We had the good fortune of connecting with Chloe Baldwin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chloe, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I’ve always known that I want to spend as much of my time, as much of my life as possible, creating, and the thing that’s always sparked my curiosity and creativity is people. I love people and all of their complications and relationships and how we affect each other, and that brought me really naturally to acting, and then all of the things that followed: fight choreography, marketing, filmmaking, writing, & consulting. In a way, they’re all separate, but they’re all offshoots of the same drive to tell stories and understand people better.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
It’s interesting being a six foot tall, fight-forward female actor. I don’t fit into a lot of boxes in a lot of ways, and, because I never had the choice to “fit”, in some ways I felt free to be whatever I am and pushed to be undeniable.

The biggest way I’ve found my path and gotten to where I am so far (and how I intend to keep going) is by making friends who are passionate about the same things I am, especially the weird things. They fuel your fire, they make you feel less alone on the journey, they invite you in for projects about those weird things. I’m not talking about networking, even though at the surface level you’re building a network, I’m talking about forming community at a deeper, human level. Who are the people you want to be locked in a box with for 2 years talking about your favorite nerdy things? That’s what the circumstances of creating are like, and that’s what will lead to some of your greatest collaborations and best friends.

One of the biggest challenges for me has been learning to say No. I’m an Enthusiast (Enneagram 7) who was raised in the Midwest, so everything sounds fun to me and I have a deep desire to be polite and kind. I’ve had to raise my No Threshhold and remember that the quality of everything falls when the quantity gets to high. That’s one I had to learn through experience, but hopefully saying it aloud can help someone else…even just a little bit!

One lesson I’ve learned is always decide what everyone’s roles are on a project before it gets started. Who has the final call on what? What’s expected of you? What’s expected of them? What’s the intention with the project once you finish it? If it makes money, how is it distributed? Then, take all of this and write it down. None of that means you don’t trust each other, but it’s hard to remember when you’re in the thick of it at the end of a 13 hour day who said who gets to and has to do what, and it’s easier if you can just look at a piece of paper that has all the answers.

When I think about the impact I want my art to make on the world, I hope that it reveals the complex relationship between vulnerability and strength. They influence and build on and conflict with each other in so many fascinating ways, and that often plays into gender roles, which I’m especially interested in deconstructing in my art: strength and vulnerability should both be “allowed” for everyone and be shown to be a part of everyone. And I want to do that through adventures and sword fights and humor and earnestness and connection.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
So, I JUST moved to Los Angeles, but already one of my favorite spots has been Dinosaur Coffee in Los Feliz. I’m already a big fan of dinosaurs and creative aesthetics, but it has outdoor seating and great chai lattes (I don’t drink coffee, but I do inhale chai) too. I recommend sitting at the table that literally has a dinosaur terrarium in the middle.

In Chicago, one of my favorite spots is Kopi Cafe (can you tell I like coffee shops?) that has an extremely charming store in the back, a very artsy, grounded aesthetic, places to sit on floor cushions if you want, and, of course, an awesome chai latte. I love having creative meetings here. Chicago Bagel Authority off Belmont is also a great creative meeting spot!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’ve been lucky enough to have had so much support and mentorship and encouragement that it’s hard to know where to begin. But I guess the best place to begin is the beginning: when I was about 8 years old I saw my friend in a summer camp play at Theatre of Western Springs and knew I had to try it. I did the summer camp the next summer and fell in love with theatre and acting and storytelling through the mentorship of each of the teachers and their generosity to share their knowledge and passion for creating with the students.

One thing that always sticks out to me is how, in order to be in a production as an actor, you first had to be on a certain number of “crews” working behind the scenes. By the time you were performing onstage, you had respect for the props because you knew how many hours went into it, you had respect for the lighting designer when she asked you to stand 5 feet to the right because you understood how difficult it would be to move that light every single time, and, more importantly, you saw the whole endeavor of putting on a performance as a team sport with every part being essential and collaborative

They even mentored me as a director during my senior year of high school, and I remember how thankful I was that, even though I was a teenager, I was being taken seriously as a leader and as a collaborator by my mentors and given space to try, to fail, and to experiment.

Website: chloebaldwin.net

Instagram: @chloeglowyflowy

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azNzAINfrCQ

Other: IMDB: https://imdb.com/name/nm9190854/

Image Credits
Brian Rickey, Steven Batsch, Paul Stafford, Alejandra Gurrero

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutMiami is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.