Emily Drewett
Acting BA (Hons)
Emily always knew she had a passion for acting, but didn鈥檛 know that she could study it on her doorstep. After finding out more about the course, Emily returned to sixth form to complete her A Levels and got a place on BCU鈥檚 Acting Foundation course. Finally, Emily secured her spot on the Acting BA (Hons) course and graduated. Nowadays, Emily is working her way across our screens from Netflix to BBC, with an exciting future ahead of her.
鈥淲hen I was in sixth form and it reached the point where everybody was thinking about what they were going to do next, I just didn鈥檛 know what I wanted from my future. I knew I liked acting, but I didn鈥檛 know that you could study it because it鈥檚 just not talked about at school. I thought I absolutely flopped my audition because I was so nervous. But they must have seen something as they encouraged me to complete the foundation year. The course solidified that BCU was the right place for me, so I went for the BA.
People always told me that when you audition, you will just know if it鈥檚 for you and if you can see yourself studying there. The experience of my BCU audition day was that it had the nicest atmosphere, everyone was so welcoming, there was no judgement, they were really supportive and there was a huge sense of being part of a team.
It could, at times, be a really intense course. There were bad days, where lecturers would challenge me, but they are all very aware about how hard it is to crack the industry, so there has to be a bit of tough love from them. As my cohort was small and we spent a lot of time together, we managed to all become close very quickly.
When I started at BCU, I remember thinking that if I leave feeling more confident and self-assured than when I started, I鈥檒l be happy. Throughout the three years, there were many challenges, but I feel that now I am a well-rounded actor. In fact, anyone could throw any role at me, and I wouldn鈥檛 hesitate to give it a go. You are taught in lots of different avenues, so you are ready to take on anything.
I鈥檓 currently starring in Netflix鈥檚 鈥楬aunted鈥�, where I play a young girl called Alicia. I had the audition just weeks after graduating, and within two days of finding out that I鈥檇 been offered the role, I was on a plane to Prague to film. It all happened so quickly. I spent half the time on set thinking 鈥榟ow has this happened to me鈥�. But getting used to a production like that was so interesting.
I鈥檓 also currently filming for the BBC series and I have been in a few short films recently, so my agent is keeping me very busy. In the future, I鈥檇 love to be in a period drama that really takes you out of the now, different eras, accents, outfits, the lot. But I鈥檇 also love to get involved with more theatre and coming of age pieces.
I would tell current Acting students that there is no need to be nervous, you simply won鈥檛 enjoy everything and that is OK. The course is a learning process and there will be days where you鈥檒l know that the style of acting isn鈥檛 really for you, but then there will be another class that you love and really enjoy. But most importantly, make the most of it!
BCU was the place that I finally found what I should be doing, and wanted to do. The people I met are friends for life, the course, the good and bad times, and the journey to get there, I am so grateful for it all.鈥�