Cody Kearsley is a Métis actor, writer, director, producer, and educator with nearly two decades of professional experience in the performing arts. A graduate of the Theatre of Arts Conservatory in Los Angeles and recipient of the Michael Chekhov Award for Most Promising Actor, Cody has worked professionally across film, television, and theatre while also building a career as a writer, director, producer, and teacher. He is the founder and Artistic Director of Vancouver’s Vagrant Players Theatre Society, where he has produced and directed numerous theatre productions while creating opportunities for emerging artists. He is also the founder of Persephone Pictures, a film production company through which he has developed and produced film projects. Cody has also worked as a producer and production coordinator with Crazy 8s Film Society, helping bring more than a dozen short films to life. In 2023, he was selected for the Whistler Indigenous Filmmaker Fellowship. Teaching has become an important part of Cody’s artistic practice. For the past five years, he has taught acting classes and workshops across Canada and the United States, and currently teaches at Crash Acting in Los Angeles, where he also hosts workshops and community events. He works with actors internationally, teaching students and working artists from around the world. Cody’s teaching is rooted in a somatic approach and he believes every actor brings a unique body, history, culture, and lived experience into the room. Rather than asking actors to separate themselves from these things, his work explores how they can become part of the actor’s instrument. As an Indigenous artist and educator, Cody is interested in questioning inherited ideas about actor training and exploring more inclusive, culturally aware approaches to the discipline. He brings a perspective grounded in professional experience, collaboration, curiosity, and a commitment to helping shape the future of actor training.