--- title: "Samer Salem: Inside the Strategy to Build Longevity and Master Craft in Film and Television" url: "https://authoritymag.co/articles/samer-salem-inside-the-strategy-to-build-longevity-and-master-craft-in-film-and-television" publisher: "Authority Magazine" author: "Edward Sylvan" authorUrl: "https://authoritymag.co/authors/edward-sylvan" interviewee: "Samer Salem" category: "Pop Culture" datePublished: "2022-01-17T20:47:58.543Z" dateModified: "2026-11-12T19:24:02.478Z" tags: "Pop Culture" --- # Samer Salem: Inside the Strategy to Build Longevity and Master Craft in Film and Television *Actor and writer Samer Salem shares how treating failure as a tool for growth and mastering the audition process paved the way for his success in major productions.* > My advice would be to foster a healthy relationship with ‘failure’. It’s tough when you fall short of your goals, but if you shift your perspective slightly, failure becomes an incredible opportunity for growth, a great learning experience. --- As*a part of*[my series about pop culture’s rising stars](https://medium.com/authority-magazine/search?q=Rising%20Star)*, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Samer Salem.* *Samer Salem is an actor and writer from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Samer’s desire to become an actor started at a young age. After his final semester of university, he decided to make the move and officially pursue acting as a career.* *Since then, Samer has established himself as a one-to-watch talent amassing a significant body of work in major film and television productions including Man Seeking Woman, Conviction, People of Earth, Condor, Imposters, The Boys, The Good Doctor, and the Handmaid’s Tale.* *Most recently, Samer reprised his role as Josep in the sixth and final season of the hit sci-fi television series The Expanse. This comes hot on the tail of starring opposite Keiynan Lonsdale, Dylan Sprouse, and Sarah Hyland in the BuzzFeed/Lionsgate feature film My Fake Boyfriend premiering this June 2022, and filming opposite Elisabeth Moss on the critically acclaimed fourth season of the Handmaid’s Tale.* --- **Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?** Thanks for having me. I was born and raised in Calgary, Canada. My parents immigrated from Lebanon just before I was born. **Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path? Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?** Working with Elisabeth Moss has definitely been a highlight. Just watching her do her thing, I really got to see someone who’s mastered their craft. **Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?** Oh man. I remember I had an audition for a TV movie when I was first starting out. There were producers and the director in the room, along with the casting director. I was so nervous; I could barely get the words out. Once the audition was over, I thanked them and went to leave the room, but I couldn’t get the door open. It took me what felt like forever, but I eventually got out. Thinking back on that time really makes me laugh. I think the takeaway is one, to breathe, and two, not to put so much pressure on myself. It’s a job. It’s all going to be okay lol. **What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?** I wrapped a film at the end of August called My Fake Boyfriend. It’s a romantic comedy, and it’s going to be a lot of fun for audiences. It’ll be out sometime in June 2022. You have been blessed with success in a career path that can be challenging. **Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?** My advice would be to foster a healthy relationship with ‘failure’. It’s tough when you fall short of your goals, but if you shift your perspective slightly, failure becomes an incredible opportunity for growth, a great learning experience. It will make you better. Set big goals, and don’t be afraid to fail. If you’re not failing often, your goals aren’t big enough. We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. **Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?** Diversity is incredibly important, and I’m still learning the depths of how true that is. One, to see yourself represented on screen makes a person feel like they belong to the society in which they live, and I think that inspires people to want to be involved in their communities in healthier ways. Second, diversity on screen creates empathy and understanding for people that we may have judgments about, people that we’re not exposed to in our daily lives. Experiencing the stories of people who are unlike us shows us their humanity and shows us how much more alike we are than different. The problems were dealing with right now in the west, with racism and xenophobia, are in my opinion so much a result of ignorance and lack of exposure to people different than us. Diversity and representation in our industry is definitely one way to help fix that. Lastly, I think it also just makes for better art. Many voices are better than one. **What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.** 1. Learn how to audition- I was once told “the best audition gets the job, not the best actor,” I think that’s true a lot of the time. 2. Get into therapy — It’ll make your life so much richer, and your acting too. 3. Do whatever you possibly can to eliminate distractions. 4. Aim higher than you think you should. Have bigger goals. 5. Don’t take yourself too seriously. **Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?** Take a vacation. A change of scenery does the mind and heart good. **You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)** To make education free for everyone, everywhere. The ripple effects of that would be so widespread I think it would solve so many of the problems that we’re facing right now, as a global community. **None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?** There isn’t a particular person I can name; I’ve had guidance from many friends and teachers along the way. I’m very thankful for them all. **Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?** “Ever Tried, Ever failed. No Matter. Try Again. Fail Again. Fail Better”. It’s from Samuel Beckett. Reminds me to never give up. To keep going. And make failure my friend. **Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why?** **He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)** Sean Penn or Daniel Day Lewis for obvious reasons. They’re incredible actors and I’d bet they have some solid acting tips to impart. **How can our readers follow you online?** I’m @mr.samersalem on Instagram and @SamerSalem8 on Twitter. **This was great, thank you so much for sharing your story and doing this with us. We wish you continued success!** --- Source: https://authoritymag.co/articles/samer-salem-inside-the-strategy-to-build-longevity-and-master-craft-in-film-and-television (Authority Magazine, Pop Culture). Interviewee answers are first-person statements of the guest. Index of all pages: https://authoritymag.co/llms.txt