Local youth making strides toward film career

Noah Begin was born in Manchester, N.H. At the age of 5, he and his family moved to Maine. While attending elementary school there, he took part in the school’s plays. In 2007, at the age of 11, he and his family moved to Pahrump.

When he was old enough he joined the Methodologies Project, a program of the NyE Communities Coalition.

He participated in the production of a multi-media project each year. He toured with the project for four years throughout several Nevada counties while still attending school. The experience introduced him to film and stage production as well as a stage performer.

During that same period he wrote, produced and performed in seven short film projects on his own. This period included his middle and high school years.

Begin is currently a senior at Pahrump Valley High School. He had to drop out of the Methodologies Project when he accepted an internship with Channel 46. He is on camera as a weatherman. He also does editing of commercials as well as performing master control work in the production department. Begin said, “This is an opportunity that furthers my goals.”

In spite of his busy schedule, Begin tried out and was cast in the role of “Larry the bus boy” in the Shadow Mountain Community Players (SMCP) production of “Murder Most Fowl,” a murder mystery and dinner theater. After months of rehearsals, he appeared in five of the six performances. At the end of each performance the audience voted on who was to be the killer. From a cast of 10 suspects, Begin’s performance was so convincing he was chosen three times. Begin said, “I really enjoyed working with SMCP. I hadn’t been in a play with adult actors before. I had a lot of fun.”

During this same period, Begin entered the Mason’s youth film-making contest. He won first prize for his short film “The Devil and Tom Walker,” which he wrote and also played the part of the main character. His film will be showcased at the Pahrump Film Festival in the youth category on Saturday, September 20th.

Begin plans to attend the California Institute Of The Arts after graduation. He wants to study both film production and acting. He explained, “I love acting. I find it exciting and rewarding but success doesn’t always come overnight. Developing my skills behind the camera in production is my plan for earning a living while I work toward that goal. I also really like the production end.”

Contact Creag Rowland by emailing creag.pvtimes@gmail.com.