How $60,000 of Student Loans Almost Kept Britney Young Out of Acting

In Early Works, we talk to artists young and old about the jobs and life experiences that led them to their current moment. Today, it's actor Britney Young, who had a breakout role earlier this year in Netflix's sensational show GLOW.

I was born in Tokyo, and we moved to Alaska when I was nine. I loved Tokyo. For a big city, there's a lot of space and freedom there. My sister and I would catch the train and go to another part of the city to go bowling. We'd ride our bikes everywhere. We'd be like, "Hey, Mom, I wanna buy some ice cream—can I have some money?" And she'd say, "Go ride your bikes to the store." It helped a lot to make me into this very independent person now, because when my mom would say that, I would say, "Hmm, now I gotta figure out how to get to this place. I'm awesome at directions now!" It's a fantastic place to grow up. Unfortunately, I haven't been back since—but it's been on my bucket list.

My mom is the regional director for Alaska's Headstart program, and my dad is a security guard at a high school, and he's also a football and basketball coach. They moved to Japan because my mom was getting her masters and went over for a fellowship program. She worked at one of the universities there, and my dad followed her over there. While they were there, my dad worked at the American School of Japan—the school we attended—as the athletic coordinator, and my mom worked at West Toyko Preschool.

We came back because a lot of kids who went to school with us were going to college in America but moving back to Tokyo afterwards because of culture shock—they just couldn't deal with living in the States. Our parents wanted us to have that experience of living in the United States, since we're American, and that's where our family was. So while my sister was in middle school, they moved us back so we could have the choice to move back to Tokyo because we wanted to—not because we had to.

I went to USC School of Cinematic Arts for the last two years of my education, and it was fantastic. It was my dream school—I wish I could've gotten in straight out of high school, but I still had so much fun as a transfer. I was like, "I can't believe I get to watch movies and TV every day for my education. Who knew? I've been practicing this whole time!" USC is such a fantastic school. One thing I really love about that program is that they really prepare you for going into the field of film and television. I learned so many things that when I got into production, I was like, "Oh! I know how to do this. I did this in school." It was a huge confidence booster to know that they really do prepare you for having a job after college.

I came out of college with $60,000 in student loans, and I panicked. I always dreamed of being an actor, but I was like, "I need to get this debt down!" I needed a more stable job. I would love to be a producer one day—my dream is to have a production company where I can make my own film and television—so I thought, Let me go into production and learn more. For seven years, I bounced around as a production secretary, a post-PA, an accounting clerk.

I worked on movies and TV, and I got to a point where I was the showrunner's assistant on The Mentalist. I was seeing all these casting tapes, and I'd have to email casting and say, "This is who the producers want." Every tape I watched, I sat there and said, "That's what I want to do. What can I do to start that transition?" Bless her, one of my friends called me and was like, "I heard you want to get into acting—I have a part for you in a webseries that's yours if you want it." I went on her webseries, and it lit a fire under my butt. From there, I found my manager and my agent, I started auditioning—and I started actually booking things! That was a great feeling. When GLOW came up, it was that "Aha!" moment where I was like, "OK, I need to fully dedicate myself to acting." I'm very grateful that the show came along to give me a violent push out the door.

One thing I learned was that even though you're not following the clichéd path, that doesn't mean you're not on the right path. I see all these people who are like, "I moved out to LA from Iowa, waited tables, worked nightclubs, and auditioned during the day." I thought that was what you had to do, but I realized that wasn't the right path for me. I really appreciate my time in production—learning how TV shows and movies are made, how sets are run, and how everything works. That was the correct path for me. It might not be the correct path for other people, but just because you're not doing what Hollywood movies tell you to do doesn't mean you're not gonna break in.

You always have to be working on your craft. Go out and shoot a little movie with your iPhone! We have so much technology at our fingertips that we can make things on our own and have people see them. That builds your résumé and skill set for when you really do break into this business.