Miles Elliot graduated from the LACHSA Theatre Department in 2019 and just landed a role as a series regular on the series School Spirits. After attending University of Michigan, he moved to New York City, where he is based currently. Miles was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule shooting in Vancouver to speak with us about his journey and the role that LACHSA played in it.

Tell us about what it was like for you attending LACHSA. How did you know you wanted to be in the Theatre department?

I’ve always known I wanted to be an actor. It just sort of happened to me at a young age, I can’t pinpoint an exact moment, it just felt like a no-brainer, I wanted to do it. I was a part of lots of performing arts groups throughout middle and elementary school and so when I heard about LACHSA from some peers of mine—it was another no brainer. I can say with confidence that LACHSA changed the trajectory of my life for good. I don’t know what my life would look like if I hadn’t gone to LACHSA, but I can tell you it wouldn’t be the one I am living now. LACHSA allowed me to do what I love with no holding back, it is a place that celebrates passion and gave me a place to pour out all of my energy for this thing I love to do. It sounds cliche, but it’s true.

What do you think was the most important thing you learned by attending LACHSA?

Hmm. It’s hard to pinpoint one lesson or piece of advice from a specific teacher or experience because there are many. But the thing that always comes to mind when I think about LACHSA is the community. I think LACHSA, whether intentionally or not, fostered such an amazing community of young artists. I learned the importance of having a fruitful, artistic community surrounding you at LACHSA. It gave me a sense of belonging and gave me people who upheld each other’s artistry. I think a lesson I learned there, which I learned over and over again after and still do now, is how to look horizontally instead of vertically when it comes to your art. I think amongst my generation it’s easy to get caught up in the idea of ‘success’ and to look ahead of yourself for ‘the next thing’. LACHSA really laid the groundwork for me to look around myself, to see the people working right next to me and lift that up, instead of getting caught up with the things ‘above me’. At LACHSA I got to grow as an artist with the people around me and truly learn what it means to be a collaborator. It is something I am very thankful for now and something I lean on in moments of doubt or uncertainty in my own career as an artist.

Do you still stay in touch with or work with other LACHSA alumni? What has that looked like for you?

Absolutely. Kinda what I just talked about in my last answer, that has been everything to me. Most of my closest friends to this day are other LACHSA alumni. And not just friends but collaborators. I sort of have a built in network of artists that always turns to each other to collaborate on projects. Again, it sounds cliche, but it really is true. Beyond my own close friends, I will always run into someone I went to LACHSA with. It happens more often than not. Or I will see a former classmate in an article announcing their next project or in a play I just saw. It’s pretty surreal and I feel lucky to be a part of that community.

Tell us about your journey after LACHSA.

I mean I’m 24 so I feel like my journey as an artist is still very much beginning. But, after LACHSA I attended the University of Michigan where I got my BFA in Acting. I continued to train there and made some unforgettable memories at Michigan, Go Blue. UofM was also littered with other LACHSA alumni, which was very special as well. I also trained at the Atlantic Acting School summer intensive, which was a gift. I think every actor, young or old, should go study there, it was magnificent. After college I moved to NY and about a year or so after graduating, I was lucky enough to work on School Spirits, where I am currently shooting now.

When did you start working on School Spirits and how did the job come about?

I joined the show in its second season last June of 2024 and we are now currently filming the third season. I got the audition from my manager, who I signed with after my showcase at UofM, which led to a series of callbacks and here I am! I feel very lucky to be a part of it, it’s a pretty great group of folks and it has been a blast to be back filming.

Is it fun being “back in high school” again on the show?

It’s funny I don’t often think of it as a ‘high school show’ because of the content matter my character deals with. In that, he’s a ghost who has been dead for 50 years, so most of my material is really about existential stuff. But, yes, it does feel like high school in that I get to film with some of my dear friends, which I did a lot of at LACHSA.

Did the collaborative spirit at LACHSA help you in working with such a big ensemble cast on School Spirits?

Oh sure. I got to work on many films at LACHSA, in front of and behind the camera, which definitely made me feel like less of a stranger to it when I started working. Lots of it feels familiar, it is such an ensemble show and it is not unlike working with my 4th year class at LACHSA. We are all such great friends, which helps a lot with our chemistry, but we also know when to put ‘play’ aside and get to work. I think I definitely learned a lot about that my senior year at LACHSA. I remember directing my 4th year class with my good buddy Isaac Harris. That was such a good learning experience for me. It was one of the first times I sort of had to separate ‘work’ and ‘play’ in order to (hopefully) create something good. I think we do that a lot on School Spirits, and I think we are all pretty good at it because we all have a level of care for what we are doing. We can have a blast on set while also doing our jobs.

Tell us about your goals and dreams. What do you hope to be doing in 10 years?

Oh man, that’s hard. I just want to do good work. It’s simple but it’s what I want. I have loved acting for so long and it’s the only thing I’m gonna do, so I hope for it to be good. There’s tons of types of work I would love to do, yes, but I just hope the work is fruitful, fulfilling, fun and good. If I can have jobs for the rest of my life that meet those things, I’ll be more than happy!