knows who they are and what they do, and they do everything with a... I don't have the Greek word, with an intention, and they have a goal. There, things can really happen to you, and that's what you say, everything happens for a reason, and the good karma comes back. So, if you hit the car or the piano, it's good to be in the right place, you can get in the right place. That's what you say, and in our school, they said a lot, "You have to have your technique." You have to... I've heard this phrase so many times, you have to know what your technique is. You have to, when you are without work, for three months and more, and for a whole year, you have to have something to protect you, and to practice it every day, and to have your technique. And it was very difficult for me to understand this thing, I mean, I was thinking about what they are, I mean, what technique, I don't know what technique it is, I know that I am a musician, I also do music, I do one thing, I do the other. What do they do with this thing? And in a lesson, as they told us, we had a specific lesson to explore what our technique is. Okay. I realized that you have to find yourself in what you do. That if you know who really is inside the technique you have chosen, then you will start to find yourself, neither I can speak Greek, your own patterns, your own ways of exploring it, and to see yourself through it. What you are telling me, what you are telling me, is that not only is our technique, I think that for us, our technique is not just our work, or something we love. It is also our strength, as personalities, I mean, if I have, because sometimes I get injured by the things I do, because of the head injuries, I can't play drums for a week. I lose a bit of my personality, I don't know who I am and where I go, and I think it is so important, whether you are an artist, whether you are a lawyer, whether you are a lawyer, to have an ambition in our everyday life, and to put energy into it in everyday life, because that is what we are looking for. I have a final question, to close the question that all the guests ask, and what is your motto? At this age, now I have left school, and now I have started, as you said at the beginning, to find my footprints, to move forward. I have tried to say to myself, "Don't settle, start living". To not take things, to be passive, to go and take them. I mean, to start to believe in myself again, when you leave school, and you have a little... now I don't have anyone to take my hand, but let's go to school, sit for hours, do the other thing. I think it is very important to take what is ours, and to say that now we are leaving, now it is where it all begins. This is a great lesson for everyone, and I personally keep it for myself. Don't settle, start living. Thank you very much, you listened to another episode of Limitless Podcast, and see you next time. Bye!