in focus

Westerville Side Story

Westerville grads find success in entertainment industry

Ross Heran started at Westerville North High School in 1997, the same year a media studies class launched.

“The teachers were trying to figure it out as we were getting it going,” he says. “We kind of helped to figure out what was going on. I learned the cameras, I learned the editing systems along with the teachers.”

Heran ended up taking the class twice. It would prove formative, and he found inspiration in the class to pursue a career as a cameraman for TV and film. He has now worked on projects including Stuck, The Con is On and a Beyonce concert film.

The class was part of a cultural trend in the ’90s to incorporate more arts into education, Heran says. It helped to open opportunities for students like him who were less interested in more traditional subjects.

“I really wasn’t benefiting much from the other educational side of things,” Heran says. “I didn’t want to go to college until the media program started, until I got into theater.”

Heran is one of many Westerville graduates who have gone on to careers in the entertainment industry, from acting and writing to camera work and content creation. Jason Stein, who now works as a creative executive for Lucasfilm Ltd., says he grew up visiting Comic Town, formerly located on State Street, but it was AP classes in his junior and senior years at North that helped show him the possibility of a career in the entertainment industry. Those classes, which taught higher level analysis techniques, helped Stein understand the depth of films, he says. Imagining a place where he fit beyond the celebrity names most associated with movies was a challenge for him. “I think that’s the big hurdle to overcome,” he says. “There are a lot of other roles that can use various skillsets in this industry that don’t just fall in the bucket of writer, director, actor or producer.” Even in college, Stein kept his options at The Ohio State University with a double major in molecular genetics and film. After graduating though, Stein set out for Los Angeles. Early on, he worked as an assistant in a talent agency, which he says proved vital in learning the many roles within the film industry.

Eventually landing at Lucasfilm, Stein now works to guide the storytelling of different Star Wars related projects to ensure each project delivers the expected quality while staying true to the Star Wars universe.

As a longtime Star Wars fan, he’s had the opportunity to work on dream projects including the announcement of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series reboot. He’s currently working on a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic video game remake and the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser hotel planned for Walt Disney World Resort.

For those interested in careers related to acting and film, school theater programs are often an early start.

Steven Boyer, a Tony-nominated actor, recalls participating in every theater production during his time at North. He even held a role in a high school production as a middle school student. Boyer found other

Jason Stein at the Star Wars Celebration 2019.

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5500 Karl Rd | Columbus, OH 43229 early opportunities performing with Columbus Children’s Theatre, then known as Columbus Junior Theatre of the Arts.

“There seemed to be a wealth of opportunities for young performers in central Ohio,” he says. “There were a lot of places to do stuff. You could find your tribe in a lot of little pockets of the city of Columbus.”

Still, Boyer says frequent warnings against pursuing a career as an actor nearly Steven Boyer as the deterred him. Mayor of Munch-

“I was trying to find kinland in a Coa way to not make it my lumbus Children’s career,” he says. “It had Theatre production been drilled into my of The Wizard of Oz. head that if I became an actor I would starve to death. It was like, ‘You will die penniless and alone if you are an actor, so don’t do it.’”

He chose to pursue acting anyways.

After graduating from North in 1997, Boyer attended The Juilliard School for drama. In the elite class of 20-some students, he was one of two Westerville graduates alongside actor Michael Milligan.

Finding success isn’t easy though. Boyer spent a decade making ends meet and taking small gigs in regional theater productions when he could. It wasn’t until a friend, Robert Askins, worked to develop a part for him in a new play called Hand to God that Boyer found major success. The play worked its way from a small developmental theater to a Broadway smash hit.

Boyer says his passion for acting is what kept him going. He says focusing on the joy of the art will help young actors find fulfillment.

“Just do it for its own sake – not because you want to be a movie star or anything else – just because it’s fun,” he says. “You don’t need to prepare, just show up and do it. You’re going to get something out of it.”

And when that dedication leads to success, it’s just as rewarding. Stein, recalling a childhood spent pouring over Indiana Jones and Star Wars films, says his current position takes him full circle to early inspirations.

“These movies were the reason I wanted to make movies and tell stories,” he says. “It’s really a dream come true. … They pay me to sit around and talk Star Wars.”

Cameron Carr is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at ccarr@cityscenemediagroup.com.

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