Nikita Kalashnikov

Acting / Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

School of Acting

I was born and raised in Saint Petersburg, Russia, then bounced around the world for a while. I spent my teenage years in Norway. At twenty, I enlisted in the U.S. Army and served for four years, all of them in Bavaria, Germany. I grew up with just my mom and my little sister, so the Army was the first place where I had some male direction and guidance, which I sorely needed.
Before any of that, I was a theater kid who got bullied off the stage. I quit, told myself I wasn’t creative, and didn’t touch anything artistic for most of my life. I studied economics. Wore collared shirts. Very responsible.
Then two years ago I threw all of that out and applied to Academy of Art University to study acting. Best decision I’ve ever made. Turns out that kid who loved the stage was still in there.
What I love about acting is disappearing. Going so deep into a character that you stop being yourself and start actually feeling what they feel. Something switches. It’s a little hard to explain but once you experience it, you chase it. It feels like real life magic. I take something from every character I play — a gesture, a mannerism, a leather jacket — and it becomes part of me.
Russian-Norwegian-American Army veteran turned actor. Nominated. Just getting started.