My Story | Sebastian | Actor — Sebastian Storey

My name is Sebastian Storey.

Here’s my story…

I’m an English actor and I was born in 1999 in West Yorkshire, in the North of England. In 2020 I graduated after three years of training as an actor, from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, with a BA (Hons) Degree in Acting.
To see a shortened version of this page, please check out my Mini Biography. Some of this information you can find on my Spotlight CV and other profiles, but you came here to find out a bit more about me. The full whammy…
SO HERE GOES.

My early years

The photo above was taken in July 2021. This is my family; the people who have been there for me my entire life. Back when I arrived on Earth in a small alien spaceship that looked like something out of Doctor Who - I was born Sebastian Brandon Blake Storey.
I grew up just outside the small village of Esholt in West Yorkshire, where the British TV soap ‘Emmerdale (Farm)’ was originally based and filmed for many years. I’m the son of a wonderful mother, Elizabeth Ann Storey, an executive business manager in education (second in from the left), and a fantastic father - Peter Storey; a builder, plumber and roofing contractor (1st in from the right). My father has run his business since 1980, and inspired me to follow the self employed route. I'm also the nephew of an amazing Auntie, Maureen Jarvis (1st in from the left) and Uncle, William Jarvis (no longer with us).
My Uncle ran a well known local business as a stone merchant, and when I was younger he provided stone for an early ‘Harry Potter’ movie. He said to a member of the production team collecting the stone, something on the lines of… “Is there anything you can give my nephew? He’s a massive fan of Harry Potter and he loves films”. The gentleman handed him a rare signed poster given out to members of the cast and production team; it’s been on my bedroom wall ever since.
I’m the proud grandson of a 94 year old grandmother - Irene glover (photo above, taken on 29th September 2021 - her 94th birthday). My grandad - Alfred Glover (also no longer with us) fought in the 2nd World War and I’m honoured that his war medals have been entrusted to my care.
My family have always been a massive and very important part of my personal life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The Films and TV series that have inspired me from the very start.

Growing up watching Marvel, Disney, Warner Bros. and DC Studio productions, as well as BBC, Channel Four, ITV dramas, and following the evolution of streaming channels in the film industry, I felt from a young age that a career in Film and Television was where my heart lay, but I didn’t fully realise this (specifically about Film and TV) until the last few years.
On both film and stage, I’m a sucker for moments of tension and anticipation. Eventually I found that just like on film, on stage I connected with events in the narrative of the work that provided a huge rush; scenes that literally looked like they were plucked straight out of a blockbuster film or an award winning TV series, particularly fight scenes, shock horror, and moments of high energy and fast paced action.
Browsing through Netflix, Amazon Prime or Disney +, I always gravitate towards the fantasy genre and the supernatural, whether it’s the sub-genre of supernatural comedy, horror or mystery. ‘Charmed’, ‘Buffy The Vampire Slayer’ and ‘Angel’ were the first TV series that I ever watched. Series such as BBC’s ‘Merlin’, ‘Doctor Who’ and HBO’s ‘Game Of Thrones’, Japanese anime such as ‘Death Note’ and American animation e.g. ‘Avatar The Last Airbender’ have had a huge effect, not just on my love for films growing up, but my outlook in general. That’s the power of film; it can change and save lives.
Films that have had an impact on my life and career ambitions include: Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Dark Knight Trilogy’, Sam Raimi’s ‘Spider-Man’ trilogy, Robert Zemeckis’s ‘Back To The Future’, Peter Jackson’s ‘The Lord of The Rings’ trilogy and ‘The Hobbit’, John G. Avildsen’s ‘The Karate Kid’, Michael Bay’s ‘Transformers’ franchise, Spielberg’s ‘Ready Player One’, Damien Chazelle’s ‘La La Land’, the jaw dropping Sam Mendes war film ‘1917’ and ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ (2005) co-written and directed by Andrew Adamson. I grew up watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe starting with Robert Downey Jr.’s ‘Iron Man’ in 2008, and I’m very grateful that MARVEL was a massive route of escapism for me throughout the years.
I have adored the wizarding world of ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Fantastic Beasts’ since Chris Columbus’ ‘The Philosopher’s Stone’ at the very beginning; those films are pure magic! ‘STAR WARS’ was huge for me as a kid, but I’m still catching up on recent entries to the saga. 2022 update on Star Wars: (This is still true in 2022 - so many films to catch up on!). Mine and my dad’s favourite animated film series to watch together has always been SHREK.
Over the years, the development of comic book movie adaptations has been empowering to see, and I always go out of my way to see them on the big screen. Disney movies also steal my heart; they always have. I enjoy classic films, but my primary interest is in the more recent, ambitious scale of modern cinema. When I was in my later teens my Aunt introduced me to James Dean’s films, and out of all famous figures in history, he’s become a bit of an icon for me. With these large scale developments of films throughout the years, I’m more motivated than ever to work hard in the film industry.
My further interest in Shakespeare adapted for both film and theatre came in my mid teen years, but we’ll get into those juicy details further down this long, winding road.

GROWING UP IN THEATRE

My connection to theatre and the arts is in the blood. I grew up taking part in local community theatre productions. For one of those companies my mum produced, directed and choreographed for over 25 years. The group has raised over £35,000 for ‘Cancer Support Yorkshire’.
At the age of 15 my drama tutor at high school asked me to join his youth theatre group - 'St Mary’s Youth Theatre’. (See here a production shot from their version of Webber’s ‘Whistle Down The Wind’). Stephen always believed in me and encouraged me to pursue a career in the arts industry. Around this time I had my first ever visit to the Royal Shakespeare Company to see Henry IV Part 1, and I immediately fell in love with this epic form of storytelling. This experience at the RSC was life changing for me. The way they told the story, I knew for certain I wanted to tell stories like that someday too. Previously my only encounter with Shakespeare had been Othello in English classes at school. Speaking of high school, I attended Woodhouse Grove Secondary School.
When I was 17, David Wood (the deputy head teacher) saw me performing a certain soliloquy from Hamlet in a school concert, which I was asked to do whilst the tech team were setting up for the next band. He spoke to me after the concert finished, and sent me in the direction to start looking into and working towards auditioning for drama school. David spent time specifically helping me prep for those next steps, and I will always be very grateful that he did.

KARATE

Going back a bit, (because chronological order is useful, but not always invigorating), at six years old I joined the Shukokai Karate union, and I spent eight years working through White Belt to Brown Belt 3rd Dan, which culminated in my ultimate goal - Shodan Black Belt. I trained for this belt for an especially long time with my Sensei, Andy white, and I achieved it at the age of fourteen, with high enough marks to gain the Shodan status. It was an awesome end to many years of training.
I carried on with regular Karate classes for a further two years until I knew I had to knuckle down and focus on my A-Levels, since my mum and dad were working very hard to pay for my education. Seeing action movies I’d always had an interest in kicking butt, but more importantly - self defence. I also took up Karate to defend myself against people who felt they were bigger and stronger than other kids, and my parents wanted me to know about the art of self defence. The photo here is one we took after my black belt grading. One of my recent goals is to make a reel of my Karate skills to show what I can do!
**2022 update** - objective complete! Check out my new Karate reel shot by the amazing Dan Olsen at this link: Karate In The River Thames

revelations and writing

Something hit a home note when I worked on my Extended Project Qualification for high school. I both researched and wrote about the ways Shakespeare has been re-appropriated for films throughout the years. Of course I worked hard on my other A levels too, but (surprisingly) as much as I enjoyed studying the rest of them, it was my EPQ and time studying English Language and Literature which has had a major influence on my professional aspirations. In my English A Level years I started writing poetry. I remember the class listening to the poetry and I think they genuinely enjoyed it!
As well as pursuing my career as an actor, poetry started my journey towards taking up writing in my spare time. Working as an actor is always my first priority, but someday I would also love to become an author and finish my novel, and maybe publish some of my poetry too. I left secondary school with a few good friends who support me in my goals and that I’ve kept in touch with to date.

MUSIC

I think I should talk about music now, even though it’s not the route that I went down professionally. Music has always been a part of me. From an early age I studied piano lessons (ABRSM) grades 1 to 8, with my grade 8 examination taking place when I was 17. My grandad played the piano too. I also did a couple of ABRSM exams in singing, but my interest in singing couldn’t possibly compete with the joy I have for playing piano. I was also part of a cathedral choir from the ages of 11 -18, where I learnt the basics of playing the pipe organ. At high school in my late teens, the music teachers let me accompany hymns and dabble in improvisation during Thursday morning school church services. One of my A Levels was in music.
I regularly listen to film and TV soundtracks, and Japanese anime music is my go to gym music, because the soundtracks are often so high energy and full of positive vibes. I keep up to date with Broadway and West End musicals and Ed Sheeran’s new songs (because his music is soulful). I love the 80’s and 90’s, and when I’m chilled out, classical music and jazz are my thing.
When I was 18 I got my A Level results - what a stressful time! Anxiety inducing. Although nothing could officially prepare me for what came next - drama school.

The drama school years

journeying to drama school at 18 years old

When I was 17 I auditioned for the prestigious ‘Royal Birmingham Conservatoire - Acting’, formerly known as the ‘Birmingham School Of Acting’. After a recall audition I was offered a place on the course. I spent three years in Birmingham, culminating with a London showcase. It was a crazy time (that’s one word to describe it). Whilst there, I gained a passion for stage and screen combat, motion capture, and the works of Tom Stoppard and Harold Pinter.
film, motion capture, voiceover and Shakespeare training

My favourite moments included working on film and voice-over courses and my first ever encounter with a motion capture suit and performance capture. Another major highlight was the trip in my 3rd year to do workshops at the RSC, where I also performed a speech on one of the stages at the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Final year

I will never forget when my colleagues and I got the chance to perform the final scene at the RBC Showcase at the Soho Theatre in London. In our scene I played a dorky police officer fending off a wife and a husband from killing each other, from ‘Holes In Skin’ by Robert Holman. I love those scenes where the character finds themselves in sticky, awkward situations after biting off more than they can chew - they are hilarious to play. To top it off, I got to lead the bows at the end, and ask all the agents and casting directors to stay behind for nibbles. What a day it was!

Just as I was coming home and finishing the main body of my degree, I signed with my first ever agent, and like so many other actors in 2020, I didn’t graduate from drama school… in the traditional sense. I knew very well I was lucky to have even taken part in a showcase.

The 2020/2021 COVID-19 Pandemic. Oh yes -

OK COVID. WHAT NEXT?

COVID-19 had come, I graduated online, the world went mad, theatres shut down, the official graduation was postponed (at one point it felt like indefinitely) and honestly, I didn’t really know what to do. Things got better…

I felt so grateful that I now had an agent who I could turn to, but what could we really do in the situation we were in? Being at home constantly, I knew I had to get creative. It gave me a lot of time to finish my actor’s ‘business plan’ as my final project for drama school, and I had made new, more specific goals. One of my favourite things to come out of 2020 was horse riding training twice every week. I’ll talk a bit more about that further on.

Being back at home with the family, I reconnected with my love of video gaming (I had my Nintendo Switch with me in Birmingham, but in my 3 years away I had missed my PlayStation 4 sorely). I’d pretty much missed out on the end of a gaming generation with some of the best, award winning titles! I had loads to catch up on in the gaming world. So… I did the unthinkable - I set up a gaming channel on YouTube. It started me off an another journey - editing. I’d also started another separate YouTube channel with a writer friend. For every video we explained the stories of Shakespeare in a comedic fashion. To pass the hours at home I also put some time into designing my own artsy posters inspired by characters or genres that I love, some of which you can see above.

This lasted for a short while, until just like everyone else, I’d had enough of living my whole life through a small screen at home. I wanted to be doing the job that I had trained for, and then gaming on YouTube and writing at home whenever I had time. YouTube is an incredible platform, and I think it’s an amazing tool. Like everybody, I yearned for life to return to normal. I missed travelling and the world the way it was. The end of 2020 picked up a bit, even though the UK went into lockdown again.

HORSE RIDING

For years I’d wanted to learn to ride a horse, and then I did. I’d seen all those incredible shots of actors riding off into the distance in a film sequence; those jaw-dropping battle scenes where soldiers would charge into war as a united front on a horse, avoiding bullets, bayonets and bombs. But war and westerns are usually serious, so I knew I’d have to work my ‘ass’ off. Through summer 2019 I’d done some taster sessions at the Acrecliffe Equestrian Centre, and I instantly knew horse riding was for me. At the time I hadn’t passed my driving test, and I swore that riding a horse was easily better than driving a car (and more healthier for the entire planet).
When I got back home from Birmingham in 2020, I started riding twice every week to really get going. I’ve been taught specifically how to get the horse to walk, trot, canter, and I began to work on my balance whilst riding. I’ve learnt to ride in different positions (standing up in the stirrups, jumping position etc.), but most importantly I’ve learnt to have patience with a horse. Horses are such magnificent, sensitive creatures, and I found out quite quickly that you need to be fully on the ball, to stay grounded and be prepared for anything that might occur. The horses I have ridden so far are named Snoopy, Beauty, Gonk, Harvey and Wilson. The centre that I train at has trained actors from ‘Narnia’ and ‘Emmerdale’. I also recently found out that my riding school looked after the horse that played Joey in Steven Spielberg’s legendary ‘War Horse’. Awesome!

Horse Riding Reel

2020 and then another few months in lockdown. Crikey. The future looked a bit dark, didn’t it? Thankfully…

I was glad and felt fortunate I was with my family during COVID. As much as I adore travelling everywhere and aspire to keep moving forward, I am a family man. I don’t know what I’d do without them, particularly whilst starting out in this industry. It gave me quiet space to do a lot of thinking about my life and career as an actor. I also started gardening to earn some money.

That was 2020.

By the end of 2020 and during lockdown early 2021, I kept active through online productions with the ‘U.K. Actors Support Network’ created by actor John Craggs; a platform to which I am very grateful. The online productions were ‘A Winters Tale’ (as Mamillius), ‘Dracula’ (multi-roling as The Coachman, The Captain and The Housing Agent), and then ‘Twelfth Night’ playing the role of Sebastian, one of my favourite roles, directed by the marvellous Kate Fahy. I was lucky to be among the company of inspiring, well known artists of another generation, including actors such as David Horovitch, Ian Gelder, Anna Carteret, Nicholas Le Prevost and Richard O’Callaghan.

The outcasts creative

In 2021 I became even more involved with livestreamed productions, this time with ‘The Outcasts Creative’ - a wonderful group set up by the the fantastic director, playwright, author and filmmaker Lance Nielsen and actor and producer Dickon Tolson. The Outcasts Creative have helped me to continue my craft in so many ways, and during my time with them, I have had the privilege of meeting many established artists. My first production with ‘The Outcasts’ was ‘13 Seconds In Kent State’, a heartfelt true story based on the court case following the tragic events of the Kent State Shootings on May 4th 1970. During this production I spoke to a survivor of the event, Dean Kahler - the person I was portraying, and I did my best to honour his story and the entire true to life narrative too. As it was the 51st year since the Kent State Shootings, it was watched by so many people around the world, and our team received much heartfelt feedback from the survivors.
My second online production with The Outcasts was ‘Henry’s War’, adapted from Shakespeare’s ‘Henry The Fifth’ by director and actor Toby Cockerell, modernised with a World War Two setting. My grandad drove the ‘Ducks’ in WW2 (DUKW), so I found it both enlightening and emotional exploring this period in time through one of my favourite Shakespearean works. The third production was called ‘The Warm Up’; a comedy where we literally played a group of actors on ZOOM and explored the funny reality of their struggles with online productions. Jason Flemyng (Azazel from ‘X-Men First Class’ - one of my favourite MARVEL films) often joins in on the livestreams. The most recent production was ‘13 Years Down The River: The Marchioness Inquiry’, now a published play, based on the court case following the tragedy of 1989. It had it’s original premiere at the Jackson Lane Theatre in London in 2001. My name is also now in the official playscript for this production published on Amazon, next to the names of Jonathan Davis and Meeson QC - how cool is that!

All of that really does bring us up to speed. What now?

In July 2021 I passed my driving test, and this was followed by driving all the way from home to Doncaster and back in the ‘Motorway Pass Plus Test’, which I was over the moon about. Then I got my first ever car too (a very proud moment).

With regards to my acting career, I recently signed with Eaglestone Management. I’m now working towards a full HD Motion Capture Reel through workshops at ‘The Mo-Cap Vaults’ in London, as well as looking forward to filming a fight reel in the future.

What does my future hold now? Who knows. Hopefully I’ll have something epic to add to this page soon. I’ll always be pursuing my career as an actor. I’m going to be posting regular updates about stuff on my blog page on this new website, which you can find at the top of this page at ‘My News & Blog’.

Thanks for reading my story.