Conversations with Cory Presley

I first visited Arizona about 10 years ago for my older brother’s birthday. We were grilling out by the pool when I just so happened to meet a movie producer! He asked me if I had ever thought about becoming an actor, and I thought “who hasn’t!?” At that time, I was currently working full time on a construction site, working towards my Journeyman license in Union HVAC work. I assumed my career path was set. Regardless, we exchanged social media handles, and I was back in North Carolina the next week. Cut to January 2020 (pre-pandemic), I receive a message from the same producer, offering me a part in his current project. Intrigued was an understatement! Then…Covid hits. The world shuts down. Months pass, and on September 8th I receive the message letting me know I got the part! PLUS a job as a production assistant for the entirety of filming! I’ll have work for 45 days and I needed to be on set in TWO DAYS!

 I took a chance, bought a one-way ticket from Raleigh to Phoenix and said my goodbyes. The minute I stepped on set, I knew this was the career for me! Fast forward 2 1/2 years later, and I have appeared in 35+ commercials, accrued 17 IMDb credits for feature films, shorts, etc. All without an agent or a manager. I got some excellent insight and advice from a few established actors on my first set, some of who I am happy to call friends to this day. I took that information and ran with it.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been fairly smooth?
Starting a new career or chasing a dream is always scary. Some of the major challenges were learning about the industry and finding groups of like-minded people to stay creative with when I wasn’t on set—fellow actors, writers, producers, etc. I’ve always been a people person, but I didn’t know where to find these types of people. So I stayed in touch with a few fellow actors I met on my first movie set and went from there. I still work with a lot of them to this day.

For my day job, I’m a server/bartender at The Morning Squeeze in old-town Scottsdale. I’ve also just recently started my business, BTS Vending. I’m a hard worker, I like to stay busy, and I’m always interested in new ideas and projects. That could be why I’m drawn to acting. I want to try everything, and I want to DO everything. I’m not afraid to fail. I’m excited to succeed.

Traveling to the country to spend time with my grandparents, my uncle, and my cousins is a fun memory. We’d spend all day swimming, riding bikes, hiking. General running around, being kids. I also worked for my uncle’s lawn care business, so that work ethic was instilled early on. I loved and cherished every minute of those summers!